Best hikes, treks, tramps in the world.
Hiking Mt. Tyrwhitt is a photographer’s dream! The approach from highway pass takes you through a beautiful larch meadow. This is especially scenic in the fall when the larch trees change to a stunning gold color. As you near the summit a natural rock archway offers a unique scrambling experience …
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David Webb:
… Tucked away at the tip of the Yukon, with its base camp set at 69 degrees north and hundreds of kilometres from the nearest road, only a handful of people will ever visit this park. Untouched by the last Ice Age, it’s a place of unique rock formations, abundant wildlife—we saw muskox, caribou, grizzlies and Dall’s sheep—jaw-dropping mountain vistas, clearwater rivers and vast open tundra. …
And the hiking… wow. There was no point in the five days I spent in Ivvavik where Iwasn’t surrounded by an awesome panorama. From deep gorges carved by a frothy river; to tundra dotted with bright lupins; to multi-coloured slate stabbing from mountaintops like the spines on a dragon’s back; to the midnight sun circling the whole expanse like a halo. It is the most beautiful natural environment I have ever seen. (And I’ve seen a lot.) …
Video Post: Jaw-Dropping Ivvavik National Park
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Steve Hänsch:
El Chaltén is the trekking capital of Argentina and I spent more than 2 weeks there to do exactly that: hiking.
The Huemul circuit in El Chaltén is a lesser known route for experienced hikers and absolutely worth the efforts as you are able to experience real adventures and see massive ice fields and panoramic views that will blow your mind! …
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related – 2 Drifting Coconuts – Huemul Circuit: Our Best Trek in South America
We’ve added this adventure to our list of Best Hikes in South America.
A short inspirational edit from 2015.
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If you are considering a Nepal hiking adventure in future check our Annapurna information page. Guides are not required.
Yeesh. North Face ultra-runners Mike Foote and Mike Wolfe.
A classic training session for Dave and Jeni is to cycle up to the Chilco trailhead out of Coeur d’Alene. The big push is a relentless 4.2 miles up to the saddle. Some were left gasping.
Next a steep hike up to great views on the summit ridge.
This was Dave’s first real test of his knee since surgery. It survived. 🙂
It’s often windy up here. Today the weather was perfect.
The ride down on gravel I found sketchy. Dave and Jeni are Adventure Racers and found that challenge fairly trivial.
We were 4 hours up and down from Dave’s home. Hot tub and red wine was my reward.
Cycle hiking the Gulf Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Mayne Island is a rustic 21-square-kilometre (8.1 sq mi) island in the southern Gulf Islands chain of British Columbia. …
… a population of 1071. Mount Parke in the south-central heart of the island is its highest peak at 255 meters (837 feet). …
I arrived early enough on Mayne to do some sightseeing. First stop, historic St. Mary Magdalen, Anglican Church.
Nearby on Georgina Point is the most scenic light station on the island, built 1885.
One species not endangered anywhere. Canadian geese. 🙂
The previous two nights I was hidden away in the trees. But this wild camping tent site was worthy of a photo. Perfect.
I packed up next morning, stashing my panniers in the the trees. And cycled to the most popular hike on the island – Mount Parke.
I did a loop: Haliday Ridge Trail to the (appropriately named) Old Gulch Trail to the Lowland Nature Trail. My best hike in the Gulf islands, so far.
On the Haliday ridge I left a Summit Stone in an Arbutus tree. It seemed appropriate.
A highlight was watching Turkey Vultures pretend to be Bald Eagles.
The vistas are magnificent up here. My best weather, so far.
I was starving by the time I got down off the ridge. Happily Farm Gate Store is located near the trailhead. I had a burrito, coffee and muffin. All unbelievably healthy. 🙂
The rest of the day would be easy.
I peddled on to Campbell Point.
And was quite impressed with the facilities at the Adachi Community Pavilion.
It was here that the Kosumi family lived. Until 1942 when the Canadian government rounded them and all the other Japanese immigrants on the island and moved them to an internment camp. 😦
Today, the Japanese Gardens, located near Dinner Bay, are dedicated to the memory and legacy of the Mayne Island’s Japanese-Canadian community.
Of all the beautiful retirement homes I’ve seen so far, this one caught my eye. Elegant simplicity.
So … in the end I did only the one big hike on Mayne. Island Parks and Recreation does produce a brochure. But most of the other walks are very short.
After all this good weather it began to POUR liquid sunshine while I waited for the ferry to Victoria.
Hmm. What does a cyclist do in the rain?
Cycle hiking the Gulf Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Galeano Island is 27.5 km long, 6 km at its widest point, and 1.6 km across at its narrowest point …
… population of 1258 inhabitants. …
Seeing a campground an hour out from the ferry landing at Sturdies Bay, I went to check out Montague Harbour Marine Provincial Park.
Nice setup. But the cost was $25 / site for up to 4 people. I prefer the pricing model $10 / person.
So I turned my bike around and wild camped nearby.
In the morning I packed up early and rode back to the campground to make coffee. There’s a good hike there called the Gray Peninsula Trail. About 2km.
I cycled on to the Pebble Beach hike trailhead. Breakfast was cold pizza on this bench.
You reach the coast at Cable Bay. Then saunter over to Pebble Beach.
On a trail map it looked like I could cycle a mountain bike trail to Laughlin lake, the largest body of water on Galiano. That’s a bit risky on a hybrid bike. Happily, it worked.
Four guys in this boat arrived for a picnic. Boat and kayak are the best ways to get to Dionisio.
I returned via the dead end Bodega Beach Drive seeing only 2 vehicles in 3 hours. An ideal place to cycle.
The best hike on the island was yet to come – Bodega Ridge.
Bodega started much like any other hike, a welcoming soft temperate rain forest trail.
The fun starts when you get up on the ridge. A steep drop with marvellous views.
Galiano was a hard day for me. I could barely keep my eyes open on the ferry to Pender.
I’d like to return one day. Kayak to camp at Dionisio. And climb Mt Galiano, the highest point on the island.
trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
day 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Traverse info page
Camping Chinay picnic area > Upper Estero Mocho
We debated whether or not to sidetrip to the Palguín hotsprings. Lonely Planet claimed it was 3.5km by road one way. That would mean 7km total IF we couldn’t find a ride with a vehicle.
The walk was actually about 8km one way. AND the one hotspring we paid for was not particularly hot. I did enjoy the menu of the day, however.
A first for me – burnt sugar cubes.
Happily we were able to get a ride back from the hotsprings to the trail, paying a staff person a few dollars for the lift.
Our first hassle on this trip. Burrs. 😦 It’s difficult to avoid them at lower altitude.
In fact, the Traverse is two hikes separated by the road walk we took yesterday. Theres no real reason to walk them connected. The start of the second half is here.
It was a steep climb to get back up to the Traverse.
The Monkey Puzzles kept me moving.
We were steadily leaving Villarrica behind.
Here’s one of the highlights – Mirador los Volcanes. We could see at least 6 from one spot.
What you don’t see in the photos are hordes of horseflies (called tabanos here) even up at that high altitude in the wind. Later we learned that south central Chile doesn’t have many mosquitos, but they do have horseflies in January. I’ve never seen them so aggressive.
From the Mirador it’s a long, interesting ridge walk.
We walked quickly, swatting flies.
When we finally reached the Lonely Planet recommended camp all we could do was jump into our tents to hide out until dark. The flies were that bad.
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