A Look At My Travel Bucket List: Adventures, Festivals and More!

1. Hiking Adventures: I remember taking a family trip back when I was in high school to Colorado, and I fell in love with the mountains and the views. I have not been great about making it a priority up until the last few years. Hiking is great because you can push yourself to the brink, or you can take your time and turn it into a nature walk. I do a little bit of both. I love it for exercise. I am outside, getting sunshine and fresh air. You tend to see something new every time you are out, and no two trails are the same.

*Thru (through) Hike - Start at Point A with all the stuff you need to survive (tent, food, water, etc). Use your 2 feet and sheer will to get you to Point B or Z, wherever your final ending point is. 

I have hundreds of trails that I know I want to do, and those are just a glimmer of what is out there. I have a few that I will be able to take a week off and thru-hike. For my work, I need my laptop and cell service, and that is it. One of these days in the hopefully not-so-distant future, I will have Starlink and I will never have to commute to work if I don't have cell service 😂

My Everest: The Triple Crown of hiking, including the Appalachian Trail (AT), Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), and Continental Divide Trail (CDT).

I am going to do a separate post about each of these trails. For me to complete these trails, it will involve hiking a section, coordinating a ride back to my truck, driving to the next section, and repeating the process. There are interactive maps, guides, and many resources available now that will make this possible for me to do. Each of the trails has its own list of volunteers who help hikers along their journey. All of the moms and dads out there will be happy to know I can’t hitchhike – nope, no way, not gonna happen. I will arrange my shuttles and meet the person beforehand to make sure I have a plan of action, and I will have backups. I have a satellite phone that I can send messages from. It is slow but gets the job done.

This is a screenshot of a small section of the AT. I will be able to drive to the different parking areas, calculate distances, and map out my route based on that. I will do this for each trail.

Most asked question: Aren’t you scared of (insert animal)? Honestly, I rarely see any animals. Maybe a deer or two and maybe a bull snake or two, but that is it. They stay in their space, I stay in mine, and never the two shall meet.

The Great American Rail-Trail: Another big one on the experience list. This one is not complete and not an official trail like the other three quite yet, so it doesn’t have the resources like the others do.

2. Exploring North America: Hiking is my true love, but there is so much else out there to see. I love small towns, off-the-beaten-path places. When I pretty much have the place to myself, I can really immerse myself in it and take it in. I want to go to a lot of mainstream places as well:

• Space Needle

• The Met

• MoMA

• The International Women's Baseball Center

• Multiple different military memorial sites

• National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

• Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory

• Golden Gate Bridge

• Roswell, NM 👽

• and soooooo many more....

I have seen Niagara Falls from the US side, but I have not from the Canadian side, so that is on the list. I hear the view is actually better from Canada. I want to ride a boat under the falls. Canada has many beautiful National Parks. I want to go to the capital, Ottawa, Ontario.

3. Festival Adventures:

The Chinese Lantern Festival: The Lantern Festival is more than just a visual spectacle; it's a celebration of culture, community, and tradition. There are performances, food, activities. The glow of the lanterns, I think, will be truly breathtaking.

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta: Walking through the fields, seeing all the bright colors, hopping in a balloon soaring up over the desert landscape. A people watcher's dream place 😂

Must-have MUSIC!!

• Newport Folk Festival

• Seven Peaks Music Festival

• Tortuga Music Festival

• Tampa Bay Blues Festival

• Newport Jazz Festival"

4. Ocean Exploration: I love the ocean. It is so calming. I have completed the classroom portion for my dive certification; I just need to do an open dive and a night dive to be fully certified. Key West was absolutely gorgeous. I would like to spend a summer out there on/in the water. I can't handle cold, so the warmest water in the warmest months should be good for me 😎. I want to try parasailing and surfing. Key West waters are very mild, perfect for beginners. I have a paddleboard that I have yet to take on the ocean.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are things out there I need to go and do that I don't even know exist 😁.