Alice Ford’s BEST HIKES USA

A great list. Diverse Scenery.

01:25 Clouds Rest to Half Dome
02:40 John Muir Trail
03:38 Avalanche Lake
04:34 Laughton Glacier Alaska
07:32 Sahale Glacier – Washington
08:48 Big Pine Lakes
09:51 Beehive Trail – Maine
11:00 False Kiva
12:07 Cloudland Canyon Waterfall Trail
13;16 Kings Peak
15:35 Rattlesnake Arches
16:30 Double O Arch
17:35 Havasu Falls
18:40 Kalalau Trail
19:53 Franconia Ridge Loop
20:42 Longs Peak
22:07 Lost Coast Trail
23:00 Teton Crest Trail

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

How Hiking TRANSFORMS Your Body

Heart, lungs, cardiovascular benefits — for sure.

After 17 days on the John Muir Trail I felt fantastic. Lean and fit.

But there are some risks with long slow distance exercise over many, many days.

  • Perhaps 5000 calories burn rate fuelled by junk food, in many cases
  • reproductive system may be affected
  • possible bone density loss — but it should be restored after a few months

Of course there’s a risk of injury. Especially chronic injury.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Great Hikes in British Columbia

Leigh McAdam recommends:

Berg Lake

Elfin Lakes, Garibaldi Provincial Park

Elk Lakes – Petain Basin

Eva Lake, Mount Revelstoke National Park

Frosty Mountain, Manning Provincial Park

Garibaldi Lake, Garibaldi Provincial Park

Gwillim Lakes, Valhalla Provincial Park

Howe Sound Crest Trail near Vancouver

Hermit Trail, (Canadian) Glacier National Park

Iceline Trail – Yoho Valley Loop

Juan de Fuca Marine Trail

Kaslo Lake or Kokanee Glacier Cabin, Kokanee Glacier Park

Mount Assiniboine

Nootka Island Trail

North Coast Trail

Rainbow Range Trail, Tweedsmuir Provincial Park

Rockwall Trail

Sunshine Coast Trail

Takkakaw Falls – Laughing Falls – Twin Falls – Whaleback Ridge Loop 

West Coast Trail

Details from Leigh Adams on Hike Bike Travel21 Backpacking Trips in BC That Will Blow You Away

Eva Lake in Mount Revelstoke National Park


Having done most of those adventures myself, of that list I’d first recommend:

West Coast Trail

Mount Assiniboine

Appalachian Trail ➙ Heartwood by Amity Gaige

Amity Gaige had a hit with this novel.

Personally, I felt the storytelling average. Sometimes pretentious.

What kept me going was the plot story of the search for Valerie Gillis, a 42-year-old hiker known as “Sparrow,” who vanishes while navigating the challenging Appalachian Trail.

After weeks experience on the A.T., Sparrow makes many dumb mistakes.

The book was slightly inspired by the story of Geraldine Largay who went missing in 2013 and survived for 26 days.

Valerie pours her thoughts into fractured, poetic letters to her mother as she battles the elements and struggles to keep hoping.

At the heart of the investigation is Beverly, the determined Maine State Game Warden tasked with finding Valerie, who leads the search on the ground. Meanwhile, Lena, a seventy-six-year-old birdwatcher in a Connecticut retirement community, becomes an unexpected armchair detective. …

… The mystery inspires larger questions about the many ways in which we get lost, and how we are found. …

Amazon

The ending of the book did tie up things well.

And some of the philosophical musings were interesting to me.

Farewell Rathtrevor Beach, Vancouver Island

Over the years, I’ve taken thousands of photos Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park close to Nanaimo, Vancouver Island.

Most of those near dawn. I’d enjoy my first coffee of the day on the beach.

BUT summer 2025 I’m relocating back to my home townCalgary, Alberta.

I’ll miss those Rathtrevor mornings.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. Montage of some of my favourite photos.

See more of my favourite Rathtrevor pics on Flickr.

Of course I’ve made many VIDEOS on Rathtrevor, as well.

My favourite of those is Vancouver Island at Dawn — 4 Seasons 🎵.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

When I first got into serious VIDEO editing — during COVID — this 2020 edit is another favourite. 😀

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Hiking Town – Queenstown, New Zealand

Queenstown, New Zealand.  YES!

The Adventure Capital of the World, a gorgeous location on Lake Wakatipu opposite the saw-toothed Remarkable range.

If you’ve never been to New Zealand, start planning. Now. It’s our #1 hiking destination on Earth.

Queenstown is an international resort town in Otago in the south-west of New Zealand’s South Island. …

According to the 2006 census, the usually resident population of the Queenstown urban area … is 10,416 …

… a centre for adventure tourism. Skiing, jet boating, whitewater rafting, bungy jumping, mountain biking, tramping and fly fishing are all strong promotional themes. …

Queenstown is the departure point for a large number of day trips to the similarly famous Milford Sound …

More interesting photos tagged Queenstown.

If you find it too much of a tourist trap, move away up the lake to Te Anau (pop. about 2000). It’s got everything you need to stage for an epic Kiwi hike.

Our favourite hike hikes out of Queenstown and Te Anau are:

Milford Track
• Routeburn Track
• Kepler Track

These are the three on the list of Great Walks. (Kiwis avoid them because they’re crowded with international tourists. Locals can take you on hikes just as good, but unknown to foreigners.)

on the Milford Track
on the Kepler Track

More “best hikes” in New Zealand and Australiasia.

Best months for these alpine tramps are December – March.

Start with our New Zealand information page.

Top Bridge Regional Trail, Vancouver Island

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

The closest officially designated hiking trail to Parksville is Top Bridge Regional Trail from Rathtrevor Provincial Park.

I’ve hiked it at least 100 times — though it’s been rerouted in recent years.

Only 4km one way to an impressive pedestrian-cyclist suspension bridge from my favourite beach on Vancouver Island, Rathtrevor.

Normally I don’t start from Rarthrevor. I skip the road walking and begin at the “I” information sign. That’s the trailhead parking lot: 175 Allsbrook Rd, Parksville.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

NOTE ➙ There are plans to expand the municipal trail system by connecting Top Bridge and Coombs to Parksville Rail Trail.

Magical Day Hike – Alpine Circuit, Lake O’Hara, Canada

One of our top 10 day hikes in the world.

Why?

Many feel this is the most beautiful of the Canadian Rockies trails.

  • Yoho National Park in British Columbia near Banff, Alberta.
  • mid-June through the end of September (start and end dates vary) for example, bus operated for hikers and campers from June 19 to October 4, 2018
  • 11.6 km
  • perhaps 9 hours
  • perhaps 900 photos 🙂
  • highest point 2528 m
  • elevation gain 1012 m

World → N AmericaRockies → Canada → Alpine Circuit, Lake O’Hara

For details click over to our Alpine Circuit, Lake O’Hara information page.