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October 11, 2018October 11, 2018

Wales – Pembrokeshire Coast Path – day 4

Trip Report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

I made coffee in the vestibule of my tent in the dark. Packed up and was on my feet by 8am. BIG day ahead. The toughest and most physically demanding of any on the Coast Path.

It was about 2 miles to town. Another 14 miles more (at least) to finish.

I finally saw rabbits on one farm. (SLUGS are much more plentiful.)

Giant mushrooms.

I detoured to Newport town to pick up provisions. There was some chance I’d need to wild camp again. I had no reservation for the hostel. And it was Saturday.

Scones and fruit cake are high calorie. Easy to eat.

For the first time in my hiking career an official trail crossed a golf course. That’s cool.

In the parking lot Duke of Edinburgh hikers were unloading. These are students who had to plan and execute an expedition of at least 2 days and 1 night. They looked woefully unprepared to me.

The steep, sheer, non-stop cliffs begin. The highest 575ft (175m). There’s only one emergency exit all day.

Narrow trails. Far less used than those in the south.

Yes. Muddy.

Most of the coves are inaccessible except from sea.

Stunning scenery. The weather improved over the day.

October in Pembrokeshire. You know what that means? 🙂 It’s Atlantic grey seal breeding time!

I did see dozens of seals. (And 5 distant dolphins.)

But I saw only one pup. The baby (white) looked nearly as big as Mom.

Pups can’t swim yet. And they are very uncoordinated on land. Helpless as a human baby.

Click PLAY or watch a similar baby on YouTube.

Mom was in the perfect protected spot, however. A collapsed sea cave called Witch’s Calderon.

Weather was great. Aside from the wind.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

I was quite happy to round the corner and see that cliffs had ended. I’d been walking for nearly 8 hours.

On a weekend, I feared Poppit Sands hostel would be full. I’d need to wild camp again.

Happily there was space at the inn. I spent about 25 minutes in the hot shower! Welsh hostels are excellent.

It was a fun night chatting with an entertaining, informative Irishman. (Are there any other kind?) He was just finishing up a 3 month cycling holiday.

Before dinner I walked Poppit beach. My Coast Path would be ending first thing in the morning.

____

After coffee in the morning I had 2 miles left to trail end in St Dogmaels.

I visited the ancient Abby. And church built 1847 from Abby stones.

Here’s the finish.

Over 4 days I’d walked the first 20 miles. And the last 25 miles. About a quarter of the Coast Path. It was enough.

Then I walked another 2 miles along the Wales Coast Path, an 870-mile (1,400 km) route around the whole coast of Wales, to the bus stop at Cardigan. From there I planned to catch a bus to the train station.

What! What?

In October there are no longer ANY buses to anywhere on a Sunday. Bus service has been shrinking for years for rural towns in Wales. ☹️

The closest train station was 50£ by cab. I hate taxis. So checked into a lovely hotel instead for 45£. A holiday from my hiking vacation.

Pembrokeshire Coast Path is definitely one of the top 10 coastal hikes in the world.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Cicerone publishes an excellent guidebook with detailed map.

October 10, 2018October 11, 2018

Wales – Pembrokeshire Coast Path – day 3

Trip Report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

I had a plan. And plenty of doubts whether or not I’d make all the connections.

8am breakfast at the Manorbier Youth Hostel
8:33am bus to Tenby
9:37am train to Fishguard

That all worked! I was pleased.

I wanted to continue my hiking on the spectacular northern end of the Coast Path.

I studied the litter by the train tracks. Mostly drink containers. Some fast food wrap. Cigarette packages.

There was no trash can available on this platform. No wonder, Wales.☹️

I headed for Fishguard because it had a train station. From there I hoped to catch one of the much promoted coastal bus lines.

Wanting to head in the direction of St. Davids, locals sent me to catch the Strumble Shuttle. Starting Oct 4th it went on winter hours. Only two days a week: Thursday and Saturday.

I checked my watch. I’d arrived Friday, Oct 5th. ☹️

… Oh well. I started walking instead in the other direction. Towards the north end of the Coast Path. The best and most difficult section.

