Tag Archives: Outdoors

A ukelele, beads, and rubber chicken on the trail

Over the last ten or so years, I have hosted many backpacking trips for adults, and since retiring from teaching three years ago, I’ve been guiding backpacking and canoe camping trips for a local camp. This past week I took a group of twelve teens aged 13-15 on a 30-mile trip on the NCT beginningContinue reading “A ukelele, beads, and rubber chicken on the trail”

Like an old friend

“How long have you had that backpack, Jen?” I had to stop and think when a friend asked me this question a few weeks ago on a backpacking trip through the Highbanks Rollaway on the Manistee River in northwest lower Michigan. I bought my Gregory 44L in preparation for a section hike on the AppalachianContinue reading “Like an old friend”

A few of my favorite things…

There’s a saying with expensive hobbies, “Buy nice or buy twice.” In some cases, I’ve found that to be true, but as a beginning backpacker, it just didn’t make sense to blow a bunch of money I didn’t have on expensive gear before I even knew if I liked backpacking! Over time, I have upgradedContinue reading “A few of my favorite things…”

Finishing up the Jordan Valley 45

Today I completed hiking the 80ish miles of the Jordan Valley 45 Chapter of the North Country Trail, a goal that I hadn’t actually identified when I began hiking various stretches several years ago. I picked up miles here and there as I completed various backpacking trips, day hikes with family, and repeat hikes forContinue reading “Finishing up the Jordan Valley 45”

What’s in your first aid kit?

A couple of months ago, I was attending a “10 Essentials” presentation and the speaker showed the crowd one of those credit-card sized first aid kits you can buy that contains a few Band Aids, tweezers, an alcohol wipe and a couple packets of ibuprofen and Benadryl. If all goes well, that might be allContinue reading “What’s in your first aid kit?”

Pictured Rocks October 2023: Not quite a saunter, but definitely not a speed hike. 

John Muir once said that he didn’t care for the word “hike,” but preferred “saunter,” with its origins of making a pilgrimage to the holy land. I think that many of us who hike consider nature a holy place, and regardless of your religious beliefs, the views at Pictured Rocks certainly make you pause andContinue reading “Pictured Rocks October 2023: Not quite a saunter, but definitely not a speed hike. “

Pictured Rocks Through Hike

Sunday, August 27 we arrived at Munising Tourist Park in the afternoon, using several sites on the western edge of the campground. I went for a swim in Lake Superior and found the water pretty comfortable, a result of being in the bay where the water is a little more shallow. After everyone in ourContinue reading “Pictured Rocks Through Hike”

A solo winter’s day hike on the NCT

An unexpected day off and a decent weather forecast: Where should I go hiking? I decided to fill in a gap in my NCT progress through Emmet County, along a stretch that contained enough road walk that I didn’t want to do it when there would be a lot of traffic. A Monday morning seemedContinue reading “A solo winter’s day hike on the NCT”

To build a fire

Starting a fire in your fireplace or a backyard fire pit is a skill that many people feel confident in, but how about starting a fire in the backcountry, without a Duraflame fire starter and a foot-long fire stick lighter?  When I first began backpacking, I hadn’t started a fire in years. I had aContinue reading “To build a fire”