Here we go again….🌲⛰️🚶‍♀️⛺🎒🥾

(Note: I am not well educated on doing blogs, you may have to click “continue reading” to see full post, and click “see all posts by shav0017” to view previous entries)

I’m baaaaack! As promised by Sean, the founder of Warrior Expeditions, he held our spots for 2021 since we had to get off the trail 70 miles into the hike last year. I’m very glad to be heading back! We will all meet up where we met last year on St Patrick’s Day, and then officially start the hike at the approach trail on Friday, March 19th. I am sitting at the Atlanta airport as I write this, unfortunately I missed my connecting flight (darn MN weather!) ❄️🥶🌨️ up to Greensville, South Carolina where I will stay with my friend for a couple nights, a part of the country I have never been to before. She will then take me to the start of the trail and hike with our group for the first week, I am very grateful for her hospitality!

Out of the 10 of us that attempted the hike last year, 6 of us are returning, joined by three new veterans. To be allowed to hike with this program we were required to receive the covid vaccination, so I was able to go to the Minneapolis VA and receive it.

I must admit, I’m not quite in the same headspace this year compared to last year. We just found out two weeks ago today that we are officially reattempting the trail, so it was quite a scramble to get everything ready! Goodbyes are always sad but it was weird to have to do it all over again. I’ve had the feeling of deja vu a ton over the last two weeks! Here are a few goodbye photos, I didn’t go quite as crazy as last year:

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And of course treated my clothes and pack with permethrin, a tick preventative….yes, I know I probably have too many clothes to start, but I was really cold at the start last year!!!

My biggest fear this year are my feet, which got pretty bad plantar fasciitis at the end of hiking the Superior Hiking Trail hike last year, a 310 mile trail in Northern Minnesota along the North Shore. It definitely got me more trail/woods ready though! I will be starting with a pair of boot inserts that are proven to help with PF, and I will take it slow to start and do lots of stretching along the way!

I have had a couple friends express interest in coming to visit me, I would love that! It might just be for a long weekend while I am resting but I would definitely welcome it 🙂 We are going to be treated very well along the trail as well, part of what the non-profit supporting us does is connect with veterans, VFW’s, and volunteers along the way who will take us in and feed us, drive us into town to resupply, shower, do laundry, provide a bed to sleep in, etc, I am very grateful for this! This is the big reason why we had to get the vaccination to be allowed to hike with this group. With that said, I would like to potentially finish by mid-September to attend my cousin’s wedding on September 18th back in Minnesota, time will tell!

As I conclude this first blog post of 2021, I must include a disclaimer… I will be typing these as I am half awake in my tent in the middle of the woods, so any grammar or spelling errors cannot be held against me! They will not be very long but I do hope to do a couple per week with the highs and lows of the journey, along with some pictures. Please feel free to share my blog with others that may be interested! If you enter your email at the bottom of this I believe you will be updated each time I add to it. Statistically, one in four hikers that attempt the 2,200 mile trail will reach Mount Katahdin, I am 100% determined unless taken off by injury. Cheers! 🍻🍷🍸🍾