The First Pictures of Our Journey September 18, 2009

 

Here are the first of our pictures to share! Twin monuments sit at each end of the trail, but the landscape that surrounds them is truly opposite ends of the spectrum. It’s great to look at these pictures next to each other and remember all the amazing places that we traveled between these two points. The trail starts at the Mexican border near a little town called Campo. It ends at the Canadian border near Manning Park (a park in Canada).

Yep, those outfits were worn all day, every day for 4.5 months. I did get a new pair of shorts after about 1.5 months, because I had lost enough weight my shorts kept falling down. And then I got a new shirt 1.5 months ago, not because my other one was worn out, it was going strong, but I needed to switch things up….. Its amazing how well everything lasted.

 

 

 

It’s such an interesting experience to start and end at the borders of our country. One of the main reasons to hike a long distance trail such as the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is to free oneself from the rules and neurosis of society. And there you are, standing at the Mexican border, a barbed wire fence right behind the monument, a swept road behind that (yes, they sweep this dirt road at least once a day to watch for footprints) and a massive steel panel wall behind that. Border patrol zoom back in forth in MANY different vehicles (I wish we had a choice what our tax money went towards….. ). And then there you are, standing at the Canadian border, literally in the middle of no where, with a 15 foot wide clear cut that runs along the whole border here in the Northwest. There are many other things along the way that remind you of our society, but its really a blatant reminder at the start and end of how seperated we have become. Its really quite sad in its own way.

  I have looked through some of our pictures, and its amazing to look back on the journey. It evokes great feelings and emotions. Its so funny what we remember and forget, and then what comes back to us by reflecting on the photos. There is so much I want to share about our trip, but I am still at a loss for words, its an experience that is so beyond words in many ways. Maybe as I look through the photos the feelings will help to inspire and coax the words out.

  It already feels like a couple weeks since we finished, and it has only been 5 days. Time is such a fluid and relative thing. I have really been enjoying just relaxing the last few days, allowing the body to heal and shift rhythms. But in ways I am starting to feel a little restless, I think it is time to start putting my energy into creative endeavors again.

The End of a Great Pilgrimage September 17, 2009

  Hi Everyone! Well here we are, at the other end of our great American Pilgrimage along the Pacific Crest Trail.  It’s such an amazing experience it’s hard to put into words in many ways. I’m glad I had the chance to hike it, and the passion and determination to finish it. This year it was estimated that 400 to 500 people started the trail with the intention to go all the way through, and I would guess that at the very most 100 will have finished by the time the weather makes it too hard to get through.

  The Pacific Crest Trail is such an amazing 2,650 mile cross section of the west coast. Every area is beautiful in its own unique way, and so very different. It’s amazing to me feeling the energy of each area and each different habitat. Each place speaks to your soul in a whole different way. And it’s always interesting to see what areas each person feels more at ease in. The goal is to be at ease in all settings, but usually we have climates and areas that we are more comfortable with. Over all I felt like I did better than in the past adapting to my surroundings, but I know I could have done even better. But it’s all a process.

  We took around 2,000 pictures along the way to remember our great journey. As I type this Bernie is uploading them to my computer to start working on them and picking a few of our favorites to make a slide show with and to share online. Sometime soon we will be able to show you the spectacular places we journeyed through. We looked through a few of the pictures the other day and its amazing to look back on the beginning of the trip. It seems like so long ago now, and many details have already blurred in my mind. It will be great to have the pictures to remember through the years.

  We started on April 27^th 2009 at the Mexican border; we finished at the Canadian border on September 13^th 2009 at 8am.  It really was a bittersweet moment. My body had become somewhat tired with the daily 25 to 30 miles, and was ready for a break. But when you spend 4.5 months hiking, it really becomes a lifestyle. It’s great to be immersed in nature on a daily basis, and in a different rhythm than how life is typically lived in our society now. So it is always a bit sad to shift the rhythm away from that again. And it’s always amazing the simplicity of hiking. All that you need is carried on your back, in a little backpack. It makes you appreciate how little we truly need. And of course you could do with even less than what we had.

