Hey all. I don’t keep a countdown to departure so I can maintain my sanity somewhat, I’m sure Sammy knows, but it is certainly getting close. While we’re on the trail we will continue to use this blog and update our Facebook so that people can follow our progress and get a little slice of our adventure. In order to do this, we will have our phones for Internet access and emergency cameras, our main camera, and a GoPro; all of which will be run on charges from a handheld solar charger. To build up the charge we will be hiking with the solar charger on top of one of our packs, allowing the sun’s rays to lap tenderly at its panels… or at least that’s the theory. If all goes well we will have some form of update available for your viewing once every two weeks at the most.

A common question we get is how do you get unplugged and away from society when you will be using technology though out your trip? This can seem like a contradiction but in reality, I think it is less of one than on the surface it may seem. In our day-to-day lives, the downside of technology is not our reliance upon it but rather our lack of control over how that frequent use manifests itself. We HAVE to check our emails, keep our phones on, etc. because if we don’t we might miss some vital bit of information that cannot be delayed. It isn’t our autonomous use of technology that brings us stress but rather the involuntary expectations of availability that technology use brings.

We will experience none of this stress dependence, updating things when it is convenient while giving ourselves a break from all outdoors all the time (after all we do have to make our societal re-entry someday). So any way there’s how we plan on keeping in touch on the trail and if you have a problem with it, tell your friends how dumb and hypocritical we are and you’ll feel better. Thanks for reading guys, Cheers! –Josh

PS- 47 more days!!!! (Sammy)