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Faces of the AT: Meet Marty. When He Went to Quit His Job, His Boss Said No.

May 27, 2016

Adam and I set out on Saturday to hike the piece of the Appalachian Trail (AT) running through Grayson Highlands State Park in Virginia. Grazing along the trail are famous feral ponies. We were keen to summit Mount Rogers, but when we ran across a herd of ponies- “Squirrel!” I got distracted and we never made it to the summit.

While we were racing around the ponies and ooing and ahing over the babies, Marty joined in.

We were all amazed how comfortable the ponies were with us. They were working the camera giving me full-on nostril shots. Work it ladies! They were so comfortable, they were even biting at my sleeves!

Wild Ponies Grayson Highlands State Park

In a broken conversation between the ponies' fits of shocking behavior - “Ah, the pony just farted on me!”; “Oh, geez! What’s going on there? Ah! It’s not round— it’s flat!”; “He’s biting his butt!” to this thru-hiker jumping in for a quick selfie, we heard a tiny bit of Marty’s story with the AT. His story surprised me and I’ve been itching to share it.

**Looks like Adam's never seen one before! Ha!**

Marty’s from Virginia. He’s always known the AT was out there. It wasn’t until meeting a couple in their 70’s who had hiked the 2,000+ mile trail twice did Marty really get inspired. He started considering doing the AT himself. His considerations turned to “I’m going to do it."

He started taking steps to make it happen. To cut down living costs and save more, he moved in with friends.

He was so serious about hiking the Appalachian Trail, he went in to work one day to quit his job. When he sat down with his boss to give the news, his boss said, “No.”

"What? Wait. Huh?" I was confused. Marty was the one telling them he was quitting. How could they say no?

Turns out, they saw another option. His boss said they’d give him a leave of absence to hike, but they wanted him back when he was done.

What an awesome surprise!

I was amazed by this piece of his story. Quitting your job to go out and have a big experience isn’t the only option. Marty’s company proved that when we work hard and our work is valued, companies are willing to value our personal goals. Well, the ones who care about their people will do this.

You know it’s crazy, because some folks take six months to complete the AT. That doesn’t matter. His company supports his 2,190 mile quest from Georgia to Maine. They just wanted to make sure they got him back whenever he was done. Pretty awesome, eh?

His company’s response shocked me and I forgot all about the farting ponies. He continued to share how amazed he’s been of everyone’s encouragement for him to pursue this big adventure. Great friends are even watching his dog while he hikes.

We are inspired by Marty’s guts to drop everything for his big dream of hiking the Appalachian Trail. Sometimes we don’t pursue big dreams because we’re afraid of what people will think. He had a big dream and went for it, and everyone’s encouraging response surprised all of us.

A storm was a-brewin’. We were all reluctant to split from the ponies' free entertainment.

Wild Horses Grayson Highlands State Park

Marty found a spot to set up camp and hunkered down before the storm hit. Adam and I got caught in the rain running back to the car.

I imagine Marty’s moments on the trail- when he’s alone laying in his tent listening to the rain patter or during his eighth hour of walking by himself for the day- being filled with so much more comfort than expected because he knows everyone back home- family, friends and his co-workers- are cheering him on but also eagerly awaiting his return.

Adam and I can relate. When you’re so far from home and on a grand adventure, it’s the support from your loved ones you cling to during the hard moments. Their words of encouragement play through your mind over and over and continue to push you forward.

So awesome to meet you Marty! Thanks for sharing your story. You are an inspiration. Keep going! We're back in Virginia cheering you on!

...

Marty's story totally inspired me. When I dream big, I always come up with a list of challenges of why it won't happen. But maybe I'm just making them up. He thought he had to quit his job to go, but he didn't.

I hope Marty's story inspired you. Leave a comment below to share what you think and share the inspiration with your friends on Facebook and Twitter!

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New Zealand Campervan Catastrophes

May 3, 2015

Our five month camper van road trip in New Zealand has been a journey we will never forget. With a bed in the back, we have vowed we will be tent camping no more unless we are in the backcountry. Hey, we camped in a tent for four months on our US road trip. We did our time.

Last day with our good ol' camper van, Bernie. You treated us well for all five months and killed those 16,000 km. We'll miss ya, boy!

We woke up to new, stunning New Zealand views every morning. We are sold! Forget a house, we are dreaming of living in a campervan! We were outside all the time. We fell asleep next to bubbling brooks and woke up to views we would never have in a house or hotel. We had most of our meals outside soaking in beautiful vistas of coastlines and mountain ranges for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We have even stumbled upon the southern lights and an eclipse just because we have been more in tune with nature. It’s been incredible!

Waking up to mountain tops covered in snow! Ah!

We have had our fair share of catastrophes and fails, though. How 'bout that time...

We had our nightmare on the Forgotten HighwaY

We should have known we were setting out for bad news. The name is the Forgotten World Highway for a reason. There’s nothing on it. Well, to be honest, we knew there were four campsites along the route, so we thought we would be okay.

