It’s a recent Sunday morning, and Sarah Desaulniers is greeting a small circle of people at a trailhead by a lake in Peterborough, New Hampshire. After checking that everyone has water and announcing she’s carrying a shareable quantity of trail mix — it’s good because it’s mostly chocolate, she said — she leads them into the woods.
There are eight hikers — nine if you count Penny, a short-legged Jack Russell terrier about the size of a loaf of bread. Some are new to hiking with this group. Others are regulars. They banter and trade inside jokes. They like to talk about schist, a type of rock.
“That’s our favorite saying: ‘Schist happens,’” someone said.
“Yeah, schist happens,” Desaulniers added. “And so that’s kind of the motto for the group.”
This isn’t just any hiking group. Desaulniers is the director of prevention services for Reality Check, a Jaffrey, New Hampshire-based organization that works to address substance use and support people in recovery. She started these monthly hikes to make sure people in recovery had ways to get outside that felt safe and welcoming.
Though not in recovery herself, Desaulniers said hiking has helped her cope with severe anxiety. She thought other people might also benefit.
But the culture that surrounds outdoor recreation can sometimes make people in recovery uncomfortable, she said. Alcohol and marijuana are often present. Even the way outdoor activities are marketed can send the message that they go hand in hand with drinking — like the countless “Views and Brews” listings that pair hiking trails with nearby brewpubs.
“This is just an opportunity for people to get outside without those things,” she said.
Having fun without drinking
The group calls itself Reality Check Gone Rogue. On this day, they were taking a 4-mile out-and-back hike on the West Ridge Trail by Edward MacDowell Lake. The trail is typical for this part of the state: rocky, rooty, rolling terrain, enveloped in green.
This is the first time Keith Johnson of Rindge has joined a “Gone Rogue” hike. But he has been hiking regularly with a group of people he knows through Alcoholics Anonymous for the past several weeks.
“It gives us productive things to do, like exercise and nature and being together — and not drinking,” he said.
Johnson has been in recovery for several years. Along with going to counseling and attending AA meetings, he said it has helped to have friends who are also committed to recovery — who can go for a hike, grab dinner or hang out at the lake. They are a source of support, he said — and a reminder you can have fun without drinking.
“A lot of it’s about having the right friends,” he said, “and not having the bar friends that are kind of your friends, but they really aren’t.”
Desaulniers said she aims to make these hikes accessible to everyone. They hike as slow as they need to, and if one person turns around, they all do. Reality Check keeps extra backpacks, water bottles and trekking poles at the office to make sure the cost of gear isn’t a barrier.
These hikes are not limited to people in recovery, Desaulniers said; she welcomes friends, family or anyone who considers themselves an ally of people in recovery.
About 2 miles into the hike, the dense forest opened up as the trail began following the banks of a river. The group stopped for a while before turning around.
Trudi Ackerman of Fitzwilliam took in her surroundings — the trees, the river, another hiker blowing bubbles while lounging on a boulder midstream. She said it is moments like this that have made nature an important part of her recovery process.
“It’s just — I don’t know,” she said. “I just feel just such a sense of peace and serenity when I’m surrounded by nature, and friends.”
Nearby, Leah Davis of Rindge poured water into her cupped hand for Penny, her dog, to drink. They are regulars on these hikes. Penny is even sporting a white-and-green “GONE ROGUE” bandana around her neck.
Davis has struggled with alcohol over the years. She is in recovery now, but is still worried about relapsing sometimes. She said these hikes help hold her to her recovery.
“It’s just my little way of connecting,” she said. “Like, I haven’t been to a meeting in a couple of weeks. So when I knew this was coming up, I could come here.”
A good alternative to a meeting
The hikes are a chance to see people she knows and feels supported by. And because everyone loves Penny, that helps Davis feel more accepted. She said it is a good option when she is not up for going to a meeting, which can feel overwhelming at times.
“Sometimes I just hang around in a meeting and I feel like, you know, ‘I don’t want to talk to anybody, I don’t think anyone understands,’” she said. “Which they should. They do. But this is easier for me to do than go to a meeting.”
On the way back, the hike seemed to go by quickly. The group stopped for frequent breaks — to snack on trail mix, take pictures of strange mushrooms and make sure no one has been left behind.
Three-and-a-half hours after starting, they emerged from the woods. At the trailhead, before going their separate ways, group members talked about where they will hike next.
This story was originally published by New Hampshire Public Radio. It was shared as part of the New England News Collaborative.
