Visiting Eli's School

I was honored to be able to speak at one of  Denver Public school's fifth grade classes while we were there. Our friends son, Eli asked me if I would be the " show and tell" for his classroom. I enjoyed it  ( after 2 days of nervousness) and I was quite impressed with some of their questions for me about our hike. I really wish everyone could have the joy and curiosity of a child. It was such a blessing to spend this fun hour with these children full of interesting questions and complete curiosity. I enjoyed watching and helping them try on my 40 pound backpack! It really brought to life the scriptures about having the faith of a child and the Game show " Are you smarter then a 5th grader?" This weekend we leave Nebraska to head back south to Alabama. On our home way we are going out of the way through Texas and Louisiana because I've been asked to speak at a youth group of around 200 teens . I will be speaking on November 4th and I am super excited! We will also be going on a new adventurous road trip through New Orleans, so keeping watching for my photos and history posts from this adventure.

 If you know of a youth group or school/ college that would enjoy hearing our about our journey, I am available. Contact me at: backpackingkatydid@gmail.com. May God Bless your week! 

Mrs. Natalie's 5th grade Class

Eli and I!:)

Mission Accomplished

Where do I begin?

It is very difficult to put into words the feeling of Accomplishment.

Whether it be small or large, It's still great in the eyes of it's achiever .

Last Saturday my family and I completed our 5,000 Mile Trek across America in Denver Colorado.

As most of you already know we started on March 24th 2014 in Delaware at Cape Henlopen State Park.... We walked until November 17th 2014 where the snow stopped us from climbing the Rocky Mountains west of Denver. We wintered over until April in Cozad , Nebraska. We then took a Amtrak Train from Omaha Nebraska to Richmond California. When we arrived in Richmond a good friend drove us to Point Reyes National Seashore on May 2nd where we began the last 2,000  miles of our journey. 

From Point Reyes we walked East through Nevada and Utah. There we faced harsh temperatures and sandstorms, lots of spiders and rattlesnakes. When we got to Colorado we slowed everything down and enjoyed the last month of our trip. We stayed with many more families, made many more lifetime friends and found some amazing new vacation spots! We were blessed enough to have beat the snow this year and the weather was lovely for hiking in the mountains among the fall aspen leaves! On October 17th after an amazing week of staying with our friends in Denver..... We finally did it!

We walked the last 4 miles up cherry creek bike trail downtown to Union Station where we met with a few friends and family from several states and a Denver Post reporter to celebrate our big accomplishment. The American Discovery Trail had one of the board of directors with an award for Completing the American Discovery Trail and for being the only family to ever hike it. I was also presented with one for being the youngest to hike the trail! We also became Ambassador for the American Discover Trail... This all being said, If you have a Goal or a Dream... Never give up on it! Never let anything get in your way. You can do anything you put your mind to, from Climbing Mount Everest to running a 5K. It's Possible! 

May God Bless You!

The End is Near!

I'm so excited to announce that we're almost done! The end is truly near!

We finish on October 17th! 

Colorado has been the most amazing state. People are friendly loving and super helpful! If your from Colorado you should be proud of it! 😊

The scenery is absolutely breathtaking! God is truly amazing! 

Crystal River Mill

Colorful Colorado

Where do I start?
Colorado is a magical place... Filled with Aspen and Fir trees, Alpine Lakes, Bear, Moose and Elk roam free untouched by man.... The mountains are extremely difficult and the elevations high, but the views are amazing! You start early in the morning and climb until the afternoon, you ream the peak out of breath and tired.. You sit down to enjoy some cool mountain stream water and take in the beauty of the summit. It's difficult and tiring, but the reward.... Unbelievable! You would never know what this is like unless you faced the rocks and boulders, climbed up the steep switchback trails for hours, crossed rushing creeks only to get your foot wet on the last step! All of this and you are still amazed EVERY time you reach the top... It's like a whole new world waiting for you to glimpse its beauty. Beauty God set aside for those who choose to meet the challenges that come!
With the beauty of Fall almost here and the cooler temperatures that follow... Please go outdoors and enjoy the amazing wonders God has made for you!
Happy Hiking~
Katlyn🌲

Family selfie

Mama and I

Crossing a creek

Colorado sunrays

Our lovely new REI Half some 4

Filtering mountain water with my
Sawyer mini

Aspen trees

My friend Emily & I with
Her adorable puppy Mowgli

Marmot hanging out by
The lake!

Utah~Colorado Border

 I am so excited to announce that

We are in colorado!! Only 550 miles or so before we complete our 5'000 mile hike across America!

I am so thankful for this opportunity at such a young age. Most people aren't this fortunate! 

Hopefully I will blog more through Colorado! 

Peace, Light & Love of Jesus

Katlyn✌

Canyonlands National Park

Utah Highway walking

Glory clouds

Baby Horny Toad!

Beautiful Rainbow of Westwater Ranger
Station

Selfie!!

Leaving Nebraska

As most of you know we've been living in Nebraska since November when we stopped the trail for the winter. We've definitely loved living in this wonderful state! I'm actually sad to see this section of our Journey end~ We've made some wonderful life long friends since living here and I'm sure this won't be the end to our Nebraska life:) It will definitely stay our second home! Thank you Nebraska for treating us so well and making our stay Wonderful! It's time for us to pick up where we left off and see where our Journey leads us! Katlyn

The Good Life.....

 Nebraska... The good life. 

The place where you talk 5 minutes and you become family.. The place where everyone is welcome and treated like longtime friends. I can't believe the kindness we experienced in Nebraska. The diversity of the land is amazing! I came here thinking it was FLAT and to be honest the first part was pretty much FLAT, then you get to the parts with beautiful lakes and rolling hills, cattle ranches and crops... You go from urban cities to open prairies with rattlesnakes and tumble weeds! People are just plain friendly! You walk for a couple of miles and a nice farmer asks do you need a ride? How about a cold bottle of water? Where you staying tonight?? Can I help you anyway? We never really had to worry about where we were going to stay because we knew God had a friendly farmer waiting on us!:) I believe Nebraska has been the most faith strengthening state so far. The place I thought would be dull and flat was full of loving kind people waiting to lend a hand to complete strangers!! God always provides! Thank you Friendly Nebraskans for making our time there so pleasant!

Katlyn