Adventure Racing World Championship 2025

The extremely harsh World Championships of Adventure Racing will be hosted by Canada in British Columbia. Host city Penticton.

Adventure Racing World Series Announces Canada as the 2025 World Championship Destination

I’d love to be involved somehow as a volunteer. Perhaps roving VIDEO crew.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Here’s a good documentary of the 2023 Worlds in South Africa.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. (41min)

Hiking in ‘Salvage Logging’ Forest

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

In the temperate rain forest of Vancouver Island you can hike almost anywhere, year round.

It’s fantastic.

One local hike I’d avoided is Roosevelt – Chinook – Channels – Clay Banks near the excellent Englishman River Provincial Park.

I’d heard it was mainly used for mountain biking.

Home made mountain biking trails tend to be rugged, muddy โ€” and not all that hiker friendly.

Turned out that wasn’t the BIG problem.

Very close to the Provincial Park, logging companies have been Thinning.

In this area, they claim to be removing about half the trees so the other half will grow faster.

It’s a kind of salvage logging.

Not clearcut โ€” but still ugly and muddy.

There were a few good moments โ€” but I won’t again be hiking in any area that has been thinned.

Portable Wind Turbine on the Trail

At 3 pounds, it’s doubtful I’d carry the Shine ultra-compact wind turbine on a hike.

Cost November 2023 is CAD $400 (US $290).

At this time it’s only available in Canada and the USA.

BUT I’m thinking it might be ideal for bikepacking central Iceland summer 2024.

AND ideal if I were to camp out in one place for a number of days.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

I’m BOOKED โž™ Faroe Islands, Summer 2024

by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

Postponed in 2023 … this time I made my reservations 10 months in advance to get the ferries I wanted. And inexpensive accommodation.

I can cancel accommodation at no cost.

If I eventually have to cancel the ferries, I’ll pay 10% of the โ‚ฌ 337 total cost for me, my bike, and a bunkbed on the ship.

The Faroe Islands are expensive and in high demand, high season. Far less so if you book long ahead of time.

Mulafossur waterfall in Gasadalur

July 27th – depart Hirtshals (Denmark) on the Smyril ferry

July 28th – arrive Tรณrshavn (Faroe Islands)

Aug 7th – depart Tรณrshavn

Aug 8th – arrive Seyรฐisfjรถrรฐur (Iceland) at 8:30am

That gives me 9 full days for cycling and hiking. Weather is a factor, of course. Faroe Islands are just south of the Arctic Circle.

Cycling Faroe Islandsย –ย Generated with AIย โˆ™Dall-E 3

The more days, the more opportunity for clear skies. ๐Ÿ˜€

I booked during the Olympics.

IF it rains ๐Ÿ˜€, I’ll instead be following the action in Paris online. Indoors.

Cycling / Hiking Norway 2023

by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

Summers 2022 and 2023 I cycled and hiked the west coast of Norway.

Mostly on the Eurovelo 1. Perhaps half of the Norway section.

On my personal website, I posted 3 trip reports and VIDEOS. Cycling is a great (and inexpensive) way to get to the wonderful hikes in Norway. ๐Ÿ˜€

Wild camping is free by law almost everywhere in Norway.

1. Cycling Arctic Norway โž™ Lyngen Alps to Lofoten

Trip report.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.


2. Cycling / Hiking Arctic Norway โž™ Lofoten

Trip report

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.


3. Cycling Norway โ€“ Bodรธ to Trondheim

+ Kristiansund & Atlantic Road

Trip report.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

NEW – Pamir Trail, Tajikistan

Theย Pamir Mountainsย are aย mountain rangeย betweenย Central Asiaย andย Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely theย Tian Shan,ย Karakoram,ย Kunlun,ย Hindu Kushย and theย Himalayaย mountain ranges. They are among the world’s highestย mountains. …

Theย Pamir Highway, the world’s second highest international road, runs fromย Dushanbeย inย Tajikistanย toย Oshย inย Kyrgyzstanย through theย Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province, and is the isolated region’s main supply route. …

The Pamir Trail is a proposed 1000km+ route. A work in progress.

Jan Baaker, author of Cicerone Trekking in Tajikistan, hopes to connect the entire route in 2024.

We wish him luck. Some of the rivers can be impassable.

To learn more, click through to the PamirTrail.org.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

๐ŸŒต Utah โž™ March 2023 ๐ŸŒต

I’m flying to Moab, Utah today.

One of the best outdoor adventure towns of the world.

March / April should be excellent weather for hiking.

There are 19 in our group โ€”ย so far. Should be FUN. ๐Ÿ˜€

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

BEST Bermuda Rail Trail VIDEO

By BestHike editor Rick McCharles

Over the past few years I’ve spent a lot of time on the famed Bermuda Rail Trail. Hiking, running, cycling.

Sound wonderful? A long day hike on tropical islands. ๐ŸŒด

However … thereย are a number of sections where you mustย walk busy roadwaysย to regain the trail. And the Flatts bridge was not yet opened February 2023.

Without question, Rick’s new video is the most comprehensive online. In fact, if you watch all 10 minutes, you may feel there’s no need to actually do the adventure yourself. ๐Ÿ˜€

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. (11min)

If that’s too long, I have a 1-minute teaser VIDEO alternative.

Our recommended itinerary starts with a ferry to Dockyard and continues past the official trail end in St. George’s โ€”ย making it much longer. AND we recommended side trips to forts, light houses, and beaches along the way. BEST is to do the Rail Trail over 2 or more days.

The Bermuda Railway was a 21.7-mile (34.9 km) common carrier line that operated in Bermuda for a brief period (October 31, 1931 โ€“ May 1, 1948). …

More than 10 percent of the line was elevated on 33ย separate structures of timber or steel construction spanning the ocean …

ย It was said to be one of the most expensive rail lines built …

In 1984, 18 miles (29ย km) of the defunct rail line’sย right-of-wayย were dedicated as theย Bermuda Railway Trailย for hiking …

Electric Trike on Vancouver Island Trails

Dadย boughtย aย Pedego Trikeย in 2019 for running around Parksville B.C.

Joyriding and doing the shopping.

It’s fun taking it out on the trails.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Range might be as high as 60km on a single charge.

You can pedal manually if you run out of juice. ๐Ÿ˜€