How to prepare for a high-altitude trek

Trekking in the Himalayas or the Andes is on many travelers’ adventure lists. A high-altitude trek is a fantastic experience — and, for many of us, the chance of a lifetime to see some of the world’s most awe-inspiring peaks. From a hike in Patagonia to a long-distance trek in the Dolomites, preparation for the high altitude is vital. Altitude sickness, caused by the...

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The Five Best Day Hikes in Medellin, Colombia

Sitting in a valley in the midst of the Andes, Medellin has an allure that, in recent years especially, pulls travelers in droves. For some time, mention of its name brought memories of cartel-inflicted terror but today, the vibe is serene and friendly. These days, this South American spot deemed “the city of eternal spring” is one of Colombia’s biggest bragging points....

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There Are No Real Roads in Guadalupe National Park. You Earn the Incredible Views.

It’s hard to reconcile where you are — the middle of a cool, dense coniferous forest, home to black bears, mountain lions and elk — with where you really are; that is, high above one of the emptiest stretches of arid, covered-in-cactus West Texas. Before you drive the 500 miles from Austin to spend a few days amid the anomalous archipelago of “sky islands” that the...

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A Nevada Park That Sneaks in Under the Tourist Radar

On the Utah-Nevada border, Great Basin could be called the black sheep of the region’s national park family. Bryce, Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, even Capitol Reef, get all the attention — and annual visitors (Zion got a record 4.5 million visitors in 2017, to Great Basin’s 168,000, also a record). But, Great Basin gets something arguably better: anonymity. At some 77,000...

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The New Rules of Hydration

There’s a ton of misinformation about how much to hydrate and when, but the basics are actually pretty simple. Here’s what you need to know. For easy workouts in cool weather lasting an hour or less, drinking only when you’re thirsty is fine. But if it’s at all hot or humid, or you’re going out for a long time, that won’t be adequate. There’s an easy method...

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Appalachian National Scenic Trail Reroute through the Wallkill National Wildlife Refuge

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serviceis pleased to announce the release of the Environmental Assessment for the Appalachian National Scenic Trail Reroute through the Wallkill National Wildlife Refuge. The Service plans to move a portion of the Trail from where it crosses the Wallkill River via Oil City Road in Orange County, New York, and relocate the Trail within the...

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‘Bad things happen in the woods’: the anxiety of hiking while black

A Guardian Profile by Aaron Jones, 32, Chicago A few years ago, a white friend suggested we go on a hike. All the fears I had about being in nature hit me in the face. It’s a very real fear for black people, especially those from urban communities, that bad things happen to black people in the woods, like lynching. It’s something that you see again and again when you...

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Zion National Park Battered By Monsoonal Rains

Monsoonal rains are taking a toll on Zion National Park, where not only roads are being covered and blocked by debris washed down mountainsides but trails are being torn apart. While Riverside Walk has reopened after a potent storm Wednesday, July 11, 2018 brought flooding, mudslides, and rockfalls to the park, cleanup won’t be easy. As of midday Friday, July 13...

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Here’s What It Takes to Hike the John Muir Trail

  A survey of backpackers’ tactics on the 220-mile high-country route offers insights on what works and what doesn’t. A new paper in the journal Wilderness & Environmental Medicine takes a look at this. Over the last few years, a retired San Francisco lawyer has run an annual online survey of people who hike the John Muir Trail, a famous route...

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Safety Concerns Lead To Emergency Closure Near Jenny Lake In Grand Teton National Park

  A highly popular area near Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming has been closed to the public for the immediate future due to concerns over expanding cracks and fissures in a large rock formation, park officials said Tuesday evening. The National Park Service implemented an emergency closure in the Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point areas on the...

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Weed Patch Mountain Trail, Town of Lake Lure

The new Weed Patch Mountain Trail offers exciting backcountry adventures for hikers, mountain bikers, and rock climbers. The 8.6 mile trail traverses rugged mountain terrain through a remote wilderness area in the Town of Lake Lure’s Buffalo Creek Park. Along the way, you’ll find yourself at rock outcrops with spectacular long range views, as well as pristine mountain...

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Off the beaten path: Alarka Institute leads quest for rare mountain flower

For even the most woods-savvy of plant lovers, a blooming mountain camellia is a rare to non-existent sight. A member of the tea family, it’s picky about its habitat, easily susceptible to drought and fire, and reticent to reproduce. All that adds up to a tenuous existence in scattered, isolated populations through the Southern Appalachians. To find a mountain camellia,...

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Overlooked No More: Emma Gatewood, First Woman to Conquer the Appalachian Trail Alone

What the public knew about Emma Gatewood was already remarkable. She was the first woman to hike the entire Appalachian Trail by herself in one season. She was 67 years old, a mother of 11, a grandmother and even a great-grandmother when she accomplished the feat in 1955. And she personified the concept of low-tech, ultralight hiking, spurning a tent and sleeping bag,...

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Hike: The Yosemite few people see

Nature has endowed California’s Tuolumne County with such splendor, it almost doesn’t seem fair. That these riches are so easily accessed by hiking trails makes us all the luckier. Before the reservoir was formed by O’Shaughnessy Dam at Yosemite National Park, Hetch Hetchy was a glacier-carved, granite-walled valley complete with a mighty river and waterfalls...

