mountains Archives - Page 3 of 3

Top 5 Gifts for Hikers – Basic Day Hike Gear

Most recently updated January 17th, 2022

There are plenty of gifts any hiker or outdoor enthusiast on your list would be happy to get – whether they’re just beginners or experts.

Gifts for hikers come in all price ranges, too, so you can be sure to find something in your budget.

Basic day hike gear is a gift that any hiker would be thrilled to get, and I’ve included links to some of my top picks.

FYI, every image in this post – not just the specific recommended items – is also a link to merchandise.

You’ll also see “Related Products” sections that allow you to browse more if you want to go beyond the items I’ve called out.

So, if you see something you like, click it!

If you want any of these things for yourself, you could also send this article to your family. Just sayin’ 🙂

Continue reading Top 5 Gifts for Hikers – Basic Day Hike Gear

Green Exercise – Workout in Nature to Look and Feel Better

Most recently updated January 16th, 2022

If you’ve read any of my other posts, you know that given the choice I most always prefer to be outdoors – hiking, walking, gardening, dining, listening to music and whatever else I can do outside.

Frankly, sometimes my friends and family find my need to be outdoors a little tiresome. To keep the peace, I’ve had to occasionally move activities indoors because they want to be “more comfortable”. Continue reading Green Exercise – Workout in Nature to Look and Feel Better

Trail Signs and Tokens – Practical and Sentimental Journeys

Most recently updated January 18th, 2022

Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

Whether you’re exploring in the wilderness or taking a fitness jog in a county park, it’s not unusual to find evidence of other people who’ve visited before you.

Trail sign in Palo Duro Canyon NP in Texas

Most often it’s in the form of trail signs giving practical information.

Sometimes personal tokens are left in an attempt to send a wish or a prayer to a loved one, or even to make contact with some greater universal entity.

You might also see official tributes to people who have contributed in some way to that green space.

Sculpture in the Jean Miro park in Barcelona, Spain

Or more simply, art.

Whatever it is and whoever it’s for, signs and tokens left along the trail are an attempt to communicate with others.

Continue reading Trail Signs and Tokens – Practical and Sentimental Journeys

Springtime in the Desert – Utah Hiking One Week Plan

Most recently updated January 18th, 2022

Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

Recently I did some hiking in Utah, specifically visiting several of the famous Utah National Parks. The trip to southern Utah was primarily to hike, but also to take in the beauty of the desert in the Spring.

Hikers on the Queens Garden Trail in Bryce Canyon

Photos can’t convey the scale of the mountains and desert, or the multitude of colors and rock formations we drove through while crossing southern Utah – but I tried anyway.

A few of my pics are in the text below, and you can see more in my detailed posts about Arches National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park.

This was our itinerary, maybe it could work for you! Continue reading Springtime in the Desert – Utah Hiking One Week Plan

How to Plan Your Multi-Day Hiking Trip

Most recently updated June 9th, 2022

Estimated Reading Time: 6.8 minutes

So you want to plan a hiking trip.

Great! Like any other event outside of your normal daily routine – hosting a party, having a night out, or even creating a special meal – it starts with planning and research.

Don’t know where to start? I’ll help.

Let’s begin by figuring out what your perfect trip would look like….

Continue reading How to Plan Your Multi-Day Hiking Trip

How to Get Fit for Active Retirement – Your Bucket List Training Plan

Most recently updated March 21st, 2023

Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

These days, it’s more important than ever to maintain good health and fitness, no matter what your age.

But you’re busy, and can’t possibly squeeze in time for fitness training around your demanding job, family and household duties. I get it.

Inundated with things that we have to do, it’s easy to put off optional activities – including taking better care of ourselves physically.

But if you (like me and many other older adults) want to enjoy bucket list adventures that include active travel and hiking in remote places, it’s time to start training!

Each year, starting January, I do an 8-week hike training program to get ready for upcoming Spring hikes – and beyond!

It’s really to get fit for outdoor adventures in any month after weeks of Winter hibernating and celebrating 🙂

Read on to learn how you can personalize your training, with our without my 8 week plan, to help you get ready for adventure at any age!

Continue reading How to Get Fit for Active Retirement – Your Bucket List Training Plan

Lodging Options for Unhappy Campers

Most recently updated January 18th, 2022

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

Camping is not everyone’s cup of tea.

It could be due to health considerations, or maybe you don’t enjoy all of the setup and planning – or you could just really appreciate modern conveniences on your vacation.

Whatever the reason for your preference, there are some good options to camping available, even in more remote places.

Some people think that you always have to camp out if you want to do any really interesting hiking.

Camp with bath house and dining hall at Torres del Paine

That’s really only true for some very wild or undeveloped areas, where you need to backpack for more than a day to get to your final destination.

My recent hike on the W Trek in Patagonia’s Torres del Paine national park is one example where there were few alternatives to camping if you wanted to go deep into the park.

There are similar longer remote stretches on the Pacific Crest Trail and the Appalachian Trail, where you may have to camp for a night or two because you’re so far away from civilization – which is kind of the point for those kinds of trips 🙂

That said, there are a wide variety of beautiful and interesting day hikes – in and out in the same day – that may be found both in the US and internationally, with opportunities for lodging other than camping out.

Continue reading Lodging Options for Unhappy Campers

Starting Small – How to Hike with Kids in Tow

Most recently updated January 18th, 2022

Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

Have you suddenly become a home-schooler and/or a remote worker because of the new social distancing requirements?

Hopefully, this won’t last forever.

Meanwhile, you could take the kids outdoors for a hike to make it feel a little less oppressive.

In spite of my asthma, I’ve always been an active person.

Becoming a mother didn’t change that, or my desire to be outdoors in Nature.

But it did change how I could participate if I wanted (or needed) to include little ones.

Here’s how I did it!

When I first discovered recreational hiking, I was working at a full-time tech job, a single mother of a toddler with few babysitters around, and my closest family was 1500 miles away.

So most of my activities (outside of work) included the company of my little Mini-Me, and hiking was no exception.

Continue reading Starting Small – How to Hike with Kids in Tow

View from the Bottom of the World – Back from Patagonia

Most recently updated January 18th, 2022

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

It’s already been a full week since I made the 30+ hour return trip back home from my multi-day hiking and camping trip in Patagonia, at Chile’s famous Torres del Paine National Park.

I had the advantage of making the trip with the wonderful people at G Adventures – and they handled all of the details and the heavy lifting. All I had to do was show up with the right gear, and in good enough shape to make the trek.

Returning to Puerto Natales from Torres del Paine National Park.

NOTE: I finally completed the whole trip report, with advice on what to pack, difficulty level, etc. See the full story here.

Continue reading View from the Bottom of the World – Back from Patagonia