Blog

Something occurred to me during a 5:30 a.m. run last week: exploring the outdoors in the dark is FUN. Running through the quiet streets and woods of my neighborhood, lit by the narrow beam of my headlamp and the warm glow of holiday lights, it struck me that THIS is my kind of adult adventure. It’s relatively safe, doesn’t take much time, and provides the same feeling of exhilaration I had as a kid - running around with neighborhood friends past sundown. If you struggle with

Photo Credit: Brian Threlkeld, Photography For The People As if six months of winter in Maine wasn’t enough of a challenge, some add cold-water immersion to their wintry list of outdoor activities. These hardy souls submerge themselves in frozen lakes and ice-cold oceans during the coldest time of the year. Last March, 15 swimmers took it to the extreme with a “Super Plunge” in Ogunquit - a fundraising event involving 24 polar plunges in 24 hours. While they did raise $80,000

My husband suggested I create a hiking checklist for myself, since I have a loooong history of forgetting important items when setting out on my adventures. Like the microspikes I forgot to bring on our recent hike in the snowy Whites. Or my wallet, which I left at home while traveling to Vermont for hiking research. Lists have become my life-line, because my brain is not always functioning like that of a full-grown adult. If you’re anything like me, I hope this hiking hack h

To all the fellas, I'm really glad you're here, but this post is for the women. I dedicate this post to all the female hikers who continue to get out there and do the thing that makes you feel most alive - through periods, pregnancies, perimenopause, menopause, and all of the hormonal fluctuations that make us soft and strong, vulnerable and powerful, friendly and fiesty. I hope you hike through all of the beautiful and challenging stages of a woman’s life. Because we know we

Photo by Northern Outdoors (Post originally published in August of 2023) White water rafting offers unrivaled family fun. Lucky for us, we have access to three places to raft in Maine: the Kennebec River, the Dead River and the Penobscot River. The Kennebec and Dead Rivers converge at The Forks in Somerset County and include class 2 - 4 rapids. The Penobscot River runs through Baxter State Park and is a bit more intense with class 5 rapids. I've never rafted the Penobscot, bu

Photo by Courtney Cronin What the heck is WFA, you may be asking? Pronounced "Woofah," it stands for Wilderness First Aid, and it's an...

When we moved to our house ten years ago, we were most excited about the fact that it abutted Baxter Woods, a 30-acre city forest in...

I was so proud of myself for staying well hydrated during a recent hike in the 90 degree heat. Proud until I told my well informed friend...

I recently did a two day Wilderness First Aid (WFA, pronounced woofah) training through Wilderness Medical Associates. The weekend long...

Yes it's time. Ignorance may be bliss, but knowledge is power. It's time to learn about these prevalent parasites that we find outdoors....