Category: long hikes

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hike Idaho’s Centennial Trail

… Idaho Centennial Trail (ICT) is a scenic trail through Idaho. It winds its way through various ecosystems from high desert canyonlands in southern Idaho to wet mountain forests in Northern Idaho. ICT travelers will cross many mountains, streams and rivers in between. …

Depending on exact route, it could be anywhere from 900-1200mi long.

click for more maps
click for more maps

… The ICT was designated as the official state trail during Idaho’s Centennial year in 1990 by the Lasting Legacy Committee of the Idaho Centennial Commission. Since then the number of hikers completing the trail have remained low. …

On recommendation from Andy Howell, I listened to an audiocast on Practical Backpacking, an interview with Brian Frankle of ULA Packs. Brian described his own ICT from North to South.

He was happy to see few people on the Trail.

… In 1998 Stephen Stuebner’s Idaho Centennial Trail Guidebook was published. This guidebook, although well written is considered to be out of date by the Idaho Centennial Trail coordinator, Leo Hennessey. …

Idaho’s Centennial Trail is a work in progress. There are very few trail markings in the middle of the State. Route finding is essential.

Wikipedia – Idaho Centennial Trail

official website – Idaho’s Centennial Trail

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longest wilderness hike in the lower 48

Surely you must have heard of the Cougar Traverse:

• Location: Pasayten Wilderness of northern Washington

• Length: 242 miles

• Best season: Mid-July to mid-October

• Features: The longest wilderness route in the lower 48 states. A loop. No road crossings, no resupply, no backtracking.

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Why haven’t I heard of it?

… Ah. Here’s why:

trekking-Washington-cover… In fact this isn’t an official trail in any sense. Mike and Kristy Woodmansee created it and dropped it into their 2003 book “Trekking Washington” as a long challenge, far from anywhere else. Their difficulty rating is “toughest”, as it would be if done in the recommended 10 days. …

The Ultralighter – Occasional Trails: The Cougar Traverse

Amazon – Trekking Washington

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Trekking The Lebanon Mountain Trail

Have you ever heard of hiking in Lebanon?

Is it safe?

What is the Lebanon Mountain trail?

The Lebanon Mountain trail is the first long distance hiking trail in Lebanon and the Arab world (www.lebanontrail.org). It extends 440km. from Qbaiyat in the north to Marjeyoun in the south. It traverses 75 towns and villages at altitudes from 600m to 1900m. The LMT showcases the natural beauty and cultural wealth of Lebanon’s mountains.

The Lebanon Mountain Trail Association organized the first complete thru-walk of the LMT during the month of April 2009. The core group of 7 hikers explored history and culture, as well as the natural beauty of Lebanon.

Lebanon-hikers

They blogged the journey, an interesting read with plenty of photos.

header-trekking-Lebanon

TrekkingLebanon.com

official trail website – lebanontrail.org

Time Magazine posted a short video on this Adventure.

This could be the start of something much bigger in the Middle East. Just as soon as Peace breaks out there.

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Bibbulmun Track trip report


Only about 500 people have completed the Bibbulmun Track, nearly 1000kms (620mi) from Kalamunda in the Perth Hills to Albany on the south coast of Western Australia.

One of those is Dave Tomlinson who posted his 2007 trip report on Our Hiking Blog.

Bibbulmun_Track_map_large

… When I reflect on the entire time I spent hiking the track, I think the first few days were the toughest of all. There is nothing quite like the challenge of carrying a heavy pack over difficult terrain in 40 degree heat. Although the track goes through eight towns, the first one is ten days from Perth. So, my pack was very heavy with supplies and I was stiff and sore during those initial stages. But as I progressed, my muscles began to get attuned to what was expected, my pack gradually lightened and things became easier. …

albany_windfarm_bibbulman_track

… Amazingly, I completed the whole distance without even a blister. Apart from some general soreness when I first started, I didn’t have any problems at all. There wasn’t a single day when I didn’t wake up and feel excited by what I was doing. Even on the most physically demanding days I embraced the challenge and never felt any doubt about reaching Albany in good health. The weather was generally very good and my Goretex jacket was often nothing more than my pillow at night. I only had rain on four days in the entire seven weeks. …

dave_at_the_end_bibbulman_track

To learn more about this amazing tramp, here are the most important links:

» The Bibbulmun Track – a long distance hike – Trip Report – Part One

» Bibbulman Track – Southern Section – Trip Report – Part Two

» official website – Bibbulmun Track

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Coast to Coast Walk: St Bees to Robin Hood’s Bay

I don’t know much about this adventure. But the weather is a worry.

coasttocoast-map
map source

… The walk from St Bees Head in Cumbria to Robin Hood’s Bay on Yorkshire’s east coast is now one of the most popular long-distance walks in Britain. At 178 miles (300km) long, the trail can be easily walked within a two-week holiday period. The route is based on permitted rights of way and minimises the amount of road walking. …

marsh-guidebook

A Northern Coast to Coast Walk: From St Bees to Robin Hood’s Bay by Terry Marsh – Amazon

Consider also the Wainwrights pictorial guide and Stedman’s guidebook.

Walking Englishman – trip report

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Sierra High Route – American Adventure


Allie Comeau on the Sierra Blogging Post had to include a Sierra trip as one of her Top 10 American Adventures.

