Two Days of Water Fun: Lessons in Canoeing and Kayaking
Two Days on the Water: Strokes, Capsizes, and a Storm Friday we put our canoe on Oak Hollow and finally let someone who teaches this watch us paddle. Will said we were paddling okay and gave us a bunch of pointers and tips. Will walked us through the strokes we have been guessing at for…
Coming up: First Canoe Lesson
This weekend we will load the Dagger Reflection and drive to Oak Hollow Marina in High Point for a two-hour private lesson with Will, who owns Get Outdoors in Greensboro. We met with him at the store one day to discuss the upcoming lesson and he followed up with a detailed email. This will be…
Training for Yukon Canoe Adventure
Marty and I have a new line on the map. A friend asked if we would be interested and we jumped at the opportunity. We have decided that we ARE going to do this- with or without a group. Researched showed us that many couples do this together (some with their dogs). We won’t be…
The Backpacking Chair That Earned Its Keep (and the One That Weighs Almost Nothing)
Somewhere along the 100-Mile Wilderness, my chair broke. Marty wasn’t even sure he wanted to bring a chair when we were doing our final gear shakedowns. He already owned an REI Flexlite that tipped the scales at 1 lb 11 oz. Once I tried it on trail, though, the decision was easy. He ordered a…
A 58th Birthday Trek through Maine’s 100 Mile Wilderness as Snacky Turtle & Daddy Longlegs
Katahdin got its own story earlier. This is the 100 Mile Wilderness — 100 miles of bog bridges, river fords, wild blueberries, and deer flies that bite through wool socks. We started NOBO on July 5th, my 58th birthday, with 10 days of food on our backs. By the time we were on day 3,…
When the City Tap Needs a Trail Filter during a Boil Advisory
Last week Winston-Salem broke a couple of water mains and we all got that text: boil advisory. City crews did their thing and fixed the main fast, but I realized my backup was already sitting in our backpacks. Our home RO system? It needs pressure to work, and when mains break, pressure drops. It just…
Summiting Katahdin: A Journey to the Top
We finally made it to the summit of Katahdin on Monday, July 13th around 1:30 pm. It took us 6 hours to summit! It felt really good to make it to the top! I’ll try to write about the 100 Mile Wilderness in another post. It was a beautiful hike. The biting flies were crazy…………
Ready, Set, Go! Essential Gear for a 10-Day Backpacking Trip in Maine’s 100 Mile Wilderness
I hope you all have a very happy Independence Day Weekend! We head to Maine tomorrow after work. I returned from Chicago late Saturday and we spent the day after church on Sunday getting our backpacks packed. Mine comes in at 35.5 pounds total. If you subtract the food weight and the weight of 3L…
Done Prepping for the 100 Mile Wilderness on the AT in Maine
In just fourteen days, we’re heading out on the trail in Maine! The freeze dryer is still humming along! We’re in the final stages of getting everything ready, especially since I’ll be in Chicago for work next week. I was bummed to hear that the cherry orchid didn’t produce any cherries this past year because…
Gear Preview: New Smartwool Intraknit All-Season Leggings for the 100-Mile Wilderness
Hey friends! With our big 100-Mile Wilderness + Katahdin hike starting July 5 (my birthday 🎂), I’ve been fine-tuning my clothing system. I’m a huge fan of Smartwool — I basically live in it every day — so when I saw the new Women’s Intraknit All-Season Base Layer Bottoms in lavender, I hit “buy” pretty…
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My Little Red Bike 