Category: urban

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Walking Dubrovnik’s Walled City

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

Any tourist that can climb steps, walks Dubrovnik walls. 

One of the worldโ€™s best and best preserved walled cities

UNESCO World Heritage site

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Game of Thrones scenery

length ~ 2km

Itโ€™s a hot destination right now for cruise ships and Instagram influencers.  

Highest priority for me was walking the famed walls.  2kms.  I walked it twice in sequence. 

Cost is 35 EU !?

For a HIKE !!

So โ€” like almost every tourist โ€” I bought the 35EU Dubrovnik Pass which pays for the wall, the castle, Rectorโ€™s Palace, and several more interesting attractions. 

You also get a 24 hour bus ticket which costs about 5 EU by itself.   … Of course there’s no room on the buses. ๐Ÿ˜€

Unfairly, the feral cats do not have to pay. ๐Ÿ˜€ 

I walked the circuit twice in series in the morning. And returned later in the late afternoon to go again โ€” only to learn that you are only allowed to enter the Walls once on a ticket.

That’s probably a good idea. In the summer Dubrovnik is PACKED shoulder-to-shoulder with tourists. This small area really can’t handle this many visitors in high season.

SONJA NOVAK, Dubrovnik tour guide, put together the Walking Dubrovnik City Wallsโ€”2023 Guide.

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Marjan Loop, Split, Croatia

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

The best hike in Split, Croatia is the 8km Marjan Loop in the most popular park in town.

vista from Marjan Hill

Actually, there are many options in this park โ€” and I deviated from the AllTrails version several times, getting scolded by my app for being off trail. ๐Ÿ˜€

Screenshot

Marjan hill (178 m (584 ft)) is a CLIMB. But there are great vistas in every direction.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

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Hillwalking Dumyat, Sterling, Scotland

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

To the east of Stirling, the Ochil Hills dominate the skyline with the highest peak in the range being Ben Cleuch, although Dumyat is more noticeable from town.

Dumyat is a popular climb with tourists and visitors to the Trossachs area, due to the historical nature of Stirling and the proximity of the Wallace Monument.

I downloaded Dumyat via Blairlogie Carpark on AllTrails.

Took the bus from town to lovely University of Stirling. That’s the Wallace monument in the distance.

Picked up some pizza at the Student’s Union.

Then started uphill to intersect the trail.

The reservoir left looked interesting, so I detoured around the water way.

Hillwalking

It’s 394 m ascent from the actual trailhead. I must have climbed another 100 m from the University.

Certainly my legs felt this hillwalk. ๐Ÿ˜€

Adrianmckie, CC BY-SA 4.0

Mostly the trails are good. Well used.

There are plenty of dog walkers.

Screenshot

Things get rougher as you ascend.

By the top, wind was howling.

There are several commemorative installations.

I felt this was very typical Scottish Hillwalking.

Over the afternoon I had hot sun, blue sky, rain, hail, sleet, wind โ€” multiple times.

Bring layers ready for anything.

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Walking Arthur’s Seat, Edinburgh, Scotland

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

Arthur’s Seat is often listed one of the best urban hikes in the world.

It’s an ancient extinct volcano, which forms most of Holyrood Park. 

Only 1 mile (1.6 km) to the east of Edinburgh Castle.

The hill rises above the city to a height of 250.5 m (822 ft), providing excellent panoramic views.

BUSY on a nice weather Sunday

It’s relatively easy to climb, and is popular for hillwalking. Hillwalking being the most popular term for hiking in the U.K.

I walked out my hostel. Down the Royal Mile past the Parliament Buildings. And up to the top.

Kim Traynor

Added a sidesidetriptrip to St Anthonyโ€™s Chapel, a picturesque medieval ruin. 

And over to the steepest cliffs โ€” the Salisbury Crags. 

On the walk back, passing the Scottish Parliament Buildings, you detour to Calton Hill.

A terrific half day adventure. All on foot.

One highlight I missed is a little known tunnel under the volcanic plug.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

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Hole in the Wall, Port Alberni BC

Hole in the Wall, a short day hike, is a is fast becoming a major attraction for the Vancouver Island community.

The hole is all that remains of a decades old water line.

Click PLAY or watch my 2023 video on YouTube. At dawn I had the waterfalls to myself.

Check in at the Port Alberni Visitor Centre for directions.

Parking can be difficult though the trail itself is only an easy 1.3km return walk.

Rather than following the normal route as posted on AllTrails Port Alberni Hole in the Wall, I walked instead from an industrial park end of Sherwood Road.

Definitely muddier and less traveled, I did find it interesting. Nobody else parked there.

Here are the rough trails as shown on Maps.me.

Click PLAY or get a glimpse of my 2021 hike on YouTube.

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World’s Best URBAN Hikes

We’ve always ranked Hong Kong as the city with the best hiking within easy range of local transit.

It’s included in one list posted by Matador:

One hike that’s easily as good as those is in Valencia, Spain.

Hong Kong
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Walking First SNOW of the Year

I woke up surprised to see a winter wonderland outside my window.

October 22nd, Calgary, Canada.

I put on my winter jacket and headed out quickly to enjoy the clean, white fresh stuff โ€”ย watching for Bobcat tracks. My neighbourhood is the only place I’ve ever seen Bobcat.

Sarcee Meadows, Calgary
My Junior High School, A.E. Cross.
My Elementary School, Glamorgan.
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Hiking Valencia, Spain

trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

One of the best urban hikes anywhere is in Spain’s 3rd largest city. Home of paella. ๐Ÿ˜€

While many tourists stick to the historic centre, the best walking is on a long green space to a complex designed by local architectย Santiago Calatravaย โ€” the futuristic City of Arts and Sciencesย (Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciรจncies), which contains an opera house/performingย arts centre, aย science museum, anย IMAXย cinema/planetarium, an oceanographic park and other structures such as a long covered walkway and restaurants.ย 

It’s impressive.

Cityscape of Valencia. Turia park. Aerial view

Usually called Turia Garden, the park is officially 9km long. But expect your mileage to be quite a bit longer. I was on it at least 5 hours with side trips.

To start, I caught the subway to the Zoo on the far left of this map.

click for larger version

One essential stop is the Botanical Garden of Valencia (Jardรญ Botร nic).

You really need several hours to explore the massive City of Arts and Sciences. There is a lot to do and see.

Click PLAY or get a glimpse of this urban hike on YouTube.