I picked up some provisions (including 2 litres of water) in town before climbing up and away towards headlands.

It was 1pm. I had about 6 hours of daylight to get as far as I could … wanting to shorten tomorrow’s final, most difficult day. I left Fishguard as quickly as possible.

There’s the ferry to Ireland.

It was misty, almost drizzling, all day. Many of my panorama photos looked a little grey.

Still, every hiker I spoke with felt it was great weather for walking. I heard it had been too hot in this section during summer 2018.

The cliffs grew increasingly rugged. Increasingly challenging. The highpoint of the day is 465ft (142m).

There are more cows than sheep.

Vegetation is dense. Plenty of thorny berry bushes.

I considered tenting in this bay, but it was still too early in the day.

Certainly I enjoyed the walking. There’s much to distract from the exertions of climbing up and down cliffs with full pack.

About 6pm I started looking for a discrete place to wild camp. Slim pickings. The Welsh have had hundreds of years to lock up their private property. There’s no “right to roam” in Wales.

The public space was a narrow path, dense shrub and then a deadly fall to the sea.

I lucked out reaching a now closed nature reserve. Climbed the fence. Found a secluded spot. And set up the Hubba.

It still had not rained. … Not until the middle of the night when I had to scramble and put on the fly.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

October 9, 2018October 11, 2018

Wales – Pembrokeshire Coast Path – day 2

Trip Report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Day 1 had gone perfectly.

Day 2 would be problematic. I could hike in the opposite direction from the hostel … but it was unlikely I’d find a bus to get me back.

In the end I decided to take a chance. If I couldn’t find a bus, I’d backtrack the way I came. My turnaround time would be 3pm.

Immediately the scenery was more dramatic than anything I’d seen so far. BIG cliffs.

This rugged, remote area is used for military training. At one point I was forced to walk around a training camp.

Most of my day was walking high cliffs.

The few coves had stairs. Most of them, in any case.

You can see how the earth was flipped 90 degrees at some point in geological history.

The Pembrokeshire Coast Path (opened 1970) is part of the longer Wales Coast Path. Many of these trails have multiple logos.

Though I’d been staying at the the Manorbier Youth Hostel (in Skrinkle), I finally made it to the village of Manorbier.

I’d been looking forward to see the quite intact Manorbier Castle. It’s privately owned now, but public can buy tea and access.

Across the way is the 12th century Norman Church.

More interesting to me was an ancient dovecote. This was home to about 250 birds. Doves and pigeons laid 2 eggs about six times a year. Squabs (4-6 weeks) were an important food source as were the eggs.

I carried on. It was hazy all day, but did not rain.

I saw many hikers.

Finally. Clearwater East Beach. It was here I was hoping to find a bus.

I walked the sand dunes to town.

Bad news. The chap in the ice-cream truck told me buses after Oct 1st only run once a day each way. The bus I needed had past about 2 hours earlier.

I ended my hiking day here. Had a bite to eat at the only pub in town. And retraced my steps, running most of the flat sections.

It was still a terrific hiking day.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

October 8, 2018October 11, 2018

Wales – Pembrokeshire Coast Path – day 1

Trip Report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

I’ve been trying to get to the Pembrokeshire Coast Path for years. It’s one of our top 10 coastal hikes in the world.

Happily, I can now personally confirm that it deserves to be on that list.

Opened 1970, it’s 186 miles (299km). You can hike it in 12 days of about 15 miles.

Few thru hike. But it’s very popular with day hikers.

I knew the area around Tenby had some of the best hiking sections. So decided to take the train from Cardiff to Tenby to start.

A second train got me 2 miles away from the Manorbier Youth Hostel. (It’s in Skrinkle, not Manorbier.) I used my camera flashlight and Maps.me to find my way over dark rural roads. I arrived at the hostel 9pm.

Next morning I fueled up with a hearty Welsh breakfast. And plenty of coffee.

The hostel is perfect. Right on the Coast Path.

They have inexpensive private rooms, tenting and these cute huts.

It’s an ideal base for hiking. Head for the water. And follow the acorn blazes.

The weather this day was … Welsh. Threatening. But no rain.

Though parkland, much of the walk has grazing animals staring at you.

