planner girl / trail chaser / bird watcher
BIRDS HAVE COME… and I am thrilled. And also, I have no clue how this camera app works. It has been a little over two months since we hung the bird house (March 11, 2025) … and I received the first “security alert” that there was movement in the birdhouse…
This post was updated on 6/19/2026. I first came across the 4-3-2-1 Way Hiking Challenge back in 2017 and figured it would be a breeze to complete. After all, it only requires ten hikes total. Then life happened. Eight years later, I’m close—but still not quite finished. The challenge requires…
For my birthday last September, my in-laws gifted me this birdhouse with an inside camera, allowing you to watch what happens inside. I WAS SO EXCITED to put this out… and today was the day! You may be wondering why I waited until now (March) to put this up, seeing…
I had originally planned for the Indian River/Hudson River Confluence Trail to be the final hike of the day. Nature, however, had other plans. When we arrived, the road was completely blocked by a massive downed tree. Rather than add extra mileage by hiking the road, I pulled up the…
Hike #3 of the day turned out to be the redemption I needed after our less-than-successful attempt at Rock Lake. Feeling a little intimidated after turning around earlier, I was happy to arrive at this beautiful and peaceful destination. Hike Report The hike to Sprague Pond is incredibly short—less than…
Rock Lake was hike number two of the day. Conveniently, the trailhead is located just down Route 28 from Sawyer Mountain, making it an easy addition to our itinerary. Hike Report This is a very short and relatively easy hike, following Johnny Mack Brook for much of the route before…
Today we had big plans to complete several hikes in the Indian Lake area. Since I’m getting close to completing the 4-3-2-1 Way Challenge, and Darby had already completed some of the hikes with me, I decided to focus on a few of the remaining trails so she could potentially…
This weekend, we went canoe camping on Blue Mountain Lake. While researching the area before our trip, I was excited to discover that Castle Rock could be accessed directly from the lake. Since we were already camping by canoe, it was just a short paddle farther to reach the trailhead.…
Because I love hiking challenges, and because I once got Josh to agree to do the Fire Tower Challenge with me, we were able to squeeze Blue Mountain into our weekend while camping at Mason Lake. I was really excited for this one. I’ve driven by Blue Mountain countless times,…
Snowy Mountain is no joke. And please, for the love of all that is good, do not believe the guidebooks when they tell you it’s only three miles to the summit. Three miles? Maybe if you’re measuring as the crow flies. In reality, it felt much closer to four and…