All the islanders are gone. Well, 1-2 will come back here and there, but for the most part, we are alone (aside from the hawks, herons and owls who haven’t migrated). The outhauls and dinghies are almost all pulled. The sumac and maple trees have turned their brilliant shades of color and are loosing more…
We have settled in for our 2-month caretaking job on an island off the coast of New England. Some of you have been quite curious about this gig! There is only so much I will reveal on the blog and it is merely to protect the privacy of the island’s residents. They have entrusted us…
John Miller!!!!! John, please e-mail us your mailing address at gearandgo@hotmail.com so we can send you the awesome Princeton Tec Helix Basecamp lantern!!! Thanks to everyone who entered and thanks to Princeton Tec for providing the great prize! Oh, and happiest of birthdays to this guy who likes to GIVE presents away on his birthday…
We start our new (secret) caretaking gig on Monday, so we’ve been bouncing all over the place these last few weeks since we left Maine. J even took a quick trip out to Colorado to see family while I helped my sister out in CT after she had a minor surgery with a major recovery. …
Who wants to win this lantern????????? We are partnering with Princeton Tec for a giveaway of a Helix Basecamp lantern!! This lantern is highly versatile. Not only is it good for camping, but it’s been the perfect addition to our stash as we roam the country (portable! multiple hanging and placement options!), especially when living…
Currently living/working in: transitioning from one caretaking gig to another!!! I know, I know, you are getting dizzy trying to keep up with us. We finished up our season in Maine and are in route to a 2-month (possibly longer) stint to watch a small, private, residential island somewhere off the coast in New England. Location…
You might have heard the big news. President Obama changed the name of North America’s highest peak from “Mount McKinley” back to “Denali.” You also might have heard that Denali shrunk from 20,320 feet to 20,310 feet. Denali sure is making the news a lot lately, huh? We are going to add to it. J…
J & I used to always say, “someday, we will live off the grid.” Not because we wanted to prep for doomsday or a zombie apocalypse, but simply because we thought it sounded cool. We got our wish. The place we are living this summer is off the grid. We don’t get mail here, have…
Currently living/working in: Maine. And not just Maine, but the North Maine woods off the grid, running a small lodge. view of Lake House from kayak Current mood: dreamy … thoughts of future adventures are burning in my imagination Currently thankful for: a job in order to plan for our next adventure! Currently proud of: 2 things …
Nearly every person we meet in the North Maine Woods spews off something along these lines: “You don’t have a spare tire??” No, we don’t. First of all, we had no idea what the roads were like in northern Maine (to be fair, our AWD car is delicate). Second of all, we actually didn’t realize…
I turn 37 on Friday and thought it would be fun to pay respects to my 36th year! Home: I (we) called 6 places “home” this year. We started in Oregon (running RimRock Inn), went to Colorado for a few weeks, then flew to New Zealand for 6 months, returned to Colorado in April, spent…
Today we are coming to you with a review of the gear we used on Te Araroa in New Zealand. We realize it’s been 4 months since our trek ended, but there are lots of people prepping for the TA right now and asking questions in the forums, so we thought no better time to…
Hope you enjoyed our first batch of pictures, because I have a second batch! Our life is still full of peace and quiet, but we’ve had more guest activity lately, which, of course, is good. However, our moose count is still higher than our guest count. Moose number 5, 6 and 7 reporting for duty:…
It’s been 1 week since we’ve been up here and we are getting more and more acquainted. Rainy days have outnumbered sunny days, so we’ve been doing more indoor than outdoor activities, like experimenting with baking bread (want to get it right before guests get here), making granola, and reading (J finished TWO books already!).…
“The first time that you begin moving in an unconventional direction is the hardest beginning,” according to modern-day adventurer Alastair Humphreys. “After that, you can’t imagine moving in any other way.” Since J & I returned from New Zealand, we had a dilemma and were at another crossroads. We have challenged ourselves to live differently…
Currently just departed from: New Jersey. We were in NJ from July 1-17, with a few brief side trips, like for the high points and HCA reunion. Once again, it was great to visit with so many friends and family, celebrate birthdays, see our niece’s first play and just enjoy everyone’s company. Current plan: this deserves…
Last weekend, J & I met 3 other couples and their kids in Beckley, West Virginia, for our 15-year reunion as Holy Cross Associates (more on that later). The Holy Cross Associates, minus 2 members The Holy Cross Associates, plus spouses and kids I know you are wondering why in the world we would end…
Our goal of reaching all 50 high points has really taken a back seat to some other adventures of lately. We didn’t bag any high points in 2014. But being we had a little more flexibility this summer, we thought we’d put it back on our agenda. We took a little road trip last week…
The U.S. manufacturing sector may appear to be shrinking, but it’s making a comeback at the same time. American production remains as hip as recycling and microbrews, particularly in the outdoor industry. We are proud that a few of our preferred gear companies produce homegrown gear. We visited our first stateside factory in April 2013, when…
We completed the sale of our house in Virginia! Our friend Van was so nice and gave us a bottle of champagne to celebrate … doesn’t matter that he found the champagne at the dump (which is why we didn’t drink it and just sprayed it around). When we sat down with the city officials…