Desparately Seeking 1980's New York!

So I am off to New York. The city that never sleeps. When I romanticize New York in my head, I don’t think of the New York of Woody Allen or Nora Ephron. My New York is Greenwich Village, Battery Park and Desperately Seeking Susan. It’s the 80’s and Madonna is hanging out at Danceteria, Aidan Quinn is working at the Bleeker Street Cinema and Rosanna Arquette wants to leave suburban New Jersey behind her. Really, who wouldn’t rather live in a loft with Aidan Quinn than out in the burbs with Gary, the Hot Tub King. Aidan continues to charm me in movies like Legends of the Fall and Practical Magic. And most recently with a guest spot on White Collar!

It’s been 25 years since Desperately Seeking Susan was filmed and many of the locations are no longer there. The Magic Club and the Dragon Noodle never existed and were just signs put up on NYC streets and stage sets, but Danceteria, Bleeker Street Cinema and Love Saves the Day (the thrift shop where Susan trades her jacket for rhinestone boots and Roberta buys the jacket) were real places that no longer exist.

But while Desperately Seeking that 80’s Village Vibe, I toured around Greenwich Village, unable to find that 80's/punk/pop vibe. New York has been Disneyfied!! It started with Times Square and now has moved downtown to the village as well. This is not all a bad thing. It feels safer. I know that when I visited New York in 1989...staying in a hotel in the Times Square area, I was afraid to leave the hotel. Now I travel around the city and on the subway with no qualms whatsoever. Either I have grown up or the city has gotten safer. I think both.

I guess there is no fear of getting mistaken for Madonna and being knocked unconscious, losing my memory and shacking up with Aidan Quinn. Oh well.

The last miles for Hikeathon 2010!

After my muddy experience doing urban hiking, I decided to get out in the wilds for my last 3 miles of Hike-a-thon 2010. I spent the end of August with Ryan, doing trail magic on the PCT and facilitating his zero days so we could go to a letterboxing gathering outside of Portland, OR.

Ryan had crossed The Bridge of the Gods and was finally in Washington State! We spend a lovely couple of days in Carson, WA at the Sandhill Cottages. Ryan did a day of slack-packing and on one of his zero days, while he spent the day catching up on the internet, I hiked 3 easy miles from the Panther Creek trailhead of the PCT. We were also busy planning his resupply points for the rest of the hike! He is only 450 miles from the Canadian border. However, some of the most remote hiking is ahead of him and we will be mailing food ahead to places where the only resupply would be the local gas station or mini mart.

We have made $1,120 for Washington Trails. So close to our goal of $1,500. Thanks so much to everyone who contributed! Now you have to get out and enjoy the trails you help to maintain. There is still time to get in a last minute donation to Washington Trails Association via their website


http://www.gifttool.com/athon/OurTeamPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&TID=6902

and my individual fund-raising page:

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&PID=149244

Thanks so much for everyone's help! It has been another fun year for Hike-a-thon!

The Dangers of Hiking Alone...

It is easy to get complacent about hiking alone, especially when you are in an urban park, but danger can lurk everywhere. On this day, I was hiking along in Bradley Lake Park in Puyallup, WA. It is behind the Walmart and Pierce College is on the other side, so you don't really expect a true wilderness experience. It is a nice little fishing lake with a playground and a paved path and some other trails through the woods.



