Wheels & Wanderlust

…In a culture where perfection is the standard, I choose to say effort and progress are the actual win. Every time I try a difficult hike and every time I step out of my comfort zone it’s a huge win. A win for myself.

The beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina were the perfect place for me to jump into solo hiking. As with most solo adventures, I was scared. But as you know by now, I did it scared.

Thanks to the amazing owners of Blue Ridge Falls RV Resort, I had my personal guide to the best newbie hiking trails in the area. During my stay I did 2 of the recommended hikes. The Living Waters Trail was my first choice and my first official Solo Hike. It was an easy hike that ended up being the perfect way to get my feet wet.

Living Waters Trail

The Living Waters Trail is located on the grounds of the Living Waters Religious Retreat. Parking is on the the side of the road making it a bit of a tight fit for Lucy and I, but we managed. The short hikes is fairly easy and takes you along the side of the water to 3 different waterfalls. During the entire hike you are surrounded by beautiful foliage much of which is Mountain Laurel. I can only imagine how incredible the trail is when the laurel are blooming. You are also treated to the sounds of rushing water making the entire experience very peaceful.

Van Life was a dream a long time in the making. I planned, imagined, and fantasized about what it would be like to travel the country in a van. I imagined simple living, days of freedom, and most importantly time to explore nature. Hiking, biking, paddle boarding, and so many other activities ran through my mind on a continuous loop. The funny part about it is that the idea of doing most of these things terrifies me. Hiking alone gives me visions of bear attacks, biking alone gives me visions of epic disasters leading to broken bones, and paddling boarding of course leads to visions of shark attacks. Are these fears rational, no. But do they still strongly influence my behavior? 100% yes!

Sometime in middle school I developed an irrational fear being attacked by a shark when I was swimming in the ocean. I don’t know if it was the movie Jaws or a crazy encounter I had with a barracuda during a school field trip that initiated the fear, but whatever the cause the fear is real. When my boys were young I wanted to give them the experiences of snorkeling, boating, and all things ocean but my fear would stand in the way. In 2015, I took my boys on an epic vacation to Oahu and Maui. When we were on the island of Maui I planned a trip to snorkel at Molokini Crater which is a partially submerged volcanic crater a few miles off the coast of Maui. This excursion would essentially have us snorkeling in the middle of the ocean. The night before our snorkel trip I hardly slept. I was so scared and kept imagining one of the boys getting attacked. So, why did I plan this activity? Well, because I didn’t want to pass my fears on to my children.