What doesn't kill us will make us stronger...

....but, let's at least be smart about it.

We are in New Hampshire with Evan's family having a blast!  We have done boat rides in Portland, ME and hiking in Franconia Notch and White Mountains NF.  The hiking has been quite the eye-opener for us.  I have read in books about how the White Mountains and the 100 mile Wilderness were some of the hardest terrain along the AT, but I wasn't sure how you could only average 5 miles per day.  After a couple of day hikes in this area however, I am beginning to understand it.  It is hard work!

Up until now, we had been planning on starting in June and hiking SOBO (southbound).  This timing would allow us to go to my best friend's wedding (which has yet to be officially scheduled, but has been penciled into the "April/May/June" time frame) and kick off soon after.  However, after hiking around the White Mountains, we have decided this might actually kill us since we have no way to truly prepare for this kind of intense hiking. After actually experiencing a small portion of what the northern section has in store, we have decided that our chances of starting off strong and keeping going are better if we don't start there. Our re-revised plan now is to begin in the south in Mid-February/Early March and head north. We will hike as far as possible before the previously mentioned wedding, take two weeks off to clean up and attend, then with mother nature sending cold seasons our way, return to the trail at the north end to head south until we hit the point of our previous stop.  We are hoping this choice brings us the best of all worlds in that we will avoid starting off on the hardest portion of the trail, we will be able to start early in the year, and not be pressed for time as much at the end if the seasons don't cooperate or any particular event takes more time than expected.

Island hopping in Portland, ME

Evan and I took a sneak peak of the AT (hiked about 100 yards worth)

AT 2015!

Evan and I have been wanting to do something exciting since before we got married, but first I was in school, and now Evan is in school.  So, big & exciting hasn't happened...until now, well next year.

We are planning to hike the Appalachian Trail - it is 2,180 miles long & takes about 5-6 months to finish.   As you can imagine, this type of trip takes a lot of preparation and planning.   Our latest purchase was 2 pairs of boots.  

Carolyn:

A few months ago, I told my mom that this year for my birthday, I wanted a new pair of hiking boots for the AT.  She complied, so I went home for a visit in late July and she and I went shopping -- did I mention that neither one of us are big shoppers?  After about 8+ hours of trying on boots, I thought I found a good pair, but they weren't in stock.   I ordered pair of Vasque Breezes from Red Wing boots in Rochester because they came in a narrow (and my foot is obscenely narrow).  I got them in the mail a few days later... they didn't quite fit, damn.  So, the hunt began again, luckily I had figured out my second choice during our 8 hour search.  I picked out a pair of Asolo Styngers (A big thank you to Midwest Mountaineering, in Minneapolis for all your help with my boot search and other helpful gear advice!  And of course thank you to my mom for a wonderful pair of hiking boots!)

Evan:

After trying several outdoor stores that just didn't have the selection I was hoping for I was almost sold on a pair of Keens, until I walked next door into a Red Wings shoe store. There I found to my surprise that the company I used to turn to for work boots also has their own line of hiking boots. After having my feet measured for the first time and realizing that not only do I have two different sized feet (not uncommon I'm told) but one foot is nearly a full size shorter in length but significantly wider, and the other is longer but narrower. I have always felt when trying on shoes that one foot fits differently, but never made the correlation to think that the size difference might be that drastic. So after spending some time trying on shoes in Red Wing, I finally decided on a pair of Vasque Summits.

The Maiden Voyage:

The last few days, Evan and I have been traveling through Canada - yesterday, we spent the day in Algonquin Provincial Park, driving and hiking.  This was the "maiden hike" for both of our new boots, and I think we both really like them!

(aren't we so stylish!)

The hikes were only about 4.5 km total, but it was a good first hike.   The views were spectacular, and although it was raining most of the day, we had a great time!