It was along one of the trails through the woods where I came upon trouble. I was hiking along a connector trail from a main trail to the paved path around the lake and there was a muddy section in the middle of the trail. It appeared that folks had walked through the mud. There were also small logs and branches in the mud to act as "bridges" through it. You could also tell that many people had walked around the muddy area, widening the trail and even creating other trails around this area. I decided to go for less impact and continue through the mud along the branches. Right in the middle of this area, my left foot slipped off of the small log that I was walking along and I sunk into the mud up to my knee. Now, off balance, my right foot also slipped and now I was sinking into the mud with both legs covered almost over my knees!! I tried to pull my leg up and it would not come, the mud was like cement, holding me down. Finally, I was able to slip my right foot out of my shoe and get my leg up and onto more stable ground. But my lovely (relatively new!!) Keen hiking shoe was still in the mud. I did not want to lose it, so I reached down for it. Now my arm was in the mud up to my shoulder!! I was feeling around for the shoe and finally could feel it. Grabbing the laces I pulled and pulled, trying to wrest it free from the mud. At this point my left leg is still in the mud and with the pressure I was exerting trying to remove my shoe, it was sinking deeper. I never really panicked, knowing that dozens of dog walkers, joggers and fishermen were close by on the asphalt trail around the lake. If I started screaming, I am sure that help would arrive. Perhaps it was foolish to try to save my shoes, but I really liked them and hated the thought of sacrificing them to the mud bog. With a loud "ZWUP", the shoe came up, now completely full of mud. I threw it to solid ground and then worked on my left leg and shoe. I still could not get my leg out of the muck without my foot coming out of the shoe. So I went ahead and slipped out of the shoe and proceeded to try and dig that shoe out of the bog. It was much harder to retrieve. It was deeper than the previous shoe! But I was successful!

Now, in my stocking feet, covered from head to toe with disgusting black mud, I made my way back up to the original trail I had been on and around to the asphalt trail. The first lady who I met in the opposite direction exclaimed, "what happened to you!" "Don't go off the main trail!" I countered. I made it down to the paved path around the lake and actually walked directly into the lake to rinse off. I still had to walk back 1/2 mile to the parking lot and my car. I got a lot of strange looks from the fishermen and dog walkers around the lake, but I was safe and my shoes were saved! Luckily, my backpack was securely on my back (not just hanging off my shoulder) and my camera, keys and phone were also securely zipped up in the pockets. I didn't get any photos of my embarassment. I was so incredibly dirty, I didn't want to get my camera out. And all I could think of was returning to my car and going home to shower.

More info about how to survive a mud bog or quicksand can be found here

The moral of the story is that ANYTHING can happen on even the most benign trail. So when hiking alone, always follow these guidelines:

• Take well-known or popular trails -- Solo hiking isn't the greatest time to be trying to find the great lost trail or discover a whole new way to a favorite lake. Stick to the beaten path. There's plenty of solitude even on the popular trails and help is never far away.
• Be aware of your surroundings -- Resist the urge to listen to that Ipod. Keep an eye out for signs of bears, cougars and other predators. Look for fresh tracks, droppings or scratches in the trees. Listen for noises in the forest close to the path. If anything doesn't seem right in any area of the forest, turn back.
• Check weather and trail advisories ahead of time -- Before even considering hiking alone, check the local national, state/provincial, or municipal web site for predator warnings, trail closures, trail conditions and weather forecasts.
• Bring a whistle -- If injured or lost, a whistle will carry further than yelling and can be heard over wind and rain conditions.

Ryan and I have raised $885 for the WTA so far this month and we only have a few more days left! We are 59% towards our goal of $1500. It's not too late for you to contribute something. If the check is in the mail, I have a grace period until September 10th to get it to the Washington Trails Association. Or you can contribute instantly with a credit card on the website.

Before I got caught in the mud, I had done 1.5 miles around the Lake Loop Trail bringing my hikeathon total up to 47 miles. I will be hiking a couple of miles on the PCT with Ryan when I see him again before the end of the month! His blog is

http://www.anotherlongwalk.com/

and we have a webpage on the WTA website

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/OurTeamPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&TID=6902

and my individual fund-raising page:

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&PID=149244

It looks like I can hike 50 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to Washington Trails Association and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide! And stay safe out there!!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Letterboxing on the Trails

Quoted from the Atlas Quest website:

Letterboxing is an intriguing pastime combining artistic ability with "treasure-hunts" in parks, forests, and cities around the world. Participants seek out hidden letterboxes by cracking codes and following clues. The prize: an image from a miniature piece of art known as a rubber stamp—usually a unique, hand-carved creation.

