Farm Life

August 2016

This month has been super busy on the farm.  Sam came out and volunteered and then got hired on.  And everything is growing so much and ready to be eaten.

The New Hampshire Life

July 2016

This month has been all about making deep connections with the amazing people out here, seeing the abundance on the farm, exploring the lake where I’m staying and these lovely spaces.

Seth’s cow had a calf.

Fi and I hiked Moosilauke again, this time on the Beaver Brook Trail, and ran into two separate AT hikers that I had met during my through hike.  One of them was hosting a hiker feed, so I stayed and hung out for a while and met some of this year’s class.

And Sam and Kyle completed their bike trek from Minnesota to New York, so I met them in Niagara Falls and got to bring Sam back to New Hampshire with me.  Incredible summer.

Presidential Traverse and Mt Cube

June 2016

I took advantage of the solstice to hike the Presidential Traverse, a 23 mile hike through the White Mountains over a string of peaks named after various US presidents.  I got to the trailhead the evening before the hike and wandered up until I found a flatish camp site to set up my tent.  I had a pretty restless night and woke to my alarm in the very early morning hours.  I packed up camp and headed to the top of Mt Madison to greet the sun.  I was a little early, so bundled up and waited.  The sunrise was beautiful, the colors stretching across the sky and revealing the panorama of the White Mountains.  This is one of my favorite places in the world.  The hiking was tough and glorious, and I skipped and jumped and loved every minute of it.  It got pretty crowded throughout the day, as these are some popular peaks, but over 23 miles, it was still possible to find some solitude.  I even took a quick, chilly dip in Lake of the Clouds.  Such a special place.

I stopped to check out Lake Fairlee, right near the farm.  It was super peaceful and a great spot to dip my feet in.

I also did a short hike up Mt Cube after work one day.  I was feeling a need to escape to the woods and really stop to feel all of the emotional build up of moving to this new place, leaving friends and family, seeing so much beauty and love, missing so much else that is so dear to my heart.  Running up the trail, finding some space, and letting it all out.  It was beautiful and emotional and painful and exactly what I needed in that moment.  I deeply appreciate that the trail is always here for me.

NYC and Seabrook, NH

June 2016

I’d been meaning to visit my good friend James in NYC, so when one of the other farm folks Seth said he was making a trip out, we decided to carpool.

Visiting James and his partner Lauren was excellent.  It’s always great catching up and seeing where life has taken us.  James is very thought-provoking and easy to talk to.  It made a crazy place like NYC feel like home.  We spent some time at the botanical gardens (free in the morning and a nice green space in the city), checking out their amazing food co-op (amazing), eating excellent food (including an all vegan korean place, vegan brunch spot, yum), walking on the High Line (really neat and really crowded) and just around the city, climbing at an outdoor bouldering gym (awesome).  I’m not a city person, but it was a great trip with great people.

Then Regina and Squirrel Tooth invited me to join them for a weekend in Seabrook.  Fi and Regina’s dog Sandy had a great time running around on the beach and playing in the water, and we had an equally awesome time relaxing, playing board games, eating (more) good food and enjoying the seaside.

Experimental Balloon Festival, Portsmouth, and the Mahoosucs

May 2016

Last May I was getting settled into working on the farm and living in the mountains.  And exploring.

I checked out the Experimental Hot Air Balloon and Airship Meet at the Post Mills Airport.  It was a pretty unique place and rad to see all the balloons up close.

We also went on a day trip to check out the coast in Portsmouth.  There’s a pretty great island dog park that Fi was way into.

Memorial Day weekend I took Fi to hike the boulder playground that is Mahoosuc Notch and to climb up Mahoosuc Arm to the top of Old Speck.  The notch is commonly referred to as the hardest mile of the Appalachian Trail, and it’s a blast to scramble over and under giant boulders, squeeze through narrow openings, and play in the snow.  Fi was a champ.  She squeaked for help once or twice when she couldn’t navigate a jump without hitting her head on whatever rocks or trees were hanging above, but otherwise, she scrambled and squeezed without much trouble.  Despite the holiday weekend, we saw almost no other hikers and enjoyed some solitude on the mountain.

I remember the solo journey I started up the Arm last year in the early morning hours; half the group had continued on to Old Speck Pond and the rest of us (Squirrel Tooth, Walks with Rocks, and myself) had been a little slower and camped at the bottom.  I could only see the narrow circle of terrain that my headlight lit up, and I climbed the cold rock faces up toward the summit.  I remember stopping multiple times thinking I had lost the trail, only to realize that the trail was UP.  Straight up the rock face.  I remember the feeling of accomplishment at the summit, taking some time alone to appreciate how far I had come.  And the celebration when I got to meet the crew at the shelter on the pond.

