Earth Day – held on April 22 – was created to inspire awareness and appreciation of the Earth’s natural environment. Two new events this year in the Allegheny National Forest Region will embrace and celebrate nature’s beauty – a guided hike along the scenic Marilla Springs Trail and the “Wild & Scenic Film Festival” at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford in northwestern Pennsylvania. Both are free and open to the public.
The Allegheny Outdoor Adventures Club is hosting a hike from 9 a.m. to noon at Marilla Springs Trail, one of the many scenic trails of the Tuna Valley Trail Association. Hikers are invited to meet before 9 a.m. at the Marilla Springs parking lot on West Washington Street, located along Route 346, about five miles west of the City of Bradford. Trail maps are available online in a downloadable format at www.tunavalleytrail.com.
The group is expected to walk 3.6 miles on the trail then turn around. However, hikers are allowed to turn back during any part of the hike. Hikers can participate in as much or as little of the 7.2-mile hike as they desire.
Fotopedia, the publisher of popular iOS apps, announced that a new Retina Display-ready version of the popular National Parks app is now available for free in the App Store.
Redesigned, right in time for Earth Day and National Parks Week, the app puts the amazing photography front-and-center, while utilizing the high-resolution capabilities of the new iPad. The app now features Visual Stories, published several times per week, as a new way to enjoy the awe-inspiring beauty of the US National Parks, in a magazine format.
“The stunning Retina display on the new iPad delivers four times as many pixels, so we decided to do the same with Fotopedia National Parks. The result is spectacular,” said Jean-Marie Hullot, CEO of Fotopedia. “To celebrate National Parks Week, during which the admittance to the parks is free, we decided to make the app free as well so that everyone with an iPad or iPhone can enjoy their incredible beauty.”
Delivering a sharper and lifelike experience with high-definition images, National Parks takes people on a visual exploration of all 58 US National Parks including Yosemite, Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon and Glacier — with more than 3,000 breathtaking images created by renowned photographer Quang-Tuan Luong.
The Rockwall is a kilometer-tall rampart of lead-colored limestone, rippling 53 kilometers across the spine of Kootenay National Park. It’s a dramatic piece of geology, even in a region where dramatic geology seems to lurk around every hairpin turn in the road.
Kootenay’s sister parks in Banff, Jasper and Yoho may be more famous, but most hikers agree that the five-day walk along the base of the Rockwall’s intimidating barricade of stone and ice is the pinnacle of Canadian Rocky Mountain hiking. The trail’s physical challenges are quad-quivering: A CN Tower’s worth of climbing and descending is built into each day’s walk. But the roller-coaster topography compensates with some of the most striking scenery on the continental divide. Glaciers and waterfalls tumble from the Rockwall’s head, sapphire lakes and fragrant alpine meadows nestle into its feet and shaggy white mountain goats roam its face.
Hikers must be completely self-sufficient and provisioned. Besides some picnic tables at the campsites, the trail is gloriously wild and unserviced. Hit the Stairmaster for a few weeks before you hit the trail so that its ups and downs are feel-good challenges instead of curse-inducing obstacles.
On May 3, Shawn and Maury Hudson will begin hiking the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail to raise $10,000 for the Saratoga, CA-based Myelin Repair Foundation (MRF). The couple is hiking on behalf of Shawn’s mother, who has had Multiple Sclerosis for 25 years.
They will take five months to “thru-hike” the entire trail, beginning at the Mexican border in Campo, CA and ending in Manning Park, British Columbia. “We’ve been planning our hike for over a year,” said Shawn, “My hope is that the effort isn’t fruitless.”
On average, 300 people attempt a thru-hike each year, but only half of them typically finish. According to the Pacific Crest Trail Association, less people have successfully thru-hiked the PCT than have climbed Mt. Everest.
While teaching in South Korea, Shawn and Maury organized two 10k/5k fun runs through their fundraising organization – Making Miles. Through both events, they raised over $5,000 for the Korean Multiple Sclerosis Society. Their 2012 PCT thru-hike is their most challenging, but potentially rewarding endeavor, to date.
The Myelin Repair Foundation is a not-for-profit organization focused on identifying and developing new treatments for patients suffering from MS. They began funding research in 2004 using the Accelerated Research Collaboration™ (ARC™) Model, which significantly shortens the time to market for new medicines. While their research specifically targets myelin repair treatments, their discoveries may help research on all neurological diseases – such as Alzheimer’s Parkinson’s, or ALS – and their ARC™ Model demonstrates a new pathway to speed the development and sale of new medicines for all diseases.
All of the money donated through Shawn and Maury’s PCT fundraiser will go directly to the MRF. For more information concerning the couple’s hike for a cure, or to donate, please visit the Making Miles website: http://www.makingmiles.com
In search of the best hiking trails in Connecticut for the days when you need a short break from life’s doldrums or a soul-calming trek.
