Life List Revisited

After giving my Life List a year to simmer I’ve decided to go over it again and revise it. This past year I was able to mark some stuff off the list, and I definitely want to remove some items as well. First, the new ones I’ve been able to check off.

Visit Banff Nat’l Park and Lake Louise – Sage and I did this during our summer trip, and it was pretty great.
Visit Glacier Nat’l Park before the glaciers melt – Again, this was on the summer trip. I’m glad I didn’t say “hike to a glacier in GNP”, as most of the good trails to the glaciers were closed due to snow pack.
Visit Grand Teton Nat’l Park – One of my more “general” list items, unlike another item which was “backpack to a waterfall in Yellowstone”. We did hike to a waterfall in Yellowstone, but we didn’t backpack, so that one stays on the list.
Watch Arsenal at Highbury – We did this on our trip to London in the spring, and easily was one of my highlights of the year. I still get chills thinking about it.
Visit the Normandy Beaches in France & Bastogne in Belgium – While we did go to the D-Day beaches in Normandy, we didn’t make it to Bastogne, but I think it counts as partial credit.
Visit Rocky Mountain Nat’l Park and attempt to climb Longs Peak – I didn’t attempt to climb Longs Peak, and after going to RMNP, I really have no desire to try. It’s kind of like Everest – just because it’s the biggest, people feel the need to climb it and it becomes way too overcrowded. I’d much rather take a hike up a smaller but more secluded mountain.
See Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Memorial – Done.

Next, here are the items I’m removing from my list, and why.

Hike the Appalachian Trail – I’m not so sure I would like the experience anymore, though the idea has always (and still does) appeal to me. So I’ll just be happy with the thought and leave it at that.
Snorkel in Palau – It looked really cool on a show once, but now the mystique is sort of gone.
Climb Mt. Whitney in California – Sort of like what I said above about Longs Peak…it really doesn’t interest me to climb something just because it’s the biggest.
Cross the Straight of Gibraltar on a boat – I don’t even know why I had this on there in the first place.
Travel around the Croatian Islands in the Adriatic – I already have “Travel around Croatia and Slovenia”, so this is kind of redundant.
Sit on a beach in French Polynesia – I’ve got enough beach items on my list already.
Ride the Orient Express from London to Istanbul – Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’m that much of a train traveler, and I’d rather spend my money on something else.

Here’s the new and improved list. I’ve added a few items, changed a few items, and organized them by location.

Completed:

• Climb a Mayan Pyramid
• Snorkel in St. John, USVI
• See a Late Show with David Letterman in person
• Climb Mt. Washington in NH
• Touch the Stanley Cup
• Visit Banff Nat’l Park and Lake Louise
• Visit Glacier Nat’l Park before the glaciers melt
• Visit Grand Teton Nat’l Park
• Watch Arsenal at Highbury
• Visit the Normandy Beaches in France
• Visit Rocky Mountain Nat’l Park
• See Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Memorial

North American Travel

• Go on an overnight backpacking trip in the Maze District in Canyonlands Nat’l Park
• Hike the Narrows in Zion
• Backpack in Yellowstone
• Climb to the top of Half Dome in Yosemite
• Canoe/Kayak around Voyageurs Nat’l Park
• Play a round of golf at Pebble Beach
• Go canyoneering in Southern Utah
• Backpack the Under-the-Rim trail in Bryce Canyon National Park
• Visit Denali Nat’l Park
• Play golf at Death Valley
• Golf at Shadow Creek, Las Vegas
• Go backpacking in Big Bend Nat’l Park
• Mountain Bike the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands
• Float down the Green River, Utah
• Canoe the Everglades
• Camp on the Dry Tortugas
• Visit an active volcano at Hawaii Volcanoes Nat’l Park
• Golf at TPC Sawgrass, Stadium course
• See the Northern Lights
• Visit Churchill, Manitoba and see the Polar Bears up close (but not too close)
• Visit all 50 states and all Canadian provinces/territories
  US States to go: Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Michigan, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Rhode Island. (Yes, I know, I lived in NH so long and never went to RI. But really, what is there to do there?)
  Canadian Provinces/territories to go: Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, PEI, New Brunswick, Manitoba, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest, Nunavut.

European Travel

• Hike through England, Scotland or Ireland and stay at pubs/inns
• Bike/Hike around Switzerland
• Travel around Croatia & Slovenia
• Watch a mountain leg of the Tour de France
• Play golf at St. Andrews – Old Course
• Visit Bastogne in Belgium
• Travel around the Greek Islands
• Spend a night walking around Vienna
• Visit Auschwitz
• Drink beer at Oktoberfest in Germany
• See a fjord in Norway
• Visit Poland
• Eat a pasta meal in Italy
• Check out the geysers in Iceland

African Travel

• Take a hot air balloon ride over the African Savannah
• Visit the Pyramids of Giza
• Go on an African Safari
• Visit the Mountain Gorillas in the wild
• See Victoria Falls
• Visit a National Park in Gabon

South American/Caribbean Travel

• Travel to Machu Picchu
• Go snorkeling at Stingray City in the Caymans
• Go scuba diving in the ABC islands
• Visit the Galapagos Islands
• Camp on Mona Island, Puerto Rico
• Visit Belize and go snorkeling
• Visit the Amazon Rainforest

Asian Travel

• Visit the Seychelles Islands
• Visit Angkor Wat in Cambodia
• Check out Tokyo and go to a karaoke bar
• Trek around the Himalayas in Nepal

Australia/Oceania Travel

• Scuba dive the Great Barrier Reef
• Climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge
• Visit Uluru
• Travel around New Zealand

Sports Related

• Go to a Stanley Cup clinching game
• Visit every major league ballpark and watch a game Already been to: Fenway Park (Boston); Camden Yards (Baltimore); PNC Park (Pittsburgh); Coors Field (Colorado); Rogers Centre (Toronto)
• See a World Series game
• Go to the Winter Olympics and ring a cow bell
• Go to an FA Cup final
• See the US in the World Cup
• See a hockey game at the Montreal Forum/Molson Center/Bell Centre
• See every Virginia Tech football game in a single season, in person
• Watch a round of golf at the Masters

Miscellaneous

• Write a book
• Get a book published
• Learn to speak Spanish adequately
• Play in the World Series of Poker
• Bury a time capsule
• Be an extra in a movie
• Finish reading “Ulysses”
• Learn to play “Nightswimming” on the piano
• Learn to play “Linus & Lucy” on the piano
• Be a bartender for at least 1 night
• Plant a tree
• Learn to juggle
• March in a protest rally
• Learn to ice skate better than I can now
• Throw a dart at a world map and travel to wherever it hits

What I would most like to do tomorrow:
Visit the Mountain Gorillas in the wild; Travel to Machu Picchu

Most likely to cross off this list:
Plant a tree; Backpack in Bryce; Backpack in Yellowstone; Hike the Narrows in Zion

Least likely to ever do:
Visit a National Park in Gabon; Visit Angkor Wat in Cambodia; Get a book published; Finish reading “Ulysses”