TOUGH CALL: Part One

It’s no news that things don’t often go according to plan. In considering this statement, it occurs to me that really NOTHING I have ever planned as gone as predicted. Often, these hiccups teach us a lesson, give us something to consider, but don’t necessarily interrupt our lives. Other times they can become huge inconveniences, with very real consequences. Interesting how something as mundane as the weather can place one in this situation.

The plan: A team of 10 women on Real Chicks Getaway complete a 15 mile hike and overnight camping trip, gaining 2000 vertical feet and camping at one of the most beautiful spots I’ve found in Colorado

The directions: bring rain wear, waterproof boots, warm clothing and a long list of other essential typical fall camping equipment. Each woman carries no more than 30 lbs. We have PLENTY of food, water and essential survival gear.

The forecast: 55 and mostly sunny for both the hike in and the hike out

The hiccup: my prospective co-leader becomes ill, leaving myself as the sole leader of the excursion

Pre-trip Solution: hiker in the front with a map, hiker in the rear with a map. All hikers are familiar with the trail on the map, the emergency skills each team member possesses (including a Wilderness First Responder, several police officers/firefighters and even a nurse…pretty stellar team, eh?), sign in at the trail head with start date/time and expected exit date/time and make sure several people back home know our itinerary.

Emergency plan: hike with a SPOT emergency locator beacon (review to follow)

The reality: Rain. Drizzle. Sleet. Snow. A LOT of it.

The tidbit: we ran into 2 guys coming down the trail. They had been the only other group to sign in with the same destination. They turned back after seeing an inch of snow of the ground upon reaching the top.

The turning point: at 1000 vertical feet and our halfway point, we can see our destination get socked in with snow.

The options:

A. Keep going. Make it to our initial destination, set up camp, cook and head to bed knowing the weather could go from bad to worse.

Those risks: getting too much snow could force us to wait for a break to hike out and/or cover our trail to    exit.

Those solutions:

• could include relying solely on our map/compass skills to get out,
• following the water back out (as our trail ran along a river between one lake and another),
• pres the “help” button on our beacon

The weather: I had asked my teammates to be equipped for fall camping, not winter. They were all pretty well prepared but it had also been raining all day and we were all a little wet.

B. Camp where we are.
Those risks:

• Missing our initial destination, potentially disappointing a group of women who had paid to be guided into the backcountry…to this destination.

So, before I tell you what decision we made…what would YOU have done? What questions would you need to ask? How do you make a smart, informed decision and how would you going about making that call, particularly if others are relying on you. Leave a comment and let me know.



Wrapping Up

      There's a lot to say about the Real Chicks Adventure this past weekend but to be completely honest...I'm still recovering from our closing margarita night! I will post many stories, pictures, tips and reviews over the next few weeks as well as lessons learned in trip planning but to start, let me just say that you chicks are the most INCREDIBLE group of women I have ever met.
      Our hiking excursions were wet, cold and challenging. We had 2 suffering through head and chest colds, 1 with a bum knee, myself with a broken foot, tents with collapsed rain flys, ridiculously incorrect weather forecasts. We had one who conquered her fear of heights to ZIP LINE! She also crossed mountain biking off of her life's bucket list. Several made their first campfire...and did it with wet wood!
     I often wonder how the trip would have been different if men were there. In fact, trip or not, it is curious to me how we are different with men than we are just with ourselves. Would we feel more inclined to complain? Would we have sat back and let ourselves be taken care of rather than taking care of ourselves? Would we have been vulnerable in talking about what it's like to raise a child? To struggle with spirituality? Would we have climbed a tree to hang a bear bag? Would we have leg wrestled in the living room? Would we have talked about bodily functions less? AT ALL?
      There is something so rewarding about a group of women setting out for an adventure. Relying on their own skills of navigation and first aid, pitching their own tents, building their own fires, breaking their own trail. Responding to challenge...together. And let me tell you how high my head was held...walking into a restaurant for breakfast after our campout with the 9 of you. Muddy, dirty, wet, sleep deprived and yet LAUGHING and PROUD of yourselves!

     For those who couldn't be there, know you were missed. To those of you who were, THANK YOU for allowing me to be part of your lives this weekend. I can only hope that you realize how much I love you...miss you...and am completely overwhelmed with inspiration by you. Until next time...solidarity!

Buon giorno!!

After 6 months of planning, ONE week from today, I will be boarding a plane with my fella for ITALY!!

M has never been out of the country, which is one of the most exciting aspects of this trip, in my opinion. I haven't been to Europe since my first trip abroad to Greece in 2003.

Here are a few of the things we plan to see while there:

Cinque Terre...the 5 Villages on the Western coast, accessible by train only, connected by a hiking trail that I will be attempting...in my fashionable boot

 The bottom of an EMPTY wine glass.

