Blissful is given the "all clear" by her surgeon and gets ready to step into the rest of her life. Surgery for breast cancer has completely changed Blissful's body, but has given her a new power of bravery and knowing herself better. One friend calls her a "sur-thriver" facing down the situation directly, and trying to do what St. Paul said, to "rejoice always and not worry about anything." Time is running out but wouldn't it be cool to live fully, audaciously, without fear – and with joy – even in an uncertain world? Next week, Blissful heads back to trail in Arizona to finish a portion she had to skip when walking two years ago. MUSIC: Introduccion y Allegro by Carlos Guastavino as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano. Support the show

Blissful takes her first hike on a trail after surgery for breast cancer and decides she prefers to be described as a "thriver" – or even "aliver" – rather than survivor. It's a hot, humid summer day at Lebanon Hills, a region carved by glaciers with kettles and eskers, plus the singing of numerous birds. Blissful's surgeon tells her it's time to put on a backpack and get back on trail, even though she's isn't completely healed. Illness humbles us and teaches us about our vulnerability and ultimate decline, and yet it opens us up to discover our superpowers, like moving forward to see what's next. It's the price we pay for being alive, but it offers us a chance to appreciate what we have even more. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano. Support the show

As Blissful heals from a bilateral mastectomy due to breast cancer, she reflects on the person she wants to be going forward. Blissful is incredibly lucky in only having to undergo a radical surgery to rid her body of cancer. Step by step walking through her neighborhood, she slowly recovers back to her hiker self. The American writer Joyce Carol Oates speaks of the moment we realize that loss is part of our experience. “When that starts to happen to you, it is quite stunning.” Being out of control with illness is falling-to-the-knees humbling for Blissful and it's a challenge to stay positive and "bad ass." But she's inspired by the late actor Julian Sands who spoke of climbing summits as "not so much a celebration of oneself, but the eradication of one’s self-consciousness. And so on these walks you lose yourself, you become a vessel of energy in harmony, hopefully with your environment.” What a way to live! MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano. Support the show

When Blissful is diagnosed with breast cancer, she undergoes a bilateral mastectomy to save her life and secure her future. A friend tells Blissful she has it easy because she has a partner in her husband Richard. Indeed, she is incredibly grateful to be part of a team because it's helped her navigate some very tough times in her life. Blissful's view of life is that it can be full of abundance and grace, but sometimes bad things just happen at no fault of our own. Kind of like the children's book, Good Luck, Bad Luck, we shouldn't blame ourselves when life throws us a curveball – no, the universe is not sending us a "message," rather it's a chance for us to grow and stretch when we learn how to face difficulty. Bad Luck came to Blissful with a diagnosis of cancer, but good luck was that it was caught quickly, so there's no need for chemotherapy – a moment of grace. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala, Suite by Ernst Krenek and Introduccion y Allegro by Carlos Guastavino as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano. Support the show

Blissful begins her cancer journey looking back at her life as a woman. Blissful spends the days before a bilateral mastectomy gathering together a team of supportive women who have been through the procedure. She also walks, hikes, bikes, swims, kayaks all in an effort to calm herself – or running away from panic. In looking forward to being flat-chested and "ultra-light", Blissful reminisces on becoming a woman from "sprouts" to a "mean girl" to a middle-aged woman saving her own life. MUSIC: Suite by Ernst Krenek and Introduccion y Allegro by Carlos Guastavino as played by Alison Young, flute Support the show

Blissful wraps up her hike of the Appalachian Trail in Maine to head home for cancer treatment. The two days between Monson and Caratunk are rain-free and magical with a winter wren, hermit thrush, northern parula plus warty frogs and a curious snake. It's two big mountains with views including Moxie Bald and Pleasant Pond with glorious views of humpy green forested peaks like emerging leviathan in an even more expansive sea of green. Camping is near a pond circled by summer homes and loud pontoon boats, only a few miles out of Caratunk. Blissful meets a cancer survivor finishing the Appalachian Trail and is empowered by her healing and moxie to get right back on trail. Then she heads home for a new and scary adventure. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful makes it out of the 100 Mile Wilderness and receives a call from her doctor calling her home to have a bilateral mastectomy. It's wet and muddy but mostly road out to Monson, Maine, the first town in ten days. She has to go home, but not immediately, and can head back on trail for at least a few more days. And it's perfect timing in sunny weather at last and a long reroute around flooded rivers. But it's a gorgeous hike through forest loud with birds and frogs. And it takes her to lovely Moxie Bald Pond where the forest creatures enchant her even when distressed by her cancer diagnosis and the fact that she'll have to go home. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

