Now we pull the grandest flip-flop of the entire journey!
In thru-hiking a “flip-flop” is when a hiker ‘flips’ to a different point and ‘flops’/reverses course, hiking back to where they stopped to cover the ground they skipped.
While I had intended to execute this journey in a clean line moving exclusively and steadily north, the kayaking portion of the adventure changed that and I made the decision to sacrifice my ‘plan’ to the feral spirit of adventure.
It was a tough decision and I cannot pretend I didn’t and sometimes don’t still wonder if it would have been wiser to have stuck to the roads and the direct path. It would certainly be easier to explain! Though, the paddling exposed me to scenery and lessons I never would have dreamed and which I still cannot put into words.
My experience since beginning in 2015 has been to repeatedly throw my best laid plans out the window thus opening us up to the sway of strange and powerful events and people.
…That or I get quite lost which is an impactful learning experience. If you ever need someone to espouse the values of getting lost, I’m your gal. I’ve basically made “doing it the hard way” into a lifestyle and I continue to be frightened and fulfilled by that, and I love it. So I’ll keep at it. And I am infinitely grateful to those of you who have stuck with me through the tribulations, doubts, and thrills which have rocked me this far.
I make the choice to live in faith of a greater design. Frustrating, humbling, and marvelous as it comes, I simply do my best to be present and play my part.
That personal ethos combined with Neon and I’s drives for individual freedom, the funky weather patterns in North America, and a series of important family events all support the Flip-Flop. Which in theory will look something like what I lay out below but in practice will likely play out entirely differently. A reality so constant that one of Neon and I’s common call and responses are:
“Hard sayin,”
to which the other replies:
“Not knowin.”
the latest plan notion
Fidgit has begun hiking the Continental Divide Trail southbound from the US/Canada border at the Chief Mountain Border Crossing.
Neon plans to bikepack the brand spankin new Wild West Route
Our ladies keep in pretty constant contact, sending each other important memes and relevant updates. They also plan to cross paths at a few crucial points, then aim to rendezvous somewhere around the Antelope Wells Border crossing.
From there they will continue south via backroads and trails on a bikepacking adventure to the northernmost point of the kayaking portion, Lake Nicaragua.
This will takes us through the end of this year and into the early months of 2020.
Best laid plans and all that, eh?
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