Entries Tagged as 'Uncategorized'

Tuesday, August 14th, 2007

Sierra Crossing: Tom Stienstra’s Adventure - Part 8

Here is Tom Stientra’s final story on his 70-mile trek through Sequoia National Park, across the Sierra.
(08-12) 04:00 PDT Mineral King, Sequoia National Park — - From a notch in the rim of the Great Western Divide, you can scan east to the horizon and take in distant 14,497-foot Mount Whitney and the contiguous rows […]

Monday, August 13th, 2007

Sierra Crossing: Tom Stienstra’s Adventure - Part 7

The Stienstra trek continues …
(08-11) 04:00 PDT Forester Lake, Sequoia National Park –
We stood at the foot of Rattlesnake Canyon and gazed up toward the Great Western Divide and the climb that faced us: 12 miles of up with a gain of 5,130 feet.
“My body just said to me, ‘You must be kidding,’ ” […]

Saturday, August 11th, 2007

Sierra Crossing: Tom Stienstra’s Adventure - Part 5

Tom Stientra’s incredible journey continues … a trek of a lifetime.
(08-09) 04:00 PDT Aspen Camp, Kern Canyon — - As morning broke, I stuck my head out of my “bivy” and had the surreal vision that I was camped at the base of Yosemite Valley in the early 1800s.
On each side of the valley floor, […]

Friday, August 10th, 2007

Sierra Crossing: Tom Stienstra’s Adventure - Part 4

(08-08) 04:00 PDT Jeffrey Grove, Kern Canyon — From our perch on a boulder above the river, you could see three dark silhouettes in the pool below.
“They can’t be fish,” said my brother, Rambob, “because they’re too big.”
The morning light poured down over the Great Western Divide and to the floor of the Kern Canyon. […]

Thursday, August 9th, 2007

Sierra Crossing: Tom Stienstra’s Adventure - Part 3

(08-07) 04:00 PDT Junction Meadow, Kern River Canyon — It was a crisp 38 degrees at dawn. I filled my water bottle at Whitney Creek, and then heard a buzz. I turned to my left and looked up, and a hummingbird was eyeing me from three feet. It hovered, facing me, as if asking, “What […]

Wednesday, August 8th, 2007

Sierra Crossing: Tom Stienstra’s Adventure - Part 2

Outdoor writer Tom Stienstra’s 70-mile trek across the Sierra in Sequoia National Park is truly inspirational. Here is the beginning of part 2 of his series:
(08-06) 04:00 PDT Crabtree Meadow, Mount Whitney Wilderness — - Rising trout swirled on the surface of a small, pristine lake. The morning was so quiet that you could hear […]

Wednesday, August 8th, 2007

Mt Eddy in Northern California - 7 Miles to the Top of the World

While I have taken many long weekend trips that mean carrying a pack 30 miles, I have found it much more enjoyable — even with my ultralight backpack — to take trips where the pack-carrying is limited and day hiking to explore the wilderness is the order of the day. One of those short trips […]

Monday, August 6th, 2007

Sierra Crossing: Tom Stientra’s Great Adventure

U.S. award-winning outdoor writer, columnist and TV personality Tom Steinstra is writing an eight-part series in the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper about a 70-mile backpacking trek through Sequoia National Park, starting at Siberian Ridge and ending at Mineral King, which takes in Mt. Whitney, one of highest points in North America.
Steinstra says in this […]

Tuesday, July 24th, 2007

Backpacking Tourism on the Rise!? Can’t Be True

As a public relations consultant, I am involved in promoting tourism. To be honest with you I had no idea there was such a thing as “backpacking” tourism. Well check this item out at News.com in Australia.
Backpackers are such an independent group, the idea of a group of backpackers being herded onto buses and taken […]

Monday, July 23rd, 2007

‘Don’t Bug Me’ Patch - Something New

I was checking out the weblog at Campman.com and came across a review of a new anti-mosquito patch. Campman says it’s ideal for kids. But when he says the patch kept the bugs off him as well, I knew I needed some. Especially, after my miserable backpack recently to Emigrant Wilderness where we were swarmed […]