Two adventure-seeking Durham residents came up with a creative solution to explore the Seacoast during the pandemic. 

Americans are in the unfortunate position of restricted travel due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), since there are so many uncertainties when traveling to another state. People wonder if you have to quarantine when you reach a new state, or what their restrictions are. Unfortunately, COVID-19 has created a mess for travel within and outside of the United States.  

Durham residents Jennifer Daubney Pavlik and her family have also been affected by the COVID-19 travel restrictions. Daubney Pavlik and her oldest daughter were planning to travel to Tuscon, Arizona to study immigration and border issues. Their family was also going to celebrate their oldest daughter, Zoe with a vacation to Croatia or Scandinavia for her accomplishment of graduating high school and receiving a scholarship for college. Sadly, both of these trips were then cancelled because of COVID-19.  

However, Daubney Pavlik and her husband are trying to make the best out of the situation, and are planning to walk every trail in Durham. The journey will begin when the weather starts to clear up and when they figure out the longest possible distance.  

Daubney Pavlik’s first real walking trip took place along the New Hampshire and Maine shoreline. She and her husband walked from Portsmouth all the way to Old Orchard Beach, Maine while stopping at inns along the way. The walk was around 80 miles, there and back.  

Daubney Pavlik and her husband have lived in Durham, New Hampshire for 17 years and have found 19 different maps that outline all the different trails. Since there are so many different combinations of completing all these trails, it is hard to put a number on how many trails they are planning to walk.  

“I would say we’ve been walkers during most of our adult lives. We didn’t really grow up walking or hiking but have been doing it since we met and moved to northern New England,” she said. 

 Daubney Pavlik and her husband enjoy hiking and have hiked plenty of trails throughout the years, but having this new goal gives them renewed motivation. “It has also helped us get out of the rut of doing the same paths over and over, and inspired us to go to new places we didn’t even know about,” she said.  

Although this journey seems pretty intense, they are certainly prepared. Having walked around 80 miles on the seacoast of New Hampshire and Maine, they have also done many significant hikes. For instance, they have hiked the Franconia Ridge loop in New Hampshire, which is their favorite hike they have done so far. They have also hiked in some national parks around and outside the country. Jennifer said the hardest hike they have ever completed was a very steep and muddy mountain on an island in Nicaragua. 

The trail that she and her husband are most looking forward to walking in Durham is called Sweet Trail. “We walk sections of it often, especially in the area near the Longmarsh Preserve, but we’ve never done the whole thing. We’re also looking forward to trying out the new bridge that will connect Foss Farm with the Faculty neighborhood,” said Jennifer.  

You can follow along Daubney Pavlik’s journey on her various adventures at her blog, http://www.inthebigpicture.com/  

Photo courtesy of Jennifer Daubney Pavlik.