Hike-a-thon derailed this year....

Such a bummer, our hike-a-thon this year was not as successful as in years past. Ryan finished up the Appalachian Trail and then flew off to Switzerland to hike the Tour de Mont Blanc. And I was touring around the Baltic in Estonia and Russia for most of the month. So we did not get to do a lot of campaigning for donations. Ryan got in a lot of miles, but I did not.

Then I twisted my ankle on my last day in Russia and did not get to do any more mileage for hike-a-thon this August.So we are not quite to our goal of $1000 for Washington Trails. But we still have a few more days for fundraising. So for any of you folks who were waiting til the last minute, this is your last chance to help out Washington Trails and contribute to Hike-a-thon 2015!

Click here

This is not how I twisted my ankle, although it could have been!!

Swollen!!

Ryan on top of Katahdin

Monday's Postcard 2015: North Carolina

I grew up in North Carolina, so it always holds a special place in my heart.   In 1903 the Wright Brothers made the first successful powered flight by man at Kill Devil Hill near Kitty Hawk. The Wright Memorial at Kitty Hawks now commemorates their achievement. The first English colony in America was located on Roanoke Island. Walter Raleigh founded it. The colony mysteriously vanished with no trace except for the word "Croatoan" scrawled on a nearby tree. The first English child born in America was born in Roanoke in 1587. Her name was Virginia Dare. The Lost Colony Outdoor Drama in Albemarle, commemorates the birth of Virginia Dare. Scheduled to run just one year, it proved so successful that it has played for nearly sixty consecutive summers.


A Big Thank You goes out to Barb, Lynda and Gretchen who are the latest to donate to our Hike-a-thon this year! Still looking for my $5 folks to chip in again. You don't need to give big bucks to help make a big difference.
August is Hike-a-thon Month for me! Please donate a little something to help Washington Trails. Click here to go to my fundraising page or Just copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=3052&PID=518075

Hiking in Estonia, Helsinki and St. Petersburg

Open Air Museum in Tallinn, nice trails, but no names :-)

Folk Dancing at the Open Air Museum

Along the streets of Tallinn

Well, I am kind of disappointed. I thought I could go on vacation and the pledges for Washington Trails Hike-a-thon would just keep coming in during my absence, but that was not the case. Also, unfortunately, my mileage that I racked up in Eastern Europe did not count towards my hike-a-thon goals because they just don't have many named trails in Estonia, Finland and Russia!
I got this information off of the internet, so you know it must be true....LOL Estonians do not consider walking to be a sport and make fun of it being a part of Olympics.
Wearing reflectors is mandatory in Estonia: please be sure to attach one to your clothing as well as to your backpack.

I bought a snowflake shaped reflector! 

In Finland, there were some "trails" around the city for cross-country skiing, but they were not named, nor were there obvious signposts.

No holding hands in Helsinki!!

Lovely trails at the open air museum in Helsinki

Dinner in the Sky in Helsinki

And in St. Petersburg, Russia, we were in a very urban part of the city. Very manicured and groomed parks and esplanades, but no trails.

A canal at the Hermitage in St. Petersburg

Crowds at the Hermitage

Away from the Crowds at Peterhof, but no name trail

I was on a Rick Steve's Tour of Tallinn, Helsinki and St. Petersburg and we did a LOT of walking. I averaged over 10 miles a day. My fitbit was very happy with me!


Click Here to Donate for Ryan and Me!



 August is Hike-a-thon Month for me! Please donate a little something to help Washington Trails. Click here to go to my fundraising page or Just copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=3052&PID=518075

Monday's Postcard 2015: New York

Dairying is New York's most important farming activity with over 18,000 cattle and or calves farms. And the oldest cattle ranch in the US was started in 1747 at Montauk on Long Island. The first railroad in America ran a distance of 11 miles between Albany and Schenectady. Adirondack Park is larger than Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Glacier, and Olympic Parks combined.

August is Hike-a-thon Month for me! Please donate a little something to help Washington Trails. Click here to go to my fundraising page or Just copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=3052&PID=518075

Monday's Postcard 2015: New Mexico

Santa Fe is the highest capital city in the United States at 7,000 feet above sea level. New Mexico is one of the four corner states. Bordering at the same point with Colorado, Utah and Arizona. The world's first Atomic Bomb was detonated on July 16, 1945 on the White Sands Testing Range near Alamogordo. North of the impact point a small placard marks the area known as Trinity Site. The bomb was designed and manufactured in Los Alamos.

August is Hike-a-thon Month for me! Please donate a little something to help Washington Trails. Click here to go to my fundraising page or Just copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=3052&PID=518075

Seattle City Hikes

So I had only a few days at home before leaving for my Rick Steves' Tour. And I really did not have the time or inclination to drive out to the mountains. So for the next couple of days, I stuck around Seattle and hiked within the city.

