|
Post by gcvrsa on Aug 5, 2018 15:17:17 GMT -8
Hi, my name is Gemma, and I'm new. I'm originally from NYC, but grew up in South Jersey before moving back to the city, then Pittsburgh for college, back to NJ/Philadelphia, then out to the West Coast, before coming back East and now I'm in Vermont.
I've been around and about, backpacking since I was 10 years old, Girl Scout before that, and now I'm middle-aged, divorced, and have a knee injury that prevents me from carrying too much weight. I've been homeless a few times and learned to live in a cabin with no plumbing or electricity, a wood stove and a cooler in winter with jugs of water frozen outside overnight, as well as in the bed of a pickup truck.
I'm a musician, an audio engineer, a former networking technology consultant, and a tiny house on wheels enthusiast.
I'm updating my gear to work with the new reality of my injury, meaning extreme terrain and thru-hiking the AT are probably not in my future plans, though I'd like to attempt a thru-hike of the Long Trail. I also have a strong interest in primitive/classic camping techniques and equipment, which makes life interesting, since no one makes truly lightweight old-style gear, any longer. I'm an avid reader of late 19th and early 20th Century outdoor writers, like Nessmuk, Horace Kephart, Calvin Rutstrum, Louise Dickinson Rich, and Townsend Whelan.
|
|
|
Post by johntpenca on Aug 5, 2018 15:22:13 GMT -8
Thanks for the introduction. You'll find we are a relatively small forum here of genuinely good people.
I'm a recently retired mechanical engineer; spent my formative years in SoCal and now live in Little Rock to be near my sister and her family. As I wrote on my post in the "knives" thread, been doing this game for 40 years and am still enthralled by the sound of wind in the trees, flowing streams, utter silence the wilderness can provide at times and mountain vistas.
Cheers!
John
|
|
zeke
Trail Wise!
Peekaboo slot 2023
Posts: 9,887
|
Post by zeke on Aug 5, 2018 15:32:51 GMT -8
Welcome! I live in Florida now, but have lived all over the US over the past 65 years (Ga, Ks, Ky, Tn, Wy, NH, Ha, Or, and Fl). Been bp'ing since I was 15. I retired from Electrical construction in 2009. As I said before, we are kind of a crazy group, but there are some sane ones around here somewhere. You'll fit in, regardless.
|
|
rebeccad
Trail Wise!
Writing like a maniac
Posts: 12,689
Member is Online
|
Hello!
Aug 5, 2018 15:58:36 GMT -8
Post by rebeccad on Aug 5, 2018 15:58:36 GMT -8
Hi, Gemma!
|
|
|
Hello!
Aug 5, 2018 16:33:10 GMT -8
Post by johntpenca on Aug 5, 2018 16:33:10 GMT -8
|
|
zeke
Trail Wise!
Peekaboo slot 2023
Posts: 9,887
|
Post by zeke on Aug 5, 2018 16:35:38 GMT -8
johntpenca Now you've gone and tipped my hand. Saying I'm a good person and all. Spent many years building up a ruffian rep, and you go spoiling it.
|
|
foxalo
Trail Wise!
Life is infinitely stranger than anything the mind could invent.---Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Posts: 2,359
|
Hello!
Aug 5, 2018 16:57:26 GMT -8
via mobile
Post by foxalo on Aug 5, 2018 16:57:26 GMT -8
Welcome from AL!
|
|
|
Hello!
Aug 5, 2018 17:08:24 GMT -8
Post by bluefish on Aug 5, 2018 17:08:24 GMT -8
Hey, Gemma, we live near Manchester. Music scene in Vt. is pretty good, I was in it for years playing from Brattleboro to Burlington, mostly blues and funk, and some celtic thrown in. I know what winter in Vt. is all about- I've done some primitive , life in a cabin , backside of Stratton Mt. life and my wife is a social worker that spends a lot of time seeking shelter for people in the winter. Heck, very likely to meet you on the trail someday. Welcome! We've traveled and backpacked extensively through the US. Vermont and eastern upstate NY are hard to beat.
|
|
|
Post by johntpenca on Aug 5, 2018 17:24:50 GMT -8
Spent many years building up a ruffian rep, and you go spoiling it. We all know you have a soft side behind that ruffian exterior. Besides, wearing a kilt kinda gives you away.
|
|
|
Hello!
Aug 5, 2018 17:30:15 GMT -8
Post by hikerjer on Aug 5, 2018 17:30:15 GMT -8
Welcome, Gemma, from the Big Sky Country.(Montana)
|
|
|
Post by Lamebeaver on Aug 5, 2018 17:54:30 GMT -8
Howdy Gemma,
Most of the women I've met who share your name are from the UK or Oz.
There's something to be said for overnight camping from a base camp vehicle, which would lighten your load considerably and still provide plenty of exploring opportunities.
|
|
RumiDude
Trail Wise!
Marmota olympus
Posts: 2,361
|
Post by RumiDude on Aug 5, 2018 18:14:02 GMT -8
Welcome to the forums from out on the Olympic Peninsula. I saw on another thread you had lived in Seattle for a while so I know you are at least basically familiar with the PNW and the Olympic Peninsula.
Have fun here and don't take anything I say too seriously, well except for my gear advice. Everyone else is wrong about gear if they don't agree with me.
Rumi
|
|
|
Post by gcvrsa on Aug 6, 2018 1:22:22 GMT -8
Howdy Gemma, Most of the women I've met who share your name are from the UK or Oz. "Gemma" is actually an Italian name that for some reason became moderately popular in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. It's not very popular in the US, nor is my mother's name, which is Dierdre (which her mother, Anna, spelled that way because she was German). My grandfather's family came over from Manchester in 1922, when he was just 18 months old.
|
|
desert dweller
Trail Wise!
Power to the Peaceful...Hate does not create.
Posts: 6,291
|
Hello!
Aug 6, 2018 5:22:16 GMT -8
Post by desert dweller on Aug 6, 2018 5:22:16 GMT -8
Welcome, Gemma, from the desert southwest. Sounds like you're basically a nomad at heart. I hope you find the forums a place to hang out for a while.
|
|
reuben
Trail Wise!
Gonna need more Camels at the next refugio...
Posts: 11,169
|
Post by reuben on Aug 6, 2018 5:57:24 GMT -8
Greetings. We need your opinions on a few important subjects.
Beets Beer Brussels sprouts Single malt scotch Bacon Okra Drop bears Vests Ice cream floats - ice cream then soda, or soda then ice cream?
Thanks.
|
|