October 2014 – Trailing the blonde

Hi friends!!!!

Wow have the last 2 weeks been really good for us with gathering supplies!!

So i have that pair of shoes that i used to hike the Andes in and several hiking ventures since then, but they say you can go through anywhere from 3-5 pairs of shoes on the trail and that as you hike your feet swell to sometimes 2 times their normal size. I was nervous about this because hiking shoes are expensive!!! Especially the brand that i have and love which is Keen. The pair i bought about 5 years ago was over $100. Now that pair is still good and i am going to still use it but i knew i was going to need new shoes as some point if i didn’t want to pull a Cheryl Strayed and hike in some duck tape flip flops. So mom and i went to Scheels (an outdoor store) and i took a look at some shoes and saw a pair that looked very breathable for the dessert, not a color i loved but low and behold they were on clearance for $70!!!! Totally new shoes for a steal, i got them a size bigger for foot health! Then the same day we hit the REI garage sale and i got a pair of slightly used shoes (also keen), two sizes bigger for $30!!!!! 2 pairs of shoes for the price of 1! Love it!!!

Mom and i got our pack covers for when we run into rain 🙂

yep mine is super bright orange hahaha!

got two of my favorite brand of sports bra, between the two new ones and two that i already have, i am set for the trail. i will have two will me at all times, when one goes ill have another shipped to me.

i got my thermals for pretty cheap at Scheels (sometimes they are like the Walmart of sporting goods and other times they are severely overpriced). i wasn’t worried about style or anything with this since they will be under my clothes and no one will see them.

the last steal we got at the REI garage sale are a pair of zip-off pants for me! these normally go for around $80+ i found these lightly worn, they were returned because the drawstring on the bottom of one leg broke (which is fine by me, i have a pair of pants like that already so i am used to it lol) they were being resold for $30!!! These are my shorts and pants all in one.

unlike my shoes i bought these pants a size smaller than i am currently. i have the pants i used to use for hiking that are a smidgen big that i can use for the first few weeks as i lose weight until the smaller size pants fit.

and last but not least, today i got my bear canister. This is required for parts of the trail like Yosemite and the Sierras.

Thats all for now, but i am so excited for these great deals!!!!!

Talk to you soon!

Hi Everyone!!!!

I hope everyone is enjoying fall like i am 🙂 I love fall! It is my favorite season.

So i haven’t posted in about a month, so i wanted to check in and give you all an update. I am still waiting for my substitute teaching license to hopefully show up, if it doesn’t show up this week i will be calling to check in and start applying at other jobs. I am feeling the penny pinching with no income coming in. Anyways…..

Mom and i took a little trip down to SoCal to see friends and family and to run the Long Beach Marathon (which i had signed up to run when i was still up in Oregon and actually training lol). We had some fun times down in SoCal.

We had lunch with friends and family at a Long Beach staple, Joe Jost’s. I had my first Joe Jost’s special ever, and i am happy to say it was pretty delicious!!! What have i been missing all these years?!

Mom and i also took a side trip down to Lake Moreno to see it and to see how we will get to it when mom picks me back up for the kickoff weekend.

not my best photo ever lol

we got to actually be on the PCT! Big moment! It made it all so much more real and exciting! We are getting so close!!!

Then we had the marathon, which let me tell you, never try to run a marathon when you haven’t trained, you would think i would know this… but apparently not. Also, don’t tape up parts of your body, “just in case”, i have never had an issue with my body holding up but i still decided to be crazy and tape up, just in case. I followed the directional videos online but i think it hurt more than helped.

At the expo picking up our packets.

Things were ok at first, i ran but tried to stay slow and let my body ease into it. I refueled regularly and often and was surviving until about mile 7. Around mile 7 pain started in my left foot, by about mile 10 i was limping along and holding back tears. By mile 13 i stopped at a medical tent pretty much ready to throw in the towel, they had my take the tape off my ankle to see if maybe it was causing a nerve to pinch. That helped at first then it came back and got worse. By mile 15 the pain was shooting into my hip with every step and i was biting back tears. I called it quits at mile 15. I didn’t want to risk hurting myself badly and jeopardizing my hike.

It is now 3 days after the marathon and i can finally walk almost normal again lol. I am going to take it easy the rest of this week and try going for a walk next week and see how it goes.

Other very exciting news is that my friend sent me the dehydrator off my Amazon wish list!!!

I can’t wait to start using it!!!!!

And last but not least i have started organizing and making my food. Boy is this a large undertaking. The first thing i made was 3 servings of a breakfast called Mule Fuel. I got the recipe from the book “Lip Smakin Vegetarian Backpackin“. It has apple cider mix, oatmeal, almonds, cinnamon, and dried fruit (i chose cherries).

If you are curious about what is on my wish list, here is the link.

Well i think that is it for now, talk to you all soon!!!!!

	Ariana Peters on Homeschooling
	Mom aka Nana lol on Homeschooling
	Nanette Woodall on Weekly Workouts
	Ariana Peters on Book Review
	Amber McGee on Book Review

Month: October 2014

A good haul.

What I’ve Been Up To