Thru-hike update, September 2015

I have been getting my gear ready for my AT thru-hike!

Yesterday I received my backpack in the mail.  A Deuter act lite 70 + 10 pack.  I may have gotten a slightly larger pack than necessary, but I'd rather it be too big than too small.  I jokingly said I'll just put Cheyenne in it, then she won't need her own pack! I'll be getting hers when she gets a little bigger so I'll be able to size it properly.


The other piece of gear I just got is my tent! I purchased the tarptent rainbow instead of the double rainbow, because I was afraid the double rainbow would be too big.  I set up my tent as soon as it came this morning, and I'm really glad I went with the smaller of the two.  There will be plenty of room for me, and Cheyenne, and all of our gear.


Now I have my dog, my backpack, and my tent.  Just a couple more big items to go and I'm all set with that part of getting ready!

Backpacking

Of course, I've been reading a lot about the AT lately.  Well, for a few months I have been.  Today I stumbled upon a couple of Zach Davis' older blog posts.  For those of you who don't know, Zach Davis wrote the book "The Appalachian Trials", which is also the name of my favorite AT hiking blog that he created.

Yesterday, at Salt Pump, I met his intern, so that was cool

This is a really neat article that he wrote last year about reasons why he loves backpacking.  Most of these are the same reasons I've been loving rock climbing, or even just taking my puppy for walks.  If these things sound good to you then I highly suggest you start hiking.  I haven't even started officially "backpacking" yet, and all the things he mentioned are my favorite parts of hiking and climbing.

Cheyenne, Not the Mountain!

Today I crossed off another thing on my list, and added to my family!
80. Adopt a dog from the animal shelter.

I officially adopted my 5 month old, Golden Retriever/Australian Shepherd(?) foster puppy.  Her name is Cheyenne.


Honestly, out of all the foster dogs I've tried to convince my parents to let me adopt (there have been probably five or six by now), she is the most perfect.  She has medium-length fur, but it doesn't seem to mat or get dirty too fast, and while she is probably going to be a little smaller than I wanted for my thru-hiking partner her intelligence and agility makes up for her lack of size.  I've been taking her hiking pretty much everyday, and she's a wonderful hiking partner.  She walks well on leash (for a 5 month old puppy it's better than "well"!), she enjoys walking through the woods, likes jumping over things, or crawling under them, and it's pretty easy to regain her attention after she sees a squirrel or chipmunk!

I have a long plan for her training.  It starts now, with daily hikes, very basic obedience (sit, stay, down, her name, etc), socializing her with other dogs and people, and - as soon as I get my tent - sleeping outdoors.  That's all we'll be working on for the next month at least.  She isn't going to need a ton of training.  My beagle required a lot of training sessions just to be able to "sit" on command, and he still rarely does without getting a treat for it! Cheyenne already will sit for no treat, and I don't need to work with her on "heel" because she already does, without being told.

This is a picture of my puppy on her first hike!

Adding More to the List

Recently I heard about something that I have to add to my list. 

There is now a zipline that goes from Spain to Portugal, and then a ferry takes you back to Spain.  As someone who adores ziplining this is very exciting.  

The best part is, it only costs €15, according to Google that's about $16.80.  Well worth it, in my opinion.  

Just a general update on things, this Thursday something is going to be crossed off my list.  It's a surprise, but it does have to do with my AT Thru-hike.  I've also started ordering things for my hike.  My backpack, and tent should be on their way!