My mother has been on a big hiking kick lately, but had never been backpacking. Who better to lead her and the rest of my family into the woods than the intrepid explorers, Genny and Adam. So we packed up our gear, researched an "easy" part of the Appalachian Trail, and were on our way. We soon found out that numerous snowmobiling trails zigzag near the head of the trail, making finding and staying on our intended trail difficult. Nevertheless, we were excited to be in great company and have good weather on our side. We even stopped to note numerous moose tracks and droppings seemlingly pointing us in the direction we needed to go. After nearly a full day of hiking, we began to notice signs that we were on a different trail than we had thought. Thankfully, our dear friend, Lindsay Parker, had purchased a GPS emergency locator for us and we had brought it along. Although this device does not actually tell us our location, it notifies our family members of our position and can alert emergency services if necessary. After a push of a button and few phone calls (yes, we do backpack with cell phones :) to family members, we were somewhat certain of the direction we needed to go. Knowing that the shortest distance between two objects is a straight line, we had the bright idea of bushwacking our way home. In hindsight, perhaps five miles of uneven terrain, steep slopes, and river crossings were not the best idea for my mom's first backpacking trip. Our off trail excursion resulted in an unexpected second night in the wildnerness and a cliff bar dinner. The following morning, Genny's Birthday, we headed West determined to find the trail. Exhausted, twigs in our hair, and empty bellies, we found the trail that morning. Ironically, there were no moose tracks on this trail. With our spirits lifted from finding the trail, we quickly hiked the four remaining miles down to the car. The morals of this story, never follow moose tracks into the woods and befriend Lindsay Parker, she could one day save your life.