Rick Mc

March 26, 2010March 25, 2010

best hikes in Arizona

lucrativetravels.com posted a surprisingly good list:

Wet Beaver Loop
Picacho Peek
Kendrick Mountain
Paria Canyon

We name Paria Canyon the best hike in the entire S.W. USA.

The other three I’m currently researching. … Especially since I’ve just arrived in Arizona. We drove between Tuscon and Phoenix yesterday past impressive Picacho Peak.

Wet Beaver Loop

The Wet Beaver Loop is not a trail that should be hiked by a novice. The trail is a twenty-two mile loop so you should plan on taking a couple of days to complete it. …

Picacho Peak

The Picacho Peak is a hike that that will provide you with the opportunity to admire the Sonora desert. Although the trail is only a seven mile round trip, you need to be aware that much of it is extremely steep and that there are many switchbacks. …

Kendrick Mountain

If Picacho Peak is more than you feel comfortable handling, you might want to consider the Kendrick Mountain hike. This particular hike is 9.2 miles round trip. When you reach the summit you will find a cabin and have an amazing view of Mount Humphreys, Red Mountain, and Sycamore Canyon. On a clear day you will even be able to see the Grand Canyon’s north Rim. …

read more – lucrativetravels.com

March 25, 2010March 27, 2010

Great Ocean Walk, Australia

Cartoonist Alex Hallatt put up a hike trip report on her professional site Arctic Circle Cartoons.

How do you justify that? … Tag it “work-life balance“.

They photo blogged a 3 day section of the Great Ocean Walk from Johanna Beach to Princetown.

I love these kinds of trip reports. In a very short time you get a good feel for the hike. Click through to scan the photos – Great Great Ocean Walk

Thanks Our Hiking Blog for putting it up as a guest post.

March 23, 2010March 20, 2010

7 Strong Men Rock Formation – Russia

Have you ever heard of this unique natural attraction?

Manpupuner and the 7 Strong Men Rock Formations

Deemed one of the Seven Wonders of Russia, Komi Republic (map) is home to Manpupuner (Man-Pupu-Nyer), a mysterious site in the northern Ural mountains, in the Troitsko-Pechorsky District, made out of seven rock towers bursting out of the flat plateau known as the “7 strong men“.

Manpupuner is a very popular attraction in Russia, but not on an international level and information regarding its origin is scarce. We know however that their height and abnormal shapes make the top of these rock giants inaccessible even to experienced rock-climbers. Manpupuner is very hard to reach, it lies in a very harsh environment, …

Wikipedia

more photos

Thanks George.

March 22, 2010March 20, 2010

trek the Curzon Trail, India

Henry Wismayer authored an excellent article published by The Telegraph: Garhwal Himalayas: trekking the Curzon Trail

He points out how the Garhwal Himalayas in India might have been as popular with hikers as Nepal. This is an entertaining read.

… this five-day trek is the marquee route along the western rim of the Unesco-prescribed Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve – but there isn’t much accommodation in these parts so everything we need, including food, cooking rings and an antiquated A-frame tent, is coming with us.

It pays to come prepared. On the next terrace down are three bearded Bavarians who set off from the Ghat trailhead expecting the amenities of Annapurna.

“There is nowhere to buy food here?” had come the incredulous reply …

I’d love to hike there.

… There is no tourist paraphernalia in the mountain settlements – no tea-houses selling pizza and home-made chang – just corncobs hanging from the lintels and chillies scattered over sackcloth to dry. Outside Pana, an ancient goatherd asks Biru if I want to buy marijuana; this is the only clue that other trekkers have been here before us. …

read the article – Garhwal Himalayas: trekking the Curzon Trail

Wismayer has a photo set too. Click through to flickr – The Curzon Trail

March 21, 2010March 20, 2010

11th hiking essential – duct tape

From Hiking Trip Reports:

… Duct tape is probably the most versatile item you can carry when hiking. It can mend and repair almost anything from blisters to holes in air mattresses. …

Hiking Trip Reports – Duct Tape: The Hikers Friend

related – 10 hiking essentials

March 20, 2010March 20, 2010

hiking Steinbeck Canyon, Baja

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

Steinbeck Canyon is the name locals in Loreto use for the most popular hike in the area.

I started at the Puerto Escondido marina. With a bike.

You ride (or walk) from the marina out to main highway #1. There’s the arroyo (watercourse) in the distance just right of the exit road.

The turnoff to the trailhead is unmarked but easy to find. Simply cross directly over Highway #1 and follow the dirt road on the other side.

It’s impressive right from the get go.

It’s actually more of a bouldering scramble than a hike. You’ll be using your hands clambering up, over and under smooth river rocks.

What people like most is the explosion of insect, bird and plant life.

Some of the pools were so clean, when I was there, that I was tempted to swim.

Steinbeck Canyon is one of the best hikes in the Baja. Highly recommended.

See all my photos from a March 2010 scramble.

March 19, 2010March 19, 2010

trekking Japan – 88 Temple Pilgrimage

We’ve added a category of walks called “spiritual”. This is a perfect example.

For example, one adventure recommended by Aasmund Midttun Godal, the Shikoku Pilgrimage.

… Neon Pilgrim (2009) is a rollercoaster account of an Australian woman’s 1200km trek around the island of Shikoku, the famed 88 Temple Pilgrimage performed in honour of the ninth-century monk who brought Buddhism to Japan. Depressed, unemployed and overweight, 28-year-old Lisa Dempster undertook the epic walk to cure her body and mind ….

Amazon

I checked out a review by Andy Hayes. His summary:

… this book has a terrible cover and an even worse title.

But it was probably the best ‘travelogue’ I’ve read all year. …

Indie Travel Podcast

I’ve added Neon Pilgrim to my books-to-read list.

March 18, 2010March 19, 2010

Everest Base Camp – gay weddings wanted

A gay politician in Nepal wants you to wed beneath the world’s highest peak.

Tourism is one of the main drivers of Nepal’s economy, worth about £228 million last year, and government officials are determined to double tourism to 1 million visitors next year.

They hope gay tourists will be far more lucrative than the backpackers who stay in cheap hotels and travel on shoestring budgets.

Stepping up tourism: Nepal is hoping to target gay travellers who are interested in more active holidays

“They do have a lot of income…they are high-spending consumers,” said Aditya Baral, spokesman for the Nepal Tourism Board. “If they behave well, if they have money, we don’t discriminate.”

The driving force behind the tourism push is Sunil Pant, a member of parliament, the nation’s most prominent gay activist and founder of the Pink Mountain tour company.

“The nation’s mountains, food and culture are a natural tourist magnet”, says Pant. Additionally, gay tourists could get married at Everest base camp and honeymoon on an elephant safari — though since Nepal doesn’t marry foreigners, such weddings would have no legal status, he said. …

Read more … or not

In a totally unrelated story, The Adventure Blogger, Kraig Becker, is planning on a trek to Base Camp during the Spring “flower” season.

In a totally unrelated photo, aren’t fishing babes wonderful?

Those Great Outdoors bloggers are still O.K.

March 17, 2010

Machu Picchu reopens April 1st

The Inca Trail is still closed, but there’s been progress in getting one of the world’s top attractions back to business after severe flood damage earlier this year.