When I gave Dave my expedition hiking pack, I had no idea he was planning to become the next insane high altitude mountaineer.
Here’s his (lengthy) Mt Ranier trip report from this past weekend:
If I live to be 100, I may never see a better day to climb, especially on the fickle Mt. Rainier.
I had been looking forward to this weekend for a while – everyone normally “do stuff with” was out of town, and so i had noted this date on my calendar as a possibility for getting over and doing a “real” mountain. I had had no luck finding a climbing partner, and so, with a little bit of trepidation, I made the 6.5 hour drive toward Rainier on my own, with ever increasing clouds as I got closer.
Once at the Paradise visitor’s center/trailhead, I was amazed at how deserted it was… normally, on weekends and in the summer, this place is packed, but the climbing/hiking season didn’t actually open until the next day. …
I am currently producing a photo shoot for Ecco Hiking Shoes and we will be shooting in Iceland the week of May 15th (approx), and i am looking for some avid hikers that would be interested in hiking with us, for our photo shoot, all expenses paid of course.
You must be about 22-35 years old and we are looking for people who look somewhat Scandanavian.
SHOE SIZES FOR MEN AND WOMEN
MEN: 41 Euro/ 9
WOMEN: 37 Euro/ 7 US
We can go a bit bigger in the sizes…1 to 1.5 sizes larger…
Affectionately known by the lightweight hiking underground as the “PCT Method” (presumably because it was first used by long distance hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail), a bear bag hanging method exists that is lighter, requires less rope, offers the benefits of counterbalancing, is easier to set up, and offers simple and quick hanging and retrieval of your food.
You can make your own system quite easily by assembling the following components:
* Food storage bag
* 40 feet of hanging rope
* Keychain carabiner
* Small stuff sack for a rock (”rock sack”)
* Pencil-sized twig about 4-6 inches long.
I particularly like the second option shown by Bryan DeLay. Many’s the time I’ve needed that in the past.
… Duct tape is probably the most versatile item you can carry when hiking. It can mend and repair almost anything from blisters to holes in air mattresses. …
Just before dawn …, Richard Code disappeared into the darkness and lit out for the Ontario wilderness, bringing little more than a few supplies and the skills he had learned from watching Survivorman, a reality show about subsisting in the bush. …
Richard Code with father, Mel Code.
… Code’s body was found in a marshy, snowed-in area just north of Huntsville.
Police say Code’s death is not considered suspicious at this time and his brother Stephen Code said OPP have informed him that the cause of death was hypothermia. …
Hiking is a better activity than most for our Planet. But I’m no treehugger myself.
I grew cynical after hearing an NPR audiocast citing a study where 1,017 of 1,018 products that made environmental claims were found guilty of deceptive advertising.
What really makes me suspicious of strident environmental evangelists (I’m looking at you David Suzuki) is Greenwashing:
… (green whitewash) is the practice of companies disingenuously spinning their products and policies as environmentally friendly …
If I see a product with a green label, I normally avoid it out of fear of being duped.
Also, any product with a green label has an inexplicable mark-up in price.
Some good news?
The NY Times reports that the American” Federal Trade Commission is expected to crack down on “greenwashing” when it updates its environmental marketing guidelines for the first time since 1998.”
I hope this helps.
… letters were recently sent to retailers like Hanes, Jockey and Target as well as REI, Sports Authority and Altrec.com. Even companies like Bamboo Eco Wear, Footprint Bamboo and Green Earth Bamboo were included in the list. …
besthike.com 