I’ve been swamped with work. It’s hard when you know you’re about to leave. Some people might not give their all when they know they’re about to leave, but I’m not like that. I adore my bosses and want to make sure they’re not left high and dry when I leave.

With that said, I had an amazing time on this last camping trip.

I realized:

1) My trail runners sucked in the snow. I got wet a whole lot quicker than my friend who had Gore-Tex boots with hardcore gaiters. BUT, on the bright side, they dried up real fast. Thanks, Brooks Cascadia 9s

2)  I have some serious fear of heights I didn’t even realize when I was relatively sedentary. However, when I came across this trail that not only became narrow but you had to climb across some sketchy, crumbly rock to get to the next part, I just gave up. However, I was with my friend who I knew wanted to explore a bit more so I pushed myself past the vomiting point and kept going. For that, I give myself props. I will go back to conquer that silly trail though – all the way, since I only did about half or 1/3rd of it.

3) Gear-wise, I realized: I HAVE to have a pillow, if not for the first part of my thru-hike. I woke up super stiff and my down jacket wasn’t sufficient for my pussy ass neck. My feet also dangled off the edge of my sleeping pad but that shouldn’t be an issue if I use my pack to keep my feet elevated after a long hike, which is what I intend to do

4) I also came to the conclusion that although there were tweaks I could’ve made to my amazing road trip, my daily life involves a lot more of those so, ultimately, I’d rather be out in the wilderness, I don’t care if I smell a bit or if my armpit hair grows out or if my leg hair grows out. I cared about that shit for far too long and used my sexuality to get some sort of approval I thought I wanted when all it brought me was people taking advantage of me. No more of that. If anybody is going to test me or take advantage of my weaknesses, it’ll be Mother Nature. I prefer her honest wrath to a human’s.

5) Lastly, I realized that – with the IUD – my conditioning has regressed. On inclines, I can’t power up the way I used to. I feel out of breath and have a sense of vertigo when going over sketchy/steep  part of trails. I’ll have to get over that because the fact that I can now hike 10+ miles within the first 48 hours of my period is HUGE so that’s worth the sacrifice, I think.  A nero – a day with few miles, close to zero – is worth more than a zero – a day with NO miles hiked in the day.

I realized so much more on this trip. But those were the bullet points. Will go more in depth about some emotional realizations later. Trying hard to keep this blog up to date but I’ve been swamped with my exercise program, work, finding a replacement, logistics, etc. It’s a MONTH away before I start on the trek of a lifetime, after all!!!!