The Days Leading Up to Georgia: AT Bound!

By the time you’re reading this, we have already started hiking the Appalachian Trail! I’ll keep you posted on our journey, but I wanted to mention a few events that occurred throughout March working up to the start date.

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Our Dog will be Joining Us!

Well, not as you might expect. We had to say goodbye to our sweet girl of 17 years (yes, you read that right!) in December. If Haley was born of the human variety, she would have been working on her driver’s license and about to leave the nest. She was an active girl, and during her last years with us, her ability to walk on her own declined dramatically. She would vocally get very frustrated over her inability to stand up on her own, and also lost a lot of interest in the things she used to love. It was a VERY tough decision for us to put her down before her condition worsened. I still get choked up talking about her and I’m fighting back tears writing this. Trevor and I bought urn necklaces so that we can carry a little bit of her with us.

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Our Friend, Chris will be Joining Us!

No, Chris isn’t dead and we’re not carrying him around our necks. He’ll actually be joining us on foot. Well over a decade ago, the three of us had discussed hiking the Appalachian Trail together. As time passed, events occurred delaying the process. Distance grew between us as it does most old friends. Everyone forges off to live their own life and do their own thing. Fortunately, we’ve kept in touch, and when we got close to his home in Virginia last year, he even came out to visit us on the trail with his lovely wife and adorable son. We’re super stoked that he’ll be hiking the first stretch with us!

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Local Newspaper Fundraiser Coverage!

I absolutely suck at fundraisers. This is something I learned recently. So I contacted the local newspaper to get some media attention towards my fundraising campaign for the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation, a non-profit organization that gives 100% of all donations towards grants to help fund research on various mental illnesses (from anxiety disorders, to Alzheimer’s, to PTSD, to schizophrenia and more). Although it irks me to hear the sound of my own voice (*shudders*), this cause means a lot to me on a personal level as a life-long sufferer of depression, and it was totally worth it. I’m far from my goal of $5,000, but it’s gotten the ball rolling and hopefully won’t lose all momentum! If you’re able to support this great cause, any donations, big or small are appreciated, and can be given here.

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We Got Some Boxes Ready!

Last year we didn’t mail drop boxes ahead of us, but rather went town to town to resupply. It’s not that it’s difficult to do (in fact, it’s just a thumb away!), but we’re doing it this time for two reasons.

Reason number one, my Mom asked if she could help us out this time around by mailing us goodies (Thanks Mom! You’re Awesome!). Trevor’s parents are also mailing us shoes which is quite another necessity (You guys rock too!). You tend to go through a number of pairs out there.

The second reason is; it will keep us motivated. Last year, we got caught up in the “hiker trash” motel/hostel party scene, and ended up taking many days off from hiking (“zero days”), which we don’t want to do this time around. The goal this time is to keep moving along until we get to Katahdin, and less time spent in town will hopefully keep us on track.

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Onward!

We made sure to catch up with family and friends before taking (hopefully) one last stab at an Appalachian Trail thru hike. I will do my best to keep you posted on the months ahead, however, I don’t want to be blogging too much to the point of not living in the moment. Here’s hoping we make it to Maine this time, remain in good health, and meet many more amazing people along the way!

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