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ScottP
12-06-2007, 16:29
Has anyone settled down after a few years of wandering and hiking and enjoyed that choice?

Frolicking Dinosaurs
12-06-2007, 16:31
::: Dino looks confused and wonders what Scott is taking about :::

I've seena few youngsters quit when they grew up (around age 25) but those of us with decades of wanderlust just hike off to golden trails....

warraghiyagey
12-06-2007, 16:33
I took the other road. Lived a life of trying to be settled down and then decided I wanted to see more than what surrounded me everyday.

Mags
12-06-2007, 16:42
Has anyone settled down after a few years of wandering and hiking and enjoyed that choice?

If you are blessed and cursed with wanderlust, I don't think you can ever truly settle down.

The urge will always be there. You may not take for for 4-6 mos...but you will get away whenever you can.

I could be wrong, though....

Just a Hiker
12-06-2007, 17:00
I think it's very difficult to settle down if you truly love the "hiking" or "Traveling" lifestyle. For me, I hate being away from the trail for too long because I like who I am while on the trail. For health reasons, I have had to stay put this year way more than I like, which has caused me to "settle down" a bit, and quite frankly being a regular Shmuck in Shmuckville isn't who I am anymore. I signed a lease on an apartment which I regret, and allowed myself to get into a romantic relationship which I really regret. Then I got attacked by a dog which is going to keep me "settled" even longer because of the legal stuff involved. Although having a place to call "home" is somewhat important to me, being on the trail or just traveling is more important in the long run. But thats just me:)


Just Jim

Summit
12-06-2007, 17:24
Anyone remember the old movie "Paint Your Wagon" with Lee Marvin singing in a very gruff voice, "I was born under a wandrin' star?" That would be me! :)

I did scale back a few years due to children/family priorities, never giving it up, but now that the nest is almost empty, I'm kicking back into high gear! :banana

sarbar
12-06-2007, 17:44
I enjoy having a home to come home to after hiking, I love having a family (husband and kid). I like going out and exploring.

Home isn't neccasarily a house. It is being where you feel you belong and feel loved. I'd be just as happy in a RV or in my car - as long as I had my husband and kid with me.

Even before I met my husband, as long as my kid and I were together, it didn't matter where we were. Often my Explorer was our home as we wandered and explored life.

Do I think I will ever "settle down"? Sure, I have to a point. But never to where I don't get outside. It isn't about going off for months for me, but rather seeing as much as I can with those I love.

Kirby
12-06-2007, 18:13
The future is a series of winding roads that lead to the unknown.

Kirby

Freeleo
12-06-2007, 18:32
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQ--odAAA1A

Jim Adams
12-06-2007, 19:15
Yes, I have settled down.....at least 10 or 12 times!!!!!!

geek

Appalachian Tater
12-06-2007, 22:13
I believe Odysseus was pretty much on the way home while he was out and about.

Tinker
12-07-2007, 00:22
I wandered until the age of 28. I've been married to that wonderful woman since then (do the math:D ).

She encourages my wandering and enjoys the "new, less uptight me" whenever I come back. I love her for that.

The choice of a mate is far more critical than the decision to choose "a" mate. Don't rush it (especially if that's why this post was put up).

Unfortunately, only time will tell, and patience and understanding, as well as forgiveness make the times more beautiful. The days flow more swiftly now for me and my wife, and we cherish them more than ever.

4eyedbuzzard
12-07-2007, 01:03
Has anyone settled down after a few years of wandering and hiking and enjoyed that choice?

Well, I didn't exactly wander around aimlessly, but I did extensive hiking as a teen and into my early 20's. A section hike, Hanover to Caratunk in '70 as a 14 year old got me hooked. Probably 30 week-long+ hiking trips from '70 to '80 on the AT and blue-blazes mostly in the NY/NJ section. LOTS of weekend overnights. A failed thru but another successful long section in '76(Springer to Damascus). I kind of floated in and out of jobs and college for several years after high school and did a lot of hiking, mountain climbing, and backwoods fishing. About the time I started wondering where the heck life and I was going came a wandering type technical job, living out of a suitcase for several years, traveling throughout North and South America and Europe. Then I went and fell in luv and got married in '83. First child born '86, fourth and last in '92. Most of '92 to present is the blur of a busy life. Have taken the kids on hikes of various lengths as they got older, but the only one who caught the bug is my now 19 yo daughter. We are working hard to get our schedules to mesh for a thru or at minimum a big section in '09 or '10:sun which is just WAY cool:cool: . So things kind of come full-circle in some ways.

If I could go back in time and give it all up to have kept wandering around I'd still choose the route I took. I love the outdoors, and many of my happiest times have been simply sitting in front of a campfire miles deep in the woods, but it is a part of bigger life that includes family and especially children, career, and other fun interests like golf, skiing, poker, and others. But then I'm definitely NOT the die-hard wandering hiker like some here. Not that I was driven away from hiking, just that other things were obviously more important - as I chose them.

But you can't make your decisions based upon what others have done. You have to be brutally honest with yourself and listen to both your heart and your head. Following one to spite the other results in either a foolish dreamer or a miserable pragmatist. If you're asking this question it's probably because you're at a crossroad in life or not completely satisfied with your current course - you have a decision to make. Whatever path you choose, there will always to some degree be the pull of the direction in life you didn't take. The hard reality is that life just doesn't get simpler or easier with age. You don't have to like your choices 100%, but you sure better be able to live in harmony with them.