There’s something calming about being in the middle of the woods with only the occasional rustle of tree branches, crow of a bird or scuttle of a squirrel to break the silence. The only way back is to follow the trail markers.
It’s a great place to go when you’ve had enough. Enough of the pressures of work, enough of your young children asking the same question for the zillionth time, enough of feeling as if you’re never going to get the laundry done and the kitchen floor cleaned.
No need to stay long; some days 30 minutes will do, other days may take two to three hours.
Here are some suggestions for finding your trail serenity in Connecticut.
Chimani, LLC announced that all iOS and Android national park apps will be free in celebration of National Park Week, which runs from April 21-29. In order to reach its goal of one million downloads, the apps will be free starting April 18th – plenty of time to download the apps before next week’s celebration. The Chimani national park apps normally sell for between $4.99-$9.99 each and have an average rating of 4 1/2 stars.
The Chimani suite of national park apps include Acadia National Park, Cape Cod National Seashore, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, Zion National Park and the National Parks app – which is a virtual passport tool for all the National Park Service units.
Each of the national park apps are a useful resource for anyone exploring some our most treasured national parks. Each delivers constantly updated content, ranger led event schedules, auto touring points of interest, hiking details, restroom locations, free shuttle bus schedules, and breaking news alerts. Users can also view sunset and sunrise times for the most memorable scenic overlooks, access tide schedules along the coast, review lodging options, and more.
Omaha native Annie Gustafson has completed the 1,860-plus-mile Te Araroa Trail from the northern tip of New Zealand’s North Island to the southern end of the South Island. She arrived at Bluff on Sunday, the 128th day of her journey.
Gustafson, 29, braved angry cows, chest-deep water, speeding cars and mountainous terrain to complete what’s called a thru-hike, which is walking a long-distance trail from end to end. She was intent on being a “purist” — connecting her footsteps from start to finish. It wasn’t her first such trek: She hiked the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail in 2009.
From what she could gather, she likely is the first American woman to complete the full Te Araroa, which means “The Long Pathway” in the Maori language.
Gustafson plans to stop in Omaha before returning to her job at Glacier National Park in Montana, where she works as a biological science technician.
For years on end, the state of New Mexico carried a rather lackluster image of desolate economic landscape, remedial cultural life and generally little to offer in terms of tourist attractions. And for a while there, it seemed as if New Mexicans themselves were hellbent on cultivating a Devil-May-Care attitude about it all. But now it seems as if the times are finally changing.
When it comes to hiking, the state of New Mexico becomes a never-ending playground, from the Sandia mountains popular and easily accessible foothill trails to more remote and out-of-the-way hiking adventures in one of the state’s many wilderness areas and national forests.
With a wide range of ecosystems – grasslands, savanna, lower and upper Sonoran deserts, Chihuahan desert, alpine environment etc; many 12,000 foot peaks and 7 named thirteeners scattered around the state and weather patterns that can turn on you at the drop of a hat, safety remains a priority for most people involved in outdoor activities such as hiking.
One of the most scenic places in the Oregon Cascades, the lake in the crater of Broken Top in the Three Sisters Wilderness, has finally landed in one of William L. Sullivan’s hiking books.
So why was the Eugene author, often referred to as Oregon’s “hiking guru,” holding out all these years?
Blame it on the U.S. Forest Service, Sullivan responded good-naturedly.
“In the past I hesitated to feature Broken Top’s crater in ‘100 Hikes in the Central Oregon Cascades,’ ” he said. “Not because it’s a secret spot, but because the trail there isn’t official.
“Guidebook authors face a certain amount of risk when sending people on unmarked routes. The Forest Service also gives me grief if I feature a ‘user path.’”
This is the U.S. Naval Academy’s idea of spring break: a 70-mile march along the craggy spine of the Blue Ridge Mountains, in a sesquicentennial tribute to Confederate Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson and his torturous Shenandoah Valley Campaign.
Fourteen midshipmen forsook Cancun and Panama City last month for a five-day slog along the Appalachian Trail, eating peanut butter and gorp and drinking water collected from mountain streams. Only nine completed the journey. Injury and exhaustion claimed the rest, a development that only reinforced the week’s lessons about hardship and resolve.
The valley campaign of spring 1862 secured Jackson’s legacy as a consummate military leader. Jackson’s “Foot Cavalry” marched 646 miles in 48 days and won a string of improbable victories against a larger Union force, including memorable contests at Front Royal (May 23) and Port Republic (June 9). The campaign hobbled the Union attack on the Confederate capital in Richmond and fueled Southern hopes of winning the Civil War.
