Why Walk When You Can Drive?

The distance we will drive on this trip is hard to wrap my mind around, over 7,000 miles. That is crazy to think about especially because all my mind can think about is walking.  I miss walking.  I mean I can walk, I do walk, but I miss walking as form of transportation.  A means of getting from point A to point B.  You see, for many years I could walk a lot of places.  When we lived in Annapolis the first time around, I walked to work everyday.  I could walk downtown.  No need for a designated driver when we went out, we could walk home!  It got even better in Chicago.  The kids and I almost never got in the car.  I could carry $80 worth of groceries and the 2 kids between myself and the double stroller.  It was great and I loved it.  Moving back to Annapolis, it just wasn't in the cards for us to move back into town.  So here we are in the burbs and although we can walk to our local shopping center, the lack of sidewalks and a busy road means it doesn't happen often.  So I miss walking. Everyday.

Starting the hike of The Presidentials

Last year I was lucky enough to accompany 19 women on a hike across The Presidential mountain range in New Hampshire.  It was the hardest and most amazing thing I've ever done in my life.  3 days and 9 mountains ranges.  I commented to my friends at the time how amazing it was to me that by the third day my body was already adjusting.  It knew that is was supposed to just get up and walk.  All day.  That is one of the incredible things about being human, our bodies are designed to adapt to what they are asked to do.  I am now reading a book called Wild by Cheryl Strayed.  It's about her solo hike of the Pacific Crest Trail though California and Oregon.  It reminds me in small ways of my hike and all the wonderful things that come from walking as a form of transportation.

Looking towards Mt. Washington

So, in some ways, it's hard to imagine all the endless hours we'll spend driving.  I enjoy driving and seeing all the sites on the road, but it's not anything like traveling by foot.  I can't really describe it but it's magical, getting off the road and traveling by the power of your own body.  What I have to remember is that we are going to some of those places where traveling by foot is the best if not the only option.  There will be amazing hikes in Yellowstone and Glacier and the other parks.  There will even be some opportunities to explore urban places like Vancouver and Chicago.  So, driving will be necessary to get us to places where we can walk, truly walk.  I can't wait.