As expected, these cliffs are rugged.

It’s an area that that has been much used by the British military over the years. Near Penally you can still see trenches where troops trained during WW I.

Approaching Tenby you begin to see holiday home trailer parks.

The number of full time residents is smaller than I’d expect.

The trail is endless entertaining. There’s always something unexpected around the next corner.

I was impressed with Tenby from some distance away.

In fact, I’d say Tenby is as cute and interesting a holiday destination as any town I can recall. Visit Tenby and stay 2-3 nights. There’s plenty to do and see.

Past Tenby is one official end of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path. It’s a nice walk to Amroth.

And I was happy to reach the start.

I caught the last bus returning to Tenby. And the last bus from Tenby back to the hostel.

There are buses along the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, but some run very few times a day. Especially during the “winter” season which normally starts October 1st.

All in all, an excellent hiking day.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

October 4, 2018

great hike out of Manali, India

My next trip to the Indian Himalaya will include Manali.

For sure I’ll be including Beas Kund.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

September 27, 2018September 25, 2018

“Hidden Gem” hikes USA

Have you heard of any of these?

1) Gore Range, Eagles Nest Wilderness, Colorado
2) Gap Run, Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
3) Jones Hole, Dinosaur National Monument, Utah
4) Indian Point, Garden of the Gods Wilderness, Illinois
5) Redwood Canyon, Kings Canyon National Park, California
6) Sal Hollow, Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky
7) Sahale Glacier Camp, North Cascades National Park, Washington
8) Charon’s Garden, Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Oklahoma
9) Yankee Paradise, Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia
10) Mt. Cabot, White Mountain National Forest, New Hampshire

Find a new adventure in the book “Backpacker Hidden Gems: 100 Greatest Undiscovered Hikes Across America.” Author Maren Horjus, Backpacker Magazine’s destinations editor.

September 26, 2018

Zion Narrows Backcountry Trek closed

If there’s one iconic backcountry trip at Zion National Park in Utah that lures visitors from around the world, it’s the 16-mile hike through the Zion Narrows. On Tuesday, however, that trek was put out of reach when a private landowner closed his property as an access point to The Narrows. …

National Parks Traveler

It’s still possible to wade / walk part of the Narrows, but not the traditional route.

September 22, 2018September 23, 2018

Morocco’s Toubkal Circuit – day 5

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | info | video

Most guided hikers departed in the dark as — normally — the peak is clearest in the morning. I decided to wait until first light, instead.

In fact, before dawn there were lightning flashes in the direction of Toubkal. I rolled over thinking I’d not be doing the peak at all.

On waking I enjoyed 2 pots of coffee … and waited about an hour before packing up.

… but weather seemed to be clearing.

It was worth giving it a try. I could always turn back if lightning resumed.

The start of the Toubkal climb is the most challenging part. It’s a scramble.

While I was beginning dozens were descending, many wearing headlamps. That was a bit disconcerting. #late #late #late

Vertical gain is about 960m, but it seemed to go quickly and easily for me. I was well acclimatized for altitude.

There are several false summits. Here was my first glimpse of the top.

Myself and a couple from eastern Europe were the highest humans for at least 2000km. And the views were great. 🙂

I could look back to where I’d come from a couple of days ago.

If anything, weather was still improving.

We were the last people on the mountain … except for one Canadian coming up even later. And a Moroccan couple. They were very late because they’d walked up from Imlil. That’s over 2400m of gain in one day!

The couple had found my PHONE! I’d left it on a boulder on the way up. Whew!

I enthusiastically thanked them and urged them to continue as they’d be getting much better weather than the early morning mob.

… I was way wrong. ☹️

Thunder and lightning returned about an hour later. The Canadian turned back. Last he saw the Moroccan couple were still ascending into the lighting storm. Very dangerous.

Me? I hid in a cramped cave.

Once it finally quit I trudged tiredly down to Imlil.

It’s a pretty town, actually.

I was totally psyched to make it back to Marrakesh same day. I pushed.

But the road near the taxi stand was impassable due to flash flood.

I turned back and had dinner in a crossroads restaurant. A huge, steaming omelette.

