“Route of Parks” in Chile – #FakeNews

Posted on October 19, 2018 by Rick Mc

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

Posted on August 22, 2018 by Rick Mc

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

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

Posted on May 16, 2018 by Rick Mc

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

Posted on April 11, 2018 by Rick Mc

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

walking Vina del Mar to Valparaíso, Chile

Posted on March 19, 2018 by Rick Mc

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

People from the BIG CITY of Santiago love to escape to Valparaíso on the coast.

Valpo is popular with tourists who enjoy the city’s labyrinth of cobbled alleys and colorful buildings.

It has a a mild Mediterranean climate.

In 1996, the World Monuments Fund declared Valparaíso’s unusual system of funicular lifts (steeply inclined carriages) one of the world’s 100 most endangered historical treasures.

Valparaíso is protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

I decided to walk to Valpo along the coast from Viña del Mar, an upscale suburb to the north famed for great beaches.

Having walked the beaches the previous evening, I started near the castle.

There were plenty of runners and cyclists, but not many walkers.

Birds are always a highlight in Chile. Pelicans have always been some of my favourites.

Originally a port and fishing centre, much of the coast has not been improved for pedestrians.

Some has.

Fishermen use mobile phones now.

There’s a lot of traffic on the coastal road. At one point you are pushed inland by train tracks.

Parts of this 3 hour walk I did enjoy.

Other sections I found annoying. Graffiti EVERYWHERE was starting to bother me.

A real highlight near Valpo is watching sea lions close up on this abandoned concrete structure. It’s amazing they can get up there. It’s entertaining to watch them negotiate who gets the prime real estate. And who gets pushed off back into the sea.

The best part was arriving in Valparaíso and joining a free (for tips) walking tour. The daughter of one of the gentlemen in our group had tons of fun sliding down a cement ramp.

All in all I wished I’d — instead — spent my time hiking out at Parque Nacional La Campana.

Buenos Aires Ecological Reserve

Posted on February 4, 2018 by Rick Mc

Buenos Aires Ecological Reserve, Reserva Ecológica de Buenos Aires, also known as Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve, Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur, is a 865-acre (3.50 km²) tract of low land on the Río de la Plata riverbank located on the east side of the district of Puerto Madero in Buenos Aires CBD, Argentina.