Search results

Ha Ha... I guess that depends on what you are using them for.

No servant brought them meals; they got their meat out of the river or went without. No traffic cop whistled them off the hidden rock in the next rapids. No friendly roof kept them dry when they mis-guessed whether or not to pitch the tent. No guide showed them which camping spots offered a...

The Seattle Mountaineers club requires members to complete some "conditioner's" as they call them before new members can sign up for certain climbs and hikes.

When I started backpacking in 1969 I carried a lot of Mountain House and Campmor freeze-dried food. Nowadays, I never carry any of that stuff and I don't even consider that real food anymore. No more shrimp creole and beef stroganoff for me. Three days is nothing and, in my humble opinion, you...

I think an iso-butane screw top canister stove is the best all around stove for the summer backpacker. Alcohol stoves are not very useful in poor weather or if you are doing any substantial cooking. Canister stoves are reliable and easy to operate. My only reservation about this stove is the...

I'm a former mountaineering guide and Outward Bound instructor. I've worked with hundreds of clients over the years. In addition, I have over 500 miles of winter trekking including six successful ski tours around Crater Lake in Oregon. In my youth we used to hike the AT from Crawford Notch to...

During my NOLS course in 1974 they taught us the three "P"'s of poop. Privacy, Proximity, and Percolation. Basically, you want a place that is private but not to far from your camp or break location on the trail. Pick a spot where your poop won't percolate into any nearby water sources...

It's this simple: If I never try anything, I never learn anything. If I never take a risk, I stay where I am. If I go ahead and do it, that effects how much I continue wanting to do it. When I hold myself back, I trade appearances for the opportunity to find out what I am like. -- Hugh Prather

Young nettles are loaded with nutrition and rival spinach as health food. I gather nettles when I am home!! Where I live in the Pacific Northwest nettles are everywhere in the springtime. Later in the season we have lots of berries including red and blue huckleberries, blueberries, alpine...

Risk is essential. There is no growth or inspiration in staying within what is safe and comfortable. Once you find out what is best, why not try something else? --- Alex Noble

The thing to remember when traveling is that the trail is the thing, not the end of the trail. Travel too fast and you miss all you are traveling for. --Louis L"Amour

My total gear is about 15-17 pounds without food and water. I generally plan about two pounds of food per day and I don't carry more than 10-days of food. I had to carry 11-days for the long section of the JMT from Muir Camp to Mt Whitney in 2007 but I try hard to arrange resupplies no more than...

In wet weather I use a trash compactor bag inside my pack and a pack cover on the exterior. I use a trash compactor bag because they are a little thicker mil than a typical trash bag. Unless I am in a very exposed alpine region with high winds and cold I generally hike near naked. I usually...

I think alcohol stoves are great in the right circumstances. I like them when hiking in mid-summer in good weather when I am not doing much cooking. They are great for heating water for tea or firing up some ramen noodles. However, they are less useful when camping above tree line, exposed, in...

I climbed Ben Nevis in January 1974 via the Gardyloo Gully, arguably the easiest ice climb on the North Face of Ben. There are several videos on You Tube showcasing this classic route. !n 1974 I only had one tool, a straight pick long handled Stubai ice axe. I sure would have liked to have the...

Written on the summit of Ben Nevis "Read me a lesson, Muse, and speak it loud Upon the top of Nevis, blind in mist! I look into the chasms, and a shroud Vapurous doth hide them - just so much I wist Mankind do know of hell; I look o'erhead, And there is sullen mist, - even so much Mankind...

One of the most dangerous activities a backpacker deals with is fording a river. Hikers are swept away on river crossings every season. Former Outward Bound instructor and mountaineering guide John E Hiker demonstrates basic technique for safely fording a river in deep water with a heavy load...