Melissa Brescia
Melissa was born and raised in Connecticut. She is a personal injury attorney (auto accidents, slip and falls, etc.). She loves to be busy and is happiest when she is doing something. When Melissa’s not working or hiking, she enjoys crafting and doing art classes (crochet, stained glass, ceramics, dried floral design, paint & sip etc.). She has always loved singing, but couldn’t hit the notes, so she started taking voice lessons last year. She also enjoys working out and weight lifting. She can deadlift and squat more than she weighs! She lives for travel and tries never to repeat countries/locations so she can see as much of the world as possible.
Melissa has always loved nature and feels at peace in the woods. She was raised Catholic, but she never connected to it. As she got older, she realized that she feels a spiritual connection to the earth. Sitting on the ground, shoes off, looking out onto beautiful landscapes makes Melissa feel the closest to God. It gives her a perspective as to how small we really are in relation to the world and makes her think about our purpose for being on the earth.
A little over 2 years ago, Melissa began a weight loss journey and began to hike more often. As she got closer to my health goals, she changed my work outs to focus on exercises for hiking and trained to do a 5-day hike to Machu Picchu. It was one of her favorite trips/experiences she’s ever done, and she would love to do more backpacking in the future. Melissa is toying with the idea of hiking via ferratas in Italy and/or Switzerland next year.
When it comes to the Wine Hiking Society, Melissa likes that the group helps women bond and enjoy nature in a low pressure hike environment. She did a group hiking tour once where everyone was in a rush to get to the top. They didn’t stop to take in the surroundings or take pictures. She was struggling to keep with the pace and eventually was left behind and just met everyone else at the top later in the day. She loves that we wine hikers hike as a group and that no one is left behind.
Melissa’s favorite hike: “I usually default to Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden, CT. It is close and there are a lot of different trails depending on how I am feeling. It can get busy, but if you stay off the Tower Trail or Blue Trail it is rare to see anyone else.”
Melissa’s favorite drink: “My favorite wine is a sancere. My favorite mixed drinks are mojitos and margaritas.”
Melissa’s favorite piece of hiking or backpacking gear: “My Columbia hiking boots. They are water proof, light weight, and didn’t require much breaking in.”
Find a New England area hike here.