Best hikes, treks, tramps in the world.
3 days, 75mi+
Mike:
I had a funny idea a few months ago: Colorado and Utah are at the low (we hope) ebb of a 10-year drought cycle, meaning our trails are desiccated and our rivers low.
… it occurred to me that this would be an *ideal* time to use fatbikes to access Cataract Canyon, taking advantage of the low flows therein to float it with packrafts.
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
☺
Here’s another VIDEO edit from the same trip.
(via Hiking in Finland)
BBC and Lonely Planet posted an article on one of the best hikes in the world:
Most first-time visitors to Peru make a beeline for the ruins of Machu Picchu, without realizing that they are passing within a bus ride of the epic Colca Canyon.
Slicing through the High Andes like a giant fissure for more than 100km, Colca is the world’s second deepest canyon, approximately 3,400m at its deepest point — a shade shallower that the nearby Cotahuasi Canyon and nearly twice as deep as the US’ Grand Canyon. …
With a few days to spare and minimal planning, it is easy to shoehorn Colca Canyon into a wider Peruvian trip. The area is best accessed via Arequipa, Peru’s second largest city …
The Calera hot springs are an acclimatizing 3km walk up the valley to a scenic spot by the Colca River. Once there, recline in a simple alfresco pool as screaming zip-liners slide terrified across the canyon overhead. The zip-line stretches for 600mbetween the canyon walls simulating the flight path of an Andean Condor. …
read more – Exploring Peru’s epic Colca Canyon
Check our Colca Canyon information page.
Consider climbing 5822m (19,101ft) Misti Volcano on the same trip.
You need enough time for acclimatizing to altitude, of course.
Ned Judge:
An eight minute film essay that I co-produced and directed with Ed Abbey in 1985. …
We met in Moab and went out to Arches National Park to shoot some practice sessions with a home video camera. We would review them at the motel in the evening. After a day or two, Ed was feeling pretty comfortable on camera so we scheduled the shoot. We were all happy with the way it went.
But then we ran head-on into network reality. Roger Mudd, the show’s host, was extremely negative about putting an “eco-terrorist” on the show. … So this Abbey essay was put on the shelf and never aired.
Abbey died 3 years later in March 1989.
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
Edward Paul Abbey (January 29, 1927 – March 14, 1989) was an American author and essayist noted for his advocacy of environmental issues, criticism of public land policies, and anarchist political views. His best-known works include the novel The Monkey Wrench Gang, which has been cited as an inspiration by radical environmental groups, and the non-fiction work Desert Solitaire. Writer Larry McMurtry referred to Abbey as the “Thoreau of the American West“. …
The story of his death and burial is … very Abbey.
Those two books are MUST READS for any serious outdoorsperson.
(via Rocky who calls Edward Abbey the Hunter Thompson of the environment)
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
(via io9)
It took some time to get the spines out of these shoes.
I threw the socks in the trash.
via Walking Home From Mongolia on Facebook
… Rob Lilwall and Leon McCarron on a 5,000 km winter expedition …
They emerged from the Mongolian Gobi and crossed the border back into bleak, freezing China.
It sounds horrible.
… I was checking out the Sierra Trading Post blog, and stumbled up this breathtaking time lapse video of landscapes in Arizona and Utah. …
Be sure to click “Full Screen” in the lower right corner – it looks even more phenomenal!
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
Landscapes: Volume Two from Dustin Farrell.
Here’s volume 1 (VIDEO).
I try to get to the S.W. USA for hiking at least once a year.
Bill has a website dedicated to one of our best hikes in the world, The Wave on the Utah / Arizona border:
… There are two great photographic locations in Coyote Buttes North (The Wave and The Second Wave) and numerous minor ones including Top Rock Arch, Melody Arch and the Grotto, the Hooters, The Alcove, Sand Cove, and Fatali’s Boneyard.
The Wave is best photographed midday so as to minimize the extensive shadows, the other areas listed above are best photographed mid-late afternoon. …
Due to the fragile nature of this natural resource, it’s very difficult to get a hiking permit.
Bill’s site offers this advice:
… Your chances are better if you’re going alone, or in December – February. If you do not win the lottery I suggest you get one for Coyote Buttes South, or go to the White Pocket which is east of Coyote Buttes South.
I know of one person who was lost overnight in Coyote Buttes South, so use a GPS, mark the trailhead, and stay with your party. While a two wheel drive vehicle is adequate for the North Buttes, four wheel drive is required for the South due to deep sand. …
read more on TheWave.info
Bill adds this bit of news:
The upcoming 2012 Disney film “John Carter” was shot in the area across Wahweap Creek near the town of Bigwater. Other locations include Canyonlands and Factory Butte (near Capitol Reef). A 3D movie. The arid region will stand in for Mars.
On his second attempt, The Adventure Blogger Kraig Becker did make it to Chile’s Atacama Desert. And back.
See his photos on Picassa.
That’s the finest outdoor scenery in the world, I reckon.
ArizonaHiking.org Weekend Warriors has a good, personalized list:
Best Easy Hikes
Best Medium difficulty hikes
Best Hard hikes
Best Fall leaf watching hikes
Best hikes for solitude
Best hikes for spectacular views
Best water hikes
etc.
See the full FULL LIST of hikes
See more interesting photos tagged “Arizona Hike” on flickr.
besthike.com 