The trail is hard in rain, mud and cold, but Blissful gets the boost she needs from hiker and creature. It's mountainous now in the 100-mile Wilderness, revealing only misty views of distant lakes enveloped in thick forest. The "Sibs", two thru-hikers also from Minnesota, plus "Shoes," a barefoot hiker, meet her and offer encouragement. As does Fourth Mountain Bog, a stunning ecosystem crossed by boardwalk where a White Throated Sparrow greets her as well as giant. maroon-veined pitcher plants. It's too hard to get to the planned shelter so she and Shoes stay next to Long Pond Stream. They are rudely awakened by hikers late at night who warn them not to try to cross and instead offer directions for the reroute. Blissful is grateful for all that happened today, even the rude hikers who ensure she doesn't get in trouble in teh flooded stream. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful crosses a high, exposed peak in fog and rain then discovers she needs to go further than she thought. Hiking south on the Appalachian Trail, it's the first high mountains since Katahdin, but the weather is manageable. And there are small surprises like twisted and stunted "krumholz" trees, wildly fluorescent fungus and wildflowers heavily laden with damp. Even high up, the birds are loud including a new bird t Magnolia Warbler. When Blissful discovers she needs to go further than expected, crossing a river and steeply up, she goes for it. The "Sibs" – a pair of siblings also from Minnesota – give her courage as well as spotting her first Red Spotted Newt as orange as a gummy. The river crossing is easy and the uphills go one and on finally ending in a rock fall to climb up Chairback Mountain to a shelter shared with a barefoot thru-hiker named 'Shoes.' MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful creates an audio narrative as an Artist-in-Residence at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in Upper Peninsula, Michigan. During her artistic residency, she immersed herself in the vividly sonorous landscape , collecting sound as she hiked. Birds, falls and the wind spoke to her about spring’s message – a message of renewal and rebirth. It's such a fleeting moment, one so transitory, we could almost miss if we’re not listening carefully. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful makes her first dangerous ford over a swollen and dangerous river in flood from the non-stop rain. For a SOBO – or southbounder – on the Appalachian Trail, it's often wise to pay for delivery of a cache of food to break up the 10-day hike of the 100 Mile Wilderness. Right after the cache, the trail gets harder, steeply uphill into real mountains, plus river fords. With an unusual amount of rain, the rivers are in spate and dangerous. Blissful is alone and carefully crosses the Pleasant River – less pleasant, but doable especially with affixed ropes, yet there's no information on whether the ropes are safe. A Winter Wren congratulates her on a successful cross, and encourages a climb to Logan Brook right below White Cap Mountain, where a shelter awaits. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

When seeing two Pileated Woodpecker parents up close, Blissful learns that she is only passing through and to savor the moment while it lasts. It's an easy enough day on the Appalachian Trail (AT) though rainy without any views. Blissful stops at a lovely campground on the banks of Lower Jo-Mary Lake surrounded by pink Lady Slippers, as delicate as crepe. These first days walking south through Maine have been hard and Blissful feels like an amateur muddling through. While she licks her wounds, two woodpeckers poke out of a snag, chittering to each other and seemingly planning who will head out for food and how will stay with the young; it's magical. The lesson that "we're only passing through" is made apparent as is that she will never pass this way again. And this realization makes her feel gratitude for being invited into this wild world. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

