[at-l] It's time for another trip... New Mexico's CDT, here I come.

[m_factor at hotmail.com (Mara Factor)]

So, it's been months since I've gotten away.  Time to dust off the 
TravelAndTrails mailing list and remind people that I actually do get out 
every now and then.

This time, I'll be leaving the Boston area at the beginning of April, 
visiting some friends, doing a warm up hike for a few days to a week or so 
somewhere along the Appalachian Trail in the mid-Atlantic region, and then 
driving west to New Mexico.  Having been out to New Mexico in 2003, seeing 
the sites and criss-crossing the Continental Divide Trail (CDT), I'm excited 
to head out there again and this time, to see the state at a hiker's pace.

My friends, Ginny and Jim Owen, already Triple Crowners (hikers who have 
hiked the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), and CDT), are headed 
back for another hike of the CDT and have invited me to join them.  I plan 
to start the trail with them and hike until I'm ready to get off the trail.  
I'm hoping to hike most or all of New Mexico.

This time, I'll be driving west so that when I do get off the trail, I'll 
have my car with me.  Like in 2003 when I got off the PCT, I plan to take 
whatever time I have left before the end of June to do a road trip to get 
home.

If there's anyone who lives along a route from the mid-Atlantic to New 
Mexico who would like some company as I head west in mid-April, let me know. 
  Likewise, at some point, I'll be heading roughly northeast when I get off 
the trail and can visit folks along the way at that point, too, but I have 
no guesses as to dates for my return yet.

How about April 12 or 13?  If anyone in PA, MD, northern VA (or preferably 
even further west) is celebrating Passover who would like to host a 
wandering Jew, let me know.  It's fun to experience others' seders and it's 
nice to have a place to celebrate the holiday.

I expect to send periodic journal entries but I suspect the time I spend on 
the trail plus limited internet access may limit my ability to transcribe 
and type emails for the hiking portion of my trip.  In any case, I'll keep 
you updated when possible and I'll be sure to finish transcribing any 
remaining journal entries when I get home.

Suggestions for places to visit and sights to see on my road trip home are 
also appreciated.

See you on the trail/road,

Mara
Stitches, AT99

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Visit my Travels and Trails web site at:

http://friends.backcountry.net/m_factor
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