Follow Kellisa's Path by email
We decided to up our video content for our 52 trails in California during 2022. Egypt created this video from pictures taken along our 1st trail of the year. Hopefully, our picture taking and video creations will improve as we experiment and practice.
Follow Kellisa's Path by email
Suisun Hill (Left) from Grizzly Island Road |
False Summit (Left) and Suisun Hill (Right) at the start of the hike. |
False Summit |
Summit Push |
Arriving at the Summit |
Summit Views |
Descending the backside of Suisun Hill |
Plane coming in for a landing at Travis Air Force Base |
Cattle along the trail |
Trail #2 in 2022 in the books! Follow Kellisa's Path by email |
January 21, 2016
Jacksonville, FL
Kellisa reminding me to look at the camera while we're interviewed on live TV to share some of Kellisa's story and support for Wolfson Children's Hospital |
Follow Kellisa's Path by email
Blog Post Format Two - Summary, Pictures, and Facts
Trail 1/52
Penryn, California
Placer County
January 2022
After two years and only two short trails completed, we decided 2022 would be the year Kellisa returned to outdoor adventures in wild places. It didn't take long to hatch the idea of hiking 52 trails in our current home state of California during the calendar year of 2022. With only a few guidelines, we set out for our first trail on January 2, 2022.
I had read about the Traylor Ranch Bird Sanctuary & Wildlife Preserve a couple of years ago in a local publication and it easily made my list of places to explore. One of the appeals was how close it is to our house, less than 20 minutes away. Penryn is probably considered a suburb of Sacramento, but it is far from urban as it's tucked away in the foothills of the Sierras.
Kellisa and I pushiked a couple of miles and enjoyed every minute of our adventure. We had the preserve mostly to ourselves and were serenaded by the local birds during our entire visit to their home. While we observed many birds, the lighting wasn't good for bird photography.
After more then 2 years off the trails, Kellisa was beyond excited to be back outside in nature. I was happy with the way my body responded to pushing Kellisa, but also realized I have some getting in shape to do. After so much down time, I need to get my chops back, so I can get Kellisa back to going where wheels weren't meant to go!
Oakland Arena
Oakland, CA
Friday, January 14, 2022
We had a great experience watching the Harlem Globetrotters from our courtside seats. Little did we know, the highlight of the evening would happen after the game. As the buzzer sounded to end the game, security quickly roped off the court. The announcer invited all the fans to come down for one autograph. Fans were advised to stay on the outside of the rope and the players would stay on the court.
Egypt and Kellisa were lined up to get an autograph on their souvenir basketball from TNT, the only current woman Globetrotter. TNT had the girls join her on the court while she signed her autograph.
Oakland Arena
Oakland, CA
Friday, January 14, 2022
Several months ago, I received an email with a Pre-Sale code to purchase Harlem Globetrotters tickets in Oakland. I would prefer a Sacramento date, but it wasn't on their schedule (it would be added later). Oakland isn't that far from us, so I asked Lisa if we should get tickets for the girls as part of a Christmas present. We decided that both girls would enjoy it and I went online when the tickets went on Pre-Sale.
I started looking for wheelchair options and quickly found a section midway up the arena. I was close to selecting our seats when I noticed the four seats on the court next to the Globetrotters bench were available. They were more money, but we haven't attended any events in almost two years and I knew the girls would love the action so close to them.
The timer was counting down and a decision had to be made quick. Lisa and I decided to get the courtside seats. We were not disappointed. The tickets were worth the little extra to be right there so near all the action. The girls got to high five several players and Egypt had her picture taken with their mascot. It was a great game, evening, and experience that will be hard to match in the future.
I would like to thank all the staff at the Oakland Arena who took care of us and treated us like VIPs. As we approached the entrance, a security guard led us the the wheelchair line. From there, a nice lady escorted us through the process of security and ticket scanning. She also led us to the elevator that would take us deep inside the arena to the floor level. A man was there when the elevator doors opened. He looked at our tickets and started leading us to the floor. As we walked and wheeled onto the floor, another person met us to walk us to our seats. The same process was repeated on our exit and everyone was so pleasant and kind. I even imagine they were all smiling under their masks.
Do I share very little like I did when I was working
on Rugged Access for All? I only gave periodic updates and shared
an occasional picture but saved all the text for the actual book. Do I blog the
book? This is where the blog is basically the first or rough draft of the book
along with pictures and all supporting information. There’s a third option that
falls somewhere between sharing just a little and posting everything.
I don’t want to give the entire book away online, but
I also don’t want to keep a year’s worth of adventure from family, friends, and
other followers of Kellisa’s Path. After careful reflection, I’ve decided on
the third option this time around.
Charles Dickens famously wrote, “Make them laugh. Make
them cry. Make them wait.”
I intend to follow that advise in how I share our next
project. Hopefully, if the story unfolds as hoped, there will be some giggles
and tears shared along our path and just enough left unknown to leave readers
wanting more.
I’ve detailed our hiking goal for 2022 and now my
approach to sharing our stories. I will go one step beyond by describing the
blog style I’ve decided to use for this project. Each of the 52 trails will be
shared on Kellisa’s Path in the order we complete the trails. Each post will go
up within a week or two of completion, as time allows.
We will have three different posting formats.
The first will be the simplest, the best photograph
from the trail and the basic who, what, when, where, why, and how of the trail.
The second will be posting the best picture or perhaps
several, and a brief chapter summary along with the who, what, when, where,
why, and how of the trail.
The last format will have a fully written chapter in addition
to the pictures and who, what, when, where, why, and how of the trail. The
chapter won’t be the final draft because it won’t be fine tuned and edited until
after all the hikes have been completed. This will allow for making changes as
our story arch develops over time. What might not seem important to mention at
first, may become necessary to share as part of the story months later.
Kellisa and I completed our first trail of 2022 on
January 2nd. You might be thinking, “Why didn’t we go out on the 1st?”
Well, Kellisa stayed up past 1am to welcome the new year
and proceeded to sleep until 3:30pm. With the sun setting before 5pm, we didn’t
have enough time to head out on the first day of January.
The Clock Strikes Midnight 2022 |
Over the next few days, maybe even a week, I’ll post
three versions of our first hike to show the above defined formats for clarity.
We will share only one format for all subsequent
hikes. I’m not sure if we will rotate evenly, let time dictate how we post, or
decide which format is best for each trail so we can hopefully leave you
laughing, crying, and wanting more!
We look forward to the many videos Egypt will creating for Kellisa's Path.
The Goal: Hike 52 Trails in California during 2022.
The Benefit: Reconnect with Kellisa and return to an active life in the great outdoors.
The Rules: Have fun and be safe.
The Guidelines: