Linda Jo Martin

Writer, Artist, YouTuber

  • About
  • Journal
  • Fiction
  • Art
  • Home
  • The Art of Writing
  • Book Reviews
  • Lists & Challenges

Deep Wilderness Wanderlust

September 26, 2012 By Linda Jo Martin 4 Comments

I’ve been thinking, writing, loving wilderness backpacking for many years – but sadly, not doing it.

Linda Jo Martin, hiking the Town Trail just across the river from Happy Camp, CA. There's a nice view of Happy Camp from the top of the trail.

That’s me, hiking near Happy Camp, CA with my dog, Bear.

In 2005 I wrote a novel that featured a woman who hiked through the Marble Mountain Wilderness, which is just south of where I live, alone every summer, all summer long. I bought the Marble Mountain Wilderness trail guide and intended to hike in and through to do more “novel research,” but then I met a man who suggested he would go with me. I thought that would be a great idea, and put off my plan until he decided I was “ready.”

It is now seven years later and I haven’t been “ready” yet.

I have found that when you put your life in someone else’s hands it just stops. All your dreams are swallowed up into someone else’s dreams and intentions. For my friend, it became a life of pain from which he’s slowly recovered.

It is time for me to fulfill my dreams. It is like the final hour of my opportunity to hike the wilderness trails, because I’m of that age. I don’t want to say it – but I will. I’m sixty now. If I put off this wilderness wanderlust any longer, it will likely be too late.

I’m still working on readiness issues.

Book Lady on YouTube
Subscribe to the
Book Lady Channel

Yesterday I walked a mere two and a half miles through the little mountain town I live in, and back again. I stopped at the river access to rest on the riverbank and give myself time to relax. I had to show myself that I’m at home in the wilderness.

This was a baby step. The truth is that I’ve been afraid of the wilderness for years – ever since I saw that mountain lion in the middle of the Klamath River Highway. I’ve also seen one on my front porch, and there was a big bear outside my kitchen window one night.


I’ve seen bears cross the road in front of me on several occasions as I was hiking near town. They generally are looking for food, not for humans to attack. They were big – huge in fact – but not interested in getting close to me.

I just read Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest TrailWilderness Wanderlust by Cheryl Strayed (a best-selling trail memoir.) It is about her summer spent thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail when she was in her twenties. She solo-hiked and apparently a lot of other women do too. But the Pacific Crest Trail has enough hikers these days that one is never totally alone for long.


I call this breakfast.
Buy at Amazon. I do.

I am not ready for the Pacific Crest Trail. After five children and years of eating wheat I’ve put on weight. Oh, wheat… another issue! I recently became vegan and am about 85% gluten free as well. I’m having a problem giving up my Clifbars, which do contain gluten. Come to find out, gluten-free Larabars are no great replacement unless you just love the taste of unsweetened dates. I’m thinking of covering them with a coating of some sweetener – agave syrup, rice syrup, or maple syrup, and dipping them in hemp seeds before eating. I think that way I could enjoy them instead of dreading to eat them. The chocolate ones are fine (though not especially sweet) and the rest I’m having a hard time warming up to.

I have been backpacking before – in my youth. I’m writing now of ancient times, in terms of my lifespan. I had my first backpack at the age of 16 or 17, and hiked through the Desolation Wilderness with my high school hiking club. That was torture! I was totally unprepared.

I remember deciding to do this hike only about a week ahead of time, and didn’t have anything but cheap tennis shoes to wear. We’re not talking about the athletic shoes of today – but the super-cheap tennis shoes we now call “canvas shoes” to differentiate them from anything you’d want to actually wear to play tennis these days. Today’s athletic shoes are far different from what we had available back in the 1960’s.

The Desolation Wilderness in California, just west of Lake Tahoe, is a beautiful place for backpacking. Photo by Joe Parks of Berkeley, CA. CC by 2.0 license.

The Desolation Wilderness – High Sierras, California.
Photo by Joe Parks from Berkeley, CA – CC BY 2.0 license

I survived my Desolation Wilderness experience, which was full of blisters, pain, and majestic, unforgettable views, and it left me with a lifetime desire to spend more time in the wilderness, hiking, backpacking, and camping.


That should do it.
From my Amazon wishlist.

I managed to do some of that until I was twenty, and then my life veered away into motherhood and an organized religion that siphoned off my time, my youthful aspirations, and my sense-of-self.

Now that my children (all five) are adults and I’ve left the organized religion, I’m regaining some of what I lost, including that desire to spend time in the wilderness. Deep wilderness. And the wanderlust has returned. And I’m sixty.

I’m in training for my hikes. I’m hiking for my hikes, you could say. Mainly, at this time I’m still hiking around town. I’ve hiked so much in this area in and near my town, that I’m 100% burnt out on it… seeing the same old places, climbing the same old hills. They are still “good exercise” but I’m yearning for different vistas. That’s what you get after spending twelve years living in the same mountain valley. Same old trees. Same river.

Yesterday I hiked two and a half miles. I need to work up to being able to hike ten miles per day with a thirty-pound pack on my back. I plan to go lightweight, as much as possible.

I’d love to hike the Tahoe Rim Trail. In 2015, the John Muir Wilderness Trail beteween Mt. Whitney and Yosemite. I may never get to the Marble Mountain Wilderness, but will exercise every day between now and the day I die, God willing.

[Note: on days I can’t hike due to excessive bad weather, I use Leslie Sansone – Walk Away the Pounds Express – Super ChallengeWalk Away the Pounds with Leslie Sansone … a four-mile walk video.]  
 
