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Which Hiking boots are right for you and your trip?

October 2nd, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

Before you can answer that question you need to really plan what your going to do in them. Are you going to be just out for one day on a smooth trail? How about a week long trek into the mountains? Or maybe you’ll be doing something in-between.

If your going out on a one day walk or an afternoon adventure you probably need some trail shoes instead of hefty hiking boots like Doc Martens or Asolo hiking boots. Trail shoes are more about protection on the bottom of your feet from small stones and twigs than sharp rocks and thorns.

If you’re out for a long hard week of fun in the wilderness you’re going to want more than just protection for the bottoms of your feet. You’re going to want strong sturdy hiking boots. The best hiking boots for a weeklong romp in the woods are going to do a few things for you that trail shoes will not.

The best hiking boots are going to have a strong rubber sole. The thick rubber on the bottom of the boot will protect your feet from sharp rocks and thorns that would pierce or cut through normal shoes.  The best hiking boots will also have fantastic support inside for the arch of your foot and ankle. They will also be waterproof, but should also breath enough to let them dry at night. They also come in some great colors like Red, Yellow and black. The brighter the color the more they will stand out which may just end up saving your life.

Even if you find the best hiking boots that have ever been made, what good are they if they hurt your feet? Make sure you try each and every boot on and walk in it to make sure that you can wear them for long walks. They should be firm when laced up, not so firm that they cause pain, but firm enough to give you support.

Once you’ve picked out a pair of hiking boots that you like and get them home make sure you break them in before you go out for a long hike. This will not only help you feet to not hurt but you’ll be used to the walking style that you develop in them.

Hanging Rock State Park – family hiking and rock climbing

October 3rd, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

Hiking.

Hanging Rock State park has some of the best hiking in all of North Carolina. Its more than 18 miles of trails form fantastic wooded passageways that make up a total of 12 trails. There are several ways to enjoy these trails even if you or someone in your family is disabled and can’t go on long hikes.

If you or your someone in your family is disabled they can still explore hanging rock state park. There is a wheelchair friendly trail that will take you to a beautiful rock outcrop. This makes a fantastic place for you and your family to enjoy a nice picnic and enjoy the views.

The rest of the hiking trails offer great views. You can see anything from picturesque cascades and waterfalls, fantastic views of the rolling Piedmont and Blue Ridge Mountains and high rock cliffs. There is a great mountain cave that is great to explore with your family while your out hiking.

Rock Climbing.

If your looking for something a little more adventuress you can taking your family rock climbing. Hanging Rock State Park offers two areas for climbing Cook’s Wall and Moore’s Wall. They offer a series of cliffs up to 400 feet, they also extend about two miles. These two walls can offer your family a great climb for everyone as they have beginner areas as well. A special note that these are the only two areas where rock climbing and repelling is permitted in Hanging Rock State Park.

To be able to climb and repel in Hanging Rock State Park visitors must have a permit. The permit can be be had from the park office for no fee. There are a few notes about the permit.

• The permit must be had before you climb.
• A copy of the permit must be left in the registration box or given to a park ranger.
• A copy must be kept on your person while your climbing.

When you climb you need to remember that you are responsible for your equipment and safety. This means please make sure you know what your doing or hire a guide to help you.

These are the Hanging Rock State Park climbing regulations. Please keep in mind that these do apply at all times.

• Climbers are climbing are their own risk. You are responsible for getting the proper training and equipment.
• You are required to register with the Hanging Rock State Park staff and keep a copy of your rock climbing permit on you.
• Hanging Rock State Park does not maintain or install fixed anchors or climbing routes. Please do not try to create new routes.
• You are climbing on your own risk. Hanging Rock State Park does not take any responsibility.
• Any and all accidents or injuries must be reported immediately to park staff.

 Maps

Here are some maps of Hanging Rock State Park to help you plan your hiking trails and family activities.

Hanging Rock State Park Map PDF

Hanging Rock State Park Map JPG

Eureka Solo Solitaire Tent - Great single person hiking tent

October 3rd, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

Eureka Solo Solitaire Tent

Price: $51.43 USD

The Eureka Solitaire is one of the lightest hiking tents on the market today. It features a compact three season design. It has a large mesh roof that makes it very well ventilated and allows you to look up at the stars on clear nights. The two hoop design allows it to be one of the most compact tents on the market. One nice feature is that in nice weather you can open the top to use it as an extra entrance or exit. The fly hood can be retraced in seconds for easy storage as well. Other notable features include three storm guyouts on the fly, two storage pockets, one flashlight loop and nylon pole sleeves.

