In the winter of 1995, several months after a seven-day rafting trip on the Colorado River, I left my south Florida paralegal job and followed my heart back to Arizona. There I worked for three snowbound months on the Kaibab Plateau, which forms the Grand Canyon's northern rim, and met the Flagstaff native I'm now married to. My mustached man moved back east with me in 1996, having never been to "my" side of the country. In April, 2003, Steve and I once again returned to Arizona, this time to live in the rugged Bradshaw Mountains north of Phoenix, forty minutes from the nearest store. This Rhode Island transplant is eager to know more of the Grand Canyon State's deserts and forests, peaks and valleys, canyons and craters. The following is my ongoing journal, Exploring Arizona. Click here

In my blog, Deb's Search & Rescue Stories, I write about being a volunteer member of the Coconino County, Arizona Sheriff's Search & Rescue Team. I share what it's like to go from a beginner with a lot to learn to an experienced and hopefully proficient member of the team, as well as the missions, trainings and other SAR activities I participate in along the way. Coconino County, with 18,661 square miles, is the nation's second largest county. Our SAR team responds to more than 100 call-outs per year. Click here

As a Squidoo lensmaster, I'm continually writing articles on all sorts of topics, many of them related to hiking, wilderness rescue and all things outdoors. Click here to visit my profile page and find a complete list of my "lenses," including Outdoor Adventure Goals and Hiking My Way to a Novel.

Tag along with me on my journey from a newly published, unknown author to writer of bestselling books. (Doesn't hurt to think big!) This won't be an easy "trail," but I'm in it for the long haul. Click here

The Appalachian Trail, also known as the A.T., follows the Appalachian mountain chain for 2,169 miles, beginning on Springer Mountain in Georgia and ending on the summit of Maine's majestic Mount Katahdin. More than four million people use some part of the A.T. annually, most for day- and weekend hikes, while thousands hike the entire trail in sections over a period of years. Each year, about 2,500 individuals attempt to backpack the full length of the A.T. in one continuous journey, otherwise known as a thru-hike. This is my journal from my 178-day adventure. Photos included. Click here

Wyoming's 80-mile-long Wind River Range forms part of the Continental Divide. Designated as a Wilderness Area, the Winds contain seven of the ten largest glaciers remaining in the continental U.S. and encompass more than 10,000 lakes. The highest peak in the range is Gannet Peak at 13,804 feet. This is an article I wrote about my 6-day backpacking trip with five friends from Pennsylvania. Photos included. Click here

Pennsylvania's Laurel Highlands Trail extends for 70 miles from the Youghiogheny River Gorge at Ohiopyle State Park east of Uniontown, through the Laurel Mountains, to the one thousand foot-deep Conemaugh Gorge near Johnstown. There are eight overnight areas, each with shelters, tent pads, bathrooms and potable water. Camping is permitted only at these areas, which are located eight to ten miles apart. This is my journal from my 6-day hike. Click here

The plan: Hike Minnesota's seldom-used, 38-mile Kekekabic Trail to the Border Route Trail, then continue 65 miles to the Superior Hiking Trail, ending the journey at Two Harbors, 203 miles later. The "Kek" and "BRT" pass through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, where paddling is the popular mode of self-propelled travel, while the well-maintained "SHT" follows the ridgeline along the coast of Lake Superior. The SHT often paralells rivers and creeks, showcasing waterfalls, rapids, and deep gorges where thousands of years of rushing water has cut into ancient volcanic rock. This is my journal from the Minnesota adventure that didn't exactly go according to plan. Photos included.Click here

Grand Canyon National Park, located in the desert of northern Arizona, encompasses more than 1.2 million acres and 277 miles of the Colorado River, which bisects the canyon. This is my journal from my 6-day South Rim to North Rim trek. Click here

In August, 2009, my husband and I traveled to northern Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for a five-day canoe-camping trip, including eight pristine lakes and six portages. After that part of our trip, we traveled to Voyageurs National Park and canoe-camped some more. We're now planning to return to the Boundary Waters, hopefully next year, for a 200-plus-mile paddle and portage along the historic Voyageurs Route between International Falls to Grand Portage. Click here

In June, 2009, my husband and I did our first section-hike on the Colorado Trail, which stretches 483 miles from Denver to Durango. We began on the western, Durango end, using the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad as our shuttle between Durango and Silverton. We plan to return once or twice a year to hike more of the CT, until, eventually, we complete the trail. This is an article I wrote about planning our first CT section-hike and added photos and information after our trip.Click here