Backpacker – HIKE THE CLASSICS

Backpacker magazine recycles these (meaningless) list articles. But I still find them useful.

The Perfect Circle: Hiking the Annapurna Circuit

Chile’s Torres del Paine Circuit

PennineCorsica’s GR 20

Peru’s Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

Italy’s Alta Via 1

New Zealand’s Milford Track

England’s Pennine Way

Tanzania’s Mt. Kilimanjaro

Everest Base Camp, Tibet

Tour du Mont Blanc

details – HIKE THE CLASSICS (2009)

Nepal – Machhapuchhre trek

Most days I’d list ol’ Fishtail 6,993 m (22,943 ft) as my favorite mountain in the World.

Machapuchare or Machhapuchhre (माछापुछ्रे) Lit. “Fish Tail” in English, is a mountain in the Annapurna Himal of north central Nepal. It is revered by the local population as particularly sacred to the god Shiva, and hence is off limits to climbing. …

It’s easily seen from Pokara.

Fishtail Luc

fishtail

Here’s a 15 day lower elevation guided Himalaya Trek called Machhapuchhre Model Trek. Looks a lot easier than most in Nepal. And much safer vis-a-vis risk of altitude sickness.

ADZPCTKO 2013 – PCT kick off

PCT Kick Off (@adzpctko). Annual Day Zero Pacific Crest Trail Kick Off, April 26-28, 2013. Lake Morena County Park.

I’m putting it on my calendar. It’s a hiking PARTY.

Might even hike the first week or two of the Pacific Crest Trail.

2010

No promises, though.

My calendar is still up-in-the-air.

adzpctko.org

top 10 hiking regions in the world

Top-10#1 New Zealand – info page
#2 Southwest USA – info page
#3 The Rockies – info page
#4 USA Sierra Nevada – info page
#5 Central Andes – info page
#6 Patagonian Andes – info page
#7 Nepal – info page
#8 Australia – info page
#9 The Alps – info page
T #10 Indian Himalaya – info page
T #10 Dolomites – info page

New Zealand is #1 for us. But the wealth of options in North America make it a more compelling destination for most.

What do you think?

If you have any opinion please leave a comment.

great multi-day treks low altitude

Lonely Planet:

… just want to want to enjoy a good trek without worrying about acclimatising?

Altitude sickness, which usually kicks in around 2500-3000 metres (8200-9850 feet) and higher, affects some (but not all) of us, no matter how healthy you are.

And while we love Peru’s Inca Trail and Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro, both of these iconic treks hit heights that can affect your health and prevent you from summiting.

So we’ve rounded up the five best treks that feature unique terrain and boast fantastic scenery …

• W trek, Torres del Paine, Chile
• Bathali village treks, Nepal
• Milford Track, New Zealand
• GR20, Corsica, France
• Grand Canyon: rim to rim, Arizona

read more

Bathali Village Tour
Bathali Village Tour

BBC has sold Lonely Planet, by the way.

TORRES DEL PAINE – photo trip report

Keiko and Dave trekked Chile’s famed W from west to east.

Fantastic pics. Plenty of FOOD. 🙂

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

See the rest on the full trip report – Mini Guide for 5 days in TORRES DEL PAINE – CHILE – W trail

related – our Torres del Paine information page

Check a new book – Patagonia Chronicle: On Foot in Torres del Paine by Susan Alcorn.

I’m booked – Otter Trail, South Africa

by site editor Rick McCharles

I’m making my first pilgrimage to the hiking Mecca of South Africa.

One of our top 10 coastal hikes worldwide.

Otter Trail April 6-10th, 2013

The Otter Trail is a hiking trail along the Garden Route coast of South Africa and is named for the Cape Clawless Otter which occurs in this region.

… widely regarded as one of the finest in the world and stretches from Storms River Mouth in the east to Nature’s Valley in the west, is 26 km long as the crow flies and 41 km as the hiker walks.

Walking the trail takes 5 days, and the 4 nights are spent in comfortable huts with superb views. The route is located entirely within the Tsitsikamma National Park, which protects an 80 km long strip of coastal mountains, forest and beaches.

… an extremely scenic landscape, never straying far from the shoreline, but often climbing steeply and then descending to the beach or a river crossing. …

Jens Niere’s trip report video gives a good feel for what I have to look forward to.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Some serious water crossings.  😐

Skurka was there, too. (VIDEO)

• DAY 1: Storms River Mouth to Ngubu Huts – 4.8kms – 3 hours
• DAY 2: Ngubu Huts to Scott Huts – 7.9kms – 6 hours
• DAY 3: Scott Huts to Oakhurst Huts – 7.7kms – 4 hours
• DAY 4: Oakhurst Huts to Andre Huts – 13.8kms – 8 hours
• DAY 5: Andre Huts to Nature’s Valley – 8.3kms – 3 hours

It’s tough to get a hiking permit. But by applying solo, and being flexible on start date, I was able to nab one in high season only a couple of months in advance.

total cost – 1348.60 Rand ($150)