It’s been quite a while since my last post. Too long actually. Ah, the list of excuses: There was Christmas, with cards to send out, presents to buy (one of which is listed below), friends and family to see. Ruth & I did, however, find time to get in a hike on Christmas morning, sandwiched in between a festive Christmas Eve party and two Christmas Day get-togethers; the aforementioned hike was to a place I’d never been to, a location with a flowing waterfall in the midst of a dry December.

Then there was a ‘minor’ medical issue just before the New Year, one which will have me doing cardio rehab for several more weeks, and carrying around an additional card in my wallet for far longer. (‘Minor’ in this day and age; it would have been ‘Major’ earlier in my lifetime.) Finally, just as I was putting the finishing touches on this article, I came down with the flu which knocked me on my backside for more than a week.

Being on limited duty, so to speak, helped me to look back on 2017 and reevaluate what I want for this website. Out of that came a ‘Now’ page. If you’re curious about what’s in the future for Adventure-to-Adventure, it’s worth a read.   My down time is also galvanizing my focus on 2018. Each year seems to go by faster and faster, and there’s no guarantee how many more rotations around the sun I, or any of us, have left.

I do know I want to encourage and facilitate people having more adventures in their lives. To this end, for Christmas, I gave my young grand-nephew an autographed copy of Day Hiking Los Angeles by Casey Schreiner, along with a promise to hike any trail in the book with him, and hopefully more than just one.

Sure I have goals for 2018, trips to far away, and not-so-far away, places: travels galore! But journeys don’t last forever, though the experience becomes a part of who we are. And that, my friends, is key: travel expands the mind and adventures build character. These are traits which everyone can bring back with them into the ‘real’ world, into their ‘everyday’ lives; lives which will be enriched by what has transpired.

We are never too young, or old, to benefit from expanding our horizons; from challenging ourselves. My hope when going out with my grand-nephew is to stoke his curiosity about the surrounding world, to help him gain confidence, and learn perseverance. At the same time I’ll have the opportunity to see anew; to marvel again at what has become ordinary, which in turn will energize me to help protect the wild places for future generations.

Where does this leave us? Well, the new year is in full swing, the days are getting longer, and many (most) resolutions have already fallen by the wayside. Forget them. Make plans for 2018 instead. Now’s the time to check off a life list destination. Start by looking at your calendar. Find a blank spot; draw a week, or better yet, a two-week circle on it. Tell your boss that’s when you’re taking a vacation and start saving money.

Not sure where to go? Try attending a travel show or just go to your local library or bookstore and browse the travel section. Something will catch your eye; probably more than one. Reach out to your friends, but don’t be afraid to go it alone. Don’t have a lot of money, plan a road trip. We live in a big country with lots to see and do.  Not enough vacation?  There are 49 weekends left in the year.  Between 5 pm Friday and 9 am on Monday is sixty-four hours.  Need some inspiration?  Check out this video:

The one thing not to do is make excuses. Push past the doubt and get started. Once you begin planning and moving forward things will fall into place. Soon enough your vacation will be here, but only if start preparing now.  Because the alternative should sound very familiar: Don’t make plans, watch the weeks go by, listen to your friends talk about their trips, and before you know it, it will be 2019 and another year has left you in the dust.

Don’t get left behind; make 2018 your best year yet.