Rick Mc

May 18, 2010January 7, 2013

USA hikes with Gorgeous Finales

A good list from divine caroline by Vicki Santillano:

Kalalau Trail, Hawaii
Half Dome, California
Conundrum Creek Trail, Colorado
Bright Angel Trail, Arizona
The Hollywood Trail, California
Mount Riga State Park Trail, Connecticut
OldRag Mountain Hike, Virginia
Raven Cliff Falls Trail, Georgia
Mount Whitney Trail, California

… The ends of these popular hikes can replenish the most tired and weary of walkers and instill an invigorating sense of accomplishment in them. … the more motivation you’ll have to keep walking when the trails get tough …

click through for details and photos of each – Nine U.S. Hikes with Gorgeous Finales

(via Chris Weiss on uncooped who adds Angel’s Landing, Utah)

I’m liking Conundrum Hot Springs.

… located at a staggering 11,200′ within the famous Maroon Bells in the Snowmass wilderness. These steamy pools are 8.5 miles up the Conundrum Creek trail just outside of Aspen. …

May 17, 2010May 15, 2010

Anniversary Narrows, Lake Mead, Nevada

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

As beautiful a slot canyon as any other on earth.

How could I resist?

That claim made by one of my guidebooks, Afoot and Afield Las Vegas, the best of those I used.

Simple.

Drive to this trailhead. …

An easy 2.5mi out-and-back.

Unfortunately, I didn’t do that.

Instead I parked on the highway, not trusting my low clearance vehicle to make it to the trailhead. This added about 2.5mi to the trip.

En route a couple of hikers told me I was off-route. They could not find the trailhead. (It was there.)

I diverted to the only other possible watercourse, following footprints down a dry creek. It looked feasible.

WRONG.

I circumambulated a minor peak on a scramble soon dubbed the DANGER MINE trail.

There must have been a dozen old mine shafts up there, right to the top of the peak.

Finally I spied hikers far below. On my original, correct route.

Anniversary Narrows are lovely.

Recommended. But another cautionary tale of how easy it is to get lost in the desert. It’s possible to fall into an abandoned mine shaft out there, too.

The crumbling ruins of the mining operation are a historical attraction.

see all my photos from this trip

May 16, 2010May 9, 2010

Facebook is EVIL … alternatives?

This has nothing to do about hiking.

It’s only of interest if you are on Facebook. And disgruntled.

I’ve posted a rant on my personal blog – Rick McCharles – Facebook is EVIL … alternatives?

May 14, 2010May 6, 2010

Monument Valley, Wildcat Trail

Phoenix is more than 300 miles distant. Las Vegas more than 400 miles.

Yet Monument Valley is always packed with tourists, many of them European.

I found the Park badly managed. Perhaps they’ve no need to do better as it’s a must see attraction, as is.

No independent hiking is allowed save one track, Wildcat. The American Southwest had given it an underwhelming review, so my expectations were low.

Turned out I loved it, the only hiker on the trail.

As the sun dropped in the sky, shadows became interesting.

See all my photos from this day hike.

Don’t drive by without doing this hike. Only $5 entrance fee. There’s a rough $10 dry campground at the trailhead. I recall 2 Germans telling me, years ago, that waking up in the morning with Monument Valley outside the window was one of the real highlights of their visit to the Southwest.

Jamie Compos posted an excellent trip report with photos. They were followed on the walk by a “tourist dog”, looking for handouts.

And check Hank Leukart’s hilarious winter visit to Monument Valley – Without Baggage – A surreal, Native American dream.

May 13, 2010May 10, 2010

climbing Angel’s Landing (VIDEO)

Steve Howe linked to this on Backpacker.com – VIRTUAL SCRAMBLE: ANGEL’S LANDING, ZION

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

May 12, 2010May 10, 2010

fear the Henry Mountains, Utah

These black, bleak peaks looming over 8000ft above the surrounding deserts are out-of-place.

Remote. Barren. Inaccessible.

Nobody lives there, aside from American bison. And that was by forced relocation. Poor beasts.

The Bureau of Land Management do not make regular patrols. Too dangerous, I assume.

