Best hikes, treks, tramps in the world.
Just browsed Romana Chapman’s fantastic photos of travels through China, Tibet, Bhutah, Laos, Thailand, Burma, Mongolia and Cambodia.
Wow!
I’ve always wanted to get to Mt. Kailash in Tibet, as they did.
More photos in the Mt. Kailash set.
Or browse all of Romana’s photos on flickr.
Tom Mangan is already the best connected hiking blogger.
Now he’s discovered social networking via photographs on flickr.
What better way to meet people with common interests than by browsing their photos?
Check out Tom’s busybeingborn sets on flickr
How long can it be before I am blogging from the trail?
“Flashpacking is just backpacking, with an awful lot of tech gear going along for the ride,” said Lee Gimpel, 29, a writer from Virginia who “flashpacked” around India for a few months and recorded his adventures online.
“I sometimes felt that half of what I was carrying was tech stuff: digital camera and memory cards, USB memory drive, a laptop, cell phone, three battery chargers, a dozen rechargeable batteries, a power adaptor, blank CD-RWs and a handful of cables and cords,” he said.
A survey completed earlier this year by 2,561 visitors to the Hostelworld.com Web site found that 21 percent of them travel with a laptop, 54 percent with an MP3 player, 83 percent with a mobile phone and 86 percent with a digital camera.
Discovery Channel :: News – Technology :: High-Tech “Flashpacking” Catches On
Has anyone heard of such a route? Or do we need to pioneer one?
I’m looking at walking up to the Mt. Washington Ski Resort chair lift (marked A on map), then hiking across Strathcona Provincial Park to Hot Springs Cove via Della Falls.
After a good soak, we’d exit via private transport to Tofino.
Is this crazy?
Please tell me I’m crazy.
This line would necessitate, likely, a lot of bush whacking. (At least there are no trails marked on my Backroad Mapbook – Vancouver Island west of Strathcona Provincial Park.
I even considered carrying a light inflatable raft in case floating is easier than bush whacking.
Suggestions? (Leave a comment below.)
If I had the cash I’d tour all the great Park hotels of the world. What a trip that would be!
National Park Traveler’s top 10 USA National Park lodges:
1. The Old Faithful Inn, Yellowstone.
2. Lake Crescent Lodge, Olympic National Park.
3. Many Glacier Hotel, Glacier National Park.
4. The Ahwahnee Hotel, Yellowstone.
5. Bryce Canyon Lodge cabins.
6. Furnace Creek Inn, Death Valley National Park.
7. Lake Yellowstone Hotel, Yellowstone.
8. Zion Lodge, Zion National Park.
9. Wuksachi Lodge, Sequoia National Park.
10. Kalaloch Lodge, Olympic National Park.
The Paradise Inn in Mount Rainier National Park would have made this list if not for being closed while much-needed renovations are completed. It is expected to reopen in 2008.
Some runners-up:
* Old Faithful Snow Lodge and Cabins, Yellowstone
* Grand Canyon Lodge, Grand Canyon
* El Tovar Hotel, Grand Canyon
* Lake McDonald Lodge, Glacier
* National Park Inn, Mount Rainier
* Jackson Lake Lodge, Grand Teton
* Tuolumne Meadows Lodge, Yosemite
* Big Meadows Lodge, Shenandoah
National Parks Traveler: Time to Book Next Summer’s Vacation?
Old Faithful Lodge – by fieldsbh
An interesting graphic posted by ParkRemark.com, “News and Views on the National Park Service” in the States, puts things into perspective.
(via Gadling)
On a possibly related note, George Novak uses the U.S. National Park Service website to research future trips. For example, check out Wrangell-St. Elias in Alaska, a World Heritage Site.
If you like freedom, know that Backcountry permits are NOT required to hike there. But travelers are encouraged to complete a “Backcountry Itinerary” available at any park office.
Hard to believe, but here’s a food bag a bear cannot penetrate. Amazing.
No worries at all about rodents and other pesky varmints.
Ursack – bear-resistant containers
A 10.5 litre Ursack is now in stock in a gear shop in my town for about US$65. Price seems a tad steep. But I’ll likely get one before my next major hike. This is a big improvement over the sturdy kayak bag I use now to hold food.
You can also buy an aluminum liner for extra protection, but the weight is prohibitive, I feel. (For example, “the Ursack TKO 2.0 weighs 6.2 ounces. The aluminum liner adds 14.2 ounces.”)
The Ursack alone sounds like it will turn away all but the most persistent bear.
There’s a thriving hiking community in the Bay area.
For American Thanksgiving it was a 5:30AM start to catch sunrise from atop Mission Peak.
Check Tom Mangan’s just posted photo trip report:
Two-Heel Drive: November 2006 Archives
I was very pleased to get a personal email from Frank Grigel, Social Science Specialist, Monitoring, with Parks Canada.
He was responding to my complaints about the Parks Canada Listens program.
Seems Parks Canada really is listening.
Here’s the gist of my email reply to Frank:
… I understand much better your Parks Listens surveys — after your explanation. Thank-you.
Next time be sure to explain it from the start. For example, I did not know how many surveys would be happening. How LONG they would take.
The questions seemed well constructed but certainly the process could be improved.
I would suggest an on-going feedback online instead. As you know, government organizations are infamous for spending money on a one shot research project. Then shelving the report. Sometimes this is “theatreâ€. Politicians stalling to avoid actually making painful improvement.
I would suggest a more open, transparent, interactive process. It is better for Parks Canada to have a place where people can vent. (Every major corporation at this very moment is adding bloggers as they learn this lesson the hard way.)
The alternative is for Parks Canada to get the same feedback from independent sites.
I subscribe to these two blogs in the USA, for example:
National Parks Traveler Park Remark Certainly I would subscribe and contribute to a Parks Canada watchdog site. Even start one myself.
The internet, I believe, will force Parks Canada to be more responsive to taxpayers.
Regarding the surveys, people were frustrated not having more information. They wanted to be involved but could not easily find out how.
Look at your website: ParksListens.ca
No “about†link. No “contact†link. All I can do is download a .pdf file.
All in all, it looks pretty intimidating. A “secret†contest of some kind.
I dislike everything about your site … except the name: Parks Listens
That is perfect.
Good luck with the project, though.
I really hope it results in positive change for Parks Canada.
If I believed things were getting better for our National Parks, I would encourage people to pay for an annual pass — rather than go to the States instead, as I do now.
I encourage Frank and anyone else to leave a comment below. This rant of mine then becomes a conversation: open, transparent, interactive, on-line.
besthike.com 