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ROMANTIC GETAWAYS FOR OUTDOOR ENTHUSIASTS
Happy Valentine’s Day! And this year the romantic holiday falls on a three day weekend thanks to our Presidents. The only thing I love more than my wife (and son) is the great outdoors! Okay—I love my wife and little boy more—and I love spending time in the great outdoors with them. Now, despite the…
Read MoreFirst in the Nation—and some pretty decent hiking too!
The whole country will have its eyes on New Hampshire today as Granite Staters flock to the polls in the first in the nation primary. The state is very proud of its role in helping to choose our president, and nowhere are politics taken so seriously and politicians scrutinized so thoroughly than in this tiny…
Read MoreThe Oyster Dome to be Clear-cut?
One of Puget Sound’s most popular hiking spots may soon succumb to clear cut logging. The Oyster Dome, the Pearl of the Chuckanut Mountains—the only place in the Cascades where the mountains meet the Salish Sea—is being considered for a large logging operation. A large segment of trails including a portion of the Pacific Northwest…
Read MoreI Love to Tell a Tale of a New Trail
I am often asked how I find trails for my guidebooks. A legitimate question. After all, folks buying my books are trying to find trails too. I try to do all the hard work for you so all you need to do is enjoy the hike. So, okay, this is how I find/research trails–incorporating any one…
Read MoreCheck in at one of Washington’s Snotels!
This winter’s heavy snowpack is certainly making things interesting at Washington’s snotels. And before you head out to an area to do some backcountry skiing or snowshoeing—you just may want to check in online at a snotel or two to get an accurate reading of what you can expect out there. What’s a snotel? No…
Read MoreFive North Cascades Privies where the views don’t stink!
There’s no shortage of phenomenal outdoor scenery in Washington’s North Cascades. Some of the most breathtaking backcountry in the country can be experienced by taking to one of the region’s excellent hiking trails. And among resplendent wildflower meadows, ancient cathedral forests, sparkling alpine lakes, and glacier covered craggy peaks—you’ll find some of the most scenic…
Read MoreWashington’s Top Three White-knuckle Trailhead Roads
It’s nice when we can reach our favorite trailheads via nice paved roads—or at least wide, well-graded and regularly maintained gravel roads. But unfortunately that’s not usually the case—and we are often faced with the dilemma of having to drive a harrowing road to get to the trail. While some of us drive pickups and…
Read More“We Need the Tonic of Wildness”
“We need the Tonic of Wildness,” wrote Henry David Thoreau in the 1840s while living on Walden Pond. Back then, Walden Pond was an island of wild surrounded by farms and a newly industrializing landscape. Thoreau constructed a tiny cabin in a grove of pine and oak above a cove on the placid kettle pond.…
Read MoreThree Western Washington Bursting with Autumn Colors Hikes without the Crowds
Seasoned Northwest Hikers know that the best fall foliage hikes in the region involve larch trees. Washington’s larches are legendary when it comes to gorgeous colors. But many of Washington’s larch hikes are also quite popular. It can get downright crowded at places like Maple Pass, Lake Ingalls, and Cutthroat Pass. Fortunately there are quieter…
Read MoreGlacier Meadow’s “Ladder of Doom!”
There is nothing like the element of surprise while heading off into the backcountry. And I generally welcome surprises—especially if they are of the positive order. An unexpected viewpoint–a rare or unique wildlife sighting—a pleasant encounter with a fellow backcountry traveler. But sometimes surprises can be unnerving—finding a trail unmaintained—an encounter with a belligerent animal—or…
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