Girls Gone Wildwood

mom & me - Maui 2022 I can’t believe it is already April 2023 and I haven’t written the 2022 recap blog post. The year end recap blog posts are always my favorite to write. We always have so many adventures that it’s a lot of fun to remember everything we did and accomplished. 2022, isn't different in that regard but what is different is how 2022 ended for me. My mom passed away at the end of 2022, which made it hard for me to do much more than get through each day and reflecting on the year was the last thing I wanted to do. She has only been gone 7 months and it is still hard for me to think back to last year and write this.  Six years ago my mom was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a condition in which the lungs become scarred and breathing becomes increasingly difficult. The doctor told her she had 3-5 years to live, well she showed them wrong. Despite the diagnosis and outlook, she remained one of the most positive people I knew, even up to her last day.

At the top of Council Crest We had big plans for 25 miles, but sometimes you don't sleep well and need to change it up last minute. Instead of the route I picked out last week, Ann chose a 22 miler as a guideline. Cedar at Pittock Mansion But when we got to Pittock Mansion, we decided to continue south on Wildwood for a bit... which turned into going to the end (technically the start). We even walked into the Vietnam Memorial, and, looking at the map, decided to check out the Marquam Trail that connects Washington Park across Highway 26 to the Marquam Nature Park. Vietnam Memorial in Washington Park Neither of us had ever been on that section of trail before, and it was really neat to discover something new to us after more than 20 years of living here and more than 10 years of running long distances on these trails. We saw a sign that showed a little more than a mile to Council Crest-- the highest point in Portland-- so we decided to run to it. Marquam Trail sign At the top, we ha