From being so out of shape she couldn’t walk through a grocery store to now having a love—her family calls it an addiction—for walking and hiking, Pack Member Paula Patterson, age 48, has found a new purpose through 99 Walks that has changed her life.
We recently chatted with Paula to get to know her better and here’s just some of what we discovered.
Who she is and where she walks:
Paula lives in Tate, Georgia where you’ll often find this formerly sedentary mama hiking the Appalachian Trail.
Speaking of the Appalachian Trail:
If she could blink her eyes and be anywhere in the world, she’d find herself right there, on the Appalachian Trail (known to those in-the-know as the AT), because Paula’s “dream is to do a through hike,” meaning she dreams of hiking the 2,190 miles of the AT that runs from Georgia to Maine. That’s a lotta’ hiking, Paula!
When she finds her walking, er, hiking bliss:
Paula has found that any time of the day is great for fueling her hiking bug, but the mornings are when she most finds herself exploring the great outdoors. What a great way to start your day!
Gotta love a metaphor:
With all that time walking and hiking, Paula’s got to have seen some things. One of the most unusual? The day she spotted a fork in the road. A real fork. Yup, it was clearly a fact and a metaphor.
Hiking, hiking and a little more hiking:
Paula feels most at home hiking in the woods, loves watching hiking videos on YouTube and, in her spare time, shares the love by leading a group of beginner hikers out on the trails.
And when she’s not on the trails:
You just might find Paula nurturing her creative side through painting and crocheting. We bet there’s a painting of a beautiful tree-lined hiking trail in her collection!
When she’s having “one of those days:”
She reads her Bible and then she “does what my dad taught me: just do it, get up and get moving because I always feel so much better afterwards.”
Her yum:
Chicken fajitas for supper and and Skittles for a treat ‘cause they are “fruity and chewy.” And maybe great to pack for that 5-7 month through-hike of the Appalachian Trail?
And last, but not least, walking and hiking has taught her:
“That I can do anything if I just work at it.”
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