alpine – Page 126 – besthike.com

June 28, 2008

trekking in Darjeeling Hills and Sikkim

An excellent Himalayan hiking option in Northern India:

… Although Sikkim is only 65 miles long and 45 miles broad, yet it contains some fo the finest mountain and ravine scenery in the world. The Kanchenjunga range is viewed in all its splendour, while the Everest massif can be seen from many advantageous points. …

Sikkim (in orange)

The jumping off point for Sikkim is Darjeeling. Several hikes are recommended:

1. TO PHALUT AND BACK
2. TO PAHLUT AND RETURN via JHEPI
3. PHALUT AND PEMIONGCHI

Number 3 sounds great:

… The march, though long has few equals in the variety and beauty of the scenery that is met with. Leaving Phalut the road takes a short climb to the Singalila Ridge (12, 200 feet at Singalila Point) along which it travels for 3 miles. The grassy, boulder strewn mountain side, gay with flowers, and with the snows always in view, presents a pretty picture. Plunging downwards for 11 miles the road drops 8,000 feet, passing through a variety of vegetation shortly how cold it is up in Phalut, at the start of the march, it is very warm in Dentam. There is a small bazaar in the neighbourhood.

The climb to Pemiongchi, 6,920 feet, begins with the next dayâ€™s trek. The 11 miles march is enlivened by some very beautiful scenery, including scenery, including cascading waterfalls and gorgeous orchids. The full beauty of the Sikkim forests strikes one during the march to Pemiongchi.

Pemionngchi is remarkable for its monastery and different angle at which Kanchenjunga is viewed. The monastery of Sanga Choling is the older and largest in Sikkim and it means â€œThe Sublime Perfect Lotusâ€. A beautiful view of the surrounding country-side can be obtained from the monastery and it is itself of great interest.

The return journey is via Rimchenpong (6,300 ft), Chakung (5,100 ft) and Badamtam (2,500 ft). The route however, can be shortened by 1 day by making a double march of 20 miles from Chakung direct to Darjeeling via Singla, Barnesbeg and Takvar Tea Estates. …

read more – Hot Stimulating Treks and Tours

original – flickr – Gateway to Singalila National Park – Kanchendzonga

Singalila National Park – Wikipedia

June 25, 2008

public transport to best hike trailheads

Do you hate parking a rental car at the trailhead?

Thanks JTownshend for pointing us to a website which clearly explains transportation options from my home town â€” Calgary, Alberta, Canada â€” to Waterton National Park on the U.S. border.

Why is this such valuable information?

Because that’s how you can most easily access our #6) best hike in the world: Glacier North Circle, Montana, USA, at least from Canada.

If you do not have your own vehicle, here’s how to get to one of the trailheads from the Calgary airport:

Airport Shuttle Express – Calgary to Waterton

(I’d skip the airport taxi, instead taking the public bus downtown for $2.50.)

If you have not yet decided on what BIG hike to do this summer, consider the North Circle. It’s awesome.

And â€”Â as a bonus â€” out of Calgary you could add our #5 best hike in the world â€” Sunshine to Assiniboine â€” in the Canadian Rockies. No personal vehicle needed for that adventure either, assuming you start and finish at the Sunshine Village trailhead.

Another great option is our #2) best hike in the world â€” the John Muir Trail, in California.

June 24, 2008November 21, 2025

hiking in Taiwan

I’m scheduled to take a trip to Cambodia in July. (A volunteer position working with sport coaches there.)

It’s too hot and humid in summer for hiking, I fear. But what if I stopped over in Taiwan on the return? What are the best hikes there?

RESEARCH:

… the island is covered with remote and beautiful mountains, which are laced with hundreds of hiking trails. These are the emerald peaks that visitors see from their plane windows, just before they descend into a factory city on the west coast.

Taiwan is home to the highest mountain in east Asia – at 3,952 meters Yushan (Jade mountain), is taller than Japanâ€™s Mt. Fuji – while dozens of peaks soar above 3,000 meters. Protected by national parks, and home to black bears, salmon, rare birds and other wildlife, the mountains are Taiwanâ€™s most compelling attraction.

Trekking in Taiwan is not for the faint-hearted. The Central Mountain Range is steep and wild, and much of it is covered with thick forest. Summer thunderstorms rise unseen, temperatures can drop below zero, and facilities are few and far between. But for those willing to carry their own gear, the treks are among the most beautiful in Asia.

The top hikes in Taiwan – Chilai Ridge and Yushan – require a reasonable level of fitness and the proper equipment, which includes a tent and stove, food and water, a sleeping bag, good boots, and warm clothes.

To really get away from it all, try the Chilai Ridge trail, a rugged walk straight down the mountainous spine of Taiwan. The trail begins at Ho Huan Shan hostel, on the northern cross-island highway (#14) about 60 kilometers from Puli.

From the hostel, it takes four hours and a lot of legwork to reach the 3,200-meter summit of Chilai Ridge. The ridge trail then proceeds due south, over a succession of rocky outcrops that is regarded as the most dangerous trekking walk in Taiwan, but one that is unrivalled in beauty. In some places the ridge is sharp as a knife, with cliffs on either side, and it is composed of leaves of shale that crumble underfoot like rotten cake. …

Out of Thick Air: Taiwan’s Mountain Highs – Time magazine – BRENT HANNON

Sadly, in the end, my flight was routed via Hong Kong instead.

Hmmm. Perhaps I should do one of the big urban hikes while in transit.