A Brit I’d spoken with earlier on the street had recommended their hotel — Les Etoiles de Toubkal.

It was excellent. The best room I’d had in nearly 2 months. It cost me $30 including breakfast.

I took several hot, hot showers and went to sleep early.

Next morning I was up before daylight as almost every other guest was packing up and getting ready to hike up to the Refuge. It was fun having breakfast with an enthusiastic group from the U.K.

They left at 8am just as their mules were arriving. YES they did have mules, not horses.

Their U.K. guide confided to me that getting a large group like this started was like herding cats. But once on the trail, it was easy.

My hotel told me the road might open about noon. That prices for transportation would be higher than normal because of the backlog.

I walked down to check. Road still closed. Big machines still arriving.

But the Atlas Extreme shop was finally open. It is well stocked. Copies of all the english language trekking guidebooks including the one I had wanted – Moroccan Atlas by Alan Palmer. Every kind of camping fuel. Top line gear.

Eventually I noticed that the shop was not actually open. The workers there were doing some renovations.

I met the Canadian who got caught in the storm again. He had an afternoon bus reservation. We decided to try to walk out past all the road blockages to get the first possible transport.

It was less than a km to reach waiting taxis. He and I outbid others wanting to climb into the first waiting vehicle. I paid 6 times what I’d paid on the way up.

It was worth it.

AND he made it to the bus station in Marrakesh on time. With 10 minutes to spare.

My adventure was a surprising success considering how little information I had on arrival in Imlil five days earlier.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | info | video

September 21, 2018September 23, 2018

Morocco’s Toubkal Circuit – day 4

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | info | video

Once again the guided hiking group nearby was up and gone before I’d even woken up.

I started up into a very cool gorge section. It was dark and hazy.

This is Azib Imi n’Ouassif (2841m), a crossroads of several gorges where some people camp.

From here it’s a steep climb to the pass at Tizi n’Ouanoums.

Escapee goats live on these inhospitable cliffs. There’s not much to eat.

It was a bit of a relief to reach the second high pass of the circuit. From here it was all downhill … at least while carrying full pack.

Descending the pass was supposed to be a bit treacherous. As I crossed it wasn’t all that bad.

I could see some of the Iceland group having lunch at the bottom. By the time I got there they had begun climbing a secondary trail up the other side to the 2nd / 3rd highest peaks in north Africa. Their guide stayed back having hurt his ankle. In fact he sent the group cook as guide in his stead.

I had some lunch too. Then, with plenty of time, followed. Weather looked good.

The scramble to one Ouanoukrim summit — Ras Ouanoukrim (4083m) — in a hail storm turned out to be the highlight of the entire circuit. We had a blast.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

I hustled over to another lump of a peak — Timzguida (4089m) — which we later found out to be 5m higher.

In fact my phone had it (wrongly) at 4100m.

I left a Summit Stone.

Once safely down, the others headed off briskly (as they always did) to rejoin their group. One of the men, Dorfi, had once led a 3 week horse trek across Iceland. This weather was nothing to him. He wore a wool sweater under a waterproof poncho on that trip. Never got wet.

In no rush I walked slowly downhill to Toubkal Refuge (3207m).

I’d plan to wild camp again … until I saw the massive complex. It looked intriguing.

As it was raining too I decided to camp at Refuge Mouflon and sign up for the 7pm dinner. It was pretty good.

I charged my batteries in Mouflon after dinner and watched an episode of Better Call Saul on my phone as I waited. Then headed out into the rain to my tent.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | info | video

September 20, 2018September 23, 2018

Morocco’s Toubkal Circuit – day 3

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles.

day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | info | video

I had camped at a site called Azib Likemt with a guided German group.

They were up and gone long before I finished my coffee.

I followed the last of their horsemen up and over a low pass.

From the col you descend to the impressive Berber village of Amsouzert (1797m).

When water is available this mountain range is incredibly lush.

It’s a very interesting place. I could see staying overnight here.

Many homes had satellite dishes.

In fact, I later decided to recommend future hikers start at Amsouzert. It’s on the N10 highway connecting Marrakesh and Ouarzazate. A private taxi is the easiest way to get here.