Yesterday afternoon on a flight from Atlanta to San Francisco, I flew over Mammoth Ski Resort and the John Muir/Ansel Adams Wilderness area. It was incredibly beautiful, but I can attest to the fact that no one will be getting onto these trails early this year. The entire Sierra is covered in thick snow — […]
Backpacking companion Wild Bill and I thought a November backpack would reward us with total solitude. Instead, we were greeted by 15 college students and a four hunters at the trailhead next to Highway 20 near Clearlake, California. We let them go ahead, then headed toward our overnight destination seven miles ahead in Wilson Valley. […]
I happen to live in a rural area of Northern California where a 10-minute drive and 20-minute walk will take me to a 40-foot waterfall among redwoods and ferns. This setting is as beautiful as you will find in the most remote wilderness areas. A great trek can merely be a walk in the near […]
Our Cache Creek Wilderness backpack got rained out. So, he stayed close to home (five miles) and did a six-mile hike from the pygmy forest at California’s Van Damme State to the ocean. The route took us through through a misty, drizzling canyon of ferns and redwoods. An amazing hike as you can see from […]
Your favorite music to help you sleep or to give you inspiration during an uphill slog can be a welcome backpacking companion. As long as it doesn’t add a lot of weight.The new iPod Shuffle 3rd Generation weighs all of .38 ounces — that’s right, just a tad over one-third of 1 ounce. Holds 1,000 […]
Although Northern California rain is off about 40%+ this year, there has been just enough to keep snow on the mountains. What better time than to try a close-to-home (3 hours) in a low altitude destination. The “Three Bs” (Bruce, Bill and Bob) are taking our first 2009 backpack in Cache Creek Wilderness, off Highway […]
When I say go wild, I mean get out where no one else goes. I’ll soon be heading out to the Snow Mountain Wilderness, which even at around 6,500 feet, feels like the Sierra and has views to the ocean on the west. It’s located north of California Highway 20 and is sandwiched between Interstate […]
Backpacker Magazine emailed me a link this morning to its review of a “field tested” backpacking coffee. It’s instant! Ugggh! My choice is fresh ground Peet’s French Roast or Thanksgiving’s Mirembe Kawomera (Delicious Peace) coffee in a one-cup filter (lightweight and as good tasting as home). To read Backpacker’s review of the instant they are […]
Award-winning outdoor writer Tom Stienstra, author of California Camping and California Hiking by Moon Press, knows the best places for ultralight backpacking. He described my favorite spot in a column published in the San Francisco Chronicle today: a loop in the Ansel Adams Wilderness, from Agnew Meadow to Shadow Lake to Garnet Lake. I agree […]
On one hand, you can argue that if you forget to take something, you’ll be lighter on the trail. But you may also be sorry. I have a detailed backpacking list. Yet, sometimes you need to check and double check. On my recent trip to the John Muir Wilderness, I found that I had […]
