Miles Of Public Trails On Long Island’s East End Now Marked For Hiking

Hikers take note: miles and miles of new trails on Long Island’s East End are now open. It’s all part of an effort to get people to enjoy the natural treasures in their own backyard. Every week members of the Southampton Trails Preservation Society walk the public trails dotting the landscape from Southampton to Bridgehampton, but until now, you had to know the way. “If...

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Maptia 2.0: Expand Your World

Writers, photographers, storytellers — gather your lenses, unsheathe your pens — today Maptia 2.0 is launching. Come and join this global community of creative individuals who love to explore new cultures and new places, who care about the environment, and who believe that thoughtful storytelling can make a tangible, positive impact in the world. Maptia is a place to...

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Hiking Nepal In Edmund Hillary’s Footsteps

In 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay were the first people to summit Mt. Everest. Their expedition started in Kathmandu, and led them to the village of Jiri; from there they trekked across 100 miles of mountains and jungle Each year, tens of thousands of people journey into Nepal’s Sagarmāthā National Park to witness Everest Base Camp firsthand....

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Hiking in Maine: Whiskeag Trail is 5 miles of ‘signature achievement’

One of the longest hiking routes along the coast of Maine can be found within the densely populated boundaries of Bath. There the Whiskeag Trail traverses three conservation preserves and several municipally owned properties on its five-mile journey through the wooded outskirts of town, much of it along Whiskeag Creek. The trail is a project of Bath Trails, itself a...

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Leaving LeConte: Couple end 12 years as managers of mountaintop lodge in Smokies

The crew at LeConte Lodge are connoisseurs of sky gazing. Whether it’s an orange sunset blazing across the horizon, an August meteor shower, or the International Space Station orbiting at night, they’ve seen it all. Two weeks ago, the crew and lodge guests were treated to a rare occurrence when a dense layer of clouds settled over the valley at sunset, leaving the skies...

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12 Awesome Hikes near 12 Major U.S. Cities

Throw a few supplies in a day pack, rendezvous with your nature-loving friends and get yourself to a trailhead for an outdoor adventure everyone will enjoy. Here are 12 hikes a short distance from 12 major cities that offer excellent trail conditions, diverse landscapes and spectacular views....

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Proposed New Trails Would Lead to Great Hollywood Sign Views

Griffith Park, Los Angeles’s largest and most-visited green space, has 53 miles of trails snaking through it, but a proposed new project would increase that number considerably. The plan is to take about 180 acres of untouched, LADWP-owned land near Universal City (known as the Upper Hollywood Reservoir) and open it up to the public with hiking trails on about 11...

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Hiking once saved this Cambodian refugee’s life — and now it’s his therapy

“We were hiking over mountain ranges to get away from all the war,” Pol says. “We were running over mountain ranges while we were being shot at. Landmines were everywhere. We were hiking for our lives, pretty much.” His family had managed to survive the late 1970s under the Khmer Rouge, the brutal Communist regime that killed more than a quarter of...

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Trekking the mighty one – Salher fort

One of the highest forts in the Maharashtra region of India is Salher. As per the common lore, Kalsubai boasts to be the highest peak in the Sahyadri mountains while Salher has the distinction of being the highest fort in the Sahyadris and the second highest peak. About 5,141 feet high, the trek is arduous and takes about three to five hours from the base to the top. As...

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The Toughest Hiking Pants on the Planet

Fjällräven, a Swedish company (the name means “Arctic Fox” in Swedish) started in 1960, was the first to make and distribute the original external frame backpack, along with revolutionizing expedition tent and sleeping bag design in the late 60s and 70s. By applying the now-famous Swedish combination of functionality with elegantly simple and beautiful design...

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Hike with CMLC at Buffalo Creek Park on Weed Patch Mountain – Saturday, December 13th

Join Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy on Saturday, December 13th at Weed Patch Mountain to hike the new trails at Town of Lake Lure’s Buffalo Creek Park. This hike is open to both members and non-members and is located just north of Lake Lure. More than 1,500 acres of Weed Patch Mountain were saved from development when CMLC acquired the tract in 2009. The Town...

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El Mirador’s Maya marvels await discovery in the Guatemalan jungle

After a daylong slog through the suffocating Guatemalan jungle, you emerge before a soaring pyramid in the ghostly ruins of El Tintal, the first stop in the forested realm of the Serpent King. A slight breeze stirs the air, offering a respite from the heat. You climb the pyramid and watch the forest swallow the sun. Earthen mounds entombing cities lost to time lay...

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Help Build the Next 32 Miles of the CDT in Colorado

The Continental Divide Trail Coalition (CDTC), the lead National Partner for management of the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (CDT) has launched a new Fundraising campaign through Indiegogo titled “The Next 32 Miles” to raise funds to construct a 32 mile non-motorized section of the CDT on the Rio Grande National Forest near Saguache, CO. “The Next 32 Miles”...