This time I made the climb in the afternoon. There was no snow up top; in stark contrast with the snowy notch, it was hot. And I wasn’t alone.  Fi always encourages me along with her absolute joy at being out in the wilderness.  It’s contagious.

Mount Moosilauke and Sunday River

As you may have noticed, it’s been quite a while since I’ve given an update here.  I’ve been sorting through pictures from the last year or so, and I want to get some of these adventures up for ya’ll.  So I’ll be covering a couple of months or weeks at a time and try to get up to speed on the big stuff.

I wrote this post last year and didn’t have solid enough internet in New Hampshire to share it.  Enjoy!

May 2016

It’s been a crazy couple of weeks for me, folks.  I packed up all my material stuffs and drove out to New Hampshire, stopping on the way to visit lots of lovely people.

Sam helped with the drive and we got to spend a day with Regina and Squirrel Tooth hiking up Sunday River and skiing or sliding down.

I dropped him off at the airport and headed straight to my first day of work on the farm.  My first week has been really fun, working with a great group of people and already learning so much.  And it’s such a beautiful spot, right on the Connecticut River with some lovely mountains as the backdrop.

I finished out the work week and took Fi hiking up Mount Moosilauke with me today.  We took the Gorge Brook Trail thinking that the Beaver Brook Trail (also the AT) would be a bit too icy for today (this was confirmed at the top by some hikers that had camped part way up  the BBT and weren’t sure how they were getting back down).  We started early and got some time to ourselves up at the top, which was super clear and beautiful and not crazy windy today.  A few others joined us while we were eating out snacks, and on the way down we ran into about a million people and about half as many dogs.  Fi was fantastic off leash and I was even told she was “too well-trained” when some hikers wanted her to stop and visit and she moved to the side and kept hiking.  I’m not sure I believe it, but she did really great.

Horsetooth Adventures and Breckenridge

It’s been such an excellent, fun-filled week with lots of goodbye-for-now’s and outdoor adventures.

Meg, Fi and I had a girl’s day hike out to Horsetooth Falls in Lory State Park.  The parking lot for the easy hike to the bottom of the falls was full, so we ended up at the Shoreline lot and made our own loop to the top of the falls.  Once there, we realized we had made the much better choice, enjoying our private view while the crowds at the bottom waited for their turn to take a picture at the falls, and our return hike gave us great views of Horsetooth Rock from below.

 

The next day, we got the team together for a paddle on the Horsetooth Reservoir for Meg’s last day in town.

 

And we headed out to Breckenridge to visit my uncle yesterday, enjoying some beautiful mountain drives on the way out and a short hike in the snow once we arrived.

 

It’s been a beautiful week in Colorado (and a great five months here), and I’ve been reminded all week that there is still more for me out here.  I’ll definitely be back!  Lots of packing to do and then on to Vermont!

Free National Parks Week and FoCo Life

All of the national parks were free this week, so we took advantage and headed out to Rocky Mountain National Park for some hiking in the fresh snow.  It was a perfect day and an awesome send off on this last time (for now) with all of us together.

Otherwise, just getting in lots of bike rides, friend time, and sunshine before this stay in Fort Collins is up.  Hope you’re all living the dream today!

Trailversary

It’s been one year since I took my first actual steps on my Appalachian Trail hike.  One year since I hopped on a flight to Georgia, met another AT thru-hiking hopeful, found our shuttle to Amicalola Falls, and rode the roller coaster of emotions that went along with starting this undertaking.  It was a short hike for me that afternoon, not even finishing the approach trail or making it to my first white blaze, but it was a huge step for me in a lot of ways.  It was the start of an incredibly empowering, beautiful, life altering journey.  It was a gateway for me to meet so many amazing and inspiring people and to challenge myself in ways I hadn’t yet considered.  As I reflect on this last year, I’m so grateful that my life has taken this path.  And I’m excited for what’s to come.  Happy trails, everyone.

The first day of my hike at Amicalola Falls State Park

At the halfway point in Pine Grove Furnace State Park

View on the hike back down Katahdin

Horsetooth Rock

Today troops were rallied, picnic lunches were packed, and Horsetooth Rock was summited.  This seemed like the iconic Fort Collins hike, so it was definitely past due.  Fi was in top form, hopping rocks like it’s her job and hanging out way too close to cliff edges for my comfort.  Anyway it’s a beautiful day.  Get out and do what inspires and moves you.