Best hikes, treks, tramps in the world.
A signature recreation destination in Canada, the Vancouver Island Spine Trail will span more than 700 kilometres from Victoria to Cape Scott. Traversing wild coasts, ancient and working forests and joining island communities, the trail will be a month-long journey in its entirety. …
It’s not finished. But I plan to cycle — and hike a bike — a section in 2017. I’ll start in Port Alberni … and see how far south I can get.
This cycling book includes a pretty good overview of hiking trails on each island. I recommend it.
I spent 10 days on the bike this summer camping illegally every night. It was wonderful.
The Guardian posted an excellent article on the pursuit.
A new fusion of wild camping and off-road touring, bikepacking gets you close to nature and far from the stresses of modern life. And autumn is the ideal time to go.
As selected by Road Bike Hub.
Most of the blogs chosen feature adventure cycling. Best Hike was included as we’ve recently been promoting Cycle Hiking. Biking as far as possible, hiking the rest of the way. 🙂
Check the list for yourself – Top Blogs That Explore Outdoor Adventure
I once cycled DOWN from high up on the Annapurna Circuit. Cycling up there (from Kathmandu) sounds tough.
Drawn by the majesty of the Nepali Himalaya and its welcoming teahouses, Colt Felters sets out to pedal around the region’s infamous Annapurna Circuit. Once he’s found his bike…
(via Hiking in Finland)
A classic training session for Dave and Jeni is to cycle up to the Chilco trailhead out of Coeur d’Alene. The big push is a relentless 4.2 miles up to the saddle. Some were left gasping.
Next a steep hike up to great views on the summit ridge.
This was Dave’s first real test of his knee since surgery. It survived. 🙂
It’s often windy up here. Today the weather was perfect.
The ride down on gravel I found sketchy. Dave and Jeni are Adventure Racers and found that challenge fairly trivial.
We were 4 hours up and down from Dave’s home. Hot tub and red wine was my reward.
Cycle hiking the Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Due to ferry schedules I arrived Friday Harbor late in the day. The town’s name originates from Joseph Poalie Friday, a native Hawaiian.
I purchased food for dinner and headed out to find a place to camp.
Next morning early I was back at the Bean Cafe. These free wifi spots are my longest breaks during each day.
Tourist information told me the south was more scenic than the north, so I headed towards American Camp.
There are a number of trails. I opted to start towards Grandma’s Cove and made my own loop back.
It’s very popular.
American Camp is a legacy of the Pig War, a confrontation in 1859 between the United States and Great Britain over the Canada-U.S. border. Over a pig. Not kidding.
This was my first really hot, sunny day on the bike.
At times I wished I’d rented one of Susie’s Scootcars instead. 🙂
Nearby is Cattle Point Lighthouse.
Jakle’s Lagoon is the trailhead for several interesting looking hikes. Hot and nearly out of water, I gave them a miss. This time.
After lunch I headed north to Roche Harbor with it’s weird sculpture garden.
The resort is cluttered. Too near the airport for my liking. But I did like the colour scheme.
Next stop – English Camp.
Much quieter than American Camp.
It was late in the day when I finally reached Lime Kiln Park State Park.
A highlight of the day was spotting Orcas.
Cycle hiking the Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
I crossed the amazing bridge between Whidbey and Hidalgo worried about my front tire.
After the third time pumping more air I inquired at a general store as to the nearest cycle shop. A gentleman there offered to drive me the 8 miles to Skagit Cycle in Anacortes.
I don’t trust myself to fix a tire correctly. 😦
Waiting on the next ferry, I cycled up to the Little Cranberry Lake area.
Nice, but from the little I saw, NOT impressed with Anacortes. Too big. Too much traffic. Not much to write home about. But there is a Jack in the Box. 🙂
During the summer it’s a busy ferry over to Orcas.
Hydration is important. 🙂
As is keeping your paniers locked to your bike.
I’d been looking forward to Orcas and – as it turned out – it was my favourite island, so far.
I cycled directly to Eastsound. That’s the main town.
I checked the hostel. It cost US$50 for a dorm bed. I don’t think I’ve ever paid more than $30.
So I cycled on to Moran State Park. Wild camped near the campground.
Stinging nettle was my only gripe. There are a few mosquitoes too.
Moran encompasses over 5,000 acres of various terrain including forests, wetlands, bogs, hills, and lakes. It is the largest public recreation area in the San Juan Islands and the fourth largest state park in the state. …
The park offers 38 miles of hiking trails …
If you go to Orcas for hiking, be sure to find a copy of the free brochure.
Next morning I climbed out of the tent and walked directly on to the Twin Lakes trail via Mountain Lake.
A crew was doing trail construction at Twin Lakes. I had lunch and watched them. Good work.
