Road Trippin’

We were on the road for the last two weeks and are now spending our last days in the US in New York City. We’ll probably just troll around in the East Village and SoHo, behave like decent hipsters, eat our favorite foods, do some last-minute shopping and come to terms with the fact that our time here is coming to an end.

It’s been a fabulous time, again. Our road trip was nothing short of jaw dropping. From hiking down into the Grand Canyon to standing atop Observation point in Zion, from losing money on the penny slots in Vegas to camping for almost nothing in Joshua Tree, we saw a side of America that some people never consider. I’ve been through the tirade of “Why do you travel to the US so much? I would never go there, the politics, the security paranoia, the people, that’s just not for me” many, many times. Let me just say that everyone would find a corner that is “for them” in the US. And when it comes to natural wonders and scenery, Germany for one holds nothing to this continent of wonders.

We started out in Los Angeles, picking up our handsome camper van “Mr. Bling” from Lost Campers. It’s a small company owned and run by very nice and competent people. For ridiculously low prices – and no extra fee for drivers under 25, which is great, ’cause I’m still just 24 – we got a decent sized camper van with a comfortable double bed, a cooler, a complete dining setup and so on and so on. It was super easy to drive and navigate, the gas mileage was horrid when going uphill but fine when going straight. All in all, since we didn’t mind sleeping in a car, it was the perfect choice. For our budget and our needs a real RV would’ve been too big (although Tobi is now already speculating on a bigger RV for the next trip – I’m thinking bigger van, but not an RV. We’ll see.).

The first 2 hours led us to…

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Trees are actually giant lilies, not trees. They sure look like trees though. The eerie desert landscape had us wondering what was around the next hill all the time and we hiked to an abandoned mine in a strong, cold wind – but under sunny skies. The next day, a park ranger handed out – get this – FREE COFFEE! The campground we had chosen, thanks to a recommendation from a super-savvy friend from Boulder, was Hidden Valley, and it was packed. Mostly with climbers. So, when we got out of the van in the morning to find calm, clear, warm skies, free coffee (I guess the ranger who manned the coffee station had drawn the short straw that morning) for which they wouldn’t even accept donations – it’s the National Park Service, Sir, your taxes paid for this – and another great day of road tripping awaited us. Following the old Route 66 from Topok, California to Kingman, Arizona, crossing some prime desert country.. So we headed out of Joshua Tree after two nights and over to the..

Grand Canyon National Park

I had been to the Grand Canyon before, in January 2010. Last time though the visit only consisted of a drive along the South Rim with a couple of stops to take pictures and go ahhh and ooohhh. This time, we were a bit more serious. After finding a decent spot in the deserted Mather Campground (the only one that’s open this time of year) and realizing that it’s damn cold at night on the South Rim, we planned our next two days.
On the first day, we stashed a bunch of salty foods in our backpack, strapped on the Yaktrax and headed down the Bright Angel Trail. I figured that for first-time canyon hikers it would be safest to stay on a maintained Corridor trail where someone will find me if I happen to collapse.
Interestingly, we were quite a bit fitter than we thought. The hike down to the Three-Mile-Resthouse and back is supposedly a 4-6 hour hike. We did it in 3 hours, and were only 5 Minutes slower uphill than downhill. Huh. Well, the cool weather plays a big role. I’m sure I’d have taken much longer in 104 degrees and bright sunshine… but it motivated us big time!

On the second day, we took this as encouragement to head out on the Hermit Trail to Dripping Springs. In contrast to the highway-like Bright Angel Trail, the Hermit Trail is an unmaintained trail that is not patrolled and doesn’t have any amenities such as water or vault toilets. It sees only a fracture as many hikers as the Corridor trails and I liked that.
So, in went the snacks and water and headlight and First Aid kit and rescue blanket and pocket knife and dry socks and and and… We were prepared. Obviously we ended up not needing most of these things, but better safe than sorry.
This hike was another category. A 7 mile trek down to a trail junction and then up around the rim of a side canyon, all the way to the very end of the side canyon. The trail winds around the very edge of the canyon which is quite dizzying sometimes. It’s strenuous, especially the large, rough stone stairs back up. They were ragged and just thigh-burning tall..