Letterboxers stamp their discoveries in a personal journal, then use their own rubber stamp, called a signature stamp, by stamping it into the logbook found with the letterbox, perhaps writing a note about the weather or their adventures in finding the letterbox.

I hiked 3.5 miles along the Radnor Trail in Wayne, PA with my buddy, Deirdre. Deirdre took time out from her hectic rehearsal schedule to join in a letterbox hunt. She is a fan of Nancy Drew and I have been trying to convert her to a letterboxing fan as well! I think it is a perfect fit, if you like the mysterious and stylish world of Nancy Drew, I think you would also like the artistic and mysterious world of letterboxing. :-)

Back in NC, I had to go out to Lake Norman State Park to get 5 more letterboxes that I missed the other day!! That puts me at 45.5 miles hiked for Washington Trails. And I have exceeded my goal of 40 miles and well on my way to 50 miles for the month of August.

Unfortunately, Ryan and I have only raised $760 for the WTA. This is only half way to our goal of $1500 and we only have 7 days left in August to hike and raise money.

I hope to hike a couple of miles on the PCT with Ryan when I see him again! His blog is

http://www.anotherlongwalk.com/

and we have a webpage on the WTA website


http://www.wta.org/hikeathon

and my individual fund-raising page:

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&PID=149244

It looks like I can hike 50 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Giant Backpack not included! :-)

Hiking with the Wolf Boys!

No I wasn't out at LaPush beach with the Twilight crowd, these Wolf boys are from North Carolina. I spent the day hiking around Latta Plantation Park with my friend Linda and her boys. We had a very nice day, got lots of letterboxes and saw lots of interesting flora and fauna. The Passion flower was all over the place and the wolves were convinced it was an alien species...ready to turn us into Pod People! As evidenced by the Pod-like fruit that the vines held. Were these other hikers who had been dawdling along the trail? We better make a beeline back to the car.

The next day I drove up to Lake Norman State Park and dodged raindrops while hiking around the Lakeshore Trail.


I had to work a few days with no time to hike and then on Tuesday, I landed in Seattle and was able to get in 2 more miles at the Des Moines Creek Trail by SeaTac. Blackberries are barely ready to be picked and they are doing more clearing of the creek on this trail underneath the flight path to the SeaTac runways.

I flew back to NC the next morning and spent some time in the afternoon on the South Prong of the Rocky River Greenway in Davidson, NC. I did 2 more miles to reach my 40 mile goal, but I still plan to do some PCT miles next week when I meet with Ryan again on the Pacific Crest Trail.

I have reached my mileage goal!! I am up to 40 miles hiked and Ryan and I together have raised $695 for the WTA! Still
$805 more to reach our goal of $1500.

I hope to hike a couple of miles on the PCT with Ryan when I see him again! His blog is

http://www.anotherlongwalk.com/

and we have a webpage on the WTA website


http://www.wta.org/hikeathon

and my individual fund-raising page:

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&PID=149244

I hope to hike at least 40 miles on my own at home( and at this point I might even make it to 50 miles!!), on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Seattle Area hiking

At home for a few days and I was able to fit in some Seattle area hiking for hike-a-thon. I went to the Mercer Slough Blueberry farm for some U-pick Blueberries. They have a nice system of trails that meets up with the Lake to Lake trail. I only did 2 miles that day.

The next day, I went up to Cougar Mountain for a ramble among their many trails. I parked at the Sky Country Trailhead and happened upon an art installation.

Art at Cougar Mountain

much like last year when I visited Carkeek Park! In fact, I think it is the same group again, COCA, the Center on Contemporary Art. I was totally intrigued by a piece that had mutilated stuffed animals in cages. Weird!!

The Old Man Trail from the Sky Country Trailhead goes around some old mine shafts and it is a good reminder that you should not go off trail at Cougar Mountain. Even though some of the DANGER signs are hidden by the greenery. Can you letterboxers guess which boxes I found today??

I did another 2 miles and now I have to go fly around the world for a while.

I am up to 29 miles hiked and Ryan and I together have raised $640 for the WTA!