• Area: 21.33 square feet
• Floor size: 2 feet, 8 inches by 8 feet
• Center height: 2 feet, 4 inches
• Wall fabrics: 40D no-see-um mesh
• Floor fabrics: 70D nylon taffeta
• Fly fabrics: 70D nylon taffeta
• Pack size: 4 by 17.5 inches
• Weight: 2 pounds, 9 ounces

 

Hiking Gone Bad, If real life is like B videos.

October 8th, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

If real life hiking trips were like movies no one would go. Ever. We’ve all scene movies about a family or boyfriend and girlfriend who go out into the woods for a nice hike, never to be seen from again. It starts with someone being brave or doing something stupid.

Most of the times in these videos they go hiking without a guide, If you’re going to go hiking in a new place that you are not familiar with for the love of God get a guide. It can save your life.

Lets talk about hiking gear for just a second. You may think you are billy bad ass with your cheap hiking boots and your metal hiking staff but lets get one thing clear, no matter if your wearing cheap hiking boots or charles van gorkum custom hiking boots the monster around the next corner, yea, he is going to eat you. Period.

Lets not forget about the awesome idea you had to bring a video camera into the woods, its only going to end up on “Hiking gone bad” a strait to video release, that is if they find your camera.

Oh I almost forgot, you are going to need radios for hiking. Don’t get the cheapest radio you can find, get a good quality 2 way radio. This could save your life when the National Guard is looking for you.

Remember people, we just need to use a little common sense in the wilderness. Its not something to be afraid of, just respected.

Camping trailers, popup? teardrop? cargo conversion?

October 16th, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

If you’re new to camping it can be a daunting task to pick the right camping trailer for the type of camping you want to do. We’ll go over a few of the major types of trailers and some pros and cons to each.

The Teardrop Camping Trailer

The teardrop camping style trailer is one of the smallest trailers on the market. It consists of a bed for you to sleep in and usually a pop out kitchen in the back. They can be quite fun if you’re going camping by yourself or with your wife or girlfriend. They keep you warm at night and are a breeze to pull with any car with a hitch, I’ve even seen some being towed by a motorcycle. These are getting harder and harder to find. Most of these are classics from the 50’s. If you look you can find plans for these on the internet and get a local craftsman to build you one. Prices are hit or miss, They can be found for between $500.00 and $10,000.00, it all depends on the condition its in and what area of the country you are in.

Motorcycle Camping Trailer (pop up)

This motorcycle camping trailer isn’t so much a trailer as it is a really nice tent in box. A motorcycle camping trailer opens up and a pop up tent extends out of it turning into what amounts to a small apartment. They usually give you two or three rooms, a sleeping area, dining area and some storage. They don’t come with air conditioning but thats because its more of a tent than an trailer. The going rate for a motorcycle camping trailer is about what it is for a teardrop camping trailer. They are still being produced so you can pick them up new for between $1,000 and $10,000 depending on what options you get and if it matches you’re bike’s color scheme.

Off Road Camping Trailers (pop up)

An off road camping trailer is usually composed of a sturdy frame that can take some real punishment getting from the highway to an out of the way camping spot. They are similar to the motorcycle camping trailers in the sense that they are more of a tent than they are a real building. They have to be though, they need to be small and tough to take the beating it takes to get to some of the remote camping places. These off road camping trailers are a little more pricey on average than the other types because the have to be built to a higher standard. They can be custom made or converted from the a motorcycle camping trailer. One of these will set you back around $7,000.The price isn’t bad once you consider how much abuse these will take.

These three type of camping trailers can be considered on the small scale of camping trailers, most of them would be considered lightweight. This makes them ideal for one to two people. These camping trailers can get cramped if you try to add children to the mix. They also don’t offer much in the way of power. Some will come with a 110-220v AC system but almost none of them come with generators. You may be able to find one that has an LP system for cooking, its worth the extra cost if you can get it.

Twitchers Go For Bird Walking

February 23rd, 2008    Subscribe To Our Feed

Bird watