Posts

Posted on

Constantine & Magpie – 30,000 miles

In six years, Constantine and Magpie have collectively hiked 30,000 miles. What do they do now that they’ve learned their lessons from—and found love on—the trail?

Their early November completion of the NCT (North Country Trail) also earned the duo five American hiking records in an instant. …

Constantine is the first person known to have thru-hiked the 11 National Scenic Trails, a gargantuan network that reaches almost every corner of the Lower 48.

His feat makes the Triple Crown of American hiking—the Pacific Crest, Appalachian, and Continental Divide Trails—seem like a Sunday stroll.

He believes he set an unofficial speed record on the 500-plus-mile Potomac Heritage Trail …

Outside – Meet the Couple Who Just Set 5 Long-Distance Hiking Records
Posted on

Hiking Moorecroft Park, Vancouver Island

My favourite place to fly a drone close to Nanaimo is Moorecroft Regional Park.

It’s gorgeous, yet very little known or visited.

A former youth camp, it was purchased 2011 from the BC Conference of the United Church of Canada and is now managed by the Nature Conservancy of Canada.

It is on AllTrails.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

If you get the chance, you won’t regret visiting Moorecroft.

Posted on

Hike Black Tusk near Vancouver, B.C.

For this very popular hike, most start at Rubble Creek. Parking is cramped.

I was happy to have started at the Helm Creek trailhead, instead. I’d stayed in Whistler so this was more convenient.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. The final summit climb is technical — I didn’t do it, myself.

Black Tusk is one of our best hikes in North America.

Posted on

Cycling the Great Himalaya Trail

Mangal Lama, professional mountain biking guide from Kathmandu, is currently solo riding the Nepal section of the Great Himalaya Trail — as high as possible. About 70 days.

Locked-down at home due to Covid-19, he decided to try to be first to complete the #GHTonWheels, and bring attention to the imminent dangers of climate change.

Click PLAY or watch his story on YouTube.

Posted on

ʔapsčiik t̓ašii Trail, Vancouver Island

Yep. That is the official name.

It’s prounounced ups-cheek ta-shee.

It a wonderful part of the world.

In the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve between Tofino and Ucluelet.

Close — as the crow flies — to famed West Coast Trail.

ʔapsčiik t̓ašii means “going the right direction on the path.”

It can also be translated to “do the right thing and speak truthfully“.

TOFINO — Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation, the Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ Government and Parks Canada joined this week in welcoming visitors to use a new multi-use pathway at the Combers Beach trailhead in the Pacific Rim National Parks Reserve.

The path, which extends around 25 kilometres, traverses through the traditional territories of Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation and Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ, on the west coast of Vancouver Island.

It is the result of nearly $51 million in federal funding and offers visitors and locals an opportunity to explore the region’s lush rainforests by bike or foot. …

Times Colonist

Official web page.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Posted on

#8 – Everest Base Camp / 3 Passes, Nepal

Everest Base Camp via 3 Passes is one of our top 10 hikes in the world.

Why?

Of dozens of fantastic treks in Nepal, the 3 Passes route is best of the best.

  • October to November best months
  • beginning of March to mid-May next best
  • 16-18 days minimum for 3 Passes. 21 days would allow for rest / illness / sidetrip / and other unanticipated delays.
  • if you don’t have time, it’s recommended 14 days just to get to Base Camp and back safely.
  • wonderful photographic opportunities
  • it’s fun to leave the main trails, take to the paths less traveled
  • very little gear is needed
  • you can easily get pack weight down to 10kg (22lbs)
  • walk with no tent, stove or food. Stay in lodges, eat in simple restaurants. Books are often available for rest days.
  • safe and easy to hike solo
  • no need to speak Nepali, only English
  • food is good and quite safe (compared with Kathmandu)
  • Everest is the goal. But our favourite peak is Ama Dablam, much more visible en route.

World → Asia → Nepal → Everest Base Camp

Ama Dablum

Click PLAY or watch a 1 minute preview on YouTube. 

For details click over to our EVEREST BASE CAMP / 3 PASSES information page.

Posted on

ANYmal – the Hiking Robot

… scientists and engineers at ETH Zurich, a university in Switzerland, announced they created a fully autonomous robot that’s able to hike. The implications may be a bit frightening to some, but they’re also super-exciting, as they may have extremely useful implications for what hiking and national park trips look like 20 or 30 years into the future. …

Scientists Taught a Robot To Hike. Here’s What That Means for Future Adventure Travel.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Posted on

Climbing Mount Marcy, NY State

Mount Marcy 5,344 feet (1,629 m) is the tallest of the High Peaks of the Adirondack Mountains.

The majority of the mountain is forested, although the final few hundred feet is above the tree line.  …

The shortest and most frequently used route up the mountain is from the northwest, the Van Hoevenberg Trail, which starts at the Adirondak Loj near Heart Lake. From there it is 7.4 miles (11.2 km) to the summit, a lengthy 14.8-mile (22.4 km) roundtrip which can nevertheless be done in a day.  …

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.