Its fast approaching. In about three and a half months, I will be in northern Idaho as a team member of the Hell Hike and Raft crew. A question was posed to us as a group on our Facebook page yesterday, how do we plan on celebrating when we arrive at the highest peak in the Seven Devils range? Honestly, not having given this much thought yet, I let my fellow team members speak up and allowed myself some time to adequately chew on the topic. A little back ground for you. He Devil as mentioned is the tallest of all the Seven Devils peaks. Rising to 9,393ft, 13 feet higher then She Devil. Keep in mind, I am used to New England and Appalachian mountains. My fav, Monadnock rings in at 3,166. He Devil is also exactly three times that of Monadnock. Even the grand Mt. Washington is 6,289 and that's not even the tallest on the AT. That honor is bestowed upon Clingman's Dome in the GSMNP, at 6,625. Both only stretching to two-thirds of the elevation of He Devil, and you can drive up both Washington and up to Clingman's Dome as well. There are no roads where we are going. "Where we're going, we don't need roads" Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown Yes. I just quoted Back to the Future. Get over it! Back to the issue at hand. What to do when finally achieving over 9,000 feet on the highest peak in my experience? It was discussed amongst some the group members about just taking in the scenery, some documenting the moment, others leaving a token of appreciation for a lost loved one. Still twenty-four hours later this idea still leaves me perplexed. I think of the many courageous souls who I follow from afar who set off each year in the early spring and then on a magical late summer or early autumn day reach Mt. Katahdin. Some cheer, some have champagne others weep as they simply hold on to the sign, as if letting go of it would kill them. Nothing provides me a more meaningful sense of kinship to these like-minded souls then to see them experience their last moment on the AT after a truly long and epic journey. While my day has not yet come to address the AT in the way I want to and let my hands grace the sign above Katahdin, I do have another epic journey to share in front of me. I don't think champagne will be on the menu for this journey however I do feel inside me, that emotion will surely be. When I watch the YouTube videos or see the pictures atop Katahdin, especially after following a hiker via their journals, I feel the emotion of that journey with them. When they reach their final summit, honestly I begin to feel my own emotions of my life bubble up as if I was finishing my journey. Will this appear on He Devil? I don't know. Ironically, the emotion I speak of comes from the unexpected passing of my father five years ago who was a priest. I chuckled a bit, I'll be honest at the thought that a world of emotion can present itself on a mountain called He Devil about a priest. It's okay. Chuckle away. My dream, is to hike the AT, to immerse my being into the hiker community and live the life of a thru-hiker, reach that sign and let it all go. My dad's dream was to be a priest. And against unbelievable odds he achieved his goal, made his dream a reality and made everyone around him the better for it. He never stopped giving back to his community, and he never forgot the people that helped him get to where he dreamed to be. Some people try and achieve things, some even do. But making your dreams come true, and sharing in your life that is stuff of legends. And boy he was a legend. So as I think about what will or what happen either organically or premeditated on the highest peak I have ever climbed I know a few things for certain. The old man will be with me each step of the way. He will be proud of my journey and my determination to reach these new heights and I will surely be close to him. Keep Hiking Forward Scott
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Okay, so here is the deal folks. My beloved Boston Bruins are in the Stanley Cup Playoffs (AGAIN). This evening we start the second round against our foes the Montreal Canadians. There are only a few things that I love in this world as much as I being outside camping, hiking, kayaking and chatting with like-minded souls around a campfire. Those things include playoff hockey (Boston Bruins), baseball (Boston Red Sox) and Sundays watching the New England Patriots. Yes I am "that" guy. If you have seen the movie Fever Pitch, you will understand. Yeah that's me. Above the TV, in my man cave garage (pic to the left) I have a 16 foot by 4 foot replica of the Green Monstah (Monster) from Fenway park. I told you. I'm that guy. So, you asking yourself its hockey, whats the big deal? Well yeah see, I got selected and happily accepted to be on a crew of 13 other awesome adventurers to tackle the Seven Devils mountain range in northern Idaho and raft 40 miles of the deepest canyon in North America in exactly 3 months 30 days and some change (you can view the countdown on this page). So, the challenge now is how do I seriously get myself physically ready to achieve what I want to achieve in such a sort time frame? Good question. Part of the agreement I made with my wife about going on this trip was that I would allow myself the time to get physically ready, mentally ready and emotionally ready to get every ounce out of this adventure that I can. I think we all do this, we get busy, with work, kids, life, running from one thing to the next and then we cram in the good stuff and barely get a percentage of the fun and enjoyment we should from the experience. I have to admit that I have found myself in this spot more then once and it can be very discouraging. Within the past few weeks I have read or seen many articles about sitting at a desk in a chair and how it is killing us. Just today I saw an article about how working in an office sitting is the new smoking. As if I needed another sign! I already have lower back issues and I know what I need to do to strengthen it. Honestly, other then the pain... which I am now used to, I really haven't had a great reason to try and correct the issue. Now I do. Hell Hike and Raft. Okay, so still with me? I sit all day in my home office, already have back issues, need to stay true to my agreement with the wife about my physical, mental and emotional preparedness. Oh yeah! And the first game of the Bruins second round playoffs starts in a couple hours. Whats the big deal right? I hate exercise. I have always been a weekend warrior who could do what I wanted or needed to on the weekend. And now. Sadly old age, sitting and the tiniest bit of beer has caught up to me. However, I have just watched my wife transform herself in a matter of 16 months. She lost a 100lbs, just finished her first half marathon and is stronger and more determined then I have ever seen her. She is a total inspiration to me and others. She is committed to giving me the same support I have given her over the past year. And, I love her for it. She made a plan and stuck to it. And for a month or so I have to be honest, I have done not much to move forward in the necessary categories. Well today, I made my plan. A good first step. And this weekend I plan on starting it. As I implement the plan and hopefully get stronger, leaner and more flexible (for my backs sack) I will be keeping all abreast of my progress both good and bad.
