Survival Monday: In love with long johns

Life took a tough turn for my family this weekend. I've been trying to write about it, but it's still too soon for the words to come. The words will come eventually. In the meantime, simple routines provide a semblance of comfort.

The posts appearing on my blog this week, including the little blurb below, were written and placed in my blog's "publish" queue days ago. I'll let them continue to be published as originally scheduled, because they reflect some of my favorite small pleasures that help keep life bright.

Old school long johns

I could not have survived my first January in Salt Lake City without long johns. OK, well, technically thermals. I own two sets of Terramar Helix tops and bottoms, and if I could, I would wear them every hour of every winter day.

The first set is about three years old, and it's still in great shape: not too saggy or baggy and no pilling or thinning. Silky soft, wonderfully warm, and incredibly fast drying, I use them for hiking, cycling, and skiing. On particularly cold weekday mornings, I snuggle into them and add extra layers on top for my commute to work. Once at work, I change into my professional clothes -- happily dry and warm.

Whether waiting for a bus, riding on a ski lift, or crawling out of a sleeping bag, I am so happy to rely on this soft, warm layer. And sometimes, there's nothing better than lounging on the couch with just long johns, wool socks, and beer.

You Camp Like a Girl

This is an old post that I wrote last summer but never published—until now!

While reading the July 2011 issue of Self magazine, a small sidebar caught my eye: "Happy Camper." The sidebar features six items—ranging from clothes and makeup bags to a crank radio and water purifier—that Self recommends for camping excursions. The introduction to the sidebar reads:

"When you think of tents, do you picture Fashion Week instead of Yosemite? Never fear, roughing it is so yesterday. These easy-to-tote items let you go wild with style. Ready, set, s'mores!" 

The online version of the side bar (a simple slideshow of the recommended products) simply says, "Rough it in style with easy-to-pack essentials."

So, what's the message here? Are we ladies roughing it, or was that so yesterday? And why are women still afraid of a little dirt?

Let's get muddy.

Women often gape at me in disbelief when I tell them I'm going backpacking for a few days.

"Will there be showers?" they ask in concern. "Where do you go to the bathroom? How can you stand it?"

I usually laugh, explaining that it's not really so bad. The truth, however, is that forgoing the hot shower for a night under the stars used to be gross to me, too. The first time I went camping with Andy was a 1-night trip that involved 2 days of hiking. We were not camping out of the backs of our cars. In order to sleep that night, we needed to hike until we found a suitable place for our tents in the dense woods -- impending thunderstorm and all.

It was a nice introduction to the idea of going without soap and toilet paper. After all, I was able to run straight to the shower when we got home on Day 2. Not much different from lounging around at home, unshowered, on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Right?

Fast forward to our first 2-night camping trip. We hiked 30 miles in 3 days. It was hot, humid, and buggy. By the third morning, I reeked of bug spray and sweat, and I was greasy from a three-day layer of sunscreen. I had brought some camping soap along with me, sheepishly washing my face and hair in a nearby pond. I knew that the soap wasn't the best thing for the critters in the water, even if it was biodegradable; I knew that the scent could attract larger animals to the spot later; and I knew that even a little rinsed-off bug spray and sun screen could contaminate the water. (After all, what if everyone bathed in the pond?) Yet, I still did it. I couldn't fully embrace the "gross" idea of truly roughing it.

Much to my surprise, my habits changed gradually over time. It wasn't an epiphany about being one with the wilderness. It wasn't guilt that forced me to leave the soap at home. As I went on more and longer trips, I just became a better camper. I learned to pack light by leaving extra comforts behind, and I learned to be comfortable in my own skin.

Being afraid of a little dirt closes the door on so many adventures. I've seen gorgeous wildflowers, beautiful animals, bright constellations, and unbelievable sunrises. I've felt closer to my partner and my friends as we spend time together without the distractions of daily life. I've challenged my body and I've learned new skills.

Don't believe for a second that "roughing it is so yesterday." Leave the insulated makeup case at home, and let yourself get stinky! Your body and your brain may actually thank you for it.

Adventure Friday: Go with a group

I have a confession.

All those amazing adventures I've been on? Backcountry camping trips? Epic bicycling trips? All those miles I've logged on the trail and on the road?

Two (or more!) are better than one.