We passed the first two in the daylight and thought we could make it to the next one. One thing we have learned about New Zealand is the distance on maps is incredibly deceptive. In reality, it takes three times longer than you estimate due to the winding and curving roads. Well, this was just the case this time, too. We underestimated our timing.

By now it was dark and we finally got to the next campsite option. Our headlights hit the locked gate. No access. Okay, moving on. We made it to the next site. This is it! We are home for the night. No, no campsite here. It was midnight at this point, we had been driving for hours and Adam finally just pulled over at a rest stop in the pitch black. I looked over and our van was situated on a decline with a cliff only feet away.

As we got into bed, I asked, “Is the parking break on?” My mind was racing of the what if’s. Ladies, you get this. Adam, knowing me too well said, “Lindsey, if we roll, we’ll roll into the tree." Oh, great, we'll just roll into the tree on the edge of the cliff. Hell no! I scrambled out of bed, jumped into the drivers seat and steamed down the never ending Forgotten Highway. Adam stayed in the back snuggled up all cosy in bed.

Driving further and further there was nothing. We were in rural New Zealand and good luck to anyone trying to read road signs in the dark. I kept politely asking for Adam to help me find the next campsite. Silence. “Oh, you’re going to play that game?” I have never been so livid. He always expects me to navigate for him and the time I’m powering through to get us to a safe spot to sleep, he’s not helping me! I’m talking to him, he’s not responding.

I know he’s awake. I turn on the music just to ensure he can't sleep. Again, I ask him to help me. I’m missing turn offs and signs for new camp sites because I can’t see the gosh darn signs. He’s still not talking. I crank up the music, loud, blasting it as loud as the knob will go. It's so loud, I can’t even think straight. I’m fuming at him! I keep missing turns and I don’t know where to go. I keep pulling over to look at maps, but keep missing signs. Oh, sweet Adam is still in the back, cuddled up, cozy and silent. Can you believe him?!?

At this point I’m crying from frustration and exhaustion. I don’t know where to go and when I need Adam’s help, he’s not showing up to help me. Desperate, I just pull into a motel parking lot and fall into the bed in the back of Bernie. If we had a house, I would have kicked Adam out that night. The couch wouldn’t have even been an option.

And the night we were attacked and kicked out of our campsite by the vicious flock of keA

Don't be fooled. Kea fly in gangs, consume rubber, can run as fast as your small terrier, and have beaks sharpened for war. Quite intimidated and outnumbered, we were run out of our campsite!

Remember that time we were invaded by thousands of ENORMOUS beetles

How peaceful and calm this looks. Our experience was the complete opposite: Hysterics followed by chaos! — How peaceful and calm this looks. Our experience was the complete opposite: Hysterics followed by chaos!

So, we pulled into a green, grassy campsite in a beautiful gorge with a river flowing through and a historic bridge as a backdrop. I started pulling out our camping chairs and tv table to get ready to make dinner. I unfolded our little pink camping chair and immediately went peddling backwards screaming! The chair was covered with tens, hundreds, thousands of black beetles all 2 inches long! (Okay, I know I’m exaggerating, but there were tons! They were HUGE!)

I screamed and started freaking out at Adam. My fright turned to rage and even got stubborn Adam to clean off every one of them as he laughed hysterically. He started flicking them off the chair right next to the van. “What are you thinking?!? Not next to the van!!!” I made him go as far away as possible to execute those buggers. I had the whole campsite gaping at my hysterics.

Dinner was delayed as I pulled everything out of the van and scoured every nook and cranny of every item in every box until I was satisfied that every single beetle had been exterminated. Adam had left the pink chair out all night at a beach the night before and these nocturnal beetles found comfort in the seat of the folded pink chair in the morning. Unknown to us, we shoved the chair and the hundreds of beetles into the van and transported them all day! Disgusting! Thankfully, they were subdued during their transport, so many didn’t escape the chair’s boundaries. Thank God I found them before they became active that night as we slept right above them! Ah! I cringe at the thought.

My meticulous cleanse wasn’t thorough enough, though. We found remnants of other beetles throughout the van in the days to come. You bet no item has been left outside or will ever be left outside ever again!

Oh, and how many nights did we compete to see who could kill more sandflies and mosquitos?

And the time we found a wee bird in our push bike wheel. We felt horrible.

Can't forget the Flood of 2015

All right, so Adam, our beloved, intellectual, college edumucated CPA, has a history of making terribly illogical decisions when storing large amounts of liquid. On our US roadtrip, he insisted on storing a gallon of Gain washing detergent in a Ziploc bag stored in the exact spot that we were shoving our gear in and out every morning and every night. Ziploc, I believe in you, but not that much. Turns out, I was right. The bag exploded.