 The Roman Coliseum

 Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius

 Cooking class in Tuscany

The Mountains of Turin. M really wants to ski so he's hoping there will be some snow by mid October.

announcement...Announcement...ANNOUNCEMENT!

It's time to announce the Spring 2011

Real Chicks Adventure Getaway Weekend!

We're in the middle of our Fall trip as you're reading this but it was unanimously decided (by the 2 people I asked at the anniversary) that plenty of lead time was needed to make plans.

So, here it is...for your consideration...

March 4-7, 2011

Winter Park, CO

More details to follow but start getting excited! For those who came out last year, there will be some changes to keep it fun and fresh while still hanging on to the favorites..ahem hot springs! And in case you're worried, this trip is designed to me accessible to both the novice outdoors-woman as well as the expert, with optional add-ons that can ramp up the intensity.

Here are some photos from last year's event to whet your appetite and stay tuned to the blog for more details!

 (learning winter survival skills)

 (keeping warm in our snow trench)

 (snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park)

 (In front of Mt. Baldy)

 (Dinner in Winter Park)

 (Sunrise Yoga)

(Cross-country skiing)

A Chick in Alaska!

 The last weekend in July, I flew to Anchorage, Alaska for my friend Katie’s wedding. I had two other girlfriends who were going, and I met several other amazing women once I got there. We traveled in a pack of about 12 women (Chicks!) the majority of the time I was there. The wedding festivities were great fun and the ceremony was beautiful, but what thrilled me the most was that I was in Alaska. Every once in a while, a member of our group would remind the others, “we’re in ALASKA!”, just in case the rest of us had forgotten. In true Real Chick fashion, I couldn’t wait to see as much as possible of the beauty and adventure that Alaska has to offer.

The first night I arrived in Anchorage, I was on my own. I landed at 10:45 p.m. and the sun was still out! It was almost 2 a.m. “my time” so I hit the sack, looking forward to a run the next morning. After I woke, I was so pleased that it was about 55 degrees with no humidity—in Nebraska, we were suffering through a heat and humidity wave. I enjoyed my first and only (so far) Alaskan run, and was happy that I didn’t see any wildlife. Don’t get me wrong, I looked for a moose the whole time we were there; I just wanted to see it from afar. We were lucky enough to see one on our last day there. Yikes!

Katie knew that most of us had not visited Alaska before, and she was happy to lead us on a hike up Flattop Mountain. According to the all-knowing Wikipedia, Flattop is a 3,510-foot mountain located in Chugach State Park just east of urban Anchorage, and is the most climbed mountain in the state. We had the option of choosing one of two trails, and we went with the shorter one which would be easy for our entire group. We did off-road it a bit, though, so we could climb the hill to touch the snow. In July! It was great to spend a morning with a group of hikers who were excited as I was to explore. Alaska is gorgeous—it seems as if the mountains rise straight out of the water. We were surrounded by trees and lush green grass, water and mountains, and cool, crisp air. Alaska is unlike any other place I’ve visited, and I know I can’t come up with words to do it justice—suffice it to say that I left there thinking Alaska is a very special place.

While I was still in the planning stages of this Alaska trip, I asked my friend Dan Randle for advice. Dan and his wife, Susan, run Nebraska Kayak Polo, and Dan used to be a river guide in Alaska. His eyes lit up when he heard I was going, and he asked me, “do you want to go on a whitewater trip that will scare the s$!# out of you?!” Well, duh. So, the morning of the wedding, again in true Real Chick fashion, I drove about 90 miles to Hope, AK to raft Six Mile Creek. Six Mile is a river that is approximately 10 miles long and has, so I was told, some of the most exciting white water rafting in Alaska. I was also told by the bride’s aunt, before I left to go rafting, that she’s never rafted Six Mile because “people die on Six Mile!”—but I chose to ignore that last part.

My friend Sarah was brave enough to join me, and quickly after we arrived in Hope, we donned the proper attire. For me, this included a long-sleeve technical shirt, two zip-up fleeces, two pairs of running tights, and a pair of wool socks, all under a full drysuit, shoes, pfd, and helmet. After our group of about thirty rafters was dressed, we hopped on the bus for the short drive to the river. We listened to a safety lecture, fastened our pfds and helmets, and took turns jumping into the river for the required swim test. The cold temperature and the strong current amazed me; I couldn’t believe that we were still in Class 0 water. I successfully completed the swim down the river and through the eddy, but not everyone was so lucky, and the guides were forced to go after a few who missed the turn and floated by. Some people opted out at that point, and the rest of us divided into small groups and filled 5 rafts. We were in oar-boats, in which the guides have more control over the boat through the use of oars, as opposed to paddle-boats, in which everyone paddles. We paddled as well, but because the river was so high, the oar-boats were used. If the river had been two inches higher, our trip would have been cancelled altogether. Safety first!

