Adventure Awaits

 Retirement is getting closer... 6 months, 2 weeks. The most common question I get asked is " what are your plans after you retire?' I of course reply travel, volunteer and hike. This blog is of course was originally created to document my journey to get fit, and prepare for my trip to Nepal next year. I have since added the hiking trips I have taken while getting in shape and then of course the plans I am making for new adventures. Colorado this autumn, Guadalupe Mountains next winter, Peru in the spring (autumn there) and then the big one to Nepal. 

My plans don't just stop at Nepal though.  I have so many more places I want to go and things I want to do. I am already looking at 2027 and a 6-8 week camping road trip to twelve National Parks in the western and northwestern states. I've looked at camping options in the parks, the hikes I am interested in so I can plan on how many days I would need to stay. I've looked at distances and drive times from park to park so I can see what stops I can add between them. I want to build in some days so I can be flexible, but I will have to also set a schedule to arrive in the parks if I have campsite reservations. The total distance I would be traveling is over six thousand miles, That is a lot of driving. Two of the National Parks I have been to, but did not do any or very little hiking, Grand Teton and Rocky Mountain. I love both parks and would love to explore them a bit more than I was able to on past trips. I also love the Jenny Lake Campground at Grand Tetons. It is my favorite campground of the ones I have stayed. 

Here is my list in the order I plan to visit:

• Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP
• Rocky Mountain NP
• Grand Tetons NP
• Glacier NP
• North Cascades NP
• Olympic NP
• Mount Rainier NP
• Redwood NP
• Yosemite NP
• Sequoia NP
• Zion NP
• Bryce Canyon NP

I plan a a later trip to Arizona to take in some places there that look interesting. I also have several places in New Mexico that I want to visit that I will add to one of these trips. 

I have ideas of places and things I am considering down the road. A volunteer trip to Guatemala to work with a Sea Turtle Conservation program. National Parks staff volunteer or seasonal employee. Summer work in Alaska at a lodge or park. I might even decide to return to Nepal to teach again and maybe trek the Annapurna Circuit. The problem with aging though is you never know what can happen. Illness, injury or death. I've had family members be active up to their 90's. I've had others that were old and feeble in the 60's. I am going to do my best to stay active as long as I can. I would love to still be hiking in the mountains well into my 80's. I just can't let myself slow down.