It was funny that just as I got back to Flagstaff after a 20-day float of the Colorado River, and was scrambling to get home after having lost my iPhone and wallet in the River, that I discovered I was chosen to write for the Listserve. The Listserve is your chance to write an email… continue reading
Hello. I’m the nut who thru-hiked the Hayduke Trail twice, two years in a row, once in each direction, solo. You can see some of my pictures here, my tips here, and my 2017 trail thanks here. Before I hiked it the first time, I made my own maps. After I hiked it the second… continue reading
These are organized section by section, east to west. I’ll probably add a few more things as they pop into my head, but these are the ones that stood out today. All things that weren’t obvious to me at first… Section 1 Get the Hayduke Trail book. Read it. Carry it (I, uh, photographed every… continue reading
Hi! Whew! Yesterday I finished my last long hike of the 2017: my second thru-hike of the Hayduke Trail. The Hayduke is a scenic but very tricky route that goes through Utah, dipping into Arizona to hit all the iconic Colorado Plateau parks. I loved it the first time and immediately upon finishing decided I’d… continue reading
This summer while a friend was driving my van through Yosemite to fetch me on the West side, my blower fan seized. He said he almost had a heart attack as my dash smoked and threatened to catch fire. (A reminder why all drivers should carry fire extinguishers.) “It’s ok. No big deal. It’s a… continue reading
I aborted my big Spring thru hike because of weather and taxes. Meh. Instead, I finished a solo tour of old mines in the Inyo mountain range of central California west of Death Valley. The “Lonesome Miner Trail” — what the late Wendell Moyer* called it — is 40-50 miles of rough, hard-to-follow disused trail… continue reading
In my last feverish post, I totally missed some really good points about hiking in snow – really crucial stuff like navigation. A 2011 nobo thru-hiker made me aware right away (but doesn’t necessarily want to be credited). So without further ado here are more tips from someone who has gone through the difficult and… continue reading
2017 snow pack is the biggest whomper we have seen in 20 years. Forget about 2005 and 2011, we are entering new territory with just about as much (well, more) snow but more heat from our warming planet. Snow is not only STILL falling in the Sierra, but has begun to melt, with significantly high… continue reading
If you’ve wanted to set aside the time to finally make yourself a cycling cap, why not book a class? Meet some new people, have help to get over any tricky bits, and check that project off your list? Ellie at Klum House, a professional seamstress and sewing instructor, is teaching a cap sewing class… continue reading
My 850-mile backpacking trip this Spring took me through Southern Utah and Northern Arizona, through all these National Parks and wild lands I’d never seen before. What better way to see them for the first time than to walk through them and sleep in their dirt? I couldn’t think of one. I took some neato… continue reading