Category Archives: cycling

I’m off to bikepack in Chile

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Arriving Santiago January 11th, 2019. I’m planning up to a month on the Carretera Austral. Hiking a number of new National Parks and trails along the route.

This will be my 3rd trip to Patagonia over the past 4 seasons.

The Carretera Austral runs about 1,240 kilometers (770 mi) from Puerto Montt to Villa O’Higgins through (sparsely populated) rural Patagonia. …

This area is characterized by thick forests, fjords, glaciers, canals and steep mountains. …

Click PLAY or get a glimpse on YouTube. It starts with the WORST section.

Canada’s 24,000 km Great Trail is complete

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The longest network of recreational trails in the entire world. …

It is exclusively designated for recreational purposes and only allows bikes, hikers and horseback riders in the summer and in the winter it is used for cross-country skiing and snowmobiling. …

MTL Blog

This evolved out of the Trans Canada Trail. It’s been rebranded the Great Trail.

Nobody has done the entire thing. Yet.

thegreattrail.ca

“Route of Parks” in Chile – #FakeNews

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Lonely Planet got it wrong. Vogue got it wrong. Other sites, as well.

The new marketing campaign by the Chilean government called “Route of Parks” is not a hiking trail. It’s a series of roads with occasional trails. And other outdoor adventure options along the way.

I’m hoping to bikepack part in 2019.

Click PLAY or watch the official video on YouTube.

Rough Guides got it right.

It’s a work in progress. Ultimately MIGHT be 1,500 miles long.

It’s one of the great conservation stories of all time: Last month Chile President Michelle Bachelet and American philanthropist and conservationist Kristine McDivitt Tompkins pledged to expand Chile’s national park system by just over 10 million acres—an area larger than Switzerland. …

National Geographic

If you are looking for a long thru hike in Patagonia, check the Greater Patagonian Trail route. It does not connect in any way with the Route of Parks because that’s a road. 😀

Thanks Jan Dudeck for the heads-up on this.

Great Redwood Trail CA proposal

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I’d fly to California to bike / hike this rails to trail.

It’s been proposed by California Sen. McGuire – SB 1029, The Great Redwood Trail Act.

details at GreatRedWoodtrail.org

related – The Great Redwood Trail would be great for North Coast

The new trail will bring economic benefits to the North Coast, where rural towns need such growth. Outdoor recreation already brings in more than $92 billion a year to California, nearly 700,000 jobs with more than $30 billion in wages and more $6 billion in local and state tax revenues.

walking Forest Park – St. Louis MO

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Forest Park is in western St. Louis, Missouri. It … covers 1,371 acres (5.55 km2). …

Opened in 1876, the park has hosted several significant events, including the Louisiana Purchase Expositionof 1904 and the 1904 Summer Olympics. …

… features a variety of attractions, including the St. Louis Zoo, the Saint Louis Art Museum, the Missouri History Museum, and the St. Louis Science Center. …

I spent two half days walking the Park and visiting attractions. Easy access via MetroLink.

Earth Day 2018

Jewel Box

Friedrich Ludwig Jahn

St. Louis Art Museum

It’s part of the River Ring, a 600+ mile web of parklands and trails being developed by the Great Rivers Greenway. Ideal for cycling, by the looks of it.

cycle / hiking the Carretera Austral, Chile

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future trip planning by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

During my two months in Patagonia 2018 I did a fair bit of research on a future cycle hiking trip.

  • what bike? (Surly Long Haul Trucker with 40mm tires is popular)
  • buy, rent or bring with me from Canada?
  • exact route? (north to south via Chiloe sounds best to me)

I’d camp and hike en route.

The Carretera is far more popular now than when I did it in 2004 by bus / hitchhiking.

The Carretera Austral runs about 1,240 kilometers (770 mi) from Puerto Montt to Villa O’Higgins through (sparsely populated) rural Patagonia. …

This area is characterized by thick forests, fjords, glaciers, canals and steep mountains. …

Among the world’s finest road trips, the Carretera Austral – or “Southern Highway” – is a 1240km route through Chile that’s mostly unpaved. Winding through millennia-old forests, it visits dusty Andean hamlets and turquoise rivers spawned from landlocked glaciers. …

Cyclists should have the skills and materials to repair their own gear, and should plan on taking a solid month for the entire endeavor. According to Italian cyclist Tomas Balzk, the hardest part was not pedaling the terrain, but ingesting enough calories. …

Lonely Planet

Cyclists-on-the-Carretera-Austral