Stories of Love Found on the Trail with Loma Prieta Hikes
Read about Despina meeting Drew at Rancho Canada del Oro in 2013.
Read about Tina meeting Lynne at Garrapata State Park in 2000.
Read about Johanna meeting Edward Black Mountain in the mid-1990s.
The Story of Despina Drymiotou and Drew Clark
## Fall 2013, Black Mountain Hiking Section at Rancho Canada del Oro. 
She said:
Our leader, Sparky, got injured and took an early out with most of the group following her. Stephen Uhler offered to continue with the original route, and 6-7 of us followed him. Drew joined the smaller group, but I don’t remember talking to him.
He said:
Don’t remember her either
## November 2013, weekend before Thanksgiving, Joseph Grant Ranch
She said:
I led a legendary Thanksgiving picnic hike up to the (now burned down) cabin at Joseph Grant Ranch. We had an amazing turnout of over 30 hikers and delicious gourmet food to eat, including several who brought wine! Drew was apparently on the hike, but I don’t remember him.
He said:
I remember going on this amazing picnic hike organized by someone with a Greek-sounding name…had some great food, and the hike itself was terrific, but I never met the leader.
## January 2014, Day Hiking Section at Mt Diablo
She said:
We were hiking well behind the group and started talking about our hiking experiences. Drew mentioned something about hiking the next day (after Diablo!) with another favorite group – Hiking Friends – and I said, “I hike with them, as well.” So, we had something in common!
He said:
Seems we were moving slow that day, maybe hungover? In any case I do remember talking to this person, who I vaguely remembered from the Grant Ranch hike. We talked about people who knew in common, including Hiking Friends.
## Hiking Friend Intervenes…the set-up
She said:
One of our mutual friends, Treacy, who is a therapist, decided to intervene and speed things up. She asked me why I was not dating Drew. I answered that Drew never asked me on a date. She said, “If Drew asked you on a date, would you go out with him?” I said, “Sure, why not.” A day or so later, he called me.
He said:
I remember a hiking friend – let’s call her Treacy – mentioned on a subsequent hike that there was this friend of hers who had recently expressed interest in meeting me. She was a bit cagey on when and where but, said “You should call her. She really likes you.” So I did.
The Story of Tina and Lynne
How I Met My Wife on a Sierra Club Hike
Hi, I’m Tina. And this is my story of finding the love of my life on the trail.
My involvement with the Sierra Club began when I moved to the Bay Area in February of 1998. I’d just gone through a big life change. I was living with my sister and really needed to get out and do something healthy. I discovered GLS (Gay & Lesbian Sierrans activity section of the Loma Prieta Chapter) on the web.
Well, that was the group for me. I had been a GLBT activist in California’s central valley, and I’ve always loved being outdoors. So off I went on my first hike—with many, many more to come over the years. That included a beautiful sunny day in 2000, hiking with the GLS group at Garrapata State Park, where I met the woman who would become my wife. (Okay. Lynne says we met earlier on a different hike. I believe her, I just don’t remember!)
At any rate, Lynne and I had our first “real” date at a New Year’s eve party in 2001. The next day we hiked up Mission Peak with the Sierra Club for the first time—a tradition we continue to this day. Dating turned into living together, and then expressing our commitment to each other. We exchanged rings on Mission Peak on New Year’s Day, 2010.
It was 2013 when the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments regarding the recognition of same sex marriage. Lynne and I were chatting about this one Sunday morning as I was reading her a cartoon on the subject. I offhandedly said, “If the Supreme Court decides we can get married, I’d marry you.”
Lynne did not miss a beat. She said, “Is that a proposal?” I responded with, “Uuh … I guess so”. Her response: “Yes, I’ll marry you.” On Jan 1, 2014 we were married by my mother at our home in Campbell. Ours is a marriage that is recognized by both the state of California and the U.S. Federal Government. I’m pretty sure that was the only Sierra Club New Year’s Day hike to Mission Peak we’ve missed since we met. I think we had a good excuse!
I continue to feel grateful for the camaraderie and strength of the LGBT family and the Sierra Club—who support our presence in the natural places of our state and nation, who advocate for the health of our planet and our community, and who gave me a chance to meet an amazing woman who has transformed my world. Thank you, GLS Loma Prieta Chapter-Sierra Club!
The Story of Johanna Schmid and Edward Reed
Having made the difficult decision in 1993 to leave my job and life in New York City and accept a job offer in the Bay Area, I was eager to explore my beautiful new home, especially all the hiking trails. I thought a great way to learn the trails and meet new kindred spirits would be to join the Sierra Club hiking groups. 
A year or so later, on a group hike from Hidden Villa to the top of Black Mountain, I met Ed, another East Coast transplant, who had been living in the Bay Area for 20 years. We talked off and on during the hike, and as we neared Hidden Villa toward the end of our hike, Ed suggested that we have dinner some time. I said that sounded great, to which he replied, “How about tonight?”
That dinner was the beginning of many more hikes and other times together. A few short years later, on yet another Black Mountain hike (just the two of us), Ed proposed. We celebrated with a bottle of Champagne that he had secretly stowed in his daypack!
Every year on the anniversary of our first meeting, which was also (not by coincidence!) the date when Ed proposed, we do that very same hike on Black Mountain.
In gratitude for the Sierra Club bringing us together and doing so much for our Planet Earth, we are lifetime members of the Sierra Club and members of the Rachel Carson Society (legacy gift). The Sierra Club and Sierra Club Foundation hold a very special place in our hearts and our life.