  My fun and crazy story from the trail that was a side trip is this: When we got to Ashland (We stop at towns along the way to resupply and sometimes get a hotel room to relax and rest) I called my mom to ask her to look up prices on Hotels.com to see if we could find a better deal. She said “Why don’t you fly home for the weekend?” I was confused and a little suspicious. What it turned out to be is that I had an older Ford Explorer that had many troubles and was going to cost much more than it was worth to keep in good working order. My parents had been looking around to buy me a newer car, one that would be more dependable than mine. They heard about the cash for clunkers program (anyone that doesn’t know of it, our government was paying car dealers to give to buyers $4,500 per old car if someone bought a new car that got 10 miles per gallon better than their old one) , and were trying to surprise me with a new car. It turned out I needed to be there to sign paperwork since the car was in my name. So I flew back to Bellingham for 2 days to get my new car, a Kia Soul. I flew back down to Ashland and kept on hiking. This was exciting to me in many ways, but one of the main reasons it was exciting is because I have been working on manifestation techniques while on the trail. And I had been working on manifesting the Kia Soul because I loved how they looked, and they are supposed to be good cars; I really needed something better than my old car that was just getting too tired. I know many don’t really believe in the Ask and it is Given theory, but I swear to you it works, it has worked in many ways for me. Since we have gotten back to Bellingham I have really been enjoying getting to drive it around.

  There are many great life lessons learned on the trail to bring into every day life. And as always I hope to continue the learning process through life. Every moment is a great adventure, if you don’t feel wonder with each moment in life its important to take some time and reflect on how you are experiencing this thing called life, and change things up until you are in awe with everything you do.

  I hope everyone has been having the most wonderful of summers, and I look forward to catching up with each of you! I have been inspired this summer to try some new things, as I play around with them I will let you know what they are and how they are going for me.

 

A Quick Update from Oregon August 13, 2009

Greetings from Sisters Oregon! This is just a quick stop in at the library to catch up and say hello to everyone.

Well we are flying through Oregon, I can hardly believe it! We only have 5 to 6 days left of hiking in Oregon, and there we will be in Washington. It’s really amazing that we spend 3 months hiking through California, and then OR and WA take no time at all. I am really enjoying Oregon, we are back in the northwest for sure. We have been seeing plants that I am used to around home, and we even had a little bit of rain and some grey skies…… =)  I am really looking forward to exploring Washington from a new perspective.

We have been taking lots of pictures, and when we get settled back in we will be able to share our adventure through posting those. The scenery is so amazing, every area has such a different feel to it. Oregon has really beautiful mature forests that we get to hike though, and then all of the sudden the trees will break open and you will have a spectacular view!

I look forward to sharing some of our stories when we finish the trail, there has been some great experiences along the journey!

Well I am off to relax and enjoy the beautiful little town of Sisters! Have a beautiful rest of the summer everyone!!

Half Way Update July 16, 2009

Alright, I know I said I was going to do e-mail updates along the way, but honestly when I get into town for a day off, the only thing I have been interested in is rest and relaxation.

We passed the halfway mark a couple of days ago 1,325 miles. So I decided it was finally a good time for an update. And its possible I won’t update again until we are done.

This trail is an amazing experience on so many levels. It’s a beautiful cross section of the west coast. We have seen so much over the last couple of months, its really amazing. The trail really does change every day. We have dropped out of the high Sierras and moved into country that is a little more gradual. Each area is so beautiful in all its own ways.

There are so many things I could talk about right now, and I just don’t have the time. We are getting ready to head out soon, to hike along the Hat Creek Rim. I will have to spend some time this fall/winter talking about our trip in more depth.

I hope everyone is having the most spectacular summer, and I look forward to hearing what adventures everyone had. I wish you all the best, and enjoy the fresh vibrant energy of summer!

A New Adventure April 25, 2009

Well everyone, tomorrow a new adventure begins. We fly to San Diego to start the Pacific Crest Trail.

I will miss getting to interact with everyone in blog land.