Well, you get the picture.
The sun was shining (and adding a few degrees), the skies were bright blue, it was a perfect Grand Canyon Day. Everyone made it out alive, even though I was supremely exhausted afterwards.
We figured out that with those two day hikes, we almost did as much hiking and we would have done, had we been able to score a Phantom Ranch reservation and hike all the way down and back up. But you always have to leave something to be done next time. So, next time we come to the Grand Canyon, we’ve vowed to do a Rim to River to Rim with some inner-canyon hiking – about a week or so in total. Burn, thighs, burn!

To give our legs a rest, we spent the next day driving from the Grand Canyon all the way up to Monument Valley where we gawked at the movie-esque scenery and all those “familiar” vistas – I was quite surprised how BIG those stone buttes are! – and then over to our next destination…

Zion National Park

Yup, that’s me, sitting up at Observation Point in Zion Canyon and enjoying the magic.
Zion turned out to be the hidden jewel on this tour that we wished we could have spent more time in. I hadn’t really heard of it before and just picked up a Lonely Planet guide about Zion and Bryce. It sounded like a great place, so I had put it on the list. Maybe it’s the lack of expectations that made Zion so unique. When we drove in from the East, we couldn’t stop staring and ahh-oooh-ing. It was just magnificent.
The campground (Watchman Campground) was awesome, too. Scored a riverfront electrical site for $18, which meant no freezing nights thanks to our little electric heater. Yay!
There, we also met Axel from Germany, who is renting a van from Lost Campers right now, too. Only he’s on the road for a whole lot longer and in the process of traveling the world. Envy! It was funny to see that he had the some minor issues with the van and followed parts of the same route we did.

As I said, we had way to little time in Zion. On the only full day, we ate breakfast (and dinner) at Oscar’s Cafe in Springdale, a tiny little town right outside the park that made me yearn for Boulder (organic supermarkets! Fair-trade coffee! Free-range beef! Vegan choices! Outdoor hipsters!)  and did the Observation Point trail, an 8 mile, 800 meters in elevation gain-workout. The Lonely Planet described it as “the Grandaddy of Workouts”. That didn’t scare us off, the hike was awesome, and when we were back down at the trail junction before the last mile to the trailhead, we decided to tackle another, shorter trail that started there: Hidden Canyon. This also was amazing.
In total we ended up with something around 10 miles/5 hours of hiking, about 1000 meters of elevation gain climbed, and we were so, so happy.

Zion was our favorite. We’re planning to dedicate a LOT more time to it on the next trip.

That’s it for today – half of our trip wrapped up in one post. I’ll cover the rest of it in another one in a couple of days! Cheers! 

The comedies of hostels

Sitting in the lobby of a very sketchy hostel right now. It is called Adventurer Hostel (or Tradewinds Backpacker, or All Suites Hotel,…) and it is conveniently located about five minutes from the airport in Los Angeles. And that is exactly the one and only reason that I chose this hole. Cheap, close, free airport shuttle, super close to the depot where we will pick up the camper van.

So, since the room is a twenty-bed dorm with very uncomfortable beds, and it is not that warm outside (albeit much warmer than in Colorado), I settled into the lobby to watch the comedy unfold. I am frequently impressed and shocked with the way personnel will comport itself in front of customers. Paying for a service usually means that you’re treated nicely, right? Not in hostels. When it comes to those, it is a matter or sheer luck. I have found both incredibly nice, efficient hostels as well as dirty shitholes that are a collection of people who apparently did not find worK elsewhere.

Ladies and Gentlemen, let the games begin.

In the right corner, a slightly aging hooker. Now, I can only judge that she is a hooker by the fact that she is wearing very high heels and very short clothes for this weather, she also has three cell phones in her hand and not much else. Hm. Waiting for a client to pick her up? I will keep watch. In the left corner, the long-haired front office manager who says ‘fuck’ a lot. He fought with someone on the phone a few minutes ago, about some issue with the hotel shuttle. I have rarely observed someone using such obscene language in front of customers. Fascinating.

Oops, hookerlady was just picked up.

Right behind angry manager is unfriendly receptionist. She was nice to me when I checked in, but she was also complaining to me about her coworkers who were within hearing distance. No-Go. Never complain to your customers about your workplace. She is also quite unwilling to help customers who don’t speak English very well. A guy who checked in last obviously did not understand what she wanted his credit card for, since he had already paid for his room. Not everyone knows the word ‘incidentals’. In fact, I had a problem with that a few years ago in Boston. But this bitter receptionist had no ambition whatsoever to explain to the poor guy what incidentals are.