Returning via a series of cascades, I resolved to return one day to bike these trails. After Sept 15th they are all open to mountain bikes.
Back to the tent to relax. Then on to my next adventure. Cycling to the summit of Mt Constitution.
… the highest point in the San Juan Islands. A stone observation tower patterned after a medieval watch tower stands at the summit. …
I resolved to only go as high as I could make it without getting off the saddle. It’s 5 miles at an average 8 degree slope. Turned out I made it to the top. 🙂 Beautiful vista.
After a steep and fast ride back down the 5 miles I headed on to lovely Doe Bay resort.
I could definitely stay here for a few days. 🙂
But I wanted to stay near Eastsound that evening. I ended up wild camping in an excellent city park called Crescent Beach Preserve. It was close to a superb coffee shop – Enzo’s.
I rode next to Westsound. En route I hiked Turtleback Mountain.
I started at the north trailhead and hiked up to Waldron overlook. The trail is better for mountain biking than hiking, I’d say.
On the return I stopped at North Valley Overlook, a tranquil, rural scene.
And finally all the way to Deer Harbor.
Time to celebrate.
Cycle hiking the Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
I caught the ferry from Port Townsend. Immediately cycled to Ebey’s Landing for the Bluff-Ridge Trail.
I started from the trailhead at the end of Ebey’s Landing Road. Here’s the view looking back to the start.
minimum 3.7 mile loop
This hike is ALL GOOD. The best I’ve found in the islands, so far.
There’s a prairie section leading to the bluff.
Plenty of interesting things to see along the way.
Almost everyone starts along the bluff, returns via the beach trail. But I enjoyed the breeze and vistas so much I decided to stay on the high road both there and back. 🙂
To celebrate the great hike, I stopped in next at Kapaws Iskreme on Front Street in Coupeville.
Coupeville is a nice little tourist town.
Though I’d heard nothing about it I decided to stop in at Dugualla Bay State Park.
Turns out I could have cycled the trail, but instead I hiked it down to the ocean.
The famous State park is Deception Pass. I decided to camp there. Next morning I’d cycle across the bridge to Hidalgo Island.
It was a good spot. I slept in until 7:30am. Enjoyed a pot of coffee. And decided to explore the trails of Deception Pass by bike and on foot.
Unfortunately I’d somehow acquired a slow leak. Adding air only worked for short bursts.
I opted to head for the nearest bike shop. Save Deception Pass for future adventures.
Turns out it’s the most-visited park in Washington with over 2 million visitors / year. I’ll plan to stay for a couple of days next time.
related trip report – Whidbey Island – Ebey’s Landing
Cycle hiking the Gulf Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Pender Island is home to about 2,250 permanent residents …
North Pender and South Pender, which are separated by a narrow canal originally dredged in 1903. In 1955 the islands were connected by a one lane bridge, as it remains today.
I arrived Pender very tired. And worried. My guidebook said it was one of the hilliest islands. A local cautioned me that many of the steep decent had dangerous right angle turns at the bottom.
Arriving we had a bit of excitement. Two bald eagles. They spend a lot of time on this perch.
So far on this trip I’d seen plenty of deer. Quail. Bald eagles. Some sort of mink. Turkey vultures. The largest garter snake of my life. …
I rode directly to the Roe Lake trailhead. Wild camped. Too tired to eat, I watched Game of Thrones on my laptop until tired enough to sleep.
Did not get out of the tent until 8am next morning. That’s sleeping-in for me this summer. I packed up. Then walked to the trail.
It was far better than I had anticipated.
At the start you might expect you could mountain bike that 1.5 km loop. Not so. There are some very rough sections.
Psyching up, I headed (literally) for the hills. But before I got far I happened upon Vanilla Leap Bakery Cafe. One of those west coast hippie establishments enjoyed by all.
Free wifi. Good coffee. I ended up staying perhaps 90 minutes.
THEN I (literally) headed for the hills. And they are rough. I pushed my heavy bike up most of them.
But I managed to cross the waters over to South Pender. I wanted to climb Mt Norman, the highest point on the islands at 244m.
It’s a short, steep slog up to a gorgeous viewpoint.
On the way down I managed to miss a turn, ending up at a different trailhead on Canal Road. Rather than admit my mistake, I walked Canal Road back to my bike. Creating my own loop trail. (Not recommended.) 🙂
Again I needed to psych up for the return to the ferry. On Pender it’s uphill each way.
I should have stashed the bike in the trees and stood by one of the Car Stops. These are official alternatives to hitch hiking on some Gulf Islands.
Rather than a bus, locals are encouraged to stop and give free rides to anyone standing at one of these places. Good idea. At your own risk, of course.
With time to kill before my 4:20 ferry I hung out at Port Browning Marina. Very posh.
On to Mayne Island. 🙂
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