Six Mile consists of three canyons, each one progressively more challenging, with narrow routes, steep drops, and crazy rapids. Sarah and I chose to do the whole three-canyon run, which included predominantly Class 4 and Class 5 rapids. The rapids themselves had names such as Suck Hole, Predator, Merry Go Round, and Jaws. We learned what it meant when our guide said “High Side!”, and my favorite piece of advice was when, while we were running the river, he’d say, “Stay in. Stay in. Stay in….” The guides were amazing and their love for that river and for whitewater in general was evident. Rafting Six Mile is probably both the most dangerous and the most exhilarating thing I’ve ever done. I was surprised at how much it affected me, and although the awe has faded a bit as time has passed, I told my friends afterwards that the experience was life-changing. The river was beautiful and strong and relentless, and I feel so lucky to have rafted Six Mile and to have gotten a taste of Alaska—and I can’t wait to go back.

Getting kids outside

(My brother, Ben and I, in Glacier NP as kids)

I'm no expert on raising children...I have none of my own. I have a dog. I have spent quite a few years working directly with children on a day to day basis, including a 2+ years stint as a full-time nanny in Chicago.

It should be of no surprise that we live in a nature-deficient culture, particularly apparent when identifying the the gap between the outdoors and children. It can be overwhelming to think of packing for a backpacking trip with a child and I don't know many who are keen on packing up and taking off on a solo trip with the kids (if you are- more power to you!) As many of the you outdoors-women are also mothers, I thought I would share a few items that helped me to instill a love of the outdoors in kids over the years. I'm sure you all have different methods for discussing nature and environment with your families...I would LOVE to hear them!

(these are random kids...let's name them Maggie and Tess...just for kicks)

1. Start small. Ask the child(ren) what they are interested in seeing outside. It's easy to impose the things we are passionate about as adults and while those things will sometimes catch on, you'd only have to ask my dad about how difficult it is for him to get my brother or I to play chess these days to see that sometimes our best intentions...can be off-putting.

2. Let your child be the guide. This can be as simple as walking around the neighborhood and having them choose which direction to turn at an intersection. It's fun for ALL of us to explore and in my experience, allowing kids to take the lead makes the adventure that much more fun!

3. Pick a project. Go outside with an objective. In the past, I've used:

- Take us somewhere we've never been before

- Insect collecting

- Nature Bag (pick up pinecones, helicopters, interesting rocks or leaves etc)

*bringing these objects home for an art/garden project adds to the fun*

4. Encourage questions and find the answers! I will never forget walking with my 2 year old charge and, while observing an ant hill, being asked, "what do ants eat?" Seemingly obvious to me now, I had NO idea at the time and the research into getting the answer was a learning experience for the both of us. It was also fun to speculate before finding the answer...lots of giggles thinking about ants eating...tires...cats...socks.

5. Use what's relevant and Google can be your best friend. I remember reading in the paper about the tsunami and blasted on the front page were pictures that provoked a lot of questions from the kids. We spent 2 hours looking up the things that made a tsunami different from a hurricane different from a tornado etc. Looking through pictures online was a lot of fun too!

6. Let them be the teachers. After exploring a new area, invite a friend along and allow your child or charge to do the teaching. It will solidify what they've learned and help them build confidence and passion in the outdoors. Regardless of age, we all need opportunities to lead and be led.

7. Don't underestimate a child. They are VERY physically capable. I once went on a 4 mile hike with a 3 years old. Sure, we walked slowly but they walked themselves the whole time and we had a blast! They are also sponges, soaking up and observing everything around them and genuinely want to learn (particularly young kids). Challenge them and support their successes.

So, what else? What am I missing?

The Battle of Two Wolves

A note from Omaha Carla...

So, I ran across this and was pretty inspired. I've been struggling with my kayak polo game-trying to improve, getting frustrated with myself, wallowing in self-pity and inferiority on occasion, dabbling in anger/envy/sorrow etc. Anyway, this is a great reminder to be gentle with ourselves and our goals, to feed the positive, practice compassion, whether that is with our diets, our exercise, our relationships, our abilities...

Enjoy.

A Cherokee elder was teaching his children about life. "A fight is going on inside me," he said to them.

"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil-he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego." He continued, "The other is good-he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith. The same fight is going on inside you-and inside every other person, too."

The grandchildren thought about it and after a minute one of them asked, "Which wolf will win?"

The elder simply replied, "The one you feed."