Don't forget to check out Ryan's blog of his PCT adventures

http://www.anotherlongwalk.com/



as well as the webpage on the WTA website for our hike-a-thon stats




www.wta.org/hikeathon

Amanda's WTA Pledge Page

I hope to hike at least 40 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA (Washington Trails Association) and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Shakespeare and the PCT

I spent a few days in Ashland, OR providing trail magic at a couple of different trailheads for the Pacific Crest Trail and shuttling Ryan back and forth to the PCT for some slack-packing. Our first day there, I hiked out from Lithia Park behind the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Theater and did 2 1/2 miles on some mountain biking trails. (the TID and BTI trails...Talent Irrigation Ditch trail and Bicycle Technologies International--the trails were much more scenic than they sound....) I did pick up a few hitch-hikers on my shoes and socks!

I would drop Ryan off and pick him up again at places where the PCT crossed the road. Usually, I would set up a cooler and have some snacks for any other thru-hikers who happened to come by while I was waiting. On this day, 7 thru-hikers came by while I was waiting on Ryan. Hurricane, Motor, Plain Slice and Little Engine are in the photo with Ryan. Also Smiles, Shrooms and Max Chill arrived soon after this photo was taken. I was also able to sneak in 2 miles on the PCT myself!

Ryan and I had driven through Ashland many times, but had never stopped to see a play at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. We finally scored some tickets and were able to see Henry IV, Part I. Our first choice was a comedy, Twelfth Night, but it wasn't showing on the night that we could attend. So our next best choice was Henry IV, Part I. Which actually was quite entertaining. I took this photo before we were busted by the ushers. It seems that photos are not permitted in the venue, even when the play is still half an hour away!

The next day, I was able to do another mile and 1/2 on the PCT for hike-a-thon as I left Ryan to continue his hike towards Canada!

I am up to 25 miles hiked and Ryan and I together have raised $500 for the WTA!

Don't forget to check out Ryan's blog of his PCT adventures

http://www.anotherlongwalk.com/



as well as the webpage on the WTA website for our hike-a-thon stats




www.wta.org/hikeathon

Amanda's WTA Pledge Page

I hope to hike at least 40 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA (Washington Trails Association) and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Road Trip and Hiking

I found myself in Seattle, trapped by the SeaFair Festivities! I-90 Bridge CLOSED. So with the Blue Angels shrieking overhead, I stayed close to home and hiked for 4 miles on the Longfellow Creek Trail . I took a different route (for me) and parked my car at the High Point Library and followed the trail down past the West Seattle Golf Course and Greg Davis Park to the Dragonfly Pavilion and then returned to my car.

Then it was off to meet with Ryan on the PCT in Ashland, OR. On the drive south, I stopped first in Olympia, WA and did 2 miles (and found a couple of letterboxes) at Priest Point Park.

Next stop was Eugene, OR and the Ridgeline Trail (more letterboxes and 2 more miles)

finally, I finished the day in Cottage Grove, OR and did 2 miles on the Row River trail --a Rail to Trail, I just LOVE those! nice and flat :-)

Don't forget to check out Ryan's blog of his PCT adventures

www.anotherlongwalk.com



as well as the webpage on the WTA website for our hike-a-thon stats

We have raised $455 for Washington Trails and I currently have 19 miles hiked!


WTA Hike-a-thon

Amanda's Fundraising Page

I hope to hike at least 40 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA (Washington Trails Association) and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Pacific Crest Trail miles!

It is official! I have hiked 3 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail in California. Compared with Ryan's 1600+ miles so far, it does not sound very impressive, but I do what I can.

I hiked with Ryan from the Etna Summit Trailhead for about a mile and a half with gorgeous views. You can see why it is the CREST trail :-). We had left a couple of gallons of water and a cooler with Trail Magic (sodas and candy bars) back at the trailhead for any hikers who passed by that afternoon.

We said our goodbyes along the ridgeline and then I headed back down to the car.

