Katherine Gividen greets most people wearing hiking clothes and a big smile. Her passion is hiking, which she promotes as an instructor of the LSU leisure backpacking class, president of the Louisiana Hiking Club and through her job as an outdoor specialist at a local retail store. But it wasn’t hiking trails that brought her to Louisiana. It was food. Following her...
Learn MorePeople interested in getting outdoors in Vermont this summer are now able to check a website for detailed information about hundreds of trails across the state that are open for public use. Officials from the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation and the Upper Valley Trails Alliance unveiled the “Trail Finder” website to help people learn more...
Learn MoreMaybe not everyone believes in Sasquatch (or Bigfoot), but it’s still a good thing to look over your shoulder when you hike in southern Oregon. At least that’s the opinion of the authors of a revolutionary new hiking book, “Hiking Sasquatch Country,” by Wendy and Gary Swanson of Grants Pass. The book covers 39 hikes and 37 historical points of...
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The Appalachian Trail Conservancy seeks volunteers, 18 and over, to help maintain the Appalachian Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park as part of the Smokies Wilderness Elite Appalachian Trail Crew for the 2015 season. A position on the S.W.E.A.T. Crew is physically demanding and is designed for experienced hikers who love to work hard, live in the...
Learn MoreA hike in the high desert followed by a soak at Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs is one of New Mexico’s true pleasures. The plateau above Ojo Caliente offers gentle hikes through the desert landscape and views of mesas, cliffs, and mountains. The hot mineral waters soothe muscles tired from hiking and provide a feeling of deep relaxation. There are several trails that begin...
Learn More“Nur die harten kommen in den garten” (only tough guys get into the garden). With this Teutonic exhortation the guide leads us – a group of “soft Scottish mens” – up into the mountains of the South Tirol for a week-long trek around the Sarntal (or Sarentino) Valley. Our collective mountaineering level amounts, approximately, to the endurance required to huff and puff up...
Learn MoreThe Scandinavian mountain range, running through most of Sweden and Norway, is one of the most underrated hiking locations on the planet. With its vast valleys and low, snow-capped mountains, this northern mountain chain presents a unique landscape filled to the brink with natural treasures to be discovered. Everyone’s heard of the magical fjords of Norway, but few...
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Hiking through the woods is one of the best ways to exercise, but those in Pennsylvania over the next week will be in for a treat as the state celebrates Hiking Week 2015 starting on Saturday, May 30. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the Keystone Trails Association, there will be almost 100 organized hikes that will make...
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An Ashland, Oregon-based group has begun clearing overgrown trails within the rugged Wild Rogue Wilderness Area, and a new grant means they can expand their efforts at opening foot access off these Rogue River trails. The Siskiyou Mountain Club‘s Wilderness Conservation Corps crew has begun scouting and hand-clearing light brush to launch the club’s two-year...
Learn MoreHike it Baby began when Shanti Hodges, a young mother in Portland, Oregon joined a young mother’s group at her local hospital in 2013. She thought it would be more fun to be outside of the hospital on a hike and suggested they all meet the next week for a hike. And it took off through social media. “Our goal is to get babies on trail,” she told an...
Learn MoreScott Jurek has been eyeing the Appalachian Trail for years. On Memorial Day, he began his pursuit of the trail’s speed record. Jurek has won nearly all of ultrarunning’s elite events, including the historic 153-mile Spartathlon, the Hardrock 100, the Badwater 135-mile Ultramarathon, the Miwok 100K, and—his signature race—the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, which...
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Chris Gallaway fought off swarms of mosquitoes like something out of a Biblical plague, black bears trying to get at his rotisserie chicken, and the general exhaustion and agony, anguish and heartbreak of anyone thru-hiking the 2,180-mile-long Appalachian Trail. Although Gallaway, 32, of Black Mountain, NC began the journey in 2013 as a solo hiker, he was never really...
Learn MoreIt’s a big idea — a 10,900-mile-long one. Melissa Scanlan, an associate professor, associate dean and director of the Environmental Law Center at Vermont Law School, seeks to establish a hikers version of Mt. Everest — the Great Lakes Trail on the shores of the Great Lakes. All of the Great Lakes. And all of their shoreline. It would span at least eight states and...
Learn MoreThe favela communities of Cantagalo and Pavão-Pavãozinho in Rio de Janiero, Brazil have restored a hiking trail along their hills in order to boost ecotourism in the communities. The peak of the trail lies on 200 meters and offers a great view over the city including Ipanema and Copacabana beach, the Lagoa and on clear days even Niterói on the other side of the bay. The...