… The Henry Mountains were the last mountain range to be added to the map of the 48 contiguous U.S. states (1872), and before their official naming …, sometimes referred to as the “Unknown Mountains.” …

One hiker dared climb, Bob Palin. Read his photo trip report: Hiking Mount Ellen

May 11, 2010May 11, 2010

Dave Adlard climbs Mt Ranier

When I gave Dave my expedition hiking pack, I had no idea he was planning to become the next insane high altitude mountaineer.

Here’s his (lengthy) Mt Ranier trip report from this past weekend:

If I live to be 100, I may never see a better day to climb, especially on the fickle Mt. Rainier.

I had been looking forward to this weekend for a while – everyone normally “do stuff with” was out of town, and so i had noted this date on my calendar as a possibility for getting over and doing a “real” mountain. I had had no luck finding a climbing partner, and so, with a little bit of trepidation, I made the 6.5 hour drive toward Rainier on my own, with ever increasing clouds as I got closer.

Once at the Paradise visitor’s center/trailhead, I was amazed at how deserted it was… normally, on weekends and in the summer, this place is packed, but the climbing/hiking season didn’t actually open until the next day. …

Continue reading “Dave Adlard climbs Mt Ranier”

May 11, 2010May 6, 2010

hiking Santorini, Greece

I’ve never been to the beautiful island of Santorini … though I’ve enjoyed the movie Summer Lovers many times.

Here’s a useful site for Santorini Hiking Routes.

A good place to start your hiking dashes is the long but quite easy path, the favourite of all tourists, that will lead you from Fira to Oia via Firostefani and Imerovigli. It will take you about three hours to reach the end of your destination. The view offered while hiking is excellent and the caldera looks absolutely magical. Do it during the sunset or early in the morning when the sun isn’t yet so hot. …

A must do side trip is Nea Kameni:

… The nearly barren island is visited daily by dozens of tourist boats throughout the summer. The visitors take a well maintained gravel path to the 130-meter-high volcanic crater, from which wisps of a sulfurous steam rise, transforming the environment in places into a “yellow wasteland”.

more interesting photos tagged Santorini

May 10, 2010May 1, 2010

day hiking Valley of Fire, Nevada

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

Valley of Fire State Park is 50mi (80km) northeast of Las Vegas. Though I’d been to Red Rock a dozen times, this was my first trip to Valley of Fire.

… It sounded similar to Red Rock.

… It derives its name from red sandstone formations, formed from great shifting sand dunes during the age of dinosaurs. These features, which are the centerpiece of the park’s attractions, often appear to be on fire when reflecting the sun’s rays. …

Ideal for family hiking, it would be difficult to lose your children on any of these short trails. Kids and adults love scrambling the rock features.

I’m very happy I made the scenic drive via Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Recommended.

more interesting photos tagged Valley of Fire

Spring and Fall are the best times to visit though it’s open year round.

related: Desert USA – Valley of Fire State Park

May 9, 2010May 6, 2010

Mary Jane Falls, Nevada … in winter

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

April is a fantastic month for hiking out of Las Vegas.

It’s not too hot. Cactus flowers bloom.

The closest hiking destination to Las Vegas is Red Rock. Millions visit each year.

The second closest major hiking area is much less well known, though it’s less than an hour’s drive from “the strip”.

I arrived April 15th in shorts and t-shirt at the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area and Mount Charleston Visitor Center, the woman there asked me: “Do you have snowshoes?”

Snowshoes?

Almost all of the 51mi of trails were “snowed in”. I needed to come back the end of May, or later, she told me.

Mount Charleston is totally different than Red Rock. Dense Bristlecone pine forests. It feels more like you’re in Colorado, than Nevada. There’s even a ski resort here!

Who knew?

I had been planning to start with the most popular trail, Mary Jane Falls.

Guidebook author and editor of Hiking Las Vegas, Branch Whitney says: “If you don’t enjoy this trail, forget hiking.”

Less than 3mi, return, be ready for a series of switchbacks. Your rewards is walking up to and behind a gorgeous waterfall. There’s a cave to explore, as well.

(A more challenging alternative is the boulder hopping scramble up to Big Falls from the same trailhead as Mary Jane.)

I took a look at the trailhead, just in case.