Best hikes, treks, tramps in the world.
Especially in the winter.
These incredible pictures are of Japanese macaques relaxing in a hot spring in Yamanouchi, central Japan.
Nicknamed the snow monkey, the cheeky-looking animals live a much chillier existence than their tropical cousins and they appear to like nothing better than keeping warm in steaming-hot pools such as this one. …
more photos on the Daily Mail
China Volkssport Associon (that’s the correct spelling) contacted us regarding their guided walking tours.
Their website is translated into 6 languages, imperfectly. Many of the links do not work.
The tours all seem to be about 2 weeks long. Offered throughout China year round.
I would only sign on if I had personal recommendations from people I trusted who were happy with the service. In general, the tourist industry in China is not well managed. It may be decades before the quality of service matches standards elsewhere in the world.
Welcome! We recently MOVED to WordPress.com as host. Click on the orange RSS button to subscribe in a reader or by email.
I must thank Alex and crew at Bluehost for the big task of restoring the site.
It was hacked: remv.php in the Themes folder on WordPress.
UPDATE: Photos have been restored.
As usual, the best trip report was posted by Photodiary of a Nomad.
Their 3 day traverse of Nahuel Huapi National Park in Argentina — on an unusual route — without meeting any other hikers on the trail, appeals to me. (They did have a dog or two tag along.)
… it was hard to decide the highlight – was it the glinting granite slabs of Cerro de las Cristales, the amazing blue of Laguna Azul, the perfect form of the green-clad glacial valleys, the richness of the wetlands, the great vistas of Tronador glistening in the sun – was today better than yesterday? – did it really matter? – tonight we would have some very pleasant dreams.
Personally, I want to see Mt Tronador.
larger version – flickr – fainmen
Check the trip report for yourself: Nahuel Huapi Traverse
Our besthike Nahuel Huapi Traverse information page.
Easter Island truly is in the middle of nowhere.
Everyone has heard of the monolithic human figures carved from rock called Moai.
But I also want to hike Rano Kau in Rapa Nui National Park world heritage site.
David Stanley, author of Moon Handbooks South Pacific (Moon Handbooks), says Easter Island is the Pacific Island that “offers most to the hiker“. That’s surprising since the island is only 11km wide, 23km long!
I will get there. Sooner or later.
I lived in the Canadian prairies for years. Every once-in-a-while a cougar would be sighted. They can travel long distances along river valleys.
Two this year have been conclusively confirmed far outside their current range. This one was captured by a cottage surveillance camera.
An extremely rare sighting of a cougar has been confirmed in the Lac du Bonnet area of Manitoba. …
Cougars have seen me in the wild many times. But I’ve never spotted any of them. They are very elusive.
Here’s is the “normal” range:
Pumas (Puma concolor), also called cougars or mountain lions, are large wild cats, … mainly tan-coloured, and can be up to 1.85 metres long.
Looking at a trip to our #1 hiking destination in the world?
There are HEAPS of choices for tramping there.
A good starting point for browsing your options is Photodiary of a Nomad. They’ve done New Zealand.
screenshot
These trips were taken September 2004 through April 2005.
WOW!
Click through to their index page – Tramping the Land of the Long White Cloud
The best guidebook by far is Lonely Planet Tramping in New Zealand.
related – our list of the best hikes in New Zealand
Hal Amen wrote a piece for Matador perfect for me.
I’d never heard of hiking in Peurto Rico.
Three recommended walks:
• El Yunque
While only an hour from downtown San Juan and firmly on the tourist track, the tropical rainforest of El Yunque, also known as the Caribbean National Forest, is a must-see.
Amen also recommends these as best hikes:
• Bosque Estatal de Guanica
• Bosque Estatal de Guajataca
Click through for details – The Best Hikes in Puerto Rico
For a guidebook, he recommends Puerto Rico Off the Beaten Path, 5th (Off the Beaten Path Series)
I am experimenting with moving my besthike.com/blog/ website from Bluehost to WordPress.com
If it works, this will be the new home of the blog. Bluehost will continue to host the besthike site.
besthike.com 