Upcoming Life Maps Courses:

Myers-Briggs Personality Type Course:
     5:00pm to 8:30pm
     $90 per person (small group setting)
     Offered Wednesday, September 10th and Wednesday, October 8th.

Women’s Personality Goal Setting Course:
     9:00am to 2:00pm
     $425 per person (small group setting)
     15 hour course beings Saturday, September 6th

To reserve your seat in a specific course, please mail a check payable to:
Life Maps
Beth Abel
1008 Mopac Circle #200
Austin, TX 78746

Life Maps office re-opens August 26th. Remember, a well lit path has life direction. Mark your calendar for August 26th to set your free consultation appointment and begin your journey of a goal directed life.

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AT: Maine or Bust!

The Life Map Milepost’s purpose in July and August is twofold:

1. You will experience the AT hiking community, AT volunteer mountaineers, wildlife and the wilderness terrain.
2. You will learn a few life skills of great value as I hike, journal and send in articles with occasional photos.
   

Throughout the next few weeks, above all else, you will be inspired.

Many Life Map Milepost readers are aware that my calendar for July and August is dedicated to hiking the Appalachian Trail (AT) once again. But for those of you, who are unaware of the life coaching connection to my hiking and backpacking activities, allow me to explain.

In 1996, the life transition of a soon to be empty nest had me reeling. With teenagers almost out the door, I was convinced that the future was bleak and purposeless. Over a period of months, I discovered how to practice what I’d told clients for years – set goals for personal life changes. I sought a goal that would address three problems at the time:

1. I was a bore – an uninteresting person.
2. I was physically unfit and unmotivated to be fit.
3. I felt spiritually sour.
   

I discovered in a short time that one BIG GOAL would address all three problems – hike the 2,214 miles of the AT. Since 1996, I’ve learned so much about life from the trail experiences, as well as the preparation and conditioning. Many of the life coaching examples for the life skills I teach come from my AT experiences. Each year I prepare for a four week trip to hike a specific section of the trail, usually in September. This year I’ll be hiking the northern most section of the AT in Maine, from July 4th to August 4th. My hiking partner’s trail names are Smasher and Willow. Mine is Spirit.

I have hiked almost 1,000 miles of the AT. Most all of my trail mileage is made up of sections hiked from the start of the trail, which is in Georgia, northward to the Pennsylvania/Maryland border. We chose to hike the 250 miles in Maine this year because the idea of completing this difficult section while our knees were still good seemed wise.

To follow along with the AT experience, I have selected a few websites to orient you:

Appalachian Trail Conservancy (http://www.appalachiantrail.org)
This non-profit organization, ATC, is responsible for maintaining the AT. Did you know that the AT is part of our national park system? Roam around this website, especially the History page and the Hike the Trail page. When you look at Get Involved, you’ll learn about the hiking clubs that provide volunteer trail maintainers. Go into the AT Essentials area to learn about the trail state by state. Click on Maine and you’ll our hiking goal for this trip.

Baxter State Park (http://www.baxterstateparkauthority.com)
The northern terminus of the trail is in Baxter State Park on Mt. Katahdin. We will begin our journey here on July 6th. We climb 4,267 feet in five miles to reach the summit and then we descend the same day. Just for the fun of it, find the Mr. Katahdin Quiz at this website. It’s fun and educational!

Shaw’s Hostel (www.shawslodging.com)
About 50% of this trip we’ll be sleeping on the trail at campsites. We are fortunate to have hiking hostel lodging on the remaining nights. The first hiking hostel we use is in Monson, Maine. From July 10th through July 17th, we will be at Shaw’s hostel and using a shuttle service to take us to and from the trail.

On the first portion of the trail, we expect to see moose in the lowland bogs. Some sections will even be on plank boards to keep hikers out of the swampy terrain. The most formidable feature of this first portion will be the lack of road crossings. This area is called the “Hundred Mile Wilderness” because of its remote location. We will be passing through vast pine forests where logging has been a primary industry.

That’s enough information for now. There’s internet access at Shaw’s Lodge where I will compile the next Life Maps Milepost with the latest news from the AT.

Peace be with you,

Beth Abel (Spirit)

P.S. Please visit the Life Maps Milepost page on my website to see the trail map of Maine where I will be hiking this month!