Best hikes, treks, tramps in the world.
I love British Colombia. It’s beautiful.
“Beautiful British Columbia” the license plates (formerly) confirmed.
Then the morons of the B.C. legislature decided to change the Provincial tagline to:
“The Best Place on Earth”
That’s been universally mocked.
via Van Shitty – Worst slogan on Earth
trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Standing 599 metres (1,965 ft) tall and located within an hour of downtown Tokyo, it is a popular hiking spot, with eight hiking courses and more than 2.5 million annual visitors. …
There did seem to be 10,000 or more the day I was there. Hordes of school children, too.
… choose to start climbing from the base, or take a funicular or ropeway ride halfway up the mountain. …
Climbing the paved trail #1 was mainly interesting for people watching. I had hoped to see monkeys (there’s an enclosure for them en route) but spotted none this day.
Trail 1 is nothing special for hiking. But there’s plenty of interesting history and culture, en route.
Most signage is in Japanese only, so I’m still mostly ignorant of what I was seeing.
You can sometimes see Mt Fuji (photo) from Tokao — but not the hazy day I was there.
On the descent, I started on Trail 4 — unpaved and far less busy.
This is more like it. … Still, there were men in business suits “hiking”.
At one point I left Trail 4 in the direction of “waterfall”. On this path there were only myself, one trail runner and this protective land crab.
I learned that it doesn’t take much to get away from the crowds in Japan. … On the other hand, I came off the mountain far from where I had started. Lost.
Yet anywhere in Tokyo you can find a map directing you to the nearest train station. I was quickly unlost.
see more photos from my day hike
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This is one end of the 1,697 kilometres (1,054 mi) Tōkai Nature Trail (東海自然歩道 Tōkai Shizen Hodō) which runs all the way to Osaka.
But I’ll take the train to Osaka today, instead.
He’s an Aussie bushwalking guru at Our Hiking Blog.
I’m headed Down Under in January, mate. I’ll bring the duct tape.
Alexandre and Sonia Poussin are two impressive adventurers.
I’ve just finished vol. 1 of their 3yr, 14,000km, walk of the length of Africa epic. They traveled the Rift valley.
Amazon – Africa Trek I: From the Cape of Good Hope to Mount Kilimanjaro
Here are some video highlights. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Volume 1 was translated very quickly into English resulting in some interesting word usage. Most entertaining en Anglais.
I’m keen to follow up with Africa Trek II: From Mount Kilimanjaro to the Sea of Galilee. Unfortunately it’s not available as an audio book in English, so it I may never get to it. These days it’s pretty much audio or nothing, for me.
Two places I really want to hike:
1) Bhutan
2) Bolivia
I keep waiting for Bhutan to open to independent trekkers. … sigh …
Bolivia I’ve actually hiked once, but did not have nearly as much time as I wanted.
Bolivia is Peru, but still little visited by trekkers.
… South America’s highest nation is known as the “Tibet of the Andes” for its altiplano, a plateau where valley bottoms sit at 13,000 feet. Above that, mountains are so big and buried in snow and glaciers that you really could mistake them for the Himalayas. And the best place to see it all is western Bolivia’s pristine and barely known Cordillera Apolobamba. Hard against the Peruvian border, the region is home to Andean condors, herds of vicuñas (related to alpacas), endangered speckled bears, and the 65-mile Apolobamba trek, which runs from Curva north across Apolobamba National Park to Pelechuco. The weeklong high route crosses five passes between 15,400 and 16,728 feet. …
Backpacker – CORDILLERA APOLOBAMBA, BOLIVIA
Safety is a real issue in that range. I’d likely sign on with local guides, like trek apolobamba
They are advertising a new adventure, by the way, … the Kallawaya Circuit.
… I was checking out the Sierra Trading Post blog, and stumbled up this breathtaking time lapse video of landscapes in Arizona and Utah. …
Be sure to click “Full Screen” in the lower right corner – it looks even more phenomenal!
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
Landscapes: Volume Two from Dustin Farrell.
Here’s volume 1 (VIDEO).
I try to get to the S.W. USA for hiking at least once a year.
Do you know the Way of St. James (Camino De Santiago)?
… the pilgrimage route to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition has it that the remains of the apostle Saint James are buried.
Click PLAY or watch the trailer on YouTube. Martin Sheen did a great job depicting the experience.
I’m more likely to bike, than hike.
(via Gadling)
When the new permit system (400/day) went in, we hoped that some of the least capable, least prepared “tourists” would be dissuaded from tackling the cables.
But it’s been a bad year at Yosemite:
… 20 people have died on Half Dome over the decades, nearly all with rain as a factor, officials say. One of the two to perish this year was a Bay Area woman who slipped in a July storm and fell 800 feet. (A total of 13 died in park mishaps this year, the most in decades — including three swept over a raging waterfall on the trail to Half Dome.) …
Surprisingly, helicopter rescues are still free at that Park. But they don’t fly in bad weather — exactly the bad weather that traps people at the top.
Here’s an update on SFgate – Half Dome survivors wish they had taken heed
Note: You can try for a walk-up permit at 7 am the day before you want to climb.
related – Take a Long Hike – Before You Hike, Leave Critical Information
Blast.
I’m still not on the Glory Board for Waterton’s Triple Crown.
And now they’ve launched a new challenge – the Fantastic Four:
… 4 days, 4 trails, 2 countries– challenge yourself to two of Waterton’s favourite hikes: Crypt Lake and Alderson-Carthew, followed by 2 of Montana’s most scenic treks through the Garden Wall and Siyeh Pass …
read more on – Experience Waterton
Next year for SURE.
I’m adding this to my standard kit. It’s a no brainer.
THOMAS W. GAUPERAA:
… Apart from keeping the mosquito hordes at bay, it is a great pillow (the mesh is surprisingly comfortable next to the skin) when stuffed with your puffy layer. It is also a very good prefilter, much better than the bandana, and a very functional stuff sack. Some of you may be worried about the durability, but it is better than expected when made out of high quality noseeum mesh. …
(via Hiking in Finland)
besthike.com 