On top of that, they don’t seem to like answering the phone or speaking clearly when answering it. Now, the people staying here are all somewhat sketchy. A few travelers like me,  but many creepy guys, people who seem to live here, a couple homeless people showing up for the free ‘dinner’ (plain rice, fries, tater tots and nachos does not make a dinner make) ..

The room is damp, cold and uncomfortable. The hostel weird, sketchy and somewhat scary. But I’m sitting tight for a few more hours until my handsome fella finally comes in from the East Coast. Until then I’ll read a book, watch the lobby games and enjoy the fact that there is SO much oxygen in the air! I’ve clearly gotten accustomed to the altitude in Boulder. Damn, how I miss Boulder already.

A typical hostel situation… Getting dressed in the dark because you need to leave the room super early…

The Joy of Travel

Travel. Ah, fun. Right? Mostly, anyway. I usually don’t have any issues with security checkpoints since I pack quite light and know the routine by now.
Unfortunately, today I was unable to pack light. I also had to jam anything that wouldn’t fit into my 55l-Trekking Backpack (or that is too fragile to check) into my carry-ons. That includes a DSLR camera with two lenses, laptop, iPad, headphones, iPod, charging cables, a change of clothes, “liquids”, a porcelain coffee mug, a 1l-Nalgene bottle, a pair of Five Fingers, travel documents, a few books, Christmas presents (pssst!)…

Now imagine you walk through the creepy body scanner (after having taken off your hiking boots, belt and hoodie to reveal your sweaty, already worn-out inner shells), get the all clear, only to have them take BOTH of your carry-on items away for “further investigation”.
Both bags are packed with Tetris-style  accuracy.

I did manage somehow to get everything back into the bags, but it wasn’t easy, I’m telling you. Which is why after having carried a 42lbs-backpack (hooray, I can still buy 8lbs of stuff!), a 25lbs-backpack AND a quite heavy canvas tote for almost an hour to get to the bus, then riding the bus for an hour, schlepping everything to the check-in, and finally dragging myself over to security, I was certainly not amused to tear everything apart again. But there is no arguing with airport security. They do not care, and why should they? It’s their job. Yes, airport security in the US tends to be a tiny little bit paranoid, but (s)he who wants to travel has to put up with it.
Let’s just hope it doesn’t progress any further… or soon I see body cavity searches in our future. Yikes.

Now I’ll wait for boarding, get to the hostel we’re staying at for one night before picking up the Camper Van and wait for Tobi to make his way to Los Angeles, too.

 

The Last Day.

Joshua Tree at sunset, Copyright photosbyflood

It’s here. In fact, it’s been here for quite a while.
The last day.
Tomorrow I’m schlepping my backpack to the airport once again. Packing up and carrying around all my belongings has no charm as all, as I have to leave behind quite a few bits and pieces. Luckily, my books and nicest sweaters found new homes today, and I left behind a tote of things in the Policy Center – a promise of return.

And return I will. I had such an amazing time in Boulder that I’m really dreading going back to the University in Vienna. I now know what it can be like. Academia can be fun, cooperative, at times intense, exciting and just.. perfect. For me, at least. In Vienna, studying is not a job, not an ambition, it’s a lifestyle. And while I embrace the lifestyle of not putting on a monkey suit and working in a cubicle (blech!), I don’t see myself doing this forever.
Vienna is awesome. The museums, the restaurants, the architecture.. everything. It’s just missing a good deal of nature and mountains immediately out my door, the Policy Center, English-speaking folks and my friends from Boulder.
Ah well, I knew it would end at some point, but I’m really never prepared. I get attached and then I leave. Story of my life. That doesn’t seem to apply to men anymore (thank goodness!) though.

So, what did I do today, during my last 24 hours of paradise?

The To Do list reads as follows:

- return books
- get rid of clothes
- hand in office key
- give presentation
- say good bye
- remind roommate about deposit
- get back deposit
- finish packing
- wash clothes and sheets
- print hostel reservations
- eat at Zoe Ma Ma
- finish coding October
- put futon back into original state
- check desk and kitchen for stuff
- write Christmas cards
- Grandma Happy Birthday e-Mail
- download papers

You’ve probably already guessed that the things that are crossed off are done and over with. So, there is not that much left.
Tomorrow morning, I will throw my stuff into the washer for the last time, vacuum my room, and then leave that place behind. I’m not sad about leaving my apartment. In fact, I’m glad I am. It was an interesting experience but I think by now I’m just too “spiessig” to live with a bunch of boys. So, returning to the luxury of our own apartment will be heaven.
Now I’ll try not to panic again, enjoy my coffee, get some more stuff done, have one last Za Jiang Mian at Zoe Ma Ma’s (sadness!), and then walk home (I already sold my bike). And watch a movie or something. Relax. Try and get my heart rate down. Before I know it, I’ll be in Tobi’s arms and off to Joshua Tree.

