Yoop-about

What's a Yoop-about?

A walkabout has many definitions, most of them referring to an Australian word.  If I combine and summarize, a walkabout is a trek, wandering thru nature, taking a break from daily work to get back to the "old ways" or go thru some personal growth and self-realizations.

There are few places that I would rather be than the UP of Michigan.  I still have not experienced a winter, and maybe that would change my mind, but there is nothing like a summer vacation to the UP - at least to me.

The difficulty comes in finding someone to take a week of their vacation time to come do the things I love - swimming no matter the temps (air or water!), endless hikes and lots of rock hounding.  The distance is also an issue.  This year I decided to just "do it", even if it meant doing it alone.  I booked a rustic cabin thru the DNR website and proceeded with my planning.

I love planning and preparing, especially for camping trips.  This is where I can take my weakness of overthinking everything to death and turn it into a positive strength.  By the time the date of my trip arrived, the car had been packed for almost a week and only last minute items needed to be added.  I had back ups to back up plans.  I was ready!

So I am defining a Yoop-about as an adventure to the great northern Upper Penninsula of Michigan, to hike, camp, learn more about myself, push my limits and experience life as it would have been in the old days.