*Misfit Showcase*
. I was never one of those "fit" kids, I was overweight and didn't exercise. I started walking my dogs when I was 18/19 and started to lose weight. I ended up loosing 30kgs and I fell in love with running. I gave it up a few years back and lost my drive. My first major hike was the Inca trail for part of my honeymoon. I started hiking after this and loved it. I lost a family member to suicide three years ago, I had a breakdown two years ago and found myself diagnosed with severe anxiety. I now use hiking to ground myself, to be with nature and spend time with loved ones. I also love pushing my limits and doing multi-day hikes. - Kristy (@Teacher_adventures_) . Pronouns: She/Her . [Image Description: Kristy stands on large rocks, the ocean a dark blue behind her with large white clouds in the sky. She wears a light colored crop top and black leggings, her hair in a messy bun.]
2 Comments
*Misfit Showcase*
. "I have been labeled many things in my life. Too long to fit on a social media post. Misfit hiker is one label I take on with pride! . Why do I consider myself a misfit hiker? I hike alone. I hike with my service dog. I work hard at finding trails where I can find total solitude. . I have always found the outdoors as my safe place. I feel safer hiking alone in the back country then I do anywhere else or with anyone. The outdoors has been a lifeline. The outdoors has taken me out of deep, dark spaces. The outdoors gives me something to keep me looking forward. On days that are physically and mentally difficult, if I can get up, get out and walk a trail, I always feel better!" Mary (@LittleAngelsMollie) . Pronouns: She/Her . Mary would like to give a shout out to - Little Angels Service Dogs has changed my life by matching me with Mollie. Mollie not only keeps me safe while hiking alone, she helps me enter social and public settings that would not have been possible prior to our match. https://www.littleangelsservicedogs.org/ . [Image Description: Mary crouches on a dirt and rock precipice, next to Mollie her service dog. Mary wears a black t-shirt with grey shorts and sneakers, Mollie a blue harness. The sky is blue, there are mountains in the distance, and greenery in the background.] How is COVID-19 affecting National Parks and those that make them their livelihoods? My good friends Jeremy and Emily were in Wyoming, visiting Grand Teton and Yellowstone. Jeremy offered this perspective on what it takes to maintain nature: "A moment to reflect as we leave this wintery wonderland and return back to the reality of a COVID-19 world. We may be facing unprecedented challenges with social systems, with our supply chains and economy. In Jackson Hole we met many people whose lives are about to fundamentally change. Being in the tourism / hospitality industry they are facing massive layoffs with no hope of alternative employment or unemployment compensation. Many are leaving, as the rent prices are close to that of Seattle. The Commercial properties are closing permanently as they cannot afford $60k a month leases. This all puts into perspective what it takes to keep wild areas wild, even in the current commercialized world where you can visit national parks on a whim. This may not be the case in the future, or there won't be as big of an industry around it.
. Enjoy nature as you can. Stay safe as you do, and if we end up with quarantines of course follow them, but until that happens - you'll find us in the woods." . Pronouns: He/Him and She/Her . Wyoming - This land originally held in stewardship by the Arapaho, Arikara, Bannock, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, Crow, Gros Ventre, Kiowa, Nez Perce, Sheep Eater, Sioux, Shoshone and Ute tribes (and possibly others). . Pics Courtesy of Jeremy. . Have you noticed changes in the outdoors and outdoor spaces due to COVID-19? *Misfit Showcase!*
“Growing up in the outdoors was a huge part of my identity but I often referred to myself as ‘My dad’s favorite son’ as a joke because my two brothers didn’t feel the connection to the outdoors that I shared with my dad. Although I had this connection with the earth and the biological entities and non-biological elements within, I deeply believed that being female and belonging in nature wasn’t possible. Things have definitely changed within the last 15 years because I now see a part of my identity represented in the outdoors, but as a white, cisgender female, I know that it is only a small shift for inclusion. I want all people with all their identities to feel like they belong in the natural world, because that is the way to make meaningful and honest connections with the world in which we live. You belong, exactly as you are.— Bethany (@bethanyrenn) . Pronouns: She/Her . [Image Description: Bethany grins, facing the camera. She wears a dark blue jacket trimmed in grey with a black knit cap. Her cheeks are rosy and while the sun is shining, snow covers the background and pine trees can be seen.] *Misfit Showcase!*
. “I love hiking. I've never been athletic and I never thought I would be training for something, especially hiking. Now I lead a hiking group at my daytime job and I am an active hike leader with an amazing group- the San Antonio Plus Size Women's Hiking Group (168 members strong). I am hiking the Ultimate Hike in April of 2020 in the Sam Houston National Forest with a few other ladies from my group. This is a 22.7-mile hike (that's just short of a marathon) done in one day - benefiting children's cancer research through CureSearch. We need help fundraising. In order to hike, we each have to fundraise $2500 and we can't do that alone. We are doing this for the children, the cure, and for ourselves. I'm doing it for every time I felt like I couldn't. And every time I know now that I can.—Linsey, (@lindseyxcole). . Pronouns: she/hers . Please feel free to share, and check out the blog (link in bio or linktr.ee/misfithikers) to read past showcases! . Lindsey would like to give a shout-out to -- San Antonio Plus Size Women's Hiking Group (168 members strong) @sa_plus_sized_women_hiking. We are a group of brave, strong, incredibly lively, and diverse misfit hikers of all shapes, sizes, and abilities. We know that the size of our bodies does not determine the size of our journey. . 📍 Lost Maples State Natural Area (Texas) - Land originally held in stewardship by the Apache, Lipan Apache, Comanche and possibly others. . [Image Description: Lindsey sits with her leg dangling on the edge of a rocky cliff. She's wearing black leggings, a grey cami, and white jacket with her hair tied in a messy bun. She looks out at a vista green mountains.] “I grew up during the last years when kids were still allowed to be wild. We played outside all day, free and in nature. When I became an adult, my priorities changed, and I studied hard, went to medical school and became a doctor. It was an all enveloping process that took up a decade of my life, and I stopped making time to be outside. During my training I suffered an injury that almost cost me my medical career, and made it difficult for me to walk for several years. I retreated inward and was lost in anxiety and depression. Gradually, I started to heal, physically and mentally, and I finished my training. I found I had more time for myself, and I started hiking anytime I could. I wanted to be closer to the wilderness that I loved so much, so I moved my family across the country to Oregon. Now I live in a valley surrounded by mountains, and I hike or ski any chance I get. The outdoors has been my saving grace, and hiking has helped me find calmness in a world that fills me with anxiety. I couldn’t be more thankful.”—Jenny (@doctorofacertainsize)
. Pronouns: She/Hers . 📍Oregon Coast, this land originally held in stewardship by the Tillamook, Chinookan, Nez Perce, Modoc, Conferederated Tribes of Coos, Coquille, Clatsop, Cayuse, Shasta, Walla Walla and other tribes. |
Archives
March 2021
Categories
All
|