Editor’s note: Gina has been a regular contributor to our website content for nearly two years, sharing news and perspective about mental health. In this article she shares the personal story of the IronHike she and her husband recently completed in conjunction with HIKE for Mental Health. Thank you, Gina!!
Our first HIKE For Mental Health is in the books, and we could not be happier! We had an amazing fall day for hiking…warm and sunny. I have been writing for HIKE For Mental Health for well over a year but had not participated in a hike to help raise funds to support mental health research. What took us so long? While we have been avid hikers for over 35 years, I travel a lot so committing to a time and place for a hike can be difficult. I did not want to join a hike and then have to back out. That is why it was great to learn about the “create your own hike” option where you can turn any hike you are doing into a HIKE For Mental Health. As the website states, you simply decide when and where you want to hike, register the hike on the website, create and share a fundraising page, and hike your hike. It’s that easy!
My husband and I chose to complete an endurance hike for our HIKE For Mental Health. Endurance hiking is basically hiking for extended periods of time to reach a certain goal. We chose an IronHike event, specifically simulating hiking Kuwohi (formerly known as Clingman’s Dome)…hiking 15 miles with over 7,100 feet elevation gain and loss. This event was held at Mohawk Mountain ski area. Twelve laps up and down the mountain in 12 hours was what we needed to do. It was a great event for us. We finished in just under 9 hours. More importantly we raised $1,400!! For our first HIKE For Mental Health, we are thrilled with this amount. Next year we hope to do a longer IronHike event and raise even more money for mental health research and wilderness trail conservancy. While this type of endurance hike is different from a straight trail hike, part of the mental challenge is hiking the same loop over and over again. It was a new and different challenge for us that we were excited to participate in. Here are a few pictures from our hike. If you want to learn more about IronHike for your HIKE For Mental Health, check out their website above. And if you want to create your own hike, it’s simple….just click here. Happy hiking!!
Dear Gina,
Thank you for sharing your journey with us! You and Mark are making a difference with every step you take and the world is a better place because of you!
Thank you Maria!