When I am not traveling, I am planning to travel. Travel always involves a hike, usually long distance whenever time allows. Right now the plane tickets have been purchased for the upcoming summer, the hiking destination has been chosen and the fun begins -- reading, searching and talking about the hike to come.

For me, I like to know more about what to expect on the trail. What will the level of difficulty be? Will there be scary spots where I just need to suck it up and get over it? Usually there are very few of these spots and in hindsight, they are never as bad as I imagine. In fact, the scary spots have always  been memorable in a very good way. I can say to myself, "I did it, I made it past the worst and lived to tell the tale".

To most average humans, the scary spots were just another footfall on the trail and no different from the others. I come from a slightly different perspective. I have always been less athletic than my friends, therefore less confident in my abilities to leap over chasms or not get shaky knees on the steep parts, but thanks mostly to their encouragement (and no thanks to any courage of mine) and the fact that many humans have made it past those points and no worse for wear, I too have accomplished feats I never thought possible.

I have had dreadful moments of anticipation, knowing that the scary bit is on the horizon and thinking most likely I will die, then at the actual moment of do or die, the battle of my mind begins in all its fierceness. My brain will simply not let my legs move forward. They are as rooted to the earth as the stone path in front of me. Then some divine intervention occurs. Perhaps it is my friends encouragement which in all their kindness is really saying, "Come on! Get over it! We have to be at the pass by lunch time!" Or I finally face the truth that no way am I going back to where we started and that I have no choice in the matter, something moves me along. Baby steps and gripped to whatever I can grip, I move along mumbling all the while, "you can do it, you can do it" and then I am on the other side and I feel good! "That was nothing" I proclaim! Though everyone knows the truth. I was scared shitless.

Those experiences, even when I know they are coming, will never, never stop me from going on our long distance hikes. The rewards are far too great for my little psycho insecurities to prevent me from slipping into my trail hikers, hoisting up my pack and heading off into the great, wild trails of Europe.

Next destination, The Queyras on the eastern edge of France. More to come.