When I left the Marine Corps, I had my future all laid out. I had big plans for returning to school, having a second child, and supporting my (then) husband’s transition from the military had me feeling like I knew where I was going. Until I didn’t. When my husband became abusive, and I was forced to finally make a choice, I had no idea where my new path would lead. All I knew was that I couldn’t stay a minute longer.

The next few years were a blur of moves, transitions, and adjustments as I got used to the single mom life with two small children. As part of the abuse I endured, I lost a number of things I used to love. Time for hiking and camping, snowboarding, rock climbing, and even kayaking, in the end, was impossible.

Once I was finally free, it took some internal coaxing to get myself out on the trail and back in nature. A tentative solo climbing trip to the Red River Gorge in Kentucky was a start. Then bikepacking adventures with the kids. And before I knew it, the kids and I were spending our weekends on road trips and in campgrounds. The old me slowly began to return, and I liked her a lot. Our travels allowed me to reconnect and regain the self that had been quashed by abuse for so long.

Read the full article about the unexpected outcomes of hitting the trails by Vanessa Davids at Mission Continues Blog.