THAT I actually am excited about!

Jauchzet, Frohlocket.

Listening to the Christmas Oratorio by J.S. Bach is a Christmas tradition in my family and honestly, I cannot imagine living without classical music during the “festive season”. I don’t care much for modern, commercial Christmas music, but I’ll even concentrate on listening to the music when it comes to Bach or Händel. Which is special once you know that I’m an insane multitasker who likes to do at least 3 things at once that occupy my brain on different levels.

This song just makes my heart glow.

I wasn’t introduced to this tradition until I lived in my ‘new’ family.  This is the tenth Christmas that I’m spending without my mum, without a regular, mom-dad-brothers-sisters family. For a while, I really, really hated Christmas. Who to spend it with? Your closest relatives, just because they are your closest relatives? Or the people you care about most? Will you make everyone happy or will someone feel left out? Will you sacrifice your own sanity for a harmonious family holiday?

Christmas is not as idyllic as people picture it in their dreams. Sure, there are still those picture perfect families. They exist, I’m sure of it. But chances are you’re not in one of them. And in that case, Christmas can become a tug-of-war, a time of running around looking for presents, and a time of forced cheeriness.
I stopped doing that a while ago. Christmas, whatever way you frame this time of year, is not supposed to be a stress. For me, it signifies driving home, spending a few calm days just baking and eating cookies, hanging out with the people you love, listening to great music, reading books, drinking tea.
Once I learned to value my own wishes, I stopped trying to make Christmas something it’s not. It’s not like it was when I was a kid. My mum isn’t there anymore, the family is not there anymore. But I found a new family. New traditions came to life. It is not the same, but it is equally great.
And one day, in a few years maybe, I’ll celebrate Christmas in my very own little family.

And that’s how I learned about turning on the Christmas Oratorio whilst lighting up the real candles of the tree and having a glass of Champagne. A magical moment.
This year, we’ll have to do that in our camper van (minus a tree). But I’m sure a bottle of Champagne can be found. And celebrating Christmas in Yosemite National Park doesn’t seem to bad to me… especially since my awesome, amazing family sent me Glühwein spices, an Adventskalender, Räucherkerzen and a Christmas card:

 

The only thing I really miss is breaking the tree top ornament _every year_ .. heheheh. And of course having Milchreis “because Jesus didn’t have anything fancy either”. Nice reasoning, mum.

How to become a local

So, I’ve been in Boulder for three months and one week exactly now. One more week to go, and I’m finally starting to feel like a ‘local’. In my past stays abroad, I’ve had pretty much the same experience with this pattern. The first few weeks feel like a vacation, you try out new things, find out where to shop for groceries, grab a bite on the way home, get a good coffee and get a work out. But there are certain things that go a bit beyond explorations, things that you can do to make yourself feel at home. It isn’t always a cakewalk, being away from the people you love and being in a different culture. Not to fear, most people will cope eventually. Some quicker than others.

1. Find out where the locals get their groceries.

While they might be a Target with a big food aisle, a Wal-Mart, a huge Auchan or an Interspar in your area, try to hit the small stores. Down the street from me there is a small 24hrs store called “Lolita’s Market and Deli”. In fact, it has a great selection of every-day things, from ice cream to tampons, and it has a Deli inside, too, that makes great Breakfast Burritos. Yum. Whether I just need to pick up some pasta or want to indulge in some luxurious Talenti Gelato, I make sure to go there rather than a generic, big store.
Also, find the Farmer’s Market, if you’re lucky enough to have one in your city. When I lived in Toulouse, market sunday was a ritual for me and it made me talk to the locals, ask around where to find the best tomatoes or melons or whatever. I enjoyed going to the same old, wrinkly, sweet market woman every week, because at some point, she would recognize me and talk shop to me.

