rest in peace Mark and Rob

Terrible terrible news. I’m still bewildered, angry and in denial.

Lifelong friends, Rob and Mark Glaser, were killed in an avalanche on Saturday, January 15, 2011 in the area of Burstall Pass, Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, Kananaskis Country, Alberta.

Here’s the official notice:

The families of Mark and Rob Glaser are in deep shock at the news of their tragic passing. Both were loving husbands and fathers and will be greatly missed by their families and legions of friends. Both were seasoned back country hikers and skiers who shared a deep passion for the outdoors.

Mark lived in Calgary and was in the oil and gas industry for over 25 years including senior management positions in recent years. Rob lived in Bragg Creek and was a captain in the Calgary Fire Department.

The family respectfully requests privacy at this time. Please direct all media contacts through Ed Glaser (brother) at 403-470-3904.

Phone Ed or contact me. I’ll post updates here.

Mark Glaser

On this trip a few years ago Mark and Rob trained me in snow rescue techniques.

Rob was a firefighter, expert in all things backcountry. They had left their avalanche beacons in the car making family speculate that this ski was intended to be simply a short warm-up.

Saskatchewan Glacier

Over 30 years (1978–2007), avalanches have been responsible for 329 deaths in Canada, with a recent rate of 14 deaths per year. …

Avalanche accounts for over 90% of outdoor recreation deaths, most of those in Alberta or B.C.

Damn.

5 Gut-Wrenching Hikes

hikingboots.com posted videos of what they call the 5 Most Gut-Wrenching Hikes on Earth:

1. Michielli Strobel, Italy
2. El Camino del Rey, Spain
3. Roche Veyrand, France
4. Lukerbad, Switzerland
5. Mount Kinabalu, Malaysia (3800m)

The via ferrata videos are scary. But nothing tops El Camino. I cannot believe that hikers are allowed on it !!

Click PLAY or go watch El Camino del Rey on YouTube in high definition 480p.

Watch the rest – Hiking Boots Blog – 5 Most Gut-Wrenching Hikes on Earth

Thanks Jeanette.

what date does the sun start rising earlier?

Oh hiking guru …

Well, the shortest day of the year is December 21st in the northern hemisphere.

Must be that the sun starts rising earlier December 22nd.

Right ??


Wrong.

In Saskatoon, Canada the sun rose at 9:14 AM on December 22nd.

Then later for the next couple of weeks.

It did not start rising earlier until Jan 8th.

This little known fact has something to do with the Equation of time.

Warren Long noticed as he leaves for work around that time on a bike. And was wondering why he was not seeing sunrise sooner.

Nordic Walking books

I took a close look at Nordic Walking by Malin Svensson. (2009)

Paperback and Kindle editions.

… Yet I’m still not convinced I’d benefit from hiking canes. I’m still suspicious Nordic Waltzing is a bit of a fad, especially in Europe.

On the other hand, I don’t see the popularity of poles on the trail in decline. There are more & more each year.

Perhaps I need to get injured before really giving poles a fair try.
🙂

One similar book is Nordic Walking for Total Fitness by Suzanne Nottingham & Alexandra Jurasin

UPDATE: Check the comments for advice on poles from people who have actually used them. Buzz points out that almost all long distance hikers consider them essential, … the same guys who sometimes feel that toilet paper is a luxury.

10 hazardous hikes USA

Abrams Falls, Great Smoky Mountains, TN

Barr Trail, Pikes Peak, CO

Bright Angel Trail, Grand Canyon, AZ

Buckskin Gulch, UT

Huckleberry Mountain, Apgar Range, MT

Kalalau Trail, Kauai, HI

The Maze, UT

Mist Trail, Half Dome, CA

Mt. Washington, NH

Muir Snowfield, Mt. Rainier, WA

Backpacker has links to each.

I’ve posted similar lists in the past. Be careful out there!

There’s never been a confirmed hiking fatality on the Kalalau Trail. The Na Pali coast has a bit of exposure, but it’s not that bad. I’d take kids.