In constant rain and cold, Blissful learns the power in facing her negative feelings and using them to spur her to action rather than resignation. The trail has yet to get hard on the Appalachian Trail (AT) but the rain is drenching. Blissful can't stop in the cold and swarms of mosquitos even to eat, and is full of frustration but fellow hiker Ingrid catches up and gives her courage, suggesting they sleep inside the next shelter to stay dry. It's not far or difficult to the shelter at Nahmakanta Stream and she grabs a corner spot. Wet and cold, she is reminded of the book Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales where he says, "“Stop denying and begin surviving. You don’t have to be elite or perfect, just get on with it and do the next right thing.” And this is exactly what she does, focusing her negative emotions to doing the next right thing - to stay as dry and warm as possible, and to keep moving ahead. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful is ill-prepared for the constant damp, but discovering an inner fierceness to solve her problems and keep moving ahead. The summer of 2023 on the Appalachian Trail (AT) is the wettest in memory. But this one day in Northern Maine is thankfully dry with big wind off Rainbow Lake where Blissful is able to dry out her gear. It's all easy trail lined with wildflowers from one shelter at Hurd Brook to the next at Rainbow Stream with a delightful site right above falls through a gorge. New friends of fellow hikers give Blissful courage and she makes it to the next site now with dried out gear – only to survive yet another night of soaking rain. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful leaves Baxter State Park to enter the 100-mile Wilderness, learning that "everything changes" including the weather. Blissful is waiting a pathology report from breast surgery, unsure if she will get the all-clear or have to manage a cancer diagnosis. Her surgeon encourages just to start hiking while she waits and here she is. Lured into the lovely idyllic summer weather at the start of hiking the Appalachian Trail (AT) Blissful gives away her plastic waterproof backpack liner to pack her gear in compression sacks that fail completely. The walk out of Baxter State Park is flat and easy, the trail lined with wildflowers and filled with bird song. At Abol Bridge, she meets other hikers and they look back at Katahdin as the air turns black, lightnings strikes the summit and it begins pouring rain. Maine rain is different in humid, saturated air and she's almost immediately soaked through. At the warning sign, three miles ahead of the first shelter at Hurd Brook, it begins to hail. She sets her tent with new friends who offer dry clothes and to share their tent if she gets too cold, but somehow she sleeps well through the night in a lumpy and clammy down quilt. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful decides to put her feet on the Appalachian Trail, beginning from the north on Mount Katahdin in Maine. Those in the know will laugh when the Appalachian Trail (AT) is described as a "footpath" as it's more a rock climbing challenge. And it's tough to get to the start, 100 miles from any airport, then a 4,000-foot climb in five miles up to the summit and Mile 0. The weather calls for unseasonably hot weather, over 90 degrees, so it's a very early start. Planning two nights of camping at Katahdin Stream Campground, Blissful walks steeply up to spectacular views before hitting boulders requiring crawling, pressing, pulling and squeezing with only a few iron ladders to help. The tableland is easy walking, but exposed and hot with no wind and swarms of flies. At the top, Blissful meets a cohort of thru-hikers and carefully returns right before a loud thunder clap. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful shares insights about setting flexible goals. "Summit Fever" is one of the consequences of setting one single big goal and can cause us to fail every day, sometimes with tragic consequences. Rather than goals, setting systems can work in our favor because they are bite-sized goals more easily achieved. Systems allow us to succeed more often. And, allow us to change our minds and still succeed. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful Hiker is honored to have been named an "Artist in Residence" by the Friends of the Porkies and will live in a remote cabin this spring to create audio narrative essays in Upper Peninsula Michigan in the Porcupine Mountains. In this episode, she revisits her fall backpack trip when she fell in love with the "Porkies." Awakening to a spectacular sunrise on Lake of the Clouds, Blissful walks into a the magical and primeval hemlock forest. She meets the Big Carp River and enchanted by its silvery cascades on volcanic rock. A short walk along Lake Superior and she's back in forest following another river, the Little Carp where she camps next to a pool reflecting gold and red fall colors. The next day she climbs to the high point at Summit Peak, then down to gorgeous Mirror Lake and finally a private site on a beaver pond filled with nature's sound including chipmunks, owls, beaver and a howling wolf. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show

Blissful Hiker is honored to have been named an "Artist in Residence" by the Friends of the Porkies and will live in a remote cabin this spring to create audio narrative essays in Upper Peninsula Michigan in the Porcupine Mountains. In this episode, she revisits her fall backpack trip when she fell in love with the "Porkies." In this episode: Blissful visits this magical place, a wilderness state park of 35,000 acres of primary stand hemlock amidst a massive volcanic uplift above Lake Superior. Her first day is along the escarpment above Lake of the Clouds to her stunning campsite with a large rock apron looking out to the astounding view. Birds and a wolf celebrate the setting sun and the stars coming out. As she crawls into her tent, an acorn bombardment spooks her reminding her that this is indeed a wilderness. MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show Support the show

This week, Blissful Hiker completes the list of ten lessons from the trail that are helping her now. In this episode: 7) :38 Everything changes “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” 8) 1:50 You will never pass this way again "Sooner or later, we must realize there is no station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip." 9) 3:26 Let go and forgive "Forgiveness is the economy of the heart… forgiveness saves the expense of anger, the cost of hatred, the waste of spirits." 10) 5:41 You are stronger than you think you are "If I waited for perfection, I’d never write a word." MUSIC: Poema del Pastor Coya by Angel Lasala and Milongs sin palabras by Astor Pizzolla as played by Alison Young, flute and Vicki Seldon, piano Support the show