Category: websites

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Hiking with Chuck – Where to Hike

Chuck Bonner — of Hiking with Chuck — sent us recommendations for some “best hikes and hiking areas” out of New Hampshire:

  • Mine Falls Park in Nashua, New Hampshire
  • Suwannee Canal Recreation Area in Georgia’s Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
  • Ripley Falls in New Hampshire’s Crawford Notch State Park
  • Saco Lake Trail in New Hampshire’s Crawford Notch State Park
  • Elephant Head in New Hampshire’s Crawford Notch State Park
  • Arethusa Falls, New Hampshire

    • One sounds particularly inviting:

  • Mount Willard in New Hampshire’s Crawford Notch State Park.

    • I’ve heard it called “the best view for the easiest walk in the White Mountains.

    chuck.jpgFor details check out Hiking with Chuck:

    General Considerations for Finding a Place to Hike

    The first thing to ask yourself is, what exactly are you looking for? Then, consider what places are within your reach, practically speaking. Be sure to find out if the activity you have in mind is permitted in the place you’re going to. Last and perhaps most importantly, consider what you can handle.

    Hiking with Chuck – Where to Hike


    More hiking trails in New Hampshire     – NHStateParks.com

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    OneDayHikes.com – best day hikes

    We include relatively few day hikes on our list of the best hikes in the World.

    For more, check out the excellent OneDayHikes.com list. Here’s a sample of their overview page:

    Aiguilles Traverse, Chamonix, France
    Take the Grand Balcon Nord, beneath the serrated cliffs and pinnacles of the Aiguilles, to an awe-inspiring view of the Mer de Glace.

    Aira Force, Ullswater, England
    This easy walk through a picturesque gorge is a good choice in wet weather, when the waterfalls are at their most dramatic.

    Alpine Circuit, Lake O’Hara, Canada
    Experience some of the finest hiking in the Canadian Rockies on a dramatic high country route past jagged peaks and glacial lakes.

    Alpine Lakes-Glacier, Great Basin, USA
    A beautiful hike through the mountains of the Snake Range, climbing to a close-up view of the Wheeler Peak glacier.

    Alum Cave Bluffs, Great Smoky Mountains, USA
    A trail that combines interesting rock formations with beautiful valley views.

    Angels Landing, Zion Canyon, USA
    An exciting trail that climbs steeply to the top of a promontory overlooking Zion Canyon, with long sheer drops on three sides.

    Bahia Lapataia, Ushuaia, Argentina
    A coastal walk between two beautiful bays on the southern shore of the Land of Fire, one of the remotest regions on earth.

    …

    one-day-hikes.jpg

    We’re linked to OneDayHikes.com from our right hand navigation column under WEBSITES.

    OneDayHikes.com – Full Hike List

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    top 10 LEAST visited American National Parks

    Since the relaunch of the National Parks Traveler blog, it’s become one of my favourite sites.

    These bloggers are passionate about the Parks. Extremely knowledgeable. And the depth and breadth of coverage is amazing.

    This recent post, for example, I found very interesting:

    Top 10 Most Visited National Parks

    Rank Park Name Visitation
    1 Great Smoky Mountains NP 9,289,215
    2 Grand Canyon NP

    		 4,279,439
    3 Yosemite NP 3,242,644
    4 Yellowstone NP 2,870,295
    5 Olympic NP

    		 2,749,197
    6 Rocky Mountain NP 2,743,676
    7 Zion NP 2,567,350
    8 Cuyahoga Valley NP

    		 2,468,816
    9 Grand Teton NP 2,406,476
    10 Acadia NP 2,083,588
    These two ‘top ten’ lists look pretty similar to last year’s numbers, but there has been some movement in the bottom ten parks.

    Want to avoid the crowds? Check out these least visited park units. Aniakchak had only 60 visitors last year! It has been noted though, counting must be tough at Aniakchak considering there are no permanent buildings (NPS or otherwise) at the monument. The only real way to get there is by float plane, and even that can be tricky I’ve been told.

    Counting down from 10 …

    Bottom 10 : The Least Visited Park Units

    Rank Park Name Visitation
    10 Noatak NPRES 3,272
    9 Kobuk Valley NP 3,005
    8

    Cape Krusenstern NM

    		2,598
    7 Salt River Bay NHP 2,526
    6 Alibates Flint Quarries NM 1,882
    5

    Frederick Law Olmsted NHS

    		1,559
    4 Bering Land Bridge NPRES 1,265
    3 National Park of American Samoa 1,239
    2 Rio Grande W&SR 135
    1 Aniakchak NM & PRES

    		 60

    It’s well worth the time to read the entire post written by Jeremy Sullivan: Top 10 Most Visited National Parks – National Parks Traveler

    Now …

    What about best hikes in those least visited Parks?

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    how to hike The West Coast Trail in Canada

    Nassib Elkadri works on the Parks Canada website.

    He tells me they’ve launched a new start section for anyone looking to walk our favourite hike The West Coast Trail on the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve of Canada home page.

    This information will be kept up-to-date.

    Parks Canada – Pacific Rim National Park Reserve of Canada – Home page

    wct.jpg
    screenshot

    We’ve added this new link (prominently) to our West Coast Trail information page. And tried to remove the old broken links.

    PS

    Nassib. Tell the department poobahs there you want to update Parks Canada pages, but NOT change the URLS.

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    South American Explorers Club

    We’ve added a more conspicuous link to SAE on all our South America pages.

