We're getting hitched!

One day as Ally had enough with dating apps, she got on to delete her profile. She found she had a message and figured she may as well read it before deleting her profile and living alone as a cat lady the rest of her life. Enter Coja and his message about all they had in common including hiking, traveling, sports, etc. He had even hiked the same trail that was in Ally's profile photo. A few back and forth messages quickly turned to lengthy text message conversations. Ally went on a solo trip to Yosemite National Park and when she got back to PA, they set up a date for that weekend. They met at a restaurant for dinner and drinks and talked for over 3 hours until realizing there was no one else in the restaurant and the staff really wanted to go home. They made plans for another date, which lead to several more and the rest is history!

We were camping/backpacking at Isle Royale National Park in Michigan in August 2023. On the first full day of hiking we went up to Mount Ojibway fire tower. Ally thought it was weird Coja kept wanting to stall going up the tower while there was another group there. Eventually they went up and saw amazing views of Lake Superior. While peering north Coja wondered if we were looking into Canada. Ally couldn't help but to quote some lines from South Park, and while Coja was laughing and patiently waiting, he got down on one knee to pop the question. Ally was ecstatic and managed to mutter "you better not be tying your shoe" before enthusiastically saying yes. As they were sharing their happy moment, the hikers who had previously left yelled up asking for help finding the trail. They happily pointed the way and then shared a laugh over the situation.

One thing Ally and Coja quickly realized they had in common was their love for traveling and adventure. Despite COVID cancelling many of their plans, they've still managed to see some great places. December 2018 - Niagara Falls, Canada March 2019 - Great Smoky Mountains National Park and surrounding areas June 2019 - Camping at Saranac Lake in the Adirondacks with Kohana September 2019 - New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine - Acadia National Park July 2020 - New York - Letchworth State Park, surrounding areas September 2020 - Erie - Presque Isle State Park June 2021 - New York - Ithaca, Robert Treman State Park, surrounding areas July 2021 - Cross Country Trip with Kohana! Badlands NP, Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse Monument, Devil's Tower, Bighorn Mountains, Yellowstone NP, Grand Tetons NP, Medicine Bow Mountains, Rocky Mountain NP, Gateway Arch NP October 2021 - Shenandoah NP, Monticello, New River Gorge NP April 2022 - Sao Miguel, Azores islands, Portugal June 2022 - Rehoboth Beach with Kohana - Salisbury, MD and Rehoboth Beach, DE February 2023 - California with Kohana - San Jose, Monterey Bay, San Luis Obispo, Channel Islands NP, Pinnacles NP May 2023 - Catskills, NY August 2023 - Michigan - Upper Peninsula - Isle Royale NP, Cuyahoga Valley NP September 2023 - Ocean City, MD - Ocean's Calling 3 day music festival March 2024 - Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio and Blackwater Falls State Park, WV August 2024 - Honeymooning in the Canary Islands, Spain!