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Cultural hiking in Italy: Tuscany trekking from Florence to Siena

Of all the various modes of travel, by foot is the most intimate and also the most natural. Hiking allows you an often overlooked and underrated relationship with your surroundings. Walking forces you to interact, take your time, and truly inhale the world around. Nowhere else on the globe are these intangible benefits more celebrated than the famed Italian countryside...

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Private Investment Will Jump Start Rural Economy

Ringed by miles of abandoned coal mines, the Wayne National Forest is surrounded by some of the most economically distressed communities in southern Ohio. A unique partnership with private investors, local leaders, a university, and nonprofit partners is helping to change that. The Forest Service is working with the National Forest Foundation and Quantified Ventures to...

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Husky saves deaf hiker, and dozens of others, on Alaskan trail

This rescue dog is making it his life’s work to rescue others. Nanook, an Alaskan husky, has been known to scout the trailhead of the 24-mile long Crow Pass Trail, about half a mile from Girdwood, Alaska, looking for hikers to assist on their journey. Nanook’s heroics were on full display when he rescued deaf Rochester Institute of Technology student Amelia Milling. She...

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How to Prepare for Your First Backpacking Trip

The thought of backpacking in the outdoors can be scary for some people. The idea of carrying everything you need from water to toilet paper on your back for an extended period of time can be challenging for some to overcome. Especially knowing you have to carry that weight for miles at a time. Say you wanted to go backpacking but had never actually done anything longer...

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How to Prevent and Treat Hiking Blisters

For hikers and backpackers having happy feet means happy trails. There’s nothing worse than painful hiking blisters that get worse with each step and seriously keep you from enjoying your time in the outdoors. The good news is that these annoying injuries can be remedied, but you’re even better off learning how to prevent hiking blisters in the first place. A blister is...

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8 Things to Know Before You Hike the Appalachian Trail

Stretching more than 2,190 miles across 14 different states, the Appalachian Trail may be the best long-distance hiking route in the entire world. Each year, 3 million people trek at least a portion of the trail, with just a fraction of those walking its entire length. Those “thru-hikers” learn a lot during early days of their journey, and most will tell you...

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How to Escape a Wildfire When You’re Hiking

On Labor Day weekend 2017, Oregon’s backcountry ignited, the night sky glowing red from flames. Peter Ames Carlin, his wife, and their three children were among 176 hikers who were surrounded by a wildfire on the Eagle Creek Trail, a short jaunt from Portland in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area (NSA). As the blaze blocked a safe exit to the north, to the...

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The Egyptian Hike That’s Rewriting History

The Sinai Trail has been dubbed one of the best new hikes in the world, and was awarded best new tourism initiative. While there are harder, headier walks, none are so rich with history – and none are built upon such unlikely bonds. Bedouin tribes have long escorted pilgrims from all corners across the Sinai – Muslims en route to Mecca, Christians to St Catherine or...

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The Hiker’s Guide to Trail Etiquette

  It might feel like there aren’t any rules out in the great outdoors, but there are certainly guidelines you should follow. Whether you’re new to hiking or always been confused about the do’s and don’ts of the trail, this guide will clear things up. Hiking uphill is harder than hiking downhill most of the time. And when people hike uphill, they tend to...

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7 summer hikes near Salt Lake City you won’t want to miss

There’s something about summer that inspires people to head outdoors. And when you’re surrounded by tons of gorgeous mountains, hiking seems like the natural choice. The amount of local hikes to choose from, however, can get overwhelming. Enter the second edition of “Best Hikes Salt Lake City” by Lori J. Lee. Not only does it contain a comprehensive list of great hikes,...

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Leave No Trace includes your hiking posts on social media

Social media plays a big role in many people’s lives, and it’s only natural that our love of sharing would extend to the outdoors. As more and more hikers are enjoying trails, it’s important to remember that social media can have an impact on how good hiking behavior is shared in the hiking community. The national Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics released a set...

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Hike, Rock Climb, Fish + More in California’s Eastern Sierra

California’s Eastern Sierra is a fascinating landscape, a land where 14,000-foot summits descend to sage-filled plains, where the oldest trees on earth still stand atop wind scoured ridges, where geothermal springs pepper one of the word’s largest calderas, and where limestone columns rise from an ancient alkaline lake. Found amongst and within these unique...

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Oil and Gas Fields Leak Far More Methane than EPA Reports

The amount of methane leaking from the nation’s oil and gas fields may be 60 percent higher than the official estimates of the Environmental Protection Agency, according to a new study in the journal Science. The study, led by a group of scientists from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), presents some of the most compelling evidence to date that switching to gas...

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19 New National Recreation Trails designated for 2018

The U.S. Department of the Interior announced the designation of 19 new National Recreation Trails in 17 states, adding more than 370 miles to the national recreation trails system of more than 1,000 trails in all 50 states. “By designating these new national trails, we acknowledge the efforts of local communities to provide outdoor recreational opportunities that can be...

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