Living the Cowgirl Life (3/1)

Trekking in Incan Footsteps (3/2)

Tour du Mont Blanc (3/2)

Hut to Hut on the Appalachian Trail (3/23)

Trekking in Nepal (3/23)

Paddling the Alton Lake Loop (4/5)

Tanzania is a complex country. Sometimes your eyes are filled with tears because of its incredible beauty; at other times, the tears are for the pain of the people who live there. I don't think you can have one without the other. For moving accounts from two different women who were on our recent Kilimanjaro climb and safari, click here.

Blogs are so trendy, how could we not have one? I see it as a way for other guides and for participants to post whatever they want, and as a place for me to post things in between this newsletter. To check it out, go to http://adventuresingoodcompany.blogspot.com/

Deb has been with us from the beginning, another alumni from Woodswomen days. I love her exceptional organization, excellent cooking, and thoughfulness. Her next trips are the Alaska Hiking and the Alaska Sea Kayaking trips. In her own words:

"When I was a Junior in college I signed up for a two month, academic backpacking program which took place in the Sierra Nevada mountains in eastern California. At the time I had only been camping once in my life, had never carried a backpack before, and had never been in the mountains. I was intensely drawn, regardless, to this trip. It was during these 2 months that I fell in love: with the wilderness. I loved the smell of the pine trees, sleeping on the ground, cooking over a camp stove, carrying everything I needed on my back, the vistas, the rocks, I even loved being dirty.

Looking back now I can see this was the beginning of my journey in the outdoors; a passion which has remained with me since then. Shortly after college I started working in the field of outdoor and environmental education. I worked with kids of all ages and backgrounds, developing a particular drive to work with at-risk youth. The trips I led got longer and longer (culminating in 21 days in the field) and my desire to introduce people to the outdoors grew and grew. In 1996, while working in upstate New York, I started a women's outing club. This became a venue for women to meet other's interested in their pursuits, and a way for women to try new activities in a safe, supportive and fun atmosphere. I signed up for a Woodswomen leadership course in Joshua Tree National Monument as a way to further my skills as a women's adventure travel leader. Marian was one of my instructors on this trip. Shortly thereafter, I got a guiding job with Woodswomen, which was based in Minneapolis, my hometown, and felt like a dream come true.

Now guiding for Adventures in Good Company is a continuation of that dream. I guide a variety of trips, though mostly canoeing, kayaking and winter activities. I really thrive on introducing women to new outdoor activities and new geographic areas, and meeting fantastic women from all ages and backgrounds on our trips. I am also a professional chef - my current day job is running a dine-in meal program for people living with HIV/AIDS - and I love to share my culinary skills with others. When I am not guiding, I spend time in Minneapolis or Northern Minnesota, enjoying the miles of bicycle, running, and hiking paths; swimming in as many lakes as possible; playing recreational ultimate frisbee; baking cakes and cookies; and being the playmate for my dog. "

So you're going someplace new and you want to do some hiking. Do you buy another "50 hikes in xxx", knowing that you'll hike there at most once or twice? This year I tried a subscription to Trails.com. Click here for more..

Can a good book make a 24 hour plane flight seem short? You betcha! So I'm ignoring my guidelines for what kind of books I discuss here to tell you about the best series I've read in ages. Robin Hobbs has written not one but three trilogies and is working on a fourth. Click here for more..

We added a number of new trips this year, some of which still have spaces on them. Each one was added for a very specific reason. Relative Fun at Harpers Ferry is designed to be five days of fun for women and the girls in their... Click here for more

This one, from our Howling with Wolves, Running with Dogs trip over New Years Eve just cracked me up. Somehow it seems to cpature the trye essence of Minnesota. To see the picture in all its glory, click here

Although we often have ear plugs on our packing lists, I personally have not been a big fan of them. Correction- up until our Mont Blanc trip last year I had not been a big fan of them. It seemed to me that they just ..click here