Just bought 6 pairs of underwear, $12 each.
Mountain Equipment Co-op – MEC Seamless Classic Briefs (Men’s)
These are perfect.
Quick dry. Extremely comfortable.
Just as good as the $29.00 a pair Patagonia Active Briefs (Men’s).
UK – South West Coast Path
Mark Owen, South West Coast Path National Trail Officer, emailed to recommend his “best hike” in the world:
The South West Coast Path National Trail – 630 miles of superb coastal walking. From Minehead on the edge of the Exmoor National Park to the shores of Poole Harbour in Dorset it is the best way to enjoy the wonderful coastal scenery, wildlife and heritage.
He’s convinced us. We’ve added it to our list of the best hikes in Europe.
We love coast trails. The vistas are non-stop. Unless it gets foggy.
Of course you need not hike the whole thing. It’s very easy to section hike.
official website – South West Coast Path National Trail
best airfares for trekkers
I travel a lot.
Normally I search for flights on two sites:
Mobissimo Yahoo Travel Farechase
Both are good in North America. Internationally Mobissimo is better.
Recently Mobissimo has added a killer feature – Activity Search. One of the choices is Trekking.
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I was shocked at the excellent search results from my city, Calgary. These guys know trekking!
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I shouldn’t be surprised.
Blogger climb_ca on the Getoutdoors.com Outdoor Blog GoBlog is associated with Mobissimo.
cooking outdoors – Jetboil Flash PCS
The best site by far for hikers who EAT FOOD is Trail Cooking & The Outdoors.
Subscribe to that blog, for sure.
Sarah posted a good overview article: The Many Methods Of Trail Cooking. The main categories:
Freezer Bag Cooking™ (FBC style) One pot meals No Cook Method Insulated mug method
If you like one pot meals you should check out the recently announced Jetboil Flash PCS.
will come in four colors—black, gold, purple, and blue …
thermochromic technology (the decorative wave on the outside of the cup changes colors as contents inside heat up) …
translucent lid to track cooking progress …
The Flash PCS canister stove will be available for fall 2009 and will retail for $99.95.
I’ll be updating my current JetBoil. These are good improvements.
Click PLAY or watch a demo on YouTube.
Still … the entire system is dangerously unstable. (The centre of gravity too high for the small base of support.) I never use it without stabilizing the unit by burying the base in the sand, or bracing it with rocks.
Reserve a Campsite Online
Camping Blogger has a series of excellent posts for those planning future adventures in the USA.
The Internet has been a real boon for people trying to find campgrounds with open campsites available. Online reservations sites, like Reserve America and
Reservations.GovRecreation.gov, allow you to find a campground by proximity to a city, town, or popular attraction. Let’s see what we can find around Monterey, California – one of the more popular destinations in Northern California, in the next two weeks. …read the rest of this post – How to Reserve a Campsite Online
New to me was the use of Google Maps to check the exact location of specific campsites.
Good idea.
Related Camping Blogger posts:
hiking Coyote Buttes in winter
Fantastic photos.
These rock formations are just “wow”
The hike was difficult at times. Not difficult as dangerous, just difficult as in trying to figure out ways of getting up the rocks without sliding and falling. Well, there was a bit of sliding as I mentioned before and yes, there was some falling too. We were not in any danger at any point and time.
… So having done this hike I have to say that this so far is one of the best hikes I’ve ever done. Hardly any people, tons of spectacular jaw dropping scenery – I must have taken over 400 photos during the hike.
more gorgeous photos and the trip report – excessivelocity – Arizona: Hiking Coyote Buttes in the snow
trekking South Africa
Very high on my life list.
The Otter Trail along the Tsitsikamma coast is probably the most popular hike in the country. Lush forests, rugged shorelines, mountain streams and waterfalls and fragrant fynbos make this a special one. It’s strenuous, with lots of ups and downs, but the distances aren’t too great.
larger version – flickr – South African Tourism
If you want the scenery and walking with less slog and more luxury, try the Dolphin Trail. It traverses similar terrain to the Otter – joining up with it in places – but instead of hiking huts you stay in fully catered guest houses with great views and good food. Your pack is transported to your next overnight spot by vehicle, and you carry only a day pack with lunch, water, camera and swimsuit.
The Wild Coast of the Eastern Cape offers similar trails but dramatically different scenery: miles of deserted beaches, wave-lashed rocks and occasional tropical forest.
Accommodation is in coastal hotels instead of huts. The usual is to carry your pack, but you can arrange to have it driven around, if you plan ahead.
Purists can tackle the Wild Coast rough as they like. There are miles and miles of unspoiled hiking trail traversing high mountains, deserts and forests, where the accommodation is the usual hiking hut, and the cuisine whatever you decided to carry.
For an even wilder experience, you can hike for days in the Cedarberg, near Cape Town, or the Drakensberg in KwaZulu-Natal, without seeing a hut or a route marker. These are designated wilderness areas, and you simply take a map and a permit and set off, sleeping under the stars or in convenient caves. …
larger version – drakensberg – flickr – jaejongkwak
hiking – SouthAfrica Info
related – Footprint Hiking Club
Some of the most popular hikes require advance booking far in advance of your start date.
National Geographic best Park photos
More pretty, pretty pictures.
We’ve found the most beautiful places in the National Park System and located them for you with GPS coordinates. Check out these photos, then send us your best national park shot for the chance to get published and win gear prizes.
To enter the contest … or, submit your own photos, … or, see the rest of the photos, click through to National Geographic Adventure – Best of the National Parks: The Most Beautiful Places
Tepui climbing in Venezuela
Planet Fear has some terrific photos posted. I’d never before seen Cerro Autana.
The post is a trip report of the first free climb of ‘Rainbow Jambaia‘.
The group was there with Ivan Calderon, the world’s most experienced tepui climber.
see more – Extreme Jungle Rock by Anne Arran
Me? I’d be happy simply to climb Roraima by the standard route.
besthike.com 