You’re also more likely to find local produce that way. In the face of a changing climate, buying local (and organic, in many cases) is really important. Seasonal, local fruits and veggies aren’t shipped to Wal-Mart, they are sold in your local grocery store.
I for one enjoy shopping at Alfalfa’s, a yuppie grocery store in Boulder. It’s selection is perfect, there is plenty of local, organic meat to choose from, they are friendly and they give me a discount for never needing a paper bag. They only downside is that it smells like a good old “Reformhaus”, but you get used to that.

2. Do what the locals do for a sport.

This doesn’t need to be a physical thing, if you’re not into that or cannot do it. After the tenth time of hearing “Oh, have you done the Royal Arch yet? It’s really beautiful!” it is really difficult to say “No, I hate hiking, but thanks.” I’ve elaborated enough on my deeply rooted hatred of hiking, but this was part of the reason why I started doing it anyway. Everyone does it. Of course, the locals just put some tights and tennis shoes on whereas I don my hiking boots and jeans most of the time, and of course they actually run up the trail instead of slowly putting one foot in front of another, but hey, better than nothing. I started this wondrous thing called ‘trail running’ a few weeks ago, but I didn’t get so far. And now the trails are a bit to snowy for my Five Fingers. Too bad.

If your town or country is hooked on a certain pastime, make sure to try it at least once. Go see a baseball game, have tea at a cricket match, go bungee jumping or learn the Tango. Whatever it is, you’ll be sure to meet people who can introduce you to more people, and pretty soon you’ll be able to participate in the discussions about the weekend’s game or trail or event. And that feels really good.

3. Become a regular at a café or restaurant (or both).

 

This is my favorite advice. I’ve become a regular at OZO Coffee and Zoe Ma Ma, conveniently located about 30 seconds from each other. One of the baristas at OZO actually knows my drink (it’s easy: a 16oz, 2% latte. To stay.) and starts making it when he sees me in line. This is super convenient – and cool.
And at Zoe Ma Ma, the b-e-s-t Chinese/Taiwanese place I’ve e-v-e-r eaten at, most of the cashiers know my name and I’ve risen so far that Mama gives me free potstickers. Yay. I simply love their food, so I come back every few days.
Becoming a regular gets you a ‘home base’. It doesn’t need to be a restaurant or coffeehouse, a bar will work well, too! If your fancy is an evening Gin Tonic, by all means, find a bar that makes a really good one and carries your favorite gin, get to know the barkeeper, and keep coming back.

4. Don’t be the comparator. 

For a few weeks every time, I become the victim of the sentence “In Germany,…” Urgs. This is horrible. The urge to compare every single thing to how you do it in your home country keeps you from really appreciating what’s in front of you. Yes, it can be really interesting to compare customs and have discussions about the different ways of making tea or decorating the Christmas tree… but don’t do it too often. Don’t do it to prove that your way is “better”.
Back when I was an exchange student, I used this to make my feelings about certain things very clear. For example, I’d say “In Germany, we don’t only listen to commercial, crappy Christmas music, we like classic tunes and classical music!” – because I’m not a fan of the modern Christmas music and got annoyed with hearing it on the radio. What I meant: this is not really my type of music. What they heard: my country is so much better, our society is better, you suck.
Oops.

5. Study the language, if you don’t know it yet!

Okay, this IS a no-brainer. For me, being in America is not really a linguistic challenge (heh, heh), but living in France actually WAS a challenge. I took a language class, I did an internship completely in French, I tried to find French friends, I struck up conversations in restaurants and bars. Slowly, it got better. Now, France is a special case, you’ll need about six to nine months until a French person will actually consider you as more than just a passer-through, but many other countries are bit more open.
I’ve had a boyfriend who, despite spending almost two years in Germany, couldn’t speak a complete and correct sentence in German. You will most likely be able to get by without it and just hang out with the other expats or exchange students, maybe even with exchange students from your own home University… but don’t do that. You will regret it when you come home and realize that you have no one to visit if you go back to your host country.

Okay, so this kind of mixed the language issue with the friendship issue, but it’s very closely related.

That’s pretty much it. I try to live in the moment rather than miss what I don’t have. Obviously now that the end is near, I miss my apartment a bit more than usual, and I’ll actually be back there in almost exactly 4 weeks. That sounds like a long time, but it is not. I know that the minute I leave Boulder, I will miss it.

