Tag: Hiking

Bucket List!

(c) 2020

About a year-and-a-half ago, I was able to mark a big item off my bucket list. I was able to hike the Inka Trail to Machu Picchu!

I have wanted to see this spectacular area since I learned about it in elementary school. My sister took me there as a gift (great sister, huh?)! The Inka Trail (yes, that’s the correct spelling) was an arduous hike on uneven and slippery rocks. See the photo. That’s what we hiked on for three of the four days. We slept in tents and our porters (best ever!) cooked for us and carried a large percentage of our load.

I couldn’t have made it all the way to Machu Picchu without their help!

When I look through my (thousands) of photos from the trail, I can remember how amazing and how difficult it was to hike on those rocks, with my loaded pack, at that altitude.

It was one of the most difficult, and rewarding, things I have ever done.

I hope you have a chance to challenge yourself and cross something off your bucket list! Sonja

Friday-Weekend Plans?

  • Photo by Jyotirmoy Gupta on Unsplash
  • (c) 2019
  • Photo by Luca Upper on Unsplash

If you’ve been reading my posts you know I’m a big proponent of going outside. Reading outside is different than reading inside, hiking, going to a festival. It doesn’t matter what you do.

I have spent so many hours laying on the ground and watching the clouds. I watch how fast they are moving, the shapes I see in them, rainbows, the shadows they cast on the ground. There is so much to see.

Take this weekend to spend some time outside. Do what you want. Have a friend over, play with your dog, go for a hike, ride your bike.

Have a great weekend! Sonja

Favorite Things

Being out in nature is one of my favorite things–which is something I have in common with the characters in my books. There’s something about the green of the trees, the whispers of the wind, and the sound of my hiking boots on the dirt trail. Do you feel the same way?

Here in the desert, we don’t have a lot of water, but when we do it seems that everyone gets out to celebrate the greening up of Mother Nature’s gown. The water just left this creekbed, but the trees and shrubs are still reaping the rewards of the damp soil.

Now that we are at the end of the summer, things are dry and dusty. Our monsoon season was a bust; hopefully, we’ll have a wet fall and winter. I haven’t been able to hike into the hills because of the intense heat (safety first!), so I’m looking forward to the cooler days. I’ve been asked why I don’t simply drive into the Santa Catalina Mountains to go for a hike. It’s so temperate there, even in the desert furnace. I haven’t been able to go hiking up there since I ran into the bear (that’s a subject for another post). It really scared me, so I am reluctant to meet another one. I probably wouldn’t see one, but I would be so worried that I wouldn’t enjoy the hike. It’s a quandry!!!

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Have a wonderful day, Sonja