Move the body, still the mind – watch out Blue, it’s hiking time! Cool HIKINGS!
Summer at Blue Mountain is truly amazing and the Resort’s mantra of #LiveItOutside has me motiviated to get out and experience as much of the green season as I can.
My goal for this summer is to scale the mountain 3 times a week during my lunch – a feat that is currently a ritual habit of my leader – Marie Eve Dolan. In 40 minutes, she can run up and down the hill and return to her office looking picture perfect. It is not only impressive – but unrealistic for me (my frizzy hair will NEVER look that smooth).
When I decide to do something, I dive in headlong, cannon balling into the deep end of the pool. No toe testing for this girl! In order to do this right, I headed to The North Face store at Blue Mountain and got outfitted by the experts.
I was built with a naturally athletic physique, lol. My limbs are long, and my feet are flat! Footwear is always a hard option for me. I need something light (or else I will trip) that supports your foot, but without a MEGA prebuilt arch. Enter the Women’s Ultra Fastpack III GTX – They’re light and waterproof. And they have an extra cap on the toe and heel so if I step on some sharp rocks, I won’t feel like I got stabbed. The bottom has a great grip – and for those early morning hikes (haha right?) they have some reflective materials, so I can be visible from a far!
I don’t think we have had a rain free week since the snow melted – so rain gear is a necessity for my summer hiking goals. I couldn’t decide on what to go with, so I picked up two items – the Dryzzle Jacket – a GORETEX Shell for those really wet days and the Printed Fanorak – a super light and thin windbreaker that will keep you dry on those days where it is aggressively misting. PLUS it packs up into a nice little fanny pack.
Pockets AND a fanny pack! Yeet! 
Serious R&D here 
I’ll take one in every colour!
Since I am scaling the mountain 3 times a week, I require 3 shirts because I am NOT going to be doing laundry every other day. Even the thought of hiking up the hill makes me break a sweat so I knew I needed Flash Dry, which the North Face team advised me is Quick-Dry, moisture wicking fabric! I picked the Bottle Source T because $1 of every purchase is donated to the National Park Service. I also picked up the Workout Short Sleeved Shirt as it had the name work out in the title and it is the softest thing EVER. Lastly, I picked up the Ambition tank so I could show off my runners arms… and the name Ambition is exactly what I need for this goal.
If I ruled the world, I would decree that leggings/tights should be considered business casual. Naturally I was drawn to the Motivation High-Rise Pocket Tight. They are a high stretch compression fabric (keeps you feeling toight), high waisted (aka tummy eraser) and they have not one but two pockets that my giant phone can fit in. I even made a choice to live life on the wild side and pick up a pair of shorts! Free the knees!!!! The Class V Short are super light weight, have good sized pockets, are UPF 50 (no burns) and have a super cute and flowery print that I just couldn’t pass up.
I am big on following the rules and live by the statement “Safety Never Takes A Day Off”. So, naturally I needed the Field bag. It is on the smaller side for packs but holds a ton of stuff – I can put my keys, a phone, water bottle, sunscreen, bug spray, band aids and a swiss army knife in there (YOU NEVER KNOW GUYS!!!) Plus, it’s pink – so it MUST be worn on Wednesdays
I also got two hats. The Low Pro Trucker Hat will be my standard “out for a hike and fun” activities hat, that goes with everything. And I picked up the Horizon Brimmer Hat for those days where the sun is relentless, and I need to protect my head, face, neck and shoulders.
They say “Look Good. Feel Good. Hike Good” so I have the first two parts down – now its time for the third. Today, shopping was my cardio – but check back next week to see how my first hike of the season goes! #RiseAndGrind