Linda Jo Martin, Book Lady




Embed

Similar Posts:

  • Blistered and Determined to Hike
  • The Business of Bigfoot
  • New Writing Goals for 2013
  • Treaty Rock by Bike – Post Falls, Idaho
  • A Decade as a Happy Camper



Comments

  1. Nancy says

    January 24, 2013 at 6:31 pm

    “I have found that when you put your life in someone else’s hands it just stops.” — Oh, how true! I’ve allowed my life to be too tied up in other people’s lives for the past three years, and I’m fed up with it. It is time for me to get back to “my” life, back out to the woods and on to whatever I want to do. I’m working on putting the pieces in place.

    Good luck to you. It doesn’t matter how old you are, or how old you’ll be before you get to follow your dreams. You can do it!

    Reply
    • LindaJoMartin says

      February 10, 2013 at 6:05 pm

      Good luck escaping from that situation, Nancy. You are such a free spirit… I know you need to be self-directed.

      Reply
  2. RStiltskin says

    November 13, 2012 at 1:23 pm

    “Same old trees. Same river.” Ha!

    Try E63rd street and first ave to E39th
    street and Madison ave. That’s a hike.

    Trees,river–sounds a lot better than concrete
    buildings, dirty streets, astonishing traffic,
    snow that morphs into grey slush as it hits
    the ground, etc, etc, etc.

    RStiltskin – you can call me Rump

    P.S. None of your “deli sandwich” responses
    mentions having eaten at the Carnegie or the
    Second Ave deli-pity. Those emails made me think
    of Chevy owners discussing Rolls Royces.

    Sorry-I apologize. You can take the boy out
    of NY, but…

    Reply
    • LindaJoMartin says

      February 10, 2013 at 6:04 pm

      My partner in life comes from New York City so I hear a lot about how much he wanted to get out of there and come west. He now lives with me in Northern California… in the middle of a forest.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

A recent video on my Booktube channel, at YouTube

To receive blog update notifications via email, enter your email address:

About Me

Hi, I'm Linda, the Book Lady, and I'm excited about reading. A book is a gift you give yourself. It is so much fun to open that cover and discover what was hidden within. Books share the wisdom of the ages with us. Who wouldn't want that? So I read frequently and encourage reading. If you're a reader, let me know by becoming my friend on GoodReads.


My novel, River Girl, is about a girl living in the Klamath River Valley.

Here's a link to my prayer website:
Prayer Power.

My childhood memoirs: ljm memoirs.

Professional Reader
I use Amazon affiliate links on this site and appreciate it very much when you purchase from my links.

My Art

Water Girl - by Linda Jo
Acrylic Ink / Sketchbook
Sanctuary, by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic Ink / Sketchbook
Ready to Sail, by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic Ink / Sketchbook

Flowers Forever - art by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic Ink / Sketchbook
Mother-Daughter Dance, by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic Ink / Sketchbook
Mary and Jesus - art by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic / Junk Journal

Watercolor
Bird Art by Linda Jo Martin - http://lindajomartin.com
Acrylic
Wild and Precious - art by Linda Jo Martin
Watercolor / pen

Summer Afternoon - art by Linda Jo Martin
Pen / Watercolor
If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” ? Cicero - Art by Linda Jo Martin http://lindajomartin.com
Acrylic
Angel art by Linda Jo Martin
Sketchbook

Psalm 91:9-11 - Angel art by Linda Jo Martin http://lindajomartin.com
Sketchbook
Art: Idaho Hills, by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic / Junk Journal
March Mystery Madness 2020, art by Linda Jo Martin
Gouache journal

Plan A to Z - lettering by Linda Jo Martin
Lettering class project
A daring adventure - art by Linda Jo Martin
Fountain pen ink journal
Small Joys
Watercolor sketchbook

Watercolor sketchbook
Valley of decision.
Bible journaling
Mount Glittery by Linda Jo Martin - mountain climbing quote by John Muir
Acrylic painting

Watercolor sketchbook
“Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air.” ? Ralph Waldo Emerson ... watercolor painting by Linda Jo Martin
Watercolor sketchbook
Imagination Soars, by Linda Jo Martin - http://lindajomartin.com
Watercolor sketchbook

Plant Seeds
Watercolor sketchbook
The Prayer by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic painting
A basket of flowers, by Linda Jo Martin - http://lindajomartin.com/writing/art
Fountain pen ink journal

California Reading

California Reading

California Reading
5 members

This group is for anyone wanting to read California based fiction or nonfiction.

Our recommended shelf

The World Rushed In: The California Gold Rush Experience
The World Rushed In: The California Gold Rush Experience
by J.S. Holliday


Hillinger's California: Stories from All 58 Counties
Hillinger’s California: Stories from All 58 Counties
by Charles Hillinger





View this group on Goodreads »


RSS My Most Recent Book Reviews

  • Freedom's Light
  • The Last Enchantment (The Arthurian Saga Book 3)
  • Commodore Hornblower
  • Winning Your Spiritual Battles (Harvest Pocket Books)
  • Heart of Darkness
  • The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
  • News of the World
  • 84, Charing Cross Road
  • Lady into Fox
  • Out of the Silence: After the Crash
  • Flying Colours

RSS Goodreads Status Updates

  • Linda Martin is on page 60 of 240 of When to Walk Away
  • Linda Martin is 23% done with Vanity Fair
  • Linda Martin is on page 38 of 240 of When to Walk Away

You can find me on Pinterest

Visit Linda Jo Martin, Book Lady's profile on Pinterest.

My art is at Zazzle.com

Dating Palms
Linda Jo Martin Art and Photography
Buy Scrivener for Windows (Regular Licence)
I love Scrivener, and use it for all my writing. It is a fantastic writing software that organizes a novel, ebook, or screenplay efficiently while I write and revise.

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

© 2023 - LJ Martin Web - Legal Notices
Linda Jo Martin is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program,
an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for
sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.Com.