Round two: New Zealand. With Bernie, we inherited an unused thick plastic camping bag that boasted it could hold 5 gallons of water. I doubted that from the moment we layed eyes on it. We already lived through this. So, we argued. Adam didn’t budge, so I gave up. The bag made it the first two months. Surprisingly, the plastic bag got a hole in it! What? Can you believe it? Poor Bernie’s carpet and everything stored under the bed were soaked for weeks.

Every chance we got we hauled everything out of the van and had it air dry. Wonderful Nancy and David on the sheep farm even tried a heater and fan on it for days. We won’t make that decision again. I’m putting my foot down.

Oh no. We are following a truck load of 45 porte-johns up a mountain pass. If anything goes wrong, things could get really sh!$&y!

These are the true, imperfect tales of #nuventures. I hear they say, "Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger." I'll hang onto that.

These accounts are unbiased, with no name calling or blame, and are objective in all aspects.

"I'll go climb the tree. This will be the perfect picture! Ugh, ugh... hold on a sec. Wait, ugh. I'm getting there."

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Learn New Zealand Vocabulary

May 2, 2015

Heading to New Zealand, hey? Good on ya! You speak English, hey? Sweet as! Just to be sure you and your mates will have heaps of fun and your mum won’t be worried, rattle your dags and get keen on learning your Kiwi English! When you do, you’ll be good as gold! If not, don’t get your knickers in a wad, she’ll be right.

We have a brand spankin’ new English vocabulary after five months of road tripping New Zealand in our not-so-flash campervan, Bernie, and tramping through the fern filled bush. The drives around the country were filled with hours of admiring thousands of shorn ewes in green paddocks, being spontaneously welcomed into generous Kiwi homes and served heaps of tea, biscuits and mince pies. It's been a corker!

We hope our stories and pictures have inspired you to explore New Zealand for yourself or return to the inspiring views! We have loved it here in this magical country known as Middle Earth. Make sure to use the US vs New Zealand English dictionary below to prepare for your trip. Don’t forget your sunnies, jandals and togs for the beach and your jersey for the cool nights, hey!

American mustard: mustard

bach: vacation home

biscuit: cookie

bogan: redneck

bonnet: hood of a car

boot: trunk of a car

brekkie: breakfast

bush: forest

capsicum: bell pepper

car park: parking lot

cheeky: sassy

cheers: thank you

chemist: pharmacy

chilly bin: cooler

chippies/crisps: potato chips

chips: French fries

college: private high school

chook: chicken

corker: very good

corgets: zucchini

coriander: cilantro

cotton buds: Q-tips

dags: dingleberry

dear: expensive

entrée: appetizer

ewes: female sheep

fizzy: carbonated soda

flash: fancy/ high class

flat: apartment

fortnight: two weeks

“Gold as!”: “Awesome!”

“Good on ya!”: "Congratulations"

gutted: bad luck

heaps: a lot

hens: chicken

hey: used similar to the Canadian “eh”

holiday: vacation

jandals: flip flops

jersey: sweat shirt

keen: excited

knackered: exhausted

knickers: underwear

kumara: sweet potato

lolly: hard candy

loo/toilet: bathroom

mate: friend

maths: math/mathematics

mince: ground beef

mufti: when students don’t have to wear school uniforms

mum: mom

munted: broken beyond repair

nappies: diapers

naughty: mischievous

paddock: field

partner: girlfriend, boyfriend, spouse

petrol: gas

pie: meat filled pastry

plaster: band aid

pram: baby stroller

push bike: bicycle

“Rattle your dags!”: “Hurry up!”

rubbish: trash

“She’ll be right”: all will be okay

shout: pay for something for you

slip: rock slide

sunnies: sunglasses

“Sweet as!”: “Awesome!”

tea: dinner

tea towel: dish towel

togs: bathing suit

tomato sauce: ketchup

torch: flashlight

tramping: hiking over several days

tyre: tire

university: college

walking: hiking

wapiti: elk

wee: little bit

windscreen: windshield

yarn: chat and jokes with mates

zed: “z”

A huge shout out and thanks to the Foresters for sharing NZ with us and teaching us our Kiwi-isms!

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Sheep Shearing in New Zealand: Ewe Need a Haircut?

March 24, 2015

Surprisingly, our sheep farming days weren't entirely over yet!

We had missed an opportunity to shear sheep and be shed hands during our first go 'round in Invercargill, New Zealand when we were captured at the launderette. So, we jumped at the invitation to be shed hands during a shearing at Gay and Ron's farm, Manuka Mire. Once we received her text, away we flew to Invercargill to get our hands in that wool again! As we were making our way to the farm riding down the familiar country roads we both looked at each other. It hit us at the same time. An overwhelming sense of comfort had over taken us. Warm and fuzzy memories of wooly ewes, overalls, gum boots, green paddocks, home made jelly and mince pies all started flooding back. We were pumped to be heading to the farm again!

Fulfilling our role as shed hands was quite an adventure. Can't say we have helped give a sheep a hair cut before! We were all smiles all day (probably from Gay's wonderful hospitality of keeping us loaded on hot tea and delicious biscuits)!