Author Archives: CheeseBlock

Last weekend Maria and I escaped for a brief honeymoon in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. We’ve had a semiregular tradition of going off into the woods somewhere in mid-October to celebrate our dating anniversary and my birthday, so it seemed reasonable to continue the tradition now that we were married. After our firstContinue reading “Honeymooning in New Hampshire”

After last week’s hike was cut short I was left with an unfulfilled desire to spend a night in the woods. Since my weekends for the next month were already booked, this was my last chance for a while if I wanted to fulfill that desire. Plus, I had a bag of apples and sixContinue reading “A Night in the Woods”

My hike this weekend was something of a train wreck. Maria and I had planned a few weeks prior to spend Saturday through Monday in the woods. As the week approached, we both realized that our busy lives as grad students meant taking Monday off work wasn’t something we were very excited about. For aContinue reading “Short Hikes and Salamanders”

Today marks my first hike with companionship since moving last month. Maria finished her exams last week, so she finally had some time to come out with me to the woods. We continued section hiking the New England Trail (NET), this time starting just west of the Connecticut River. In contrast to the wet andContinue reading “Ruins, Towers, and Companionship”

It had been two weeks since my last long hike, so it was time to get outside again, storm or no. After spending some time reading through the storm warning and deciding the risk of danger was reasonably low, I arrived at the Notch Visitor’s Center to start hiking about 10:30. Completely full two weeksContinue reading “Braving the Storm”

Hello and welcome. My goal for this post is to give you a sense of who I am, why I’m writing this, and what you might expect to find in future posts here. We’ll start with me. My name is Derek. I’m currently studying for my PhD in physics. I like spending time outdoors, especiallyContinue reading “Introductions”