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Hot springs offer warm respite from winter

There may not be a better way to escape the rainy day blues than a dip into the magic waters of Oregon’s hot springs. Geothermal activity creates pools of relaxing glory that are particularly welcome when the temperatures dip and the rain falls across the mountains. The hot springs in the Beaver State vary considerably. Some are wild outposts with naked hippies...

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Annual “Trek To The Tree” At Kings Canyon National Park Coming December 14

With year’s end quickly approaching, don’t let it pass by without making the annual “Trek to the Tree” at Kings Canyon National Park to watch as rangers lay a wreath at the bottom of the Nation’s Christmas Tree. This year’s trek is the 89th annual. It will be held on December 14 from 2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. Sponsored by the Sanger District...

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OpenStreetMap in the Great Smoky Mountains

With an average of ten million visitors each year, Great Smoky Mountains National Park experiences many visitors who get lost in the park because of inaccurate Location-Based Services (LBS) or outdated maps. Park-issued maps are available at visitor centers, but many visitors rely on navigation assistance from their mobile phones or other GPS devices. This is a major...

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10 Fantastic Hiker Traditions on the Appalachian Trail

We humans are pretty ritualistic creatures. We crave routine and seek out the familiar. When we start to pass these behaviors down through enough generations, we start calling them traditions. Every culture has its own traditions, including the community that surrounds the Appalachian Trail. Hiker traditions and customs can be hard to understand for those on the outside,...

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Hiking in Maine: Saco Beach Loop has history and an ocean vista

Ferry Beach State Park in Saco, Maine is a 117-acre gem in Maine’s state park system that features a nice stretch of oceanfront beach, a pleasant network of foot trails and some interesting history. Long before the advent of roads, a ferry crossing connecting Hills Beach and Camp Ellis at the mouth of the Saco River served early travelers along the beach from as far away...

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Hiking adds clarity, adventure to life

At the University of Chicago, Ginny Too was “the Asian girl with glasses hanging out at the library.” She was neither athletic nor outdoorsy. “It was never part of my upbringing,” she says. How things have changed. Too, now 34, has climbed three challenging mountains: Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Cotopaxi in Ecuador, and Mount Whitney in California....

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Cold weather doesn’t have to put hiking on a hiatus

Temperatures are dropping, snow is in the forecast and restlessness tugs against the temptation to grab a good book and settle in by the fire. With a few exceptions, most bikes, boats and summer gear are packed away for next year. Then the email rolls in. “Hey, who wants to do some winter hiking?” It appears that there are two kinds of winter hiking. One involves...

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If you haven’t seen Yellowstone in the winter, you’re really missing out

Yellowstone, America’s first national park, is one of the USA’s most popular vacation destinations, especially during the summer months. This same park rewards adventurous travelers with a much more intimate experience during the winter when only about five percent of the park’s 3.4 million annual guests choose to visit. For first-time Yellowstone...

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Hikers, city seek to create trails: San Mateo’s Sugarloaf Mountain to become more accessible

A group of avid hikers are coordinating with San Mateo, CA officials to provide more recreational opportunities at Sugarloaf Mountain by creating formal and accessible trails at the city’s largest park and open space landholding. “It’s a little jewel here in San Mateo,” said Marilyn Stockdale Green, a San Mateo resident who sits on the nonprofit Trail Center Board of...

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The business of hiking

While Warren County and Front Royal, Virginia are drawing up plans for extensions of the Appalachian Trail to bring hikers into town, there has been little discussion on the effect hikers have on the economy. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy states more than 2 million people visit some part of the trail every year, spending between $125-168 million annually, with $27...

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Couple rely on map and compass for thru-hike of Continental Divide Trail

From its southern terminus near the Mexican border, the Continental Divide Trail heads north across New Mexico toward Canada. In southern New Mexico, the route is almost entirely unmarked as it crosses semi-desert grasslands where much of the drinking water comes from watering troughs on cattle ranches, never mind the algae and scum. For Iris Russell, the landscape could...

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Take a Hike Day Nov. 17

Source: Fix.com  

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How Trekking Poles Can Make Your Hike Easier, Faster And Safer

Trekking poles are essentially a modern-day evolution of the traditional walking stick. Poles are either telescoping or collapsible (the latter of which collapse like tent poles). Telescoping poles offer adjustable lengths, which is useful when climbing or descending. Collapsible poles lack adjustable lengths, but they are often lighter than their telescoping...

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Filmmaker uses love for Appalachian Trail to make documentary

It runs more than 2,000 miles, from Georgia to Maine. The Appalachian Trail, the brainchild of Benton MacKaye had humble beginnings in 1921 and became a continuous footpath in August of 1937. “I learned a lot about life and a lot about people out on the Appalachian Trail,” said documentary filmmaker Sam Henegar. Henegar has a special bond with the trail....

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7 Things You Absolutely Must Try in a National Park

President Franklin Roosevelt once said, “There is nothing so American as our national parks…. The fundamental idea behind the parks…is that the country belongs to the people.” If you have yet to explore “your” parks – there are 401 of them – then Veterans Day is just the excuse you need. November 11, 2014 is the National...

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