I wish you all the best of summers!

I hope you have the most spectacular time doing what each of you love!

Thank you for all the kind thoughts and comments that you have all shared with me.

A Springtime Surprise April 24, 2009

Wednesday my lovely friends Christie and Jessica came over for the first time. I was giving them the grand tour of all the creatures here. We started out with Chickens and Chicks, then we moved through the Rabbits and Chinchillas. They both enjoyed getting to feel and hold the Chinchillas for the first time (their fur is really a magical thing to experience). Then I took them back outside, and was going to show them the cow herd, mostly because of our miniature black bull. I was pointing everyone out and paused, wait, there was an extra being out there. One of our girls had a calf! He was very literally brand new! Still wet, had not yet stood up. Very exciting.

 

 

This was a surprise for us, because we weren’t sure that our little bull had figured out his job….. We had never seen him accomplish the task before (mom says he must be a midnight lover). We had no clue that the girls were bred, just thought they were FAT. Now that she has had a calf, we can tell the other little girl is pregnant also, she will probably have hers in the next few days.

The two girls are not miniature cows, but mom bought the smallest girls she could find. They have stayed pretty small as they grew up. So their babies should be nice and small, because their dad is smaller than both of the girls.

It was a fun event for all of us. He is a really cute little calf. We decided his name should be panda, because his little face looks a bit like a panda with his black eye patches. I’m glad Christie and Jessica got to experience a bit of our “farm life”.

 

 

 

He has been figuring out how to use his legs and everything else. The photo above is Panda at one day old. We had to put him and his mom in a separate pen than the other cows, because they were being a little too curious of the new family member. They seem quite happy in their space, and he enjoys running around with his little tail up in the air. It will be fun when the other girl has her calf, and they are put in the same pen, the babies will be able to play together.

A birth can be even more exciting when you have no idea it is going to happen! It’s rather funny we didn’t catch onto any of the ’signs’, its just something we really didn’t expect.

So Welcome to the Farm Panda.

A Port Townsend Outing April 22, 2009

On Monday I had a nice little outing with my Mom. The backstory on this is my Dad is building a house for a gentleman that is a Tuna Fisherman. He was taking his boat from Bellingham to Port Townsend on Monday to put it in drydock for a clean up for the season. My mom was interested in the big boat, and asked if she could ride along. So I dropped her off at the Bellingham Harbor at 8am on Monday. Then I came home and did a few chores, got my things together, and drove to the Keystone Ferry. It was a spectacular day, and great for a ferry ride. As the ferry was nearing Port Townsend, I could see the boat that mom was riding in on, it was just behind us. I could not have asked for better timing!

So after we made land, I found my way to the drydock area, to pick her up. I only had to wait a couple of minutes before the big boat slowly slipped into the harbor. The maneuvering of the boat is second nature to these guys, they just slipped it in there, turned it around and settled in on the dock. My mom was beaming, she had a wonderful trip!

After chatting with everyone for a couple minutes, we made our way into town to enjoy the wonderful little shops that fill Port Townsend.

 

 

 

We walked out Union Dock, and enjoyed the view it had to offer. It is a newer structure for people to get out over the water. It was a nice space to sit, reflect and enjoy our surroundings. We then made our way through the shops, enjoying a few of them before they closed for the evening. I found a beautiful pair of chopsticks for Bernie. I had gotten him a really nice rice bowl for Christmas, but could not find a nice pair of chopsticks anywhere around here. So now his beautiful bowl has equally beautiful chopsticks.

 

 Mom got us a room at the Manresa Castle. It is an amazing structure! It was a mansion built for a wealthy family. It has a long twisting history, changing purposes, adding a big addition, a handful of owners. It is now a lovely hotel and restaurant. Our room was fun and excentric, a maze of a few different rooms all connected together. Their gardens were starting to get some blooms, and although some spots were empty, you could tell it was a lush garden in the summer.

 

 

The next morning we went down to see the boat pulled out on land. Wow, its amazing to see how much of a boat we miss under water. This is my mom standing in front of the boat. Look how tiny she is! Boats like this really are amazing.