    Anyone planning to hike there is strongly advised to join. Cost is about US$50 / yr.

    Planning to study Spanish? Raft the Amazon? Hike the Inca Trail? Work on an archaeological dig? Find volunteer work? Explore the Galapagos? Scuba dive? Climb Aconcagua? Kayak the Apurimac? Soak up sun on the beach? Drive or bicycle around the continent? Join an expedition? Or look for birds?

    Whatever you want to do, South American Explorers can help with trip planning, member recommended guides and outfitters, discounts on lodging, schools, travel…and much more.

    We are not a travel agency or a tour operator, rather, we specialize in assisting independent travelers and groups make the most of their experiences.

    We are a non-profit organisation that provides personal help and attention to details backed up with nearly 30 years of experience. That’s how long we’ve been assisting scientists, researchers, students and others heading to South America. So, take some time to explore all our website has to offer and contact us today to see how we can help you!

    Email us at explorer@saexplorers.org. Or, if you’re in the U.S. give us a call at 1-800-274-0568. Let’s talk!

    South American Explorers

    Gracias Miles Buesst of the Lima club house. I spent many days there prepping for my treks.

    sae.jpg

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    wicked outdoorsy: How green is YOUR backpack?

    Wicked Outdoorsy – right again:

    More and more, I’m beginning to realize that Treehugger is the green-zine equivalent of a politician on the stump.

    Regardless of the good intent, regardless of the question, the answer is about an hour too long and meanders down a winding yellow road through fields of poppies.

    Oh Toto. My eyes … sleepy …. so sleepy.

    wicked outdoorsy: How green is YOUR backpack?

    I’d love to cancel my RSS subscription to Treehugger.com — it’s too “shotgun”.

    Can anyone recommend an environmental blog with more “balance”? One less preachy?

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    meaningless lists – National Geographic

    Whoopee. National Geographic posted 5 US National Parks “best hikes of 2007”.

    Mount LeConte – Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee and North Carolina

    Halemauu Trail – Haleakala National Park, Hawaii

    Tomales Point Trail – Point Reyes National Eashore, California

    Highland Creek Trail     – Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota

    Half Dome – Yosemite National Park, California

    National Parks: Hiking – National Geographic Adventure Magazine

    Hmm. Who chose these five??

    They should check our list of the best hikes in North America for next year. Only Half Dome is on our list.

    Whenever I see nonsensical articles like this I laugh anew at the meaningless list category on the Goblog site. They are SO right.

    People will read anything so long as it’s titled TOP 10 Hikes in the World.

    The GetOutdoors blog also has categories for meaningless awards and meaningless records.

    Now … I supposed I should check out the National Geographic list. A couple of these look pretty good. Perhaps they should be on our list.

    reyes.jpg
    Point Reyes National Seashore – NPS

    hawaii.jpg
    Haleakala National Park – NPS

    (via Modern Hiker)

    =====

    Much better is another less meaningless list posted by National Geographic in 2005:

    1. The Colorado Trail
    2. Buckskin Gulch, Utah
    3. John Muir Trail, California
    4. Kalalau Trail, Kaua’i, Hawai’i
    5. McGonagall Pass, Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska
    6. Fitz Roy Grand Tour, Patagonia, Argentina
    7. Kungsleden, Sweden
    8. Mount Everest Base Camp Trek, Nepal
    9. Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
    10. Routeburn Track, New Zealand
    11. Shackleton Crossing, South Georgia Island

    National Geographic Classic Hikes of the World

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    guided trek in Morocco

    Guide Aitelkadi Hassan contacted me regarding tours including treks in the Atlas Mountains. He collects you from the airport, makes all arrangements, and delivers you safely back for your return flight.

    Get some testimonials from other travelers, of course, before you sign on with any guiding service.

    atlas-guide.jpg

    atlas-trek.jpg

    Their website is AtlasWalkers.com (French).

    Here’s the home page translated from French to English using Google Translate. (Somewhat amusing, but still useful.)

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    FalconGuide’s Trailhead on-line community

    Welcome to the FalconGuides Trailhead. This is your starting point to a community filled with experts and enthusiasts who all share a passion for the outdoors and an interest in sharing their stories, photos, and experiences with others.

    FalconGuide’s Trailhead | Falcon Guides

    Thanks to Tom for pointing out this interesting new experiment:

    It’s all brand-new now, so it’s hard to judge how well it will turn out, but it’s worth a look. The “trail finder” is just a link to trails.com, a subscription service I’ve never felt compelled to invest in.

    Two-Heel Drive

    I’ll join and report back here. Quick to criticize what I don’t like about Falcon Guidebooks, this way I could be part of the system working to improve them.

    trailhead.jpg

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    hiking reservations on Recreation.gov

    I just tried using the new Recreation.gov website to book a campground in the USA.

    A bit “clunky”. Fairly slow.

    But at least it seems to work.

    The history of government National Park websites is a sad one. But they are slowly, slowly getting better.

    Recreation.gov is now the place for all your federal recreation reservations

    Be assured that all of your existing reservations remain in good standing, though they cannot be displayed or cancelled from this new website …

    New Membership required to make reservations

    You will need a Recreation.gov Membership to book reservations on this new website.
    You cannot sign-in with your old ReserveUSA.com or Reservations.NPS.gov membership.

    About Us – Recreation.gov

    recreationgov.jpg

    Leave a comment if you have had any experience with this system.