Learn MoreHow about some tips on how to avoid confrontation with cows on our hiking adventures. A family friend was hiking up Mission Peak near Fremont, CA recently and was attacked by a bull. She has sustained very serious injuries and is in a lot of pain. Please advise of any suggestions you have in regards to this unfortunate incident. Cows generally are nonaggressive unless...
Learn MoreTwo of the most heavily used day-hiking routes in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks in northwest Wyoming are closed for the time being because of weather damage and maintenance. In Yellowstone, the iconic Brink of the Lower Falls trail is closed in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone because of a mud and rock slide that deposited a 7-by-8-foot boulder on the...
Learn MoreThe West Bank is much more than the Israeli military occupation that has come to define it for the outside world. From the Byzantine ruins of Sebastia to the lush flora of Wadi Qelt to the vast Jericho desert, the West Bank is a varied and dazzling landscape. You might break bread with Palestinian families in Jericho’s Aqbat Jabar refugee camp, at a women’s cooperative...
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Join the Conservation Trust for North Carolina for kid-friendly hikes this 2015 summer that will connect you and your family to the natural world. Brumley Forest Nature Preserve — Saturday, June 13th, 9:00 AM Join CTNC and Triangle Land Conservancy for an exclusive hike on TLC’s 613-acre nature preserve in Orange County. Enjoy a preview of the vision...
Learn MoreThe time for lacing up your hiking boots is here. And just in time for the summer season — when hundreds of hikers will descend upon the area — TetonHikingTrails.com has launched. The user-friendly website offers hikers interested in Grand Teton National Park a “source of trail information at their fingertips,” Jeff Doran, the site’s founder, said. TetonHikingTrails...
Learn MoreToms Creek Falls, a breathtaking 80-foot cascade waterfall near Marion, NC, is now accessible to visitors of all ages and abilities. The Grandfather Ranger District has completed work on the Falls Branch Trail (#214) and trail head parking area. Trail work included installation of an accessible observation deck below the falls and resurfacing of the ½ mile trail and...
Learn MoreIt’s the sun peeking through the trees, the slight breeze on a cool day and the crackling of the leaves beneath your feet that bring people closer to the world around them. “You feel surfaces people have never experienced,” said Kevin McDermott who’s been barefoot hiking for seven years. “It’s like living in a different world.” The bareness of barefoot hiking brought...
Learn MoreThe Great Smoky Mountain National Park closed the Mt. LeConte backcountry shelter and the popular Cliff Tops area due to aggressive bear activity in the area. Trails leading to the summit of Mt. LeConte are still open, but the park is encouraging hikers to walk in tight groups of three or more and carry bear spray. The park has extra staff stationed to monitor the...
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There are few more spectacular and humbling experiences than being at one with nature, miles from civilization, with nothing but the flora and fauna that surrounds you as company. It’s this oneness with nature that draws hikers onto trails for remote, days-long hikes. Nature lovers will challenge themselves against the elements; surviving on the bounties of Mother Nature...
Learn MoreLater this month, crews will begin carving a 2.6-mile tree-shaded hiking path out of the wilderness along the Peace River near Fort Meade. And when the Peace River Trail is finished about four months from now, city leaders in Fort Meade are hoping it will become a magnet for visitors to their community. “I think people are going to come here and walk the trail, and...
Learn MoreHiking is an especially beloved pastime in Switzerland, a nation veined with wanderwegen or footpaths that wind through the surreal landscapes. No matter where you travel in Switzerland, you’re sure to find a pleasant wanderweg marked every few meters by triangular yellow signs — they’re affixed to tree trunks, signposts, even privately owned barns. After we had followed...
Learn MoreJeff Brewer, of Raleigh, is a hiker’s hero and a driving force behind North Carolina’s flagship trail. Brewer fell in love with hiking in 1996 when he took a hiking class with author Allen DeHart at Louisburg College. “Well, it’s good to get away from the hustle and bustle of traffic and take the cell phones and put them away,” Brewer said....
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Back Country Horsemen (BCH) of America says it values wild lands and the right to enjoy them by horseback. Protecting the wilderness from unnecessary damage is imperative to keeping it pristine. But that creates unique challenges that can prevent proper maintenance of trails, bridges, shelters, and other amenities that allow us to recreate there. The U.S. Forest...
Learn MoreTo many outdoor enthusiasts the mountains and forests are waking with life again and trails beckon. With the days of summer in plain sight, recalling the cold and snow of winter would be a cruel exercise. But hitting the trail often means entering a place where the effects of winter can be seen well into spring. Alex DeLucia manages the Trails Volunteer and Leave No...
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I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, producer of this blog, and passionate about hiking. I live in Western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my door, 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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