Beautiful, brave, basic, brilliant, blissful, breathtaking…

These are just some of the B words that come to mind when I think about my backpacking experiences. When I moved to California, I learned about backpacking and wanted to try it but I was overwhelmed. While I had tent camped throughout my childhood, I had never camped in the wilderness with only my supplies and no cell service. Also let’s talk about the crazy cost of the supplies and how difficult it is to obtain permits. Needless to say it took many years for the stars to align in order to experience my first backpacking trip!

I slowly started buying supplies every time REI had a sale. I had just received my backpack (no trip plans in place) when I went to a work happy hour. I overheard one of my old coworker’s boyfriends saying he liked to backpack. I immediately started asking more questions and found out my old coworker, Jenny, had also backpacked multiple times. I left the happy hour that day with a promise from Jenny and Anders that we would plan a trip soon.

Trinity Alps Wilderness- Canyon Creek Lakes Trail (2021)

Ventana Wilderness- Pine Ridge Trail- Sykes Hot Springs (2022)

Emigrant Wilderness- Relief Reservoir Trail (2022)

Sequoia National Park- Mineral King Loop (2022)

Ansel Adam Wilderness- Rush Creek Trail- Thousand Island Lake (2023)