Canada’s oldest and longest footpath was born in Hamilton in April of 1962, fulfilling the vision of a local naturalist who dreamt of a continuous trail alongside the Niagara Escarpment.
The 885-kilometre trail runs from Niagara Falls to the tip of the Bruce Peninsula offering a bounty of natural, cultural and historic riches for tens of thousand of trekkers each year.
While you can hike the Bruce Trail end-to-end, it is far from complete. Only half is protected land. The rest is on roads or privately owned property and always under threat. The struggle to secure its future goes on.
The Hamilton Spectator explores the past, present and future of the trail at 50.
Visit the Bruce Trail Conservancy’s website to see how you can help preserve the trail. The website has links to becoming a member, how to volunteer, or make donations in the name of loved ones and dedicate “virtual footsteps” along the trail.
Spring has arrived, a wonderful time of year to hike alongside New Hampshire’s many natural attractions: rushing waterfalls, warbling songbirds, and showy wildflowers to name a few. With increasing daylight, fewer crowds, and lower heat and humidity than in summer, this time of year can be ideal for visiting some of the state’s most popular trails.
Spring hiking in the Granite State also presents unique challenges. Winter conditions often last well into May in the highest mountains. In addition, increased water can make for tricky brook crossings, muddy trails, and, of course, breeding grounds for biting insects.
Fortunately, the state is blessed with a great variety of trails from which to choose.
Here are 10 hikes that accentuate spring’s positive attributes and minimize its challenges.
Outdoor enthusiasts and experts alike have described the Grand Valley as a mecca for Colorado hiking and biking. With more than 150 hiking trails and more than 500 miles of single-track and multi-use trails, the challenge becomes selection and preference.
More than 40 miles wide, the Grand Mesa is one of the world’s largest flat-topped mountains. At 10,000 feet, more than 200 miles of hiking and mountain biking trails wind through aspen and spruce groves, flowered meadows and lakes.
Sitting 2,000 feet above the City of Grand Junction, the Colorado National Monument is perched on the northern lip of the Uncompahgre Plateau. The spectacular red cliffs and winding canyon trails of the monument provide jaw-dropping views along 41 miles of hiking trails.
The 122,300-acre McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area is still a well-kept hiking secret. An easy, 1.5-mile Trail through Time takes hikers past an active dinosaur quarry and offers a look at the landscape of 150 million years ago. Good bets for stunning and more solitary hikes can also be found amidst the Colorado Plateau’s rugged sandstone canyons, natural arches, spires and alcoves.
The state of New York stopped staffing its firetowers in the 1980s as modern fire-spotting techniques developed. By 1990, the five current Catskill towers had fallen into such disrepair that the state declared them off-limits. The towers were restored with the help of nonprofit groups and reopened in 2000 and 2001. A volunteer interpreter program was established shortly thereafter.
Jonathan Mogelever, membership and outreach coordinator for the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, says the firetowers have become “just about the most popular hiking destinations in the Catskills.”
“The firetowers are the ideal combination of preserving the historical assets of the Catskill Region and promoting healthy outdoor recreation,” he said. The Catskill Fire Tower Project is “an ideal way to ensure the towers are maintained in good and safe condition, and enable hikers to get up into the cabs at the top of the towers, enjoy the 360-degree views, and learn a little about their history and the region.”
The five Catskill firetowers are located on Balsam Lake Mountain in Hardenburgh, Hunter Mountain near Hunter, Overlook Mountain near Woodstock, Red Hill in Denning and Mount Tremper near Phoenicia.
Starting on Oct. 30, 2012 the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will close the Chimney Tops trail Monday through Thursday every week for roughly three years to do trail maintenance and recovery. The Chimney Tops trail has been a favorite for nearly all visitors that grace the Smokies. The trail will still be open on weekends.
Chimney Tops is long overdue for trail maintenance and beautification. Because of its heavy travel, the areas both on and off the trail have suffered. Protecting the biodiversity and this specific habitat is extremely important to the National Park Service, which is why park representatives have chosen to close this trail temporarily.
Chimney Tops is without a doubt one of the most traveled trails in the Smokies. Subsequently, Chimney Tops also has some of the highest carry-out numbers of any trail in the Smokies. People get too excited at the thought of a great view and a short distance and roll their ankles like no one’s business. Please be careful and wear ankle support unless you just really want to be carried out by a pack of park rangers.
Chimney Tops is only four miles round-trip and provides some of the best views in the Smokies. Chimney Tops combines the appeal of a steady, gradual climb with literal rock-scrambling for the last 40 feet of the trail. The imminent fear of falling off the peak makes the view even more worth it to most hikers.
I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, publisher of Meanderthals, and a passionate hiker. I live in western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my doorstep, so the content will focus on these areas, but let me know what you would like to see on the site. 
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