So, as most of you have heard by now, I'm hiking on the Appalachian Trail (AT) this summer, and I've set up this fancy blog at the request of my fans (and by fans, I mean those of you who worry easily and want to be reminded occasionally that I'm ok). I'll post an update as often as possible, but please take note that there are not many internet cafes in the wilderness, so it may, in fact, take several days/weeks/months for me to post. Also, for safety reasons, I will not be keeping my posts up to date with my exact location.
To answer your questions:
1) Yes, I will be safe. I have nunchuck skills like no other.
2) No, I will not be alone, forcing me to create an imaginary friend and thereby making intense re-socialization therapy a necessity upon my return. Several other people will also be hiking the trail or a portion of it. A special thanks to all those who asked.
3) Yes, I will take showers on occasion.
4) I will carry 35lbs, give or take.
5) I'm doing what's called a flip flop. The plan is to start in Harper's Ferry, WV and hike north to Maine. If I'm still having fun, then I'll go back to Harper's Ferry and hike south to Georgia.
6) I'll be taking pictures all along the way and will try to post a few when I stop in town.
7) Because I want to. No other reason than that. I'm not searching for a missing piece of my soul, or hoping to become one with nature, or hoping to become a lean mean mountain-climbing machine, or searching for true love with a bearded mountain man. Although some of these things may be an added bonus, they are not my reason. I just want to do it.
Thanks to all of you for all your support, from the good company on the training hikes to the gift cards to the advice on gear to the lightweight journals to the chair-and-a-half I've been sleeping on while I'm unemployed and planning the hike! And, super thanks for the knife! Thanks the most to my parents for smiling when I told them I'm going to live in the woods for 6 months.
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19 comments:
Good luck!
Godspeed, Liza. Be sure to sleep in the last shelter before Duncannon. I helped to build that. But don't worry, it's well built. There were people who knew what they were doing.
May you have a clear day on Katahdin!
gc
Really enjoyed your first entry! no questions, just answers. That's Liza for us.
Let us know when you reach the Shire. I hope you get to see a few hobbits along the way too.
All the best, and aloha from DC!
Good luck on your adventure! It will be an amazing life-long memory! :-)
Best of luck on your awesome adventure! I'm super excited for you and looking forward to more posts! :-)
You Rock Liza! Have Fun, Be Safe & Enjoy the outdoors for MEEE Toooo!!! :-) I can't wait to read your upcoming blogs...........We Miss you here at the Office!!!!
Have a great time in Oz, Liza!
That's awesome! Thanks for including me on the e-mail. I've always wanted to do that for the same reason...just cause! You'll come away with lifelong friends and memories! Congrats, and have a blast!! We'll miss you on the court, but frankly, I'd rather be on the AT!
Volleyball Annie
I'm so proud of you Lize - and thanks for answering my questions!
Love you.
Good luck - be safe - and HAVE FUN!
Kate
Man, I can't think of a more fun time than eating beans and walking in the woods with some sweet nunchucks.
I'm happy for you 'cause I feel not many can (or fortunate enough to) take a break and hike AT! I'm sure it will go down your memory lane, as one of your best times:)
Have SO much fun Liza!
Good times on the AT. And it's okay to have imaginary friends. Just don't give them trail nicknames. BTW, the cats are keeping the chair-and-a-half warm for you.
Oh yeah, what is your trail name anyway?
Lizabird, I couldn't be happier for you. Dawson and I can't wait to meet you in GA!!! Love you.
Congrats, Liza!!! I'm so happy for you. Doing something you actually want to do after a while spent working is trailmix for the soul. Hopefully you won't miss the concrete and the fluorescent lights and the endless meetings about meetings too much (as if...). Thinking of you and hike on!
Mary JS
Thanks for letting me/us know about your blog...and I'll certainly share it with others.
What a great adventure...but watch out for the snakes and chiggers!
Hey Liza! Be forewarned, you'll have a rambly long voicemail waiting for you the next time you hit town - hope I don't drain your minutes. Hee. And while I might have followed my heart to a new job, you followed yours to the AT! So excited for you, my friend. Can't wait to hear more.
P.S. Man, if only I'd known about your nunchuck skills back when we were doing briefings together....
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