June 15, 2008

Bhutan: A Trekker’s Guide

Bart Jordans updated his guidebook on Bhutan. (April 2008).

$A Trekker\'s Guide (Trekkers Guides)$

Bhutan: A Trekker’s Guide

(via bluepeak)

May 31, 2008

Nepal popular again with hikers

Despite the turmoil and controversies of the Olympic Torch being carried up Everest, it’s been a relatively “good” year for successful climbs from the Nepal side. And comparatively few deaths.

I have no interest in climbing the world’s highest peak myself. But hiking in Nepal is back in full swing.

The peace accord signed by Maoist rebels seems to be holding.

Here’s the kind of articles that are being posted in 2008:

… The tourism industry has much to celebrate as foreign travelers are reappearing in the once almost deserted mountain destination with the return of peace.

Consider this. It is late night at the Shisha Bar in Thamel. The band is playing at full blast rocking the tightly packed dance floor. Tourists could be seen swaying to the music, dragging on hookahs or swilling exotic drinks. Thamel, the major tourist hangout, was in an upbeat mood. And so are Kathmandu’s restaurants, shopping districts and cultural and heritage sites as the tourists are coming back.

Nepal’s tourism industry is seeing a return of the good old days. Tour operators, trekking agencies and handicraft sellers are doing increased business. Hotels are reporting a surge in bookings. And foreign airlines are crowding into Nepal’s skies with the growth in tourist traffic.

Nepal’s tourism industry bounces right back

In fact, Nepal’s government has announced a public holiday for three days, from May 28th to May 30th, to celebrate the country becoming a Republic. They’ve abolished the monarchy that had reigned for 240 years.

I’m looking for my next chance to get back to Nepal, the favourite country I’ve visited. … OK, tied with New Zealand.

Gandruk – flickr

from the top of Gokyo Ri – flickr

April 20, 2008

best section of the Tahoe Rim Trail?

I’m looking at Tahoe in California for a September hike.

But NOT the entire 165mi loop.

TahoeRimTrail.org posted a poll: “What’s your favourite section to hike?”

If you have any advice for me, please leave a comment.

March 25, 2008

Democracy comes to Bhutan

Will this help open up the country to independent hikers?

A political party seen as the more royalist of two groups seeking power swept the first parliamentary elections ever held in this secluded Himalayan kingdom, Bhutan’s election commissioner said Monday.

The Bhutan Peace and Prosperity Party took 44 of the 47 seats in the new parliament, Election Commissioner Kunzang Wangdi said. …

Turnout was slightly more than 79 percent of the 320,000 registered voters, Wangdi said. Even in remote corners of the largely rural country â€” in tiny hamlets where voting machines were delivered by yak â€” the election went smoothly, officials said. …

The vote ended more than a century of absolute monarchy in the mountainous land long known as a quirky holdout from modernity, allowing television and the Internet only in 1999.

The election came with a twist: It was the king, not the people, who pressed for democracy. …

Royalist Party Wins Election in Bhutan – AP

photo Paula Bronstein/Getty Images – About.com

March 23, 2008

Highest Elevation Tornado Ever Observed in U.S.

Tornado, Rockwell Pass, Sequoia National Park, California, July 7, 2004.

Elevation at Rockwell Pass: ~11,600 feet. Base of tornado at ground level probably at least at 12,000 feet.

Scott Newton, 2004

Scott Newton, 2004

details and more photos

We had hail and lightning on the John Muir trail in 2007 at very high elevations. But certainly nothing like a tornado.

Scary stuff.

Thanks Rocco for forwarding the link.

March 21, 2008

hike the Chilcotin Mountains in Canada

Bluepeak recommended a terrific site: Chilcotin Mountains Trail System

As a start, check out the fantastic Photo Gallery. Some samples:

Tatlayoko Lake

Lower Taseko Lake

Jamison Creek Valley

Wilderness Mountain

more photos like these – Chilcotin Mountains Trail System Gallery

Here’s the Chilcotin, surprisingly little hiked.

Chilcotin Mountains Trail System – homepage

March 20, 2008

cost of trekking in Bhutan increasing

Bad news for me.

I’ve been waiting on Bhutan to open up for independent trekking. Planning on being one of the first to get a hiking permit.

It was Rogier Gruys of BluePeak.net who first got me interested in hiking Bhutan.

original – BluePeak on flickr – more photos

Now Kira Salak penned a wonderful Snowman Trek trip report / article for National Geographic.

A small excerpt:

… Then I saw the tiny fortress, Lingshi Dzong, sitting on a hilltop before the great audience of the Himalaya. I stopped. For some reason I never quite understood, I sat down and wept. Maybe it had something to do with the starkness of the distances, with the dramatic vying of sunlight and storm. Or perhaps it was subtler, harder to explain. As if, in that ancient dzongâ€”that speck of human proclamation sitting before the indifferent valleys and rise of the Himalayaâ€”it was my own voice calling out into the void. I found myself making an appeal of grief about my brother, who’d had his own history, his stories. What would happen to them now? Where do theyâ€”where do any of our storiesâ€”go? …

Lingshi Dzong – larger version – flickr – reddoggirl01

read the entire lengthy, intense travelogue – Trekking Bhutan’s Higher Planes

VISITING BHUTAN: Though there is no cap on the number of annual visitors, the Bhutanese government charges at least $200 a day for any in-country travel, and all tourists must book trips with one of 77 government-approved outfitters. Once you’re there, a guide accompanies you at all times.