Date: 8/26/17 | Miles Hiked: 11.4
Today was a treat yo’self day.
Feeling good about my progress on the first half of the trail, I decided to reward myself with a late start, a hot breakfast (oatmeal for the win!) and a short day of hiking. Most of the day consisted of gradual uphill hiking, with two big switchback climbs helping me gain about 2,500 feet of elevation. Continue reading “JMT Day 9: Hike at the Speed of Beauty”
Date: 8/25/17 | Miles Hiked: 16.2 | Passes: Selden
This day wasn’t what I needed it to be. What was supposed to be a joyous occasion — the halfway mark and a resupply at Muir Trail Ranch — left me feeling disappointed. Continue reading “JMT Day 8: Hump Day! Reaching the Halfway Point”
Date: 8/24/17 | Miles Hiked: 17.3 | Passes: Silver
It’s fitting for me to come to this portion of my hike on Halloween. Why? Because it includes my scariest night on the trail.
I woke up on night six to the sound of twigs breaking. Any feelings of grogginess were immediately trampled by my racing heart as the rustling noises continued.
Something was outside, and it was approaching my tent. Continue reading “JMT Day 7: The Trail is 50% Mental”
I like to consider myself a person who can handle life without my cell phone and all the glorious technology it offers better than the average human.
I can leave it in a different room for a good chunk of the day. If I forget it at home when I go to work or run errands I only have a split-second panic attack. I can easily go without it when camping or spending time with friends.
I have the ability to sit in nothingness and just think or observe without reaching for a device to scroll. Growing up with a tendency to get lost in my own thoughts helped me master that dying art.
This is why I was surprised at how often I reached for my phone or glanced at my GPS watch while backpacking the John Muir Trail. Continue reading “Are We Doomed to Phone Addiction… Even in the Backcountry?”
Think your days of rustic outdoor lodging are gone with the season? Consider adding a yurt stay to your deck of outdoor adventure cards. While plenty of people tent camp in the winter, yurts add an element of cozy comfort without losing complete sense of the term, “roughing it.” Continue reading “Everything You Need to Know About Yurts in Colorado & Wyoming”
The excitement of scary movies and television shows is part of fall’s allure. But if you have an overactive imagination, the fear doesn’t stop once the TV’s turned off. And depending on what you’re watching, the fear can be intensified when paired with an overnight trip in the great outdoors.
To prepare for season 8 of The Walking Dead, I’ve been catching up on old episodes through the magic of Netflix.
One thing I’ve realized? Camping and zombies don’t mix. If you plan to watch a buttload of The Walking Dead and then head out for some tent time, be prepared for the consequences.
Continue reading “25 Reasons Camping After Binge-Watching The Walking Dead is a Bad Idea”
Backpacking trips that require major mileage also require early rises. Getting to camp before the sun goes down is the goal, and it’s nice to have some buffer time for lunch and longer breaks.
But those of us who don’t consider ourselves morning people are especially not morning people when faced with the cold, sometimes wet mornings the mountains have to offer.
So how can you get from sleeping bag to the trail as quickly as possible with minimum morning suffering? Here are a few ideas. Continue reading “5 Tips to Start Hiking Earlier While Backpacking”