I probably wouldn't have done half of them if it hadn't been for Andy. I'm a doer, but he's a planner. I get up on a sunny morning, hop on my bicycle, and happily combine playtime with weekend errands. He conceives an idea, researches the hell out of it, and creates amazing and well-thought trips. Together, we're a (sometimes bickering) tour de force that squeezes a lot of play into very short periods of time. 

Plus, he always has lots of handy gear.

If your friends are just as new to outdoor adventures as you, look up guided hikes or local clubs. A quick Google search turns up an almost overwhelming amount of options. Some clubs require annual dues or trip fees, while others target specific age groups or attachment status. (Singles only!)

If you're more interested in going hiking than doing research, sign up for a group on Meetup.com. While I've had varying levels of success with Meetup.com activities, I love these groups for one big reason: once you join a group, all the adventures come straight to your email inbox. 

No planning muss, no scheduling fuss — perfect for this get-up-and-go girl.

These people know — it's better with a group.

Back to Reality: How to cope when you return from a trip

Sometimes, surprising things happen in life. No, I don't mean the type of surprising things that involve getting a bee down your shirt on a difficult 10-mile day hike, or spilling DEET bug spray all over your plastic water bottles immediately afterward.

DEET eats through plastic like I eat through boxes of ice cream.

I mean the good kind of surprises. Thanks to a dear friend who is teaching English at a bilingual school in Central America, I had the opportunity to head to Guatemala for some difficult hiking, Spanish practice, and semana santa celebrations.

The colors were just as brilliant in real life.

Typically, when I return from a trip—whether traveling for work or pleasure—I put pressure on myself to dive back into my long list of responsibilities. Flying back from Guatemala was no exception. After getting food poisoning en route to New York, arriving at my apartment at midnight, working a full day at the office, and pitching two stories to a publication (all within 48 hours), I was feeling pretty delirious.

This is not a smart way to return from a trip. Though I may not always follow my own rules, I know there are three important things I should always do to ease myself back into a routine:

1. Unpack the bag. Whether you got caught in a rainstorm on a camping trip or you showered at your hostel before your red-eye flight, there's bound to be something damp in that bag. Unpack everything as soon as you can. Air out your tent, sleeping bag, and other storable items for a few hours to prevent nasty mildew and mold.
2. Take time to rest. As a coworker said to me last week, everyone underestimates how exhausted she'll be after a trip. Plan to carve out a few extra hours of sleep for yourself. Be realistic about the tasks you put on your to-do list. It's OK to go to bed early those first few nights when you get back! You'll perform much better in work, school, and life once you're well-rested.
3. Drink plenty of hydrating fluids. This is especially true for those of us who have just stepped off a plane, but it's also good advice for outdoor adventurers who tend to feast on salty foods. Dehydration can contribute to feelings of fatigue after a trip, and it may even worsen those back-to-reality blues.
4. Plan the next adventure — even if it's just a bike ride, a day hike, or a stroll through the park. Give yourself something to look forward to!

Bottom line? Take care of your brain, your body, and your gear.

Blogspiration: There and back again

Hobbits on the Hudson

Cutest hobbits ever, courtesy of @folowbredcrumbs

My love of the outdoors is constantly rekindled by many muses. It is difficult to put my finger on exactly why, or how, or when I fell in love with the outdoors, but it may have happened while reading books as a child.

All my favorite heroes and heroines had to, at some point, trek through the wilderness. Wonderful and scary things happened in that wilderness, and I wanted to find my own adventures there.

I do find my adventures now, and sometimes still with books. One of my favorite camping memories took place a few years ago in the pouring rain. ARA and I had had a beautiful day of hiking, but a storm rolled in just before sunset. Luckily, one of us almost always carries a paperback book on camping trips. We huddled in our tent, taking turns reading aloud from The Hobbit:

"...his hood was dripping into his eyes; his cloak was full of water; the pony was tired and stumbled on the stones; the others were too grumpy to talk. 'And I'm sure the rain has got into the dry clothes and into the food-bags,' thought Bilbo."

Rain isn't so bad. Let's just hope my luck holds, and that I never encounter an unhappy bear, a hungry troll, or a wicked witch.

Blogspiration is a meme hosted jointly by GrowingUp YA and saz101. The meme was created to help spark inspiration among bloggers and readers. An inspirational quote, picture, or video is posted weekly, on the day of the author's choosing, so that it may inspire creativity, conversation, and just a little something.

