A Single Step

I really hate winter, especially February. This winter was the worst. It dragged on forever. I'm not exaggerating at all that this was the worst winter of my life. There are a lot of valid reasons why blogging wound up falling off the priority list all together. But spring is here and we are gaining momentum towards all of our goals.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Our ultimate goal is to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail in 2014.  I'm out of shape and Athena is a baby, so we really have a long way to go before we even set foot on the trail.  Not to mention, figuring out the logistics of funding and planning the adventure. I've been getting so overwhelmed with the whole thing so this morning Athena and I hopped in the car, cranked up some music, and drove to Mounds State Park for some hiking.

Athena and I have never taken a road trip together (even a really short one like today) so she was pretty confused at first.  Once we hit the trail though, she was in her element.  I realized right away that Athena needs a lot more experience in the woods before she'll have really good trail manners. She just needs to get used to the sounds of birds calling and creatures rustling through the forest.  

One of the magical things about Mounds State Park are, well, the mounds.  There are 10 earthwork mounds built by the Adena-Hopewell people.  These mounds were used as a place to gather for religious ceremonies and observing the heavens. They were special and sacred places reserved for ceremonies associated with life, death, renewal and connection.  Athena and I stopped at the Great Mound, constructed around 160 BC, to give thanks for the day and the opportunity to take the first steps on our epic journey.