Growing up as a free range child, and one of six, it was the easiest thing to become a child of the land. We went outside in the sun, rain or snow. We tramped around paths through the woods, rode around the fields and created games on the grass.  We explored, tracked, collected, slid, and climbed all day. We made skating rinks, tree forts and imaginary friends.

We built rock pools in the creek with water spiders and drew up teams for crab apple fights.  We caught snakes and had pet raccoons. We stepped on honey locust thorns, geronimo’d from tall trees and scratched ourselves up. We made collections and scrapbooks that showed off our world of animals, leaves, rocks and wild flowers.

We traveled! Back East, down South and out West. Down highways and back roads to small towns and big cities and islands and ranches. Across oceans to Europe and Africa.

We all came back to the mudroom. It’s where we emptied our pockets of treasures and finds.  It’s where we left behind, gear, mud, snow, and dirt and entered the world of warm fires and open windows.  It‘s where we stoked our imagination and regrouped for more.  Our mudroom was the crossroads of indoors and out and the connection from one adventure to the next.

After being a teen in East Africa one summer and a young mother in Dorset, England for a few years, Betsey and her family went back to where she spent summers and lived off the coast of Charleston, SC. There she became the co- owner of and creative director of The INDIGO Trading company and INDIGO Market. (After all, blue was and still is her favorite color. Plus, she used to spin and weave wool with indigo dye and Charleston was at one moment in history the leading indigo plant exporter. After 20 years, the company had created enough products from 55 factories in 8 countries to supply their wholesale customers, including Sundance, Eddie Bauer, LL Bean, Coldwater Creek,  with well-made original product collections based on her childhood.

Betsey also created a family lifestyle around her love of the outdoors, sports and travel. Along with her 2 children and other family members and friends, they traveled, hiked and skied throughout North America, Europe and Asia. While she admits that hiking up a slippery path in a small French Village of LA Clusaz with children in tow to reach the best view or to taste the freshest cheese, or hunting huckleberries off the treacherous Montana logging roads, is not for everyone, she believes that these sojourns on or off the paths less known are what continues her inspirations.  

Betsey is a graduate of the National Outdoor Leadership School, Vassar College and Johns Hopkins SAIS. She has completed 2 Marine Corps Marathons and more recently courses at the Sivananda Retreat and Ranch.  She still loves to travel, despite a mediocre trip to Costa Rica (great traveling companions though!) and loves to practice her conversational knowledge of Italian, French and Spanish. And sometimes in her eager and befuddled way, can be heard combining a bit of all three.

Mudroom. com is the natural extension of Betsey's early days and how she and friends enjoy their leisure time today. It is a direct path to connect with others to share what you love to do outdoors. Hey, the door is open. Join Mudroom.com and tell us how you play. What is on your hook?