the animal's journal

Where are you and where are you going?
Gilberto de Piento
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

Thanks for sharing your journal, it's been a good read. I'm jealous of the bucket list!

The NOLS and first responder skills are useful for a lot of reasons. One you haven't mentioned is working for as a ranger or search and rescue or become a climbing or kayaking guide (if any of that appeals to you) if you get tired of wilderness therapy.

I've got a place you can stay while you are on your way back to Chicago (assuming my location is on the route and I'm still there). I'll pm with contact info and location.

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

Thanks Gilberto de Piento. Do you have a bucket list yourself?

I have not mentioned working as a ranger etc. but I have considered it. My plan for the wilderness therapy instructor job is not a long-term one (i.e 1-2 years). I am pursuing the job as a base, or stepping stone, to gain experience for my ultimate dream job, a NOLS instructor. That's a couple years down the road but from there I would have the opportunity to be an instructor for any outdoor sport/pursuit you could imagine (Backpacking, kayaking, mountaineering, climbing etc.).

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

So I've decided to place my writings on a blog instead of publishing a book. I just don't think I have the time at this point and I think there will be plenty more opportunities for me down the road.

Anyways, the link to my new blog is below! Any questions, comments or criticisms would be happily received. There are 17 installments/chapters so I think I'll post one every day or every other day. One quick point: IMO it gets better and better as the story progresses. So stay tuned if you are interested!

http://animaltreks.wordpress.com/
Last edited by theanimal on Tue Feb 11, 2014 11:54 am, edited 1 time in total.

wizards
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by wizards »

Nice read, thanks for sharing. Looking forward to read the next chapters :)

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

@wizards-Thanks!

I know I've kind of bounced around with what I've been thinking I want to do after graduation the past few months, but I finally made the decision on what I'm planning on doing. I'm going full force after my dream job: professional adventurer. With this decision, my plans for this year changed as well. I have a big adventure planned from summer to early fall then after that I'll try to develop as many income streams as possible to make this a successful venture. I'll post more details soon.

Also, to those looking at my blog. I apologize for not updating the NOLS material as I said I would. I sent it to someone close to have it edited a while back when I was still planning on doing the book and its taking a bit longer than expected. The final 12 chapters will be up asap.

saving-10-years
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by saving-10-years »

Professional Adventurer
- should give a nice tone to the business cards. ;) And keep us readers with lots to look forward to. Best of luck.

theanimal
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Update

Post by theanimal »

7 weeks left of school and that means 7 weeks left to graduation. Time has really been flying by this semester, which is great because I can't wait to graduate!

About 3 weeks after graduation I'll be embarking on my first big solo adventure. I'll be spending four months backpacking and packrafting just over 2500 miles in the Brooks Range (Northern Alaska). As stated earlier in my journal, this is one of the top adventures on my list and I'm pumped to be actually doing it. Needless to say, I have been quite busy in my preparation for this expedition for the past few months.

For those wondering what the price runs on this type of thing, it is much less than you might think. It will cost me about $3200 for the whole trip but half of that is one time costs (few pieces of equipment I needed to pick up). So if one was to already own the necessary gear this would run somewhere around $1,600 or $400 a month. About $900 of that is flights, so it'll vary where you go but very ERE if I may say so myself.

I also applied for a $1,000 grant to help with the funding. I'll be finding out if I received it in the next couple weeks. Really hoping I get it!!

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jennypenny
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by jennypenny »

I'd love to know what you're packing for gear. (and I'm hoping you're taking a camera, but carrying extra weight is probably not the best idea)

Dragline
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by Dragline »

Very exciting! Hope you can take pictures and/or keep a journal.

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

I'll definitely be bringing a camera and will be journaling as well. I plan on taking a lot more photos/video than last summer.

In terms of gear..I transferred my list to a google doc, which you can view here(https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc ... 0N3c#gid=0).

Not all the gear will be together at once. It depends on the season/activity (Summer, Fall, Backpacking, Packrafting). Feel free to ask any questions.

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

I've had to change my plans a bit for financial reasons. The cost for a charter flight to my starting location is much much higher than I expected and can justify spending. So my trip will be shortened to ~1750 miles over 3 months. Not what I initially planned, but I think it'll work out better this way.

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

Quick update: Unfortunately I was not selected for the grant, but things will still continue as planned. On a positive note, only 3 weeks left of school!!!

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

I graduated!! And I think I basically am semi-retired for a while (as in years) since I'll only be working about 4-6 months out of each year. Needless to say things are going pretty well for me right now. :D

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jennypenny
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by jennypenny »

Congratulations! I love the way you've set yourself up--like starting a race at the finish line. :)

Dragline
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by Dragline »

Congratulations! Time to head north, eh?

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

@JP- Thanks! I'm a big fan of it as well. And to think that just over a year and a half ago I had no idea what I was going to be doing, or even that I'd be graduating now.

One of my grandmas told me today that she was basically disappointed that I'm not getting a high paying job, so that I can spend lots of money. How little she knows about my plans...

@Dragline-Thanks! Indeed it is. :D I'll be heading up in about two weeks from now.

saving-10-years
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by saving-10-years »

Congratulations. Very well done and I look forward to hearing about further adventures. Yours sounds like a great plan.

mxlr650
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by mxlr650 »

theanimal wrote:I graduated!!
Congratulations!! Look forward to reading about your adventures in Alaska!
theanimal wrote:One of my grandmas told me today that she was basically disappointed that I'm not getting a high paying job, so that I can spend lots of money.
What Carlin would say to "How is the science project coming along Justin?" :D

theanimal
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by theanimal »

Well I'm heading up to Alaska in a few hours to begin my first big adventure. I'm both anxious and excited to get started. For anyone interested, my mom will be posting sporadic (weekly or so) updates to my blog. Here's the link again : http://www.animaltreks.wordpress.com

I look forward to talking with all of you again in the fall! Have a great summer everyone!

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jennypenny
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Re: the animal's journal

Post by jennypenny »

Good luck and have a great time!

Be careful. (sorry, gotta say it ;) )

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