Betcha didn't know that we were actually in the state of Jefferson . Since 1941, there has been a movement in northern California and southern Oregon to create their own 51st state. It often reminds me of the Conch Republic of the Florida Keys. I think it is amusing that the Great Seal of the state of Jefferson is 2 x's on a gold mining pan. The x's represent "double cross" and that is how this area of California and Oregon feel about the governments in Sacramento and Salem.

Every time we drive up and down I-5, I am reminded about the State of Jefferson, by the billboards and other signs painted on farm buildings and equipment.

Don't forget to check out Ryan's blog of his PCT adventures
http://www.anotherlongwalk.com/



as well as the webpage on the WTA website for our hike-a-thon stats

We have raised $445 for Washington Trails and I currently have 9 miles hiked!


http://www.wta.org/hikeathon

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&PID=149244

I hope to hike at least 40 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA (Washington Trails Association) and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Hike-a-thon begins...the first 6 miles

Well, I started off hiking 2 miles per day for the WTA Hike-a-thon!

I met with some friends in Davis, CA and hiked two miles on the UC-Davis Arboretum trail. Then I spent the next day with my sister in Folsom, CA and hiked 2 miles on the American River Trail.

Next, I met with Ryan on the PCT near Yreka, CA and I hiked 2 miles on the Yreka Greenway trail while he caught up with his blogging on the internet.

I hope to hike a couple of miles on the PCT with Ryan when I drop him off. Don't forget to check out his blog

http://www.anotherlongwalk.com

and

http://www.amandafromseattle.com

as well as a webpage on the WTA website


http://www.wta.org/hikeathon

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&PID=149244

I hope to hike at least 40 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!

Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116

Tombstone Shopping

Something we don't think about much, is tombstone shopping.
Unfortunately, I have had both of my parents die within the last 5 years and so tombstones have come to have a new significance in my life. I have had to go shopping for tombstones.

As a letterboxer, I have spent some time in cemeteries. The tombstones are sometimes parts of clues and landmarks to send you along your way. And both of my parents joined me in adventuring through cemeteries. We would have talks about family tombstones and discuss which were our favorites as we walked along among the dead.

The Greeks and Romans used stone markers to honor the dead and prevent graves from being disturbed. From the Pyramids to the Taj Mahal, the tomb of the unknown soldier to the Pantheon, memorials to the dead are everywhere.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tombstone

Placing a permanent, time-withstanding memorial marker at the site of a tomb or grave has a long tradition. It is believed tombstones originate from a Jewish custom of visitors to a tomb or grave placing stones at the grave. On a more pagan level, headstones might originate from a belief that in order for the dead to remain in the grave, large rock cairns must be placed upon the grave.

When my mother would come along with me on my letterboxing jaunts. We would often talk about the different tombstones that we saw in the cemeteries. Her favorites were always the obelisks. So when it came time to purchase her tombstone, I knew that I wanted her to have an obelisk. Traditonally, obelisks were usually found on the graves of people with a high social status or at family burial sites. Egyptian obelisks have pyramids on the top, and symbolize Ra, the giver of all life. Others can have anything from a kind of roof to a cross to an urn. There are lots of different variations. Obelisks were most popular during the Victorian era and you see them in older cemeteries. So it was a bit of an unusual request in this more modern age.

This past weekend, our obelisk was put into the cemetery at Bethel Presbyerian Church in Cornelius, NC. We are very happy with it, and we hope that mom would approve.

Don't forget to check out Ryan's blog detailing his hiking adventures,

http://www.anotherlongwalk.com

And remember that we will be raising money for the Washington Trails Association with hike-a-thon in August. Be sure to check us out on the WTA website


http://www.wta.org/hikeathon

http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=1098&PID=149244

I hope to hike at least 40 miles on my own at home, on my layovers at work and while joining Ryan on the PCT. If you don’t want to donate via credit card on the website, checks can be made out to WTA and sent to me at the address below. Thanks so much for any help you can provide!
Amanda Arkebauer, PO Box 16131, Seattle, WA 98116