About Me

Call me Station.

Four years ago I was on vacation in Western Massachusetts with my girlfriend and we drove past a sign that simply said “Greylock.” We had already seen all there was to see in the surrounding Berkshire towns and I was curious about what was down the road with the enigmatic sign, so we followed it to where it ended at a trailhead for the historic Mount Greylock. I didn’t know it at the time, but this was the mountain that had inspired Herman Melville to write Moby Dick and Henry David Thoreau to launch his experiment on Walden Pond.

We made it a few hundred yards up the rocky, muddy approach trail before we conceded that our shoes were not up to the task, and that we should probably have a map or at least some general idea of where we were and where we going before we wandered into the wilderness. We were much more prepared to read about adventures of the man vs. nature variety than to have them ourselves, so we walked back to my car. But I had felt the allure of the forest, had heard the call of the mountains, had found the cure for the things I found so unsatisfactory about life in New York City.

Back home we went shopping for hiking boots. I went online and discovered the wonderful New York-New Jersey Trail Conference, which is a wealth of information and produces excellent maps. Soon we were at the base of Bear Mountain with backpacks filled with water and snacks. We got lost almost immediately and ended up doing way more miles than planned. The next trip was more successful and we actually made it to the top of Bear Mountain, which we learned is home to the oldest portion of The Appalachian Trail, a single path that travels from Georgia to Maine. Standing on top of the mountain sweaty and tired, looking out at the awesome vista of green hills and blue sky with the Hudson River tracing a squiggly line to the hazy city far off on the horizon, I was hooked.

I’ve spent the last three years hiking as often as my schedule and the weather allowed, with friends, family, and by myself. I’ve had adventures (and misadventures) in mythical sounding places like Storm King, Bash Bish Falls, Breakneck Ridge, High Tor, Island Pond and Black Rock Forest.

My girlfriend did not share my passion for the outdoors, and it turned out she didn’t share my passion for our relationship either. After nearly nine years she broke up with me. I was devastated. But when your main relationship ends you learn the value of all the other relationships in your life, if you’re lucky. My family, my friends, even the people at work, rallied around me and helped me through the worst of it. I will forever be grateful. Hitting the trail was also very therapeutic and I trekked through almost every corner of Harriman State Park.

First my sister, and then my mother, and then my other sister, and then just about every female friend I have told me this was my “Eat, Pray, Love” moment. I haven’t read the book, but I’m afraid the first part of my story would more likely be called “Drink.” My “Eat” portion was a Whole30, which I highly recommend. I felt great, gained better eating habits, took my cooking skills to another level, and it was very powerful to spend a whole month primarily focused on taking care of myself. Now I’m setting off to attempt a thru hike of the Appalachian Trail, the “Hike” portion of my story, which I’ll record on this site. Like many of my favorite stories, it begins with a map.