The Last Week

When it comes to the seasons, people have strong opinions. Many declare themselves to be ‘summer people’ who love the heat and the sun and despise the cold – winter.
I, myself, am a “four seasons” kind of person. I enjoy them all in their own way and I don’t know whether I’d be happy living in, say, Darwin, where the weather stays pretty much the same year-round.

So spending a winter in Colorado definitely has its ups for me. Yesterday, the temperature dropped to -17 degrees Celsius, which is pretty uncommon in Germany. This was not my first time in such cold weather, having spent a year in Michigan where temperatures would commonly drop below -20, but it still necessitates a certain way of dressing. Luckily I have my gear in place – hiking books that go above the ankle protect me from snow, Yaktrax Pro on them keep me from falling flat on my face on the packed snow and ice in the streets, a Mammut jacket with a Softshell inside keeps me toasty and whatever is not covered by the jacket will be wrapped in a Pashmina and a hat. Only my gloves present a problem: they are utterly useless. I bought them here and they were supposed to be waterproof, windproof and very warm. They are none of those things. But of course I didn’t keep the receipt and can’t return them with a smirk.

My last week in Boulder starts today. This time next week, I’ll be packing up my room, deciding whether to take my towel home or not (it’s the only one I have that has my name stitched onto it and I really like it – but it is too bulky..) and trying to fit everything into my backpack. I did a practice run yesterday.. well.. let’s just say I need to make some hard decisions. Discovering the Boulder Bookstore was definitely a problem. I vowed to only buy books on my iPad this time, but I couldn’t resist. Their Travel section is huge and they have many used books. My remedy is to read as many as I can before I leave and then sell them back to the bookstore. Some will have to be left behind. Ah well.
Leaving will be no easy feat. I’m making last-minute purchases, buying souvenirs (this also adds to my luggage problem), running around trying to eat everything I love.

But all things come to an end. I remember all too well how I felt the last times I was about the leave a country or city that I had come to love. Luckily, memories and experiences never go away!

The Road Trip

Tomorrow I’ll be heading over to Denver for the weekend to breathe some Museum air and gawk at high buildings, but in less than two weeks, we’re starting our road trip through the Southwest.
I’m super excited since this is something I’ve always wanted to do – rent a camper van and tour through some National Parks. I’m pretty sure this will not be the last time, since there are some amazing National Parks that we simply won’t be able to go to this time..

Here’s our route – what are your must-dos and must-sees on a road trip in that area?
I’m also developing a pretty extensive road trip playlist.. We’ll see what I come up with, I’ll certainly post it once I’m done.

Travel plans

Since this blog is mostly about travel and the adventures that ensue, here’s a little update. Next year, we’ll embark upon the ultimate adventure of traveling around the world. Since you have to prioritize, especially when you don’t have a full year, the priority will be South America, New Zealand, Australia and Japan. We’ll see how we divide our time.

By now I’ve lived in three European countries and three US states. Not really earth shattering amazing, but for a woman of 24, pretty good so far. I do aim to add to that.

So here you see in blue where I’ve been so far, in red where I’ve lived so far and in green where I want to go in the near future.
What are your travel plans for the near future? Have you done a trip around the world and want to tell me about it?

http://www.whereivebeen.com/map.php?uID=552064&iID=5e00cf62b1d3d29f0084bf2cf66cf04d

How to like hiking

I’ve never been a big hiker. In fact, I hated ‘hiking week’, a popular torture method for young schoolchildren. Nowadays they have adventure weeks where they go rafting, climbing and whatnot, but I’m from the generation of those who were forced to hike. It might be because my mother was not exactly a fan of hiking either, whereas my dad sports a mountain tan in the summertime that makes him look like he’s.. Morrocan. My brothers, then, seem to be pretty divided on the issue. The older one is not was I’d call ‘sporty’. He DID mountain bike when he was younger, has a PADI Open Water Diver card (not sure if he ever went diving again though) and makes efforts to stay fit despite his job. The younger one, on the other hand, is as sportive as it gets, from climbing to skiing to biking to other things that make him break bones and dislocate joints.

So I guess I’m slab in the middle. I love sports. I’ve been horseback riding since I was 6 years old, did ballet for a long time, ran a half marathon, trained for a triathlon, kayaked around lakes and streams solo when it was still barely 32F outside, tried out rock climbing, love swimming laps, started road biking last year, blablabla.