How to Choose the Right Backpack (via REI)

I love infographics. Well-made infographics are beautifully designed, easy to read, and quite useful! Today, REI released a new infographic on choosing and using a backpack.

(Click here to see the full chart.)

This chart includes everything from choosing your pack size and finding the right fit, to packing it correctly and deciding what to leave at home.

It's a pretty handy tool, but I would add one key piece of advice:

Unless you're a veteran backpacker who knows what she wants, always try on your pack in a store, with the help of an expert, before buying. Packs—and bodies—come in all shapes and sizes, and a too-loose belt or too-long torso can lead to a lot of pain on the trail.

Use this chart as a guide, but use your local outdoor store to make the final purchase.

Camping taught me MacGyver skills

Sometimes the best part about camping is being able to whip out those amazing outdoor-MacGyver skills in everyday life.

Threadless.com

I have a cup of coffee tattooed on my wrist. Yes, I love coffee that much. You can understand, then, my despair when I discovered that my roommate had put a crack in the carafe of my coffee maker.

For a few weeks, I resorted to buying coffee every day. However, the coffee prices around here range between $1.35 and $3.97 per cup and—at the risk of displaying my miserliness—that adds up very quickly. Particularly during the holiday season. Painstaking research on a "universal 12-cup replacement carafe" only resulted in bitter disappointment when the new coffee pot still didn't fit in my ancient Proctor Silex. With a crazy schedule and no hope of returning to the store myself before the New Year, I began preparing myself for coffee bankruptcy.

That's when I remembered this beauty, buried beneath my mounds of ill-sorted camping gear:

A souvenir from earlier days of music festivals and beginner's camping, this little percolator was eventually replaced by our current lightweight one-pot system and Starbucks instant coffee. Yes, yes, I know it's aluminum, but I could never really bring myself to get rid of the percolator.

OK, so maybe I didn't learn to make coffee using just a paperclip and a string. And maybe stovetop coffee percolators have been around since the days of my great-great-great-grandparents. This coffee addict (and her wallet) is still quite pleased.

REI's "Find Out NYC" iPhone app is bigger than life

...literally.

I still have a (well-functioning) iPhone 3G. Since I seem to destroy phones as frequently as local exterminators destroy cockroaches, sticking with this cheaper model was the only rational choice. I've been quite happy with my little geriatric robot—until now.

REI is opening a store in New York City, and they're making a big deal about it. Their campaign includes the release of an iPhone and Android app that interacts with REI ad posters around New York City:

While I can't imagine myself stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to point my phone at random REI advertisements, I did get excited for two reasons:

1. "You can learn more about outdoor opportunities in and around New York."
2. Gear giveaways!

Number 2 is simply (very tempting) consumer bait. However, for a city girl trying to breathe life back into her outdoor hobbies, number 1 has some great potential!

I gleefully downloaded the app, eager to discover new trails and untold wilderness. Unfortunately, the great outdoors is apparently too vast and untamed for my greenhorn mobile technology. The 48.9MB application pushed my poor little iPhone over max capacity, and I'm still debating the merits of removing some music just to try the darn thing.

Have you tried the app? What do you think?

Three ways to get outdoors without the guys

In order to start tackling all the outdoor tricks I thought I already knew, I'm setting three basic goals for myself:

• Join a cycling group - I've been wanting to learn the fine art of the group ride. What better reason to start? I'll start doing research now, but I'll even be happy if I can set something up for the spring.
• Leave New York City for a day hike with a friend - Many of my best buds have an untapped appreciation for the great outdoors. Hear that, queridas amigas? Before winter descends upon us, I'm dragging you with me!
• Plan one winter camping trip - Last year, A. and I joined some coworkers for our first overnight in the snow. I was super nervous about freezing to death in my sleep, but everyone came out alive (and with all of their extremities intact). Most importantly, it was actually fun! Organizing a trip like this will be my biggest challenge, because I would need to brush up on a range of skills. 

Yikes. Enough talk about winter, though. Give me some October sunshine!

Splitting camping gear for two

Two packs. Two hammocks. A two-person tent. I need to either replace some of this gear or be creative with what I'll be keeping with me. Can I hang that hammock without asking someone else to tie the fancy knots? Should I invest in an expensive 1-person tent? The New York City frost will be setting in sometime soon, but I would like to see camping in my future!