On Wednesday, I got together with my friend Yvette and we hiked around Green Lake on the Green Lake Path. If it is this busy and crowded on a pseudo-crappy Wednesday, I would hate to see the place on a Sunny Weekend!! Boy it was busy!!

Music

And more Music with Dancing!!

On August 6th, I did not venture too far from home. I hiked 5 miles on the Alki Beach Trail in West Seattle. I left my condo and hiked down to the beach and passed by the Jacobson St Goats....

No Goats Today :-(

But alas, no goats to greet me today!!

West Seattle Water Taxi

Thank You Car2Go

 From the Emma Schmitz Viewpoint, I hiked around to Alki Beach and then past Salty's.







Then thank you so much Car2Go....I picked up a Car2go and drove back up the hill to return home!

The Camino Portuguese

So on August 3rd, I find myself on a layover in Lisbon, Portugal and I thought why not take this opportunity to hike the first 8km of the Camino Portuguese? As many of you know, my boyfriend, Ryan, hiked the Camino de Santiago thru France and Spain in 2012. The Portuguese route to Santiago begins in Lisbon at the Cathedral Se and was used by Queen Isabel of Portugal in the 13th Century, on her pilgrimage to Santiago.   Lisbon is Portugal’s capital and the trail takes you through stunning countryside, villages and towns such as Santarém, one of the last Moorish bastions in Portugal; Coimbra, famous for its 13th century university; and Porto with its riverfront and home of Port wine. I was only doing the first 8 km which was basically a nice walk through Lisbon!

Tuk Tuks in Lisbon in front of the Cathedral

the first Arrow at the Cathedral Se in Lisbon

I'm an official Pilgrim!!

Got the first stamp!!

Just follow the Yellow Arrows

The old town of Lisbon is a warren of tiny streets and cobblestoned sidewalks. Many times I would come to an intersection of 5 or 6 streets and have to really search for the yellow arrows!! But all in all, they were easy to spot and the first 2-3 miles was quite enjoyable because I was still in the more touristy part of the city.

Oh NO!! The Tile Museum is CLOSED on Mondays

Walking on the cobblestone sidewalks is more difficult than you might think. Look at how they undulate

The last two miles of the trek were through more industrial and warehouse/factory type areas. Not very scenic. Also my shoes were giving me problems. I had brand new Keen hiking sandals and they were becoming too tight as my feet swelled with the hiking and the heat. I was developing blisters on both feet and I was concerned about a toenail on my left foot that kept catching on the webbing of the sandal.

Yucky Industrial Part of the Trail

Parque das Nacoes

I had originally planned to hike all the way to the Vaca de Gamas Tower at the end of Parque das Nacoes, but my feet hurt so much and I had my 5 miles already, I just went to the Metro Station and headed back to my hotel!! Parque das Nacoes was built for the Expo 98. The World's Fair that was held in Lisbon in 1998. So it is an extensive park with a huge aquarium, the observation tower, there is a cable car ride...and the original entrance to the Expo is now a Mall with shops and food court and the Metro Station.

So I have 10 miles under my belt so far....Ryan is doing considerably more on the AT for the next couple of days (he should finish at Katahdin around August 12th) and we have raised over 400 dollars so far for the Washington Trails Association!! Thanks so much to Diane and John and Gwen for their recent contributions. 

August is Hike-a-thon Month for me! Please donate a little something to help Washington Trails. Click here to go to my fundraising page or Just copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=3052&PID=518075

Monday's Postcard 2015: New Jersey

Picturesque Cape May holds the distinction of being the oldest seashore resort in the United States and one of the most unique. New Jersey has the most diners in the world and is sometimes referred to as the diner capital of the world. The light bulb, phonograph (record player), motion picture projector were invented by Thomas Edison in his Menlo Park laboratory.

And August is Hike-a-thon Month for me! Please donate a little something to help Washington Trails. Just copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=3052&PID=518075

Hike-a-thon 2015 begins!!

So on August 1st, I was lucky enough to be home in Seattle so that I could begin the Washington Trails Hike-a-thon with a local hike. I chose to do the Lime Kiln Trail outside of Granite Falls, WA.  I hiked for 5 miles today with temperatures soaring to 90 degrees. Thank You to the pioneers who built a railroad here so that many many years later I would have a nicely level path to hike!! And I also thank goodness for all the tall tall trees here in the PNW to give me shade along my hike.

Trailhead

a bit of uphill

Lots of signs

artifacts along the trail

another cool sign

warrior tree

heading back

lots of blackberries

Thanks so much for the donations that have been coming in so far! From Susan and Don, Angele, Frank and Ruth, Teri, Janet,  and Mary!!  We have raised $395 so far for the WTA.  Just copy and paste this link into your web browser:
https://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1468&AID=3052&PID=518075 or you can mail a donation to me (Checks should be made out to WTA -Washington Trails Association)
Amanda Arkebauer  PO Box 16131 Seattle, WA  98116