The Big Oops

The Big Oops
Originally uploaded by Simply Wired Custom Jewelry

Hi readers! I'm back from a long break...but not a break from work or jewelry making...nope, I've been busy, busy, busy. More about that in a later post.

My story today brings about some of the activities going on inside my home right now. As you may or may not know, my husband and I do some backpacking trips on occasion (he more so than I). Another one is coming up beginning this Thursday--the North Country Trail. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend because of work responsibilities as well as the lack of a babysitter for our kids (I mean, our dogs).

For this particular backpacking trip, my husband decided to invest in a food dehydrator, based on recipes recommended in The Back-Country Kitchen: Camp Cooking for Canoeists, Hikers, and Anglers. This is a big project, indeed, folks. For the past week he's been dehydrating things like vegetables, meat, and fruits. The vegetables and meats are part of his dehydrated meals, similar to the Mountain House brand (but without all of the sodium and preservatives).

The fruits go into his trail mix...which is why I posted this photo--this is what strawberries are NOT supposed to look like once they're dehydrated. Apparently we cut them too thin, and they basically shriveled up and stuck to the wax paper. I thought it would be a cool looking photo, though, so I thought I would share. Needless to say, the dried strawberries will not be making it into our mix--better luck next time!

In case you're interested, however, these are the things that ARE making it into his trail mix--it's our standard tried and true recipe:

• Pineapple
• Papaya
• Blueberries
• Raspberries
• Strawberries (next time, we'll be cutting them in HALF rather than slicing; apparently this is the appropriate size/thickness for dehydrated strawberries)
  
• Bananas
• M&Ms
• Candy store chocolate (like covered peanuts, pretzels, and raisins)--very important!!
• Granola
• Nuts

Mix it all up, stash it in a Ziploc, pack it in your backpack in an easy access location, and munch as necessary. Note the importance of the candy store chocolate...the reason is because when you carry the mix in your bag, it gets somewhat warm, causing the chocolate to melt just enough that it forms "clusters" of all of the good treats in your mix. YUM.

I hope all of you get out into the woods this year--it's good for your soul. I have a canoe trip coming at the end of June that I can't sit still for. I'll post pics, I promise!

Six Things About Me: #6

Alas, the final installment of this list. Next, I'll have to identify other lucky victims. :0D

Here it is: #6: My two biggest accomplishments are backpacking trips.

I maybe should have said "BIG backpacking trips," as they are not what you call easy-out-and-backs or easy-loops. Nope, they involve two significant trips: One to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, and the other one from start to finish on the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail.

The reason I consider them such feats is because the Grand Canyon trip was my first backpacking trip EVER. Down to the bottom and back out in two days, with mules having the right of way, it's a challenge because of the changing temperatures, the rough path, and the incline of the hike. I made it, but not without a struggle! I even almost cried once on the way up, after I tried to look up to see where the top was and all I could see were switchbacks.

The Laurel Highlands Trail was also a doozy...all 85 miles of it (70 trail miles + the extra miles to hike in and out of the lean-tos). I did this one in terrible boots, with blisters all over my feet. I think tears did come that time, but I refused to let those stupid blisters get the best of me. It was one of the best vacations of my life, and when I think about how we did the trail from start to finish, I give myself a cheer. There's not many people who can say they've done the same thing.