Good call.

It’s on our list of the best hikes in North America. Similar to the famed John Muir Trail, but without wasting so much time and energy descending each day. On the Sierra High Route you try to stay HIGH.

9. Hiking the Sierra High Route, California: The 195-mile stretch between King’s Canyon and Yosemite National Park is not for the faint of heart. This trail, through the country’s most rugged terrain, is challenging to say the least.

This one is dangerous. The expert is Steve Roper.

The Sierra High Route (also called the Roper Route) is a cross-country hiking route, 195 miles (314 km) long, through the Sierra Nevada. It was scouted by Steve Roper and described by him in his book Sierra High Route: Traversing Timberline Country (1982; 1997). …

Wikipedia

sierra-high-route

I’m going to need Steve’s guidebook.

Amazon – The Sierra High Route: Traversing Timberline Country

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4646km through China on foot

A brilliant time lapse video of what happens to a trekker in China … who does not shave.

Christoph Rehage from Hanover, Germany, is a cinematographer and student of China Studies.

Click PLAY or watch his China video on YouTube.

November 9th 2007 – November 13th 2008

one year on foot – 4646km through China

unlimited beard & hair growth

– All of the distance from Beijing to Ürümqi has been completed solely on foot, straight good old walking. There are instances where you can see me in the video sitting on a plane or riding a boat, but those are during breaks I had to take from walking, either to sort out bureaucracy issues or to take care of some personal things. …

– The songs I used in the video are 1) Zhu Fengbo – “Olive Tree” and 2) The Kingpins – “L’aventurier” – visit the Kingpins website if you want to know more, they are very cool I think.

– This is not a strict “1 pic a day” video, because I wanted to make it a bit more alive by adding some additional movement. Sometimes during the film you would follow me turn around, or something would happen in the background. I tried to capture these moments to make the video more interesting.

more information on his website – The Longest Way

(via vagabondish on Twitter)

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Ibn Battuta, greatest explorer ever?

I watched the first two episodes of a British TV documentary series where Tim Mackintosh-Smith retraces the footsteps of 14th Century Moroccan scholar Ibn Battuta, who covered 75,000 miles, 40 countries and three continents in a 30-year odyssey. He was islam’s and perhaps the world’s greates traveller.

Excellent!

Click PLAY or watch an introduction on YouTube.

Leave a comment if you find those full episodes posted online.

Next I’d like to see this movie.

Journey to Mecca is an IMAX® dramatic and documentary feature that tells the amazing story of Ibn Battuta, the greatest explorer of the Old World, following his first pilgrimage between 1325 and 1326 from Tangier to Mecca.

Narrated by Ben Kingsley.

Click PLAY or watch the movie trailer on YouTube.

official home page – Journey to Mecca Giant Screen

What a story!

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best SAFE hikes in Australia?


More often than not on our list of best hikes in the world we promote “challenging” adventures.

The very dangerous West Coast Trail is our #1 pick. One in every hundred hikers has to be evacuated!

What if you don’t want to be evacuated?

From Our Hiking Blog:

We have come up with a short list that meets the following criteria:

– No death defying stunts required to complete the trip
– Relatively mountain / drop off free
– Challenging enough to make you feel a sense of accomplishment
– Multi day with at least 3 nights camping required
– Generally isolated and away from too much infrastructure

Before we give you the list, recall that Australia is chock full of dangerous animals. My friend from Canberra found a poisonous snake in the back seat of his car while putting his infant daughter into the car seat. I’d rather risk a Grizzly than meet a Brown Snake on the Trail.

The walks, in no particular order, are:

  • Great South West Walk – Victoria
  • Wilsons Promontory Circuit Walk
  • Overland Track – Tasmania
  • Australian Alps Walking Track
  • Thorsborne Trail – Hinchinbrook Island – Queensland
  • Bibbulmun Track – Western Australia
  • Great Ocean Walk – Victoria

    • Read the entire entertaining post – Hiking with Bathmophobia – 7 hiking trips that won’t scare you to death (too much) !

    wallaby
    photo – besthike editor Rick McCharles – Overland Track, Tasmania – 2007 trip report

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    hike or bike length of New Zealand

    Love in a Tent comments on a New Zealand government plan to draw even more outdoor enthusiasts to that fantastic country.

    tongariro

    … New Zealand’s Prime Minister, John Key, held a “job summit” to try to find ways to save jobs during this global recession. He gathered together a bunch of business and labour leaders to see if a day of brainstorming could produce a miracle solution.

    While many ideas were bounced around, one of the ones that seems to have really caught the PM’s attention is a proposal to build a cycleway the entire length of New Zealand. This would become a major tourist draw, and help to boost falling visitor numbers. It would also create jobs building the trail, which was estimated to cost around $50 million. (Sounds low to me.) …

    Love in a Tent – Cycling to Save the NZ Economy?

    nz-hikeLove in a Tent advises that New Zealand not neglect the Te Araroa tramping trail. That’s 3,000km of gorgeous Kiwi walking. Volunteers are hoping to officially open it in late 2010. (One reason I’m planning to tramp New Zealand in 2011.)

    The Te Araroa Trust posted a response March 14th. An interesting point of view: The Pedal Corridor

    Personally, I’m happy to do the best parts of both routes. Hiking. And biking.