2/15/23
Day 102

Today was beautiful. The weather was warm, skies were bright for most of the day, and the trails were hard packed. I even went the entire day without any traction! Carter-Moriah Trail and Stony Brook are the last two trails that I will be doing in the Carter area until summer. It felt really great to get this hike done and to not have to wear snowshoes. The last three hikes, though, I’ve felt really bad about how slow I go when hiking. It’s something that I am really self-conscious about and makes me feel like I am not worthy of the attempt that I’m tackling. Who am I to think that I am good enough? That’s what I think almost every single time I go hiking. 

There are those of us who are naturally active, and there are those of us who aren’t. My whole life, I’ve wanted so badly to be in the former category, and yet I am not. I am not naturally athletic, period. It takes a lot of effort for me to get these hikes done. It doesn’t come naturally to me, and it is absolutely not my go-to lifestyle to be doing some form of cardio every other day. 

I can’t stress this enough. I am not an athlete, am far from skinny, and am just trying to get each hike done. That’s it. On days when I feel down on myself for being slow, it’s hard to feel proud that I did the hike. But I did the hike, and although I am constantly amazed by my own physical abilities (just doing any of these hikes is something I never imagined I could do), I hike because I like to be outside. I don’t try to set speed records and I don’t try to do major physical endeavors (all my hikes are planned to be realistically things I can do). I just like to be outside and be in nature. That’s why I hike. 

Daily Miles: 12.49

Daily Vert: 3679’

Overall Miles: 1065.61

Overall Vert: 310,086’

Trace: 45.7% -> 46.3%

NEHH: 39/100

Summits: Moriah

Trails: 

Stony Brook Trail

Carter-Moriah Trail 

Moriah Summit Spur