 

 

Here is a view that you can kind of see the whole boat. It was just so big I couldn’t get a good picture of the whole thing. Isn’t that lift system amazing! They lift it out with this, and wheel it to this spot where they presure wash it. It is over a couple of grates here to catch all the ‘toxic’ paint that comes off with the cleaning process. Then it will be wheeled over to another spot (probably happened today) where it will be taken off the lifts and they will finish cleaning and then start painting it again, with the same kind of paint that helps to resist things growing on the boat. I really have to wonder how much of that toxic paint just kind of wears off into the water, and with all the hundreds of thousands of boats that use that particular kind of paint that are out there, what are the effects on our oceans? Scary.

 

 

It was foggy in the morning, and as it started to burn off it really made everything look magical. Even this pulp mill looked magical with the fog and Olympic Mountains behind it. Every once in a while even industry looks beautiful.

Unfortunatly I have not trained myself to take enough pictures yet, I failed to get photos of the Ferry trip, and of the beautiful buildings of Port Townsend. I am sorry I don’t have those to share with you, because it really is a magical town. There are so many fun, artistic, and unique shops that fill the main street. Its a great town to even just window shop. We did find some good treasures though. I had been looking for a nice owl pendant for my hike, because owls are going to be my totem animal for the summer. I really had not found anything, and we went into a hat shop (because my mom loves hats) and there was some jewelry. So I peeked in the case. There were all kinds of great wildlife pendants and earings. Right in the middle of all of these was a beautiful owl pendant. After looking at it, deciding to look around town, looking around town, and making our way back to that shop, my mom bought it for me. A very kind gift (it was a wee bit expensive)!

After a lovely day of wandering around town, we made our way back to the ferry. The wind had picked up through the later part of the day, and there was a bit of swell showing up on the water. It made it a bit of a bumpy ride, but it was still quite enjoyable.

It was a great outing with my Mom before we leave for our hike this summer. We are starting to get things organized and packed up for our hike, we leave this Sunday for our big adventure. While on the trail we make it to a computer once in a while (it the towns we re-supply at), and I send out mass e-mails to let everyone know what we are up to, and how the adventure is going. If you are truely interested in being on this list, let me know by comment, and I will add you on.

Stormy Skies April 19, 2009

 

Our weather has been spring like for sure. Rain and sun, back and forth. The perfect mixture for the plants that are starting to come out. I took this picture one day last week. It had been raining all day, the clouds were dense and dark. Then the rain slowly stopped and the sun came out. I really love it when there are dark storm clouds in the background and the bright sunlight on the trees or hills. This particular day it made the pasture look so bright, and the trees were such a great emerald green.

 

I was having fun playing around with one of my photo editing programs. I liked the way this version turned out.

Life’s Tests April 18, 2009

 

Last night I was sitting in bed and meditating, and spending a little time communicating with my guides. I was reflecting on the many ‘tests’ that we come across in our life, and the lessons that they teach us. I was pondering how to work through some of these tests also, because seeing to the other side of them while you are immersed in the midst of them can be challenging at times. As clear as could be an answer came through from my guides.

 

Remember, for every ‘test’ you encounter in life,

You have the answer sheet,

Because you wrote the Ciriculum.

 

So when you encounter a ‘test’ (challenge) in life, remember that we chose to experience the lessons in our life, to help us to remember our whole story. We use these lessons to reflect off of. If you feel lost in something, take the time to center yourself, and look at everything that is going on from another perspective. Try to see what is being presented to you at that moment.

We Have a Winner! April 16, 2009

This morning I used Random.org to draw the winning entry for our Spring Time Giveaway. It was #62.

Julie Says:

April 12, 2009 at 4:49 pm eThe Herbal Calendula Belly Butter would be my pick…cause I’m trying not to get stretch marks with my very first pregnancy!!

Congratulations Julie! Thank you everyone for participating in our giveaway! Remember Mothers day is coming up, Birchwood Botanicals is a great place to go to get all the gifts you need for the lovely ladies in your life.