"This above all: to thine own self be true"

A-Train
12-07-2007, 01:30
Has anyone settled down after a few years of wandering and hiking and enjoyed that choice?

can't say I have, quite the opposite. However most of my close friends from the AT have entered a different life from the one we led 4 years ago, and most of them have settled into a more routine life, filled with jobs, marriages, and grad school. Thinking back i think only one of my closer friends from the trail has done any sort of substantial backpacking trip, though some of them have definately delved into different types of adventures, like traveling.

Seems people go one of two ways after a long hike. Some folks can't shake the bug and go back for more, living to hike, while others are content to put that life on the shelf and take solace in their pictures when they feel the pangs.

If you learn how to move on and get over this stuff, feel free to let me know:)

EWS
12-07-2007, 02:06
Wander until you get tired of being a transient, then settle down. But really wander, there is a lot more to this world than the "triple crown" of hiking and the US of A.

Avoid the tourist, hostel and college backpacker circuits, and you'll get something out of it other than a hangover. Get a decent bicycle and head south, or start walking, you'll miss a lot in buses, airplanes, and automobiles. Burn the guide books out, and use a map and talk to the locals.

kayak karl
12-07-2007, 05:44
ALL ROADS LEAD TO HOME





It’s each ones dream to leave the nest,


That they have much to give,


To spread their wings and fly above,


So many years to live.


To taste the smooth red wine that bites,


The taste buds and the lips,


The heady feeling so unique


Embarking on life’s trips..


Forgotten for a long, long time,


The years speed on their way,


So many places to be seen,


So very much to say.


Awakened now as from a sleep,


A tugging of the soul,


A need to search for that which seems


To be what will console.


And one by one they all come back,


Gone now the urge to roam,


For in the end they realize,
That all roads lead to home.





© 2002 Loree (Mason) O’Neil

Pennsylvania Rose
12-07-2007, 10:19
Still kept wandering when I only had two kids, but my 2nd marriage, along with the addition of 3 more kids and the accompaning financial responsibilities has caused a serious cutback over the last 5 years. I can't say I'd change much of anything (especially my husband and kids), but my feet are really itchy. Funny you should bring this up - I've been thinking a lot about it lately.

WalkinHome
12-07-2007, 13:30
I enjoy having a home to come home to after hiking, I love having a family (husband and kid). I like going out and exploring.

Home isn't neccasarily a house. It is being where you feel you belong and feel loved. I'd be just as happy in a RV or in my car - as long as I had my husband and kid with me.

Even before I met my husband, as long as my kid and I were together, it didn't matter where we were. Often my Explorer was our home as we wandered and explored life.

Do I think I will ever "settle down"? Sure, I have to a point. But never to where I don't get outside. It isn't about going off for months for me, but rather seeing as much as I can with those I love.

There is a wide range of activities of varying intensities between a 6 month thru hike and "settling down". I (we) enjoy walking, the occasional backpack, and RVing the U.S. and Canada. Compared to a thru or a long distance hike this would qualify as settling down but still exploring and getting outdoors. Plus I (we) get our AT "fix" from maintenance and corridor monitoring up in Monson Maine. How bad is that LOL?

Spirit Walker
12-07-2007, 19:46
I'll settle down for a while, but sooner or later, the urge to wander strikes again. It has worked well for me. I settle down long enough to make enough money to go do what i really want to do.

Sometimes I wish I could be happy settled in one place. Being rootless has a price. I no sooner get to know people than it's time to move on. I have no real sense of belonging anywhere. (The long distance hiking community isn't nearly as friendly as it used to be.) But I've been a lot of beautiful places, met some really good people and generally enjoyed my life. I was lucky enough to find a partner who enjoys wandering and hiking almost as much as i do. Life is good. I wouldn't trade the choices I've made.

wakapak
12-07-2007, 21:11
i did the "settle down" thing for a few years after both thrus, but it didnt last.....wouldnt trade it in, there were lessons, and many wonderful memories in those years, but in the back of my mind, nah, i should say in the depths of my soul there was a fire burning to go wander. Sure, i was tied down to the grad school thing, but ask anyone in school with me, and almost every weekend i was off traveling somewhere. I even managed to take 3 weeks out of a 12 week quarter and travel to different countries while still passing classes and national board exams that quarter.

Will I ever settle down?? I doubt it.....i'm always feeling the pull of experiencing new places, meeting new meeting and just taking in all the wonders of the world. Heck, even my family knows it now...actually they are the ones that told me I will never settle down!
Even if I have a home to come back, I'm sure I'll always wander off somewhere....whether it's the woods in the backyard or a distant land. If I ever have kids, they will grow up knowing what it's like to wander!!

Bob S
12-07-2007, 21:31
I go through withdrawal every winter. Late in the winter season you will find me out in the garage firing up a stove just to get my fix….

warraghiyagey
12-07-2007, 22:09
. . . Funny you should bring this up - I've been thinking a lot about it lately.
:) :) It's a good thing girl. Theres a way. hoping you find it soon.:) :)

superman
12-07-2007, 22:23
I've kept in touch with a bunch of the people that I thru hiked with. There are 6 couples that I have kept in touch with that settled down and had kids. All the kids are healthy, happy and well above average. The parents will always have the AT, which is a lot more than some people have.

Tinker
12-08-2007, 02:02
I go through withdrawal every winter. Late in the winter season you will find me out in the garage firing up a stove just to get my fix….

My wife lets me sleep in the garage in my hammock which is hung between two walls (unheated). I get a regular fix. Keeps me sane! (Whatever that is :p ).