I’m thrilled to be joining the Wanderbloggers team as Lady Sherpa, your outside adventure go-to gal. I’ll be updating this blog in between my river rafting trips on the Rogue River in Southern Oregon, where I lead four to five-day rafting trips for OARS . I’ve been fortunate to be able to build my life around doing what I love; travel and outdoor recreation. Now I’m hoping to share some of the tidbits on the latter that I’ve experienced and learned over the years with you.
I grew up outside of Boston, a suburban girl who appreciated, but by no means, loved the outdoors. My parents dragged me out to the White Mountains in New Hampshire for day hikes on the Appalachian Trail and cajoled me into a canoe on the Charles River. Gradually, over the years, I began to appreciate being out in the open air and in nature, and now I have a job where for part of the year, I literally live on the river for five days at a time.
I’d like to encourage you, the readers, to get outside and explore the outdoors! We tend to spend so much time inside, looking at our computer screen (like right now!) and over time, we grow distant from nature and all that it has to offer. I want to reconnect you to how much fun, healing, and invigorating outdoor activities can be. Whether its a walk in your local park, an overnight backpacking trip in a national park or a mountain bike ride in the woods, get on out there and breath in that fresh air!
This being said, I realize that many of you might be a little overwhelmed, nay, even turned off, by the idea of backpacking for a weekend in a national park. Yes, this would mean no hot shower for one night (eek!). I want to share tips on how best to go about exploring the outdoors, whatever your age and fitness level may be. I want to help you strategize, organize, and pack for your next trip to the wild world of outdoor adventure. So stretch your legs out, grab your water bottle and outside we go!
Photo courtesy of Joslin Fritz.