The Kalalau trail and Na Pali coast

#2 best hiking town is …

Huaraz, Peru

Huaraz is a trekkers’ paradise. On one side of the valley you have the White Mountains (Cordillera Blanca). On the other side, the Black Mountains (Cordillera Negra). We hike the White Mountains, mountain bike the Black Mountains.

And only a short distance away is the remote, high Cordillera Huayhuash, ideal for hard core trekkers.

Huaraz is located in the central-northern part of the country at an altitude of 3052 m (10,013 feet), some 420 km north of Lima. Huaraz sits in the agriculturally important Callejón de Huaylas valley, at the foot of the Cordillera Blanca mountain range, which includes Huascarán, the highest mountain in Peru at 6768 m (22,204 feet). …

On May 31, 1970 the Ancash earthquake destroyed much of Huaraz, killing 10,000 people. Almost nothing was left of the old city with its narrow streets and big adobe casonas roofed with tiles. The main square was the only major structure that survived the earthquake so the city was rebuilt around it. …

Huaraz is connected to the rest of the country through the Panamerican Highway (187 km north of Lima) and can be reached from Lima … in seven hours. …

Huascarán National Park is a popular destination for tourism and trekking. Huaraz is a frequent base for expeditions to the Cordillera Blanca and Huayhuash. …

The population of the greater area is over 100,000 though you’d never guess it was that big. Huarez retains the feeling of a remote mountain town.

More interesting photos tagged Huaraz, Peru.

One of the best things about Huaraz is that there’s no airport. Regular Peruvian tourists all fly to Cusco, leaving this part of the Andes to us.

Our favourite hike hikes out of Huarez are:

Huayhuash Circuit
• Alpamayo
• Santa Cruz Trek

Huayhuash

There are a half dozen more, just as good. And many, many more great treks in the Central Andes.

besthikers - Cafe Andino, Huaraz - Alpamayo Circuit 2004

Best months are May through September, the “Andean Winter”. Acclimatization to altitude is your main concern here. These treks are high.

Half Dome – permit required

Yosemite Blog:

Following on the success of it’s weekend permit system the NPS has opted to extend the program requiring permits for all hikers who wish to ascend the cables to the top of Half Dome, not just weekend hikers. …

Last season weekend permit demand was high and permits were reserved months in advance. Hikers without permits will be turned around at the foot of the cables. …

Click through for details on how to get one: Permits Needed Everyday to Hike Half Dome Starting Spring 2011

minimalist footwear

Have you tried any of the new ‘barefoot’ shoes as yet?

Gear Junkie has a guest post on what’s available by journalist and author Bill Katovsky of ZERO DROP, a new blog about barefoot and minimalist running.

I wear a fairly flat, but conventional approach shoe myself. No plans to go even more minimal.

Certainly this concept, presumably by Nike, is out of the question:

Has Nike Invented A Second Skin?

Leave a comment if you have an opinion. Is this just a fad? … Or is minimal footwear here to stay?

walk the Faja de Flores cliffs

Ordesa National Park, Spain.

Eroded ledges, some walkable, are called ‘Fajas’.

… For those with a head for heights the Faja de Flores is a must. A steep climb leads to the entrance of the Faja nearly a kilometre above the valley floor. At first there looks no place for a path but as you get closer the eroded band shows itself and you can see it winding it’s way along the cliff face. The views change around every corner as you get views of the Sierra de Guara, the southern cliffs of the valley and then the Breche de Roland and the highest peaks in the park. …

Hike Pyrenees

That’s a U.K. based company offering this adventure as part of their Peaks and Passes guided walking holiday.

trek Ausangate Circuit, Peru

We got a recommendation from John Brawner for the Ausangate Peru Company, owned and managed by Edgar.

He took a 6 day guided trek with them.

Details, testimonials and prices on AusangatePeru.com.

Having done this adventure myself with a guide and pack animals for only one day, I know it‘s tricky to do independently. If you have any lack of overconfidence at all, get a guide.

Ausangate is our #4 hike in the world.

Find out more on our Ausangate information page.