Welcome to my blog! I hope you can find lots of inspiration for your own hiking and camping adventures.
I have enjoyed camping and hiking since my youth. Even though my parents had no particular love for the outdoors, I was lucky enough to be part of active Girl Guide groups with whom I could get outside frequently.
Once I struck out on my own in University, I was able to make weekend forays into the Canadian Rockies. It was in the Rockies that I developed my basic backpacking skills and found a true enjoyment of the quiet places that a longer trail can offer.
Back on the West Coast, I find myself within a couple hours drive of some spectacular hikes, both in Washington and British Columbia. Weather is temperate (and temperamental) and with the help of snowshoes I’m able to get out hiking each and every month of the year.
I met my husband, Dan, five years ago while at a friend’s wedding in California. He had the lucky chance to learn hiking and backpacking from his dad. He was able to make many forays into the California Sierra range, thanks to his dad and an amazing outdoor group at his university.
Within a month of meeting each other, we were headed off on a week-long hike in Kings Canyon National Park. Nothing builds a relationship stronger than high mountain passes, mosquito swarms, and endless sunny days together.
In the intervening years, we have found that we re-connect best when we get out on the trail. I try to plan at least one hike day for us a month, though often end up with a couple more. I have also had the joy of converting a colleague to the wonder of hiking and even got her started on backpacking.
With all the amazing trails in our backyard, we still often look South and dream of the granite domes and peaks of the Sierras. Dan has section-hiked the John Muir Trail over the years but has had it as a goal to do it all in one go. It seems that the time is right to do it, before we settle into a family, before we get too wrapped up in our careers, before we lose our strength and endurance, and before we find too many excuses not to!
-Lisa