DÉJÀ VU ON THE APPALACHIAN TRAIL
After my Sunday Trail Ambassador patrol on Max Patch, I did what any reasonable person would do after eight hours of hiking around and around the mountain. I kept hiking.
A SHOUT-OUT TO MY NEW NEIGHBORS… THANK YOU
Nothing makes you appreciate good neighbors quite like riding out a storm, especially when you live in the middle of nowhere. Living alone on top of a mountain comes with a steep learning curve, and mine was steeper than any other transition I’d made before. I moved in just a couple of months before Hurricane Helene and spent nearly two weeks trapped with no power, no water, and not a single bar of cell service.
THE GREAT PUMPKIN OF MAX PATCH
Hey! I really like your pumpkin. Truly. That thing has character… and whoever hauled that ginormous gourd to the top of Max Patch clearly has strength and tenacity! I know this because I hauled it back down.
JUST ROLLING WITH IT… (Navigating injuries on trail)
In my earlier post about our latest adventure in the Great Smoky Mountains, I mentioned my hiking partner rolled her ankle and went on to hike more than 35 miles. I thought I would elaborate and share how we assessed whether to turn back or continue with our planned itinerary. It wasn’t a simple or easy decision to make.
HEADS UP! IT’S BUCKEYE SEASON!
Seeing the prolific amount of buckeyes on the ground this time of year conjurs up several memories for me, mostly as sweet remembrances of fall hiking on trail. By far my oldest memory of a buckeye, however, is of the good luck token that lived permanently in my...
LEAVES OF THREE: POISON IVY AND ITS SNEAKY LOOKALIKES
Wow, did I learn what poison ivy was the hard way, as so many of us do.
Years ago, I was clearing English ivy vines in the wintertime, in short sleeves, in an overgrown part of my yard while living in Atlanta. Since there were no leaves showing except the evergreen ivy, I assumed I was in the clear.
I was not in the clear.
SATAN’S CANDY: A BETRAYAL
I held that clear, translucent plastic cup in my small hands for a long time. Within those few inches of soil grew a whole mysterious world. Roots reaching down, tiny leaves unfurling upward, an entire plant emerging from what had only a few weeks ago been nothing but a seed and some dirt. The joy of seeing that bright red color shimmering on the surface, just peeking through a thin layer of soil, revealing its magenta, spherical body, was a moment of pure elation.
FIRST THE FLOWERS, NOW THE BERRIES, TOO?
I’m about to share an unpopular opinion, and I’m going to post it anyway, because that’s apparently my whole personality these days.
I already spend a fair amount of time asking people to leave the wildflowers alone. Today, I’m raising the stakes! I’m asking you to leave the wild berries behind, too.
THE FIRST PROOF: THE MASTERY OF BACKPACKING
A reflection... The first proof copy of my latest book arrived yesterday. I stopped by the mailbox on my way home last night, knowing the package was in there, waiting for me to get home. There is a good bit of, shall we say, "off road travel," through locked gates,...
BUT IT’S JUST A FEW FLOWERS…
I saw several different groups picking wildflowers on my patrol at Max Patch last weekend. Handfuls of them. Some with their kids right beside them, little bouquets clutched in little fists, everyone smiling in the sunshine like they were starring in a shampoo commercial.
BLAME IT ON BOBBY! (OUR IMAGINARY HIKING BUDDY)
My friend and I just got back from four days and 45 miles in the Great Smoky Mountains, chasing another chunk of our “900 Miler Map.” For the uninitiated, that’s a delightfully ambitious goal of hiking all 900 miles of trail within the park. I’m currently sitting at about 35.4 percent complete, which either means I’m making solid progress or that I have a very long relationship ahead of me with these mountains. Both, no doubt.
AVOIDING THE BITEY THINGS! (A NO-PANIC GUIDE TO TICK SEASON)
Every year… the posts, the warnings, the hand-wringing… “The ticks are worse than ever!” And this year? They might actually be right. The CDC reported in April 2026 that emergency room visits for tick bites are the highest they’ve been since 2017 in most regions of the country. An estimated 31 million Americans are bitten by a tick every single year, and over 450,000 are treated annually for Lyme disease alone. The numbers are real and deserve our attention. But… they do not deserve your fear.