This episode of She Explorers is brought to you by Vask, whose footwear has built trust on the trail since 1964.

Vask has been pushing the limits of trail footwear for over 50 years, with hiking, backpacking, and trail running

footwear built to perform on any trail in any condition. Season after season

Vask is driven by spirit of innovation, field testing and consumer feedback power product development,

ensuring that boots and shoes continually evolve to meet the needs of modern outdoor

enthusiasts. Stay tuned for later in the episode.

We talked to Sasha Cox, founder of Trail Mavens.

Learn more at W.Wask.com.

That's W.W. VAS Q-Q-U-E-D-E-com

I'm Gail Straub and you're listening to She Explores.

The way that the natural world is waking up and sort of rushing toward the sun is the way that I feel in the spring and definitely in the summer.

I'm looking forward to everything right now. I'm looking forward to every morning when I wake up and our bedroom is already filled with sun.

This is the time when my skin gets darker because I'm just spending more time out in the sun and everything just feels like just lush.

This is Simone Martin Newberry and she's what you would call a plant person, which means she says things like this.

I think if I didn't have plants in my house, it wouldn't feel like home to me.

Simone speaks with a deep reverence for the natural world.

Whether she finds it within the bounds of her long time city of Chicago,

or when using her vacation from full-time work as a graphic

designer to take trips around the U.S.

Simone has a beautiful blog called Darker Than Green, where she documents her appreciation for Flora with photographs, green city guides,

and contemplative writing.

Before I started, she explorers, I worked a more traditional 9 to 6 job and lived in Boston.

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