🙂
Check it out – E+J hike the John Muir Trail
Our JMT information page.
Heather Anderson – fastest unsupported Appalachian Trail
Weighing over 200 pounds in College, Heather Anderson is today one of the world’s greatest thru hikers.
Heather Anderson just crushed the record for the fastest known unsupported Appalachian Trail thru-hike. That makes her the biggest badass you’ve never heard of.
Click PLAY or watch her TED talk on YouTube.
Cam Honan – Colorado Trail Trip Report
I hiked the Colorado Trail (CT) during the first two weeks of September.
No crowds, monsoon season practically over, the Aspens changing from green to flaming gold.
A wonderful time to be outside in the Rockies.
Coming in at around 490 miles (789 km) in length, the CT represented the longest hike (in regards to distance, rather than time) that I had done since 2012. However, in many respects it was also the easiest. Well maintained pathway, loads of resupply options, regular water sources and simple navigation.
And you know what? It was just what I needed. …
related – world hiker Cam “Swami” Honan
world hiker Cam “Swami” Honan
… Cam “Swami” Honan has trekked more than 53,000 miles (85,295 km) in some 55 countries around the globe since the early 1990’s.
Hailing from Australia, Cam’s longest hiking journey took place in North America. Between July 2, 2011 and December 28, 2012, he completed an incredible trip which was called the “12 Long Walks.” Consisting of a dozen consecutive long distance hikes and totalling more than 14,300 miles (23,014 km), Cam passed through 29 US States, 4 Canadian provinces and destroyed a whopping 28 pairs of trail running shoes!
Along the way he set records for the completion of a calendar year Triple Crown (Pacific Crest, Appalachian and Continental Divide Trails – 236 days), distance covered in a calendar year and the one of which he is most proud, dehydrated beans consumed in an 18 month period (123.7 lbs / 56.1 kg)! …
exclusive interview
besthike – What attracts you to any specific hike?
I don’t really have any specific criteria that I look for. Sometimes I’m drawn to remote wilderness areas. On other occasions I look for a combination of elements such as historical, cultural, culinary and even libational (e.g. country pubs in the UK/Ireland or Italy’s wine growing regions)!
besthike – What were your favourite short (week or less) hikes all time?
I get asked this question quite a lot and the answer has always been the same…….I don’t have any favourites. That being said, certain regions such as the Karakorum, Tibet, Lapland, Gobi desert, Alaska/Yukon, High Sierra, SW Tasmania, Patagonia, Colorado Plateau and Canadian Rockies come to mind.
besthike – Do you know of anyone else who’s hiked as extensively around the world as you have?
No one that I’m aware of. That being said, it’s not a question I’ve given any thought to.
besthike – How do you afford to travel so much?
Once the plane fares and all the equipment have been taken care of, hiking trips are generally very affordable. Accommodation is usually free, food often equates to $10 a day or less and your own feet take care of things on the transportation front.
besthike – Where would you most like to hike in the future?
There are quite a few different places I’m yet to explore. A couple that come immediately to mind are the Kimberley region of Western Australia and sub-Saharan Africa.
In more recent times, Cam has completed historic traverses of Mexico’s Copper Canyon region (2013 – together with fellow Montbell athlete, Justin Lichter) and Peru’s Cordillera Blanca (2014). When not wandering the wild regions of the planet, he can be found splitting his time between Australia, the US and his adopted homeland of Mexico.
His excellent website is called (appropriately) The Hiking Life. 🙂
Greater Patagonian Trail
UPDATE from Jan Dudeck:
During the last Patagonian summer I continued the investigation and publication of the Greater Patagonian Trail. The trail has now a total length of 1400 to 1500 km – depending on the options chosen – and the trail description contains may updates. I.e. section 17 and 18 were added this year and KMZ and GPX files with plenty of waypoints and several alternative routes are published for all sections.
Also the first hikers have completed the trail or parts of if base on this publication. One Israeli hiker walked sections 1 to 16 in about 50 days (all that was published at this time) and at least 8 more hikers did substantial parts of the Greater Patagonian Trail based on this trail description. …
This trail is not finished yet. There is plenty of terrain left till this trail finally reaches the southern tip of Patagonia and ends either on the shores of the Magellan street or even on Tierra del Fuego. But what is published so far can be hiked by a well experienced self-reliant hiker without much seek and search.
