John Gouzos

 The past weekend was eventful with some camping and hiking in the Adirondack mountains. Starting out to plan some mild day-hikes during my current trip to the US, I got tempted into signing up for a 2-day camping coupled with a strenuous hike— The Great Range Traverse. The trip was  memorable  with some nice camping and lounging around the lake, and some  not-so-memorable  hiking due to lesser preparedness. I recount both, here. The Great Range Traverse Meetup.com has turned out to be a blessing to pursue one’s interests by helping quickly locate groups and people who share similar interests. Having signed up for a few active outdoor meetup groups around New York area, I was drawn to NY Backpacker’s meetup on the ‘Great Range Traverse hike’ and ‘Camping at Loj in the Adirondack mountains’. Touted as one of the toughest hikes in America, the plan was to hike ~20 miles (32 km) covering 8 mountains with an elevation gain of ~10,000 ft. All don...

There are a ton of hikes that are just a train ride away from NYC via the Metro North. I’ll offer just a few, but with such sort proximity to nature, there are truly endless trails to be hiked in the area. Breakneck Ridge This is a popular favorite and a moderate hike. The Metro North “Breakneck Ridge” train stop about 0.5 miles north of the trailhead. It is located between the road (Route 9D) and the river. The “Breakneck Ridge” sign is not visible from the road. There is a pedestrian bridge located not far from the road (there is a very very short and unmarked access trail from the road to the bridge) which safely takes one from the road to the train and vice versa. From the website: Total Distance: 5.5 miles Difficulty: medium — difficult (multiple rock scrambles, 1,670'+ total elevation gain) Estimated hiking time: 4+ hours — 2 people, 5–6.25 hours — group The hike begins on west (southbound) side of the road just north of the underpass where you will find the Breakneck Ridge T...

 John Gouzos In the pursuit of holistic well-being, the realm of energy medicine offers a transformative approach to health and healing. By harnessing the body’s innate energy systems, energy medicine practices aim to restore balance and harmony on physical, emotional, and spiritual levels. From acupuncture and Reiki to qigong and yoga, these ancient healing modalities offer a wealth of benefits for those seeking to cultivate energetic equilibrium in their lives.