Enough with the praise. I feel good about myself now. Hah. Despite all that, I have to admit: I hate hiking. It’s slow, tedious, at times boring and definitely a bit… what old people do, eh? Not here in Boulder. Hiking is Boulder’s official sport, next to rock climbing and skiing. Everyone does it. I started out three months ago by doing some small hikes in Chatauqua park, mainly up the Flatirons. When I moved to West Boulder, I had a couple of trails right in front of my house, most prominently the Mount Sanitas trailhead. That’s a tough trail. It goes up the ridge of Mount Sanitas for a couple of miles and is fairly steep and stair-laden. Not my favorite type of trail by any stretch.
But I go hiking anyway. Because once I’m up  the mountain, it is actually pretty cool. Hiking is not only super good for you, it’s also free, can be very social, you get a big dose of fresh air, and on top of all that, you get to see cool things if you’re in the right area.

In just 12 days, I’m leaving Boulder behind. It’s a shame, really, I like it here a lot. But new experiences await. First a road trip through several National Parks in the Southwest, which means I’m actively training for hiking in the Grand Canyon right now. Then, after a short stint in New York (to grab some Shake Shack, hang out at the MoMA, walk around the East Village and generally be happy in the best city in the world), it’s time to go back to Europe.

I’ve thought about writing this often, while on a trail, panting, asking myself why in the world anyone would do this voluntarily. So, here’s my guide to liking hiking (hey, that rhymes!).

1. Get some awesome shoes.

This is somewhat flexible. But if you’re serious about hiking up a mountain, or even just a hill, you need shoes that are fun to walk in, don’t put too much strain on your legs and feet, look great (don’t we all want to look great, even when on a remote mountainside?) and that you LOVE putting on. I have two different types of shoes for that: a pair of leather hiking books that go above the ankle, for those rocky, wet or snowy trails. I chose Waldviertler Jaga Flex, because I don’t like the look of high-tech plastic hiking boots, and because they look smart enough to wear around town on a cold day. This is what they look like in action (in the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area, worn with socks knit by my aunt)

Then, I have two pairs of Five Fingers: KSO and Bikila LS. The KSO are a bit more flexible and offer a bit more ground feel, the Bikila LS have more stability and are a little more rugged. Both are excellent for hiking. I’ve been wearing the KSO for over a year now and my feet and legs have become incredibly strong – and my back doesn’t hurt nearly as much. There is a lot about barefoot walking, running and trekking on the internet so I’ll spare you a discourse about this right now. Five Fingers ended up being a great investment for me.
Here are the two models side by side – KSO left, Bikila LS right.

What type of shoe you choose is entirely up to your liking. But choose some that you absolutely love, otherwise you’ll dread putting them on in the first place.

2. Find an awesome place. 

This is a no-brainer. Hiking is much more fun when the scenery is great. Which is part of why I do it here. The Rocky Mountains are beautiful. My boyfriend and I did a hike in the Indian Peaks Wilderness area two months ago and it was just magical. Even here I sometimes suspect I’m actually in a video game and the boulders are made of cardboard. Huh. When the scenery bores you, hiking will bore you, too.
If you don’t live near a place that is pretty, consider doing your first hike on vacation.

3. Go alone the first time.  

I though about making the exact opposite recommendation. I love having my man along and meeting other people on the trail, but to get into your groove, consider hiking alone in the beginning. You can set your own pace, concentrate on breathing and footing, and you’ll also see more around you when you’re not chatting with a friend. This is also why you should not put in headphones while hiking: enjoy nature. Listen to the sounds. Hear that bunny hopping away from you. The trees crackling. The crunch of gravel or leafs under your feet. It is all part of the reason hiking is actually quite great.

4. Reward yourself. 

When you’ve got a thermos full of coffee or tea to look forward to once you’re up on the mountain, your pace quickens when the summit is in sight. Sitting down with a steaming cuppa is awesome when you’re exhausted and happy. Get a good thermos that doesn’t leak and keeps liquids hot. I’m using a Klean Kanteen Insulated and I love it. Stanley is also a good choice. I haven’t found a leak proof one in Germany yet, but I’m sure there are some. Those colorful ones from IKEA suck, by the way.
Or plan on a special breakfast/lunch/dinner when you’re back. I recently made Biscuits and Gravy for that reason. You’ve earned it, now go enjoy!

Well.. today I was too lazy to go. But in the face of hiking the Grand Canyon in just two weeks, I should probably log a few more hours, eh?
Now go forth and hike.