Curious what I am going to be doing to get there? You can view my hiking plan above. Happy to take suggestions or comments in the comments box. If I change things I will edit and re-upload the document.
Wish me luck! and... GO BRUINS! Keep Hiking Forward. Scott So like most hiker and outdoor enthusiasts I bet you spend most of your day wondering about your next gear purchase, or researching an item your going to buy or better yet watching the UPS Tracking screen at work waiting for the box from REI to arrive at your doorstep. SICKO! Its okay, I do the same thing! This my friends is your lucky day. What if I told you that you could get the excitement of Christmas morning, every month. You to can get an awesome assortment of outdoor gear sent to your house for the low low price of $25.00 a month and can get that amazing feeling of wondering... "whats in the box?". So, I have to be honest I got my first Cairn box as a complimentary item from they great people at Cairn who are helping to sponsor Hell Hike and Raft. Rob Little, Cairn's Founder, I think has come up with a great idea for us gearheads who love gear mail. In this little box, I received well over twenty-five dollar's worth of awesome gear. Gear that came in my Cairn Package: Hydro Flask 12oz. Standard Mouth - $20 Old Ephraim StrapGear 10” Blueberry Blue - $9(2pack) Honey Stringer Honey Waffle 1oz package – ($22 –Box of 16) Mosquitno Adult Size All Natural Wristband - $4 Joshua Tree Hiker’s Salve Organic Unscented – ($17- 1.7oz) Want more info about Cairn? www.getcairn.com Curious what I will be experiencing in just over four months? Well check this out. Jealous aren't you? Stay tuned for more about our upcoming epic adventure... Hell Hike & Raft.
Keep Hiking Forward Scott But Seven? Yes in just over four months (as you can now see from our handy-dandy countdown ticker) I along with thirteen of my new best friends will be taking on and and coming face to face with the Seven Devils. (insert scary horror music here) As I have never been to this area of the country for hiking I have to rely on those brave souls who have taken on these devils and lived to tell about them. Below is a link to a newspaper article from 2013 that best sums up the experience of a hiker as he took on mountains by the names of She Devil, The Ogre, The Goblin, Twin Imps, Devil’s Throne, Devil’s Tooth, etc. Idaho's Seven Devils and one hell of a hike - Idaho Statesman by Roger Phillips What the hell did I just get myself into? Don't they know there is nothing wrong with naming mountains after dead presidents or famous people of the past? Yikes! Keep Hiking Forward Scott Well if you have been paying attention to either my twitter feed @scottcgauvin or my Hiking Forward Facebook page in the past couple of weeks you have probably noticed me talking up this adventure. Adam from Hikingthetrail.com is the brains behind this operation. He is working to get 14 like-minded adventurous outdoor-loving blogging souls together for an epic social and outdoor adventure. In September "The Crew" will head to northern Idaho to take part in an six day adventure with three days on the rapids of the Snake River and three days backpacking the area around Hells Canyon. The purpose of Hell Hike and Raft is to take 14 people of different backgrounds on this adventure and have them share their experiences with everyone. This project will allow us to challenge the group, ourselves individually, the guides, and our gear. Each member of the crew will blog about the upcoming adventure, their personal preparations, blog while on the trip and about the gear they test during the adventure. I am extremely excited to meet the other crew members and take this journey together. I encourage you to stay tuned to Hiking Forward for more information and details of this epic adventure as they are released. In addition to my outlets make sure to watch the hashtag #hellhikeandraft for more details from all the crew members about the upcoming adventure. Keep Hiking Forward Scott Would like to thank the following for sponsoring #HELLHIKEANDRAFT
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