I also look forward that other hikers contribute to this trail by verifying some of the options and adding more sections. The publication on “wikiexplora” permits and facilitates such contributions because “wikiexplora” allows like “wikipedia” a collaboration of multiple authors.
Email: jan.dudeck (a) gmx.ch
Website: http://www.wikiexplora.com/index.php/Greater_Patagonian_Trail
___ original post from Sept 8, 2014:
… in South America leads right through the heart of the legendary Patagonian Andes. It’s a stunningly beautiful and diverse trail that crosses volcanic fields, idyllic Andean valleys, snow covered mountain ranges, lush green forests and deep blue lakes and rivers. …
The complete trail can be hiked in one summer season and requires approx. 90 to 120 days …
The generally recommended trekking direction is southbound …
The Greater Patagonian trail is not an official trail that is set up and managed by a government agency. Is simply a compilation of horse trails, minor roads and some cross country sections …
The trail is mostly unmarked, partly not visible and only smaller fractions are documented with maps. Therefore a GPS is essential for navigation. In addition an electronic topographical map is recommended. …
River Crossings are possibly the greatest hazard …
wikiexplora – Greater Patagonian Trail
I’m considering a trip to Patagonia starting January 2016. Certainly I’ll do a section of the GPT, if I can. 🙂
Hiking the 540-mile Camino de Santiago
HANK LEUKART – Without Baggage – To the End of the World
Hiking the 540-mile Camino de Santiago across Spain with an unlikely group of friends.
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
seen on the El Camino …
John Lennon lyrics on trash cans. 🙂
See it on Instagram.
The Trail – Ray Anderson
Scheduled for publication October 27, 2015. I’ll be buying it immediately. 🙂
Paul Leroux is a serial killer wanted for murdering women in North Carolina. When the police start to catch up with Leroux, he panics and decides to escape to Canada on the Appalachian Trail, where thru-hikers use trail names and travel anonymously.
Leroux, who is overweight and unhealthy, struggles at first on the trail but begins to relax as he gets stronger and can utilize the physical changes he gains from his intense hiking as a disguise. His urge to kill, however, is invigorated by the nearness of female hikers, and his intention to stay away from them on his trip begins to weaken.
His life is further complicated when Desert Storm veteran Karl Bergman, who is also trying to escape his own failure, becomes suspicious of Leroux and begins to pay careful attention to his every move.
Leroux becomes increasingly panicked as he realizes that both Bergman and the police are close on his tail as he races to the border hoping to find a haven with his Canadian family. In this cat-and-mouse thriller, Ray Anderson dives inside two men’s minds as they struggle to fight their identities and confront their fears and internal turmoil.
Ray Anderson is a thru hiker who goes by the name Hamlet. He was inspired to write this book on a dark, stormy night while walking the Appalachian Trail in 2003.
Behind-the-Scenes – A Walk in the Woods
Appalachian Trail Conservancy:
Check out this exclusive behind-the-scenes interview from the film “A Walk in the Woods.” Travel writer Bill Bryson (Robert Redford) takes a long-lost old friend (Nick Nolte) for a hike along the Appalachian Trail, which stretches more than 2,000 miles from Georgia to Maine.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Copper Canyon Traverse, Mexico
In 2013 Justin “Trauma” Lichter and Cam “Swami” Honan completed a 381 mile (613 km) traverse of Mexico´s Copper Canyon region. A first thru hike.
The traverse was a combination of hiking, packrafting, swimming, bushwhacking, scrambling, crawling and weaving our way around clandestine drug fields.
Our route linked together the six major canyons (along with numerous minor ones) that constitute the Copper Canyon region. It took us from the region’s northwest corner (Basaseachi Falls) to its southeastern limits (Sinforosa Canyon). In the order in which they were traversed, the canyons were as follows:
Candamena
Oteros
Copper
Urique
Batopilas
Sinforosa
besthike.com 