Author Archives: atsioneva

One week down!

Items successfully completed  from the massive to-do list:

• Made an appointment with HR at my company on Monday to discuss things like leave of absence (crosses fingers), insurance options, etc

That Bass Pro card is burning a hole in my pocket. There are so many things I will need to buy, and a lot of things that, with luck, I will not need to. Tomorrow, I’ll take an inventory of all my camping gear and draw up a definitive list of gear I need to buy. However, I am holding off on buying any clothing. I have a lot of hiking clothing that just doesn’t fit me at the moment, but by March, if things go well, it will again, and save me that expense. And I have a brown fleece jacket *somewhere* that I can’t find, which is driving me slightly nuts.

Misc notes:

• No indoor walking trail today. Something about wearing high heeled boots for speed walking or stairclimbing was not appealing. The weather is lousy outside, still, I might take a rest day today. Or hit the gym for some incline training on the treadmill. Not very exciting.
• I bought a new Kindle book off Amazon stuffed full of practical, pre-hike preparation. Some really good info in there – a lot of “I knew I needed to do this, and now I have a much better grasp on how”. More items for the list – oh, dear!

Items successfully completed yesterday from the massive to-do list:
— Discussed financial and logistical issues with Dad over takeout Chinese food. so that we are on the same page

It’s not uncommon for me to be trying to sleep, and my brain just won’t shut down… and then I have moments of panic with accompanying
adrenaline boost. : All the what ifs start crowding in. What if I can’t find another job when I get off trail? What if the money runs out and I can’t support Dad any longer? What f I get injured while on the trail? What if I start and really hate it and really can’t do it? What if I get vertigo and fall off a cliff. What if, what if, what if…

Thanks to everyone I know, one of the what ifs seems to be a “was not”. What if people think I’m crazy, or irresponsible, or stupid to be doing this? Well, NO ONE has reacted that way, and I’m grateful to you all for that. 🙂 Even the ultra-practical people I thought would look at me cross-eyed haven’t reacted any of the ways listed above – to me anyway! 🙂

Misc notes:
— I actually counted the total number of steps I climbed today, both in exercise and just to get up to the office: 66+66+60 steps up = 192, and the same number of steps down.
— Day pack + walking training starts Saturday.
— Dratted blog admin page is down again. I am looking into other blog sites now.
— I, for one, welcome my new comment overlords! 🙂

Items successfully completed yesterday from the massive to-do list:

• – Talked to student loan company about options for 1 year forbearance/deferment on loans. Results mixed. We’ll see.
• – Did some research on personal loans at the bank. NOTE: not likely to be needed, and I don’t want to do it anyway. Still, option’s out there, I like to have information!
• – Appointment made with urologist in February to find out how best to avoid kidneystones on the trail. (besides drinking a lot of water, that is a given)

The admin dashboard for the blog was down all day yesterday. Hence, two blog entries for the price of one! Doing well on the exercise front, I think; yesterday and today, the 1.57 mile course up and down, but I threw in an extra climb of the 66 step staircase as well, both days. When it starts to get too easy… well, I’ll figure that out then. Come the weekend, I’ll start lugging a pack around outdoors – I think I will start at 5 or 10 lbs. to begin with, keep to sidewalks for a while. With some hills. February should see me climbing up and around the Hummel Park cliffs. Maybe a trip down to Indian Cave State Park, with steep Missouri River bluffs and trails.

Misc notes:

– It is so good to be painfree!!!
– Last night, I reread the book that started it all for me – AWOL on the Appalachian Trail. Now that I am seriously planning this, the rose-colored glasses are losing their tint. I found myself studying the hardships he described far more closely. How am I going to handle heights??? I’ll handle heights!

Items successfully completed yesterday from the massive to-do list:

• Niente. Nothing crossed off on the list

Back to work today… it cut down on my productivity. That, and I nearly had a heart attack when I opened the bill from Methodist Hospital for my kidneystone surgery and hospital stay. I don’t know how much insurance will cover, but if anything is likely to sink this hike, it will be the  medical bills.  Those of you who are inclined to prayer, give God a nudge and tell him, “psst, hey, Betsy needs money”, will you? Maybe I’ll win the lottery! There is a silver lining – I am down about six lbs since the surgery.

Items successfully completed yesterday from the massive to-do list:

• Map geocaches along the route
• Test-dry veggies

Items successfully completed yesterday from the massive to-do list:

• Create blog
•  Purchase train ticket to Harpers Ferry

Besides, it’s always a kick, watching people try to pronounce it properly.

Welcome to my blog, and here we go!

I was told that the more and more you publicly talk about doing something in the future… the more likely you are to actually complete it.
So I will talk.

Three years ago, I started reading every book on hiking the Appalachian Trail that I could lay my hands on, and daydreaming “Maybe someday…”

Two years ago, “maybe someday…” advanced to the level of “in the next five years…”

Last year, somewhere along the way, “in the next five years…” became “next year – if I can save up  enough money…”. Logistics planning began. Gear was purchased. Many numbers were crunched. Test drying of various foodstuffs was experimented with. Numbers were recrunched. More books were purchased and read. Crunch, crunch, crunch. I had to make sure I had enough to support my father for six months while I was on trail, enough money to support ME for six months while I was on trail, plus some extra to support us both until I can start working again.

At this point, this year, ”next year – if I can save up  enough money…” has become “April 8, and I’m going for broke!” More gear will need to be purchased. A lot of training for walking with a full pack will be needed. Food will need to be prepared, trail logistics mapped out; I’ll have to learn how to use a compass with a map. Most important, I’ll have to really psych myself up mentally.

I will take the train to Harper’s Ferry, WV, the (psychological) halfway point on the AT, and hike north to Maine. After climbing Mt. Katahdin, the northern endpoint, I will fly back to Harpers Ferry and hike south, ending when I climb Mt. Springer in Georgia, the southern endpoint. I estimate it will take about 6 months. It will cover over 2100 miles. It will wend through 14 states. It will cost an estimated $5-6K. It will test my fear of heights to the n-th. I’ll be cold, wet, stormed on, cranky, tired, hungry, thirsty, discouraged.

I’ll have a great time. Come along with me and encourage me!