In 2014 while vacationing in Florida, my daughters and I were looking for a way to document our travels so we created #oleshoyster. Since then, our sense of adventure, love of travel, and desire to become more spiritually awakened has lead us down a path of self-discovery. The world is your oyster…..go find your pearl!
I did it! I have thought about it countless times but never took action. This weekend, I actually went on a solo hiking trip! Oh sure, I’ve hit the trails on many other occasions with my daughters but I have never gone out all by myself. This weekend was a game changer! I absolutely know that this is the beginning of another beautiful chapter in my life!
Why did I wait so long? Part of me acknowledges that I thought that I wouldn’t really enjoy in it if I didn’t have someone to experience it with…..
Another part of me doubted if I could physically navigate the trail. To be clear, I’m 53, overweight and out of shape.
My knees are weak which makes climbing challenging. When hiking with my daughters, I lean on them often to get up and down from different elevations. How could I do this alone?
For years I have seen other hikers on the trail with trekking poles. To be honest, a part of me thought they looked silly and that they were merely using the poles as props. Boy was I wrong!
I did a little research and decided to purchase some trekking poles to see if they lived up to their hype. It took me a mile or two to figure out how to use them but once I did?! Game changer!
Trekking poles became the shoulders that I once leaned on. Hiking alone, they allowed me to navigate safely up and down different elevations and terrains by putting my full weight on the poles, kind of like a crutch. Not only was I able to successfully navigate the terrain, I find myself virtually pain free today. Correctly using the poles reduced the physical impact on my knees and back.
There are many options when it comes to trekking poles. This was my first experience using them but I am extremely happy with my purchase. In case you are wondering, I purchased Trailbuddy Trekking Poles from Amazon. Disclosure: I get absolutely no endorsements of any kind and the opinions expressed here purely on my own.
All told, I hiked over 6 miles and experienced many breathtaking sites along the way. In the early stages of my hike I did feel all alone in the woods and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little scared. Thankfully the feeling didn’t last long .
I regret waiting so long to take that first step but I’m glad that I finally did. It was a totally exhilarating experience and I can’t wait to do it again!
Tip: Always take a picture of the Map Key before hitting the trailFeeling a little anxious at my first stop but excited for what lies aheadFeeling a lot more relaxed and happy Finally reached the overlook! This view was worth every step!
I’m officially in Vacation Mode! What is Vacation Mode you ask? It means that I’m mentally already on vacation. It means all I can think about is boarding my flight and meeting up with my family in Arizona! It means that I find creative ways to include my upcoming vacation into nearly every conversation so I can talk about it to anyone who will listen! It means that I now spend hours online researching the best hiking trails in Sedona that will get me near a vortex. It means that Amazon packages now arrive daily. It means that I have begun packing my bags. It means that I’ve finally started doing those hiking workouts that I saved on Pinterest months ago…..yikes! Why did I procrastinate?!
Planning for a vacation is half the fun. It allows me to stay in full vacation mode! Since I am literally counting down the days, I thought it would be a good idea to share my pre-vacation checklist:
Withdraw cash from ATM (I typically don’t carry much)
Clean out fridge
Minimize contents of wallet to ID, cash, debit card, one credit card and insurance cards
Don’t forget the sunscreen!
Here are a few of my favorite pictures from my last year. I can’t wait to get back!
Courtney’s first view of the the Grand Canyon!It was windy but beautiful!Help!Whew! I had a tough time hiking back up the trail but Courtney is all smiles. Life is good!Elk everywhere around our cabin at Yavapai LodgeBike tour along the South Rim
Hi let me introduce myself! My name is Amy and planning adventures is my #1 stress reliever! I have a full-time career in sales/management for a large Fortune 500 company. I love my job and appreciate the opportunities that I have been given. Planning and executing are strengths that I have leveraged to help me be successful in my career. But all work and no play makes Amy a dull girl! Fortunately, I’ve found a healthy, creative way to parlay my love of planning with my love of travel. I take great pleasure in researching, scheduling, booking and counting down the days until my next departure. Planning is half the fun!
Planning for any adventure requires that I take stock of the following situations: current finances, travel logistics, required time off work, and my personal fitness level. I’d like to tell you that I’m one of those disciplined travelers that sets a budget, plans accordingly and works within that budget…..but I’d be totally lying to you. And since this our first time meeting, the last thing I want to do is lie to a new friend! Let me put it to you this way, I will never be debt free OR have any unused vacation days at the end of the year.
My idea of budgeting for a vacation is to look up flight information, hotel accommodations, available vacation days and then go from there. I pay for as much as I can up front (credit cards totally count). Then, I just hope that I have enough money left in my savings to pay off my Amex when it comes due! Admittedly not the best strategy, but it’s always worked for me. I think I just heard you gasp so this is probably a good time to point out that this is not a financial blog. Notice that I did not list being financially savvy as a strength in my introduction? That’s because I’m fumbling through life like almost everyone else. I am absolutely not advising that you budget for your vacations the way I do. You do you. Just don’t judge!
Now that I’ve fully disclosed my budgeting strategy, it’s time to get to the good stuff, planning! Airfare and lodging consume a significant percentage of my vacation dollars, so I start by figuring out the logistics. I utilize American Express Travel, Google Flights and Hopper to find the best deals on airfare. Once I have an approximate budget for airfare, I research lodging. I spend a great deal of time on this segment of planning because accommodations can make or break a trip. There’s nothing worse than booking what looks to be a great room online, only to arrive in person to find there’s no central air, the interior hasn’t been updated in years, the room is dank and reeks of stale cigarette smoke, and that the pool is so green with algae that you wouldn’t even consider even dipping in your big toe! ! Experience is a good teacher so I now rely on word of mouth, TripAdviser, andPinterest for suggestions and reviews.
My next big adventure is to Sedona and the Grand Canyon! In less than a month, I will meet up with my daughters, Lauren and Courtney, for 4 days of hiking and biking in Arizona! This will be my second annual trip to the Grand Canyon and first time to Sedona. I actually started planning this trip last year while I was in the Canyon. I have a long standing rule that I have to plan my next vacation while still on my current vacation. This makes leaving so much easier knowing that my next adventure is in the works! Anyway, I digress…… we are flying into Pheonix, renting an SUV, and then heading to Junipine Resorts for the first leg of the trip. I am really looking forward to the Jeep Sunset Vortex Tour in the desert. There are also a few metaphysical shops that to I’m excited to visit. From Sedona, we will head to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. We are staying at the Yavapai Lodge in Grand Canyon Village in order to be close to the trails. I can’t wait to share the details on a future post!
Today, my daughter Lauren and I went on a day trip to the Red River Gorge! We loaded up our backpacks and the GoPro and hit the trail. This was our first trip to Red River Gorge and the experience was nothing short of amazing. We started at the Sky Bridge trailhead and quickly came upon the iconic Sky Bridge Arch. This natural sandstone measures 23 feet high and 75 feet long and is 10,000 years in the making!
Me at the Sky Bridge overlookSky Bridge OverlookLauren on the Sky Bridge ArchSky Bridge Arch from belowLauren on the Sky Bridge Trail
Next we headed to Sheltowee Trace and discovered the most beautiful lagoon. After hiking for only about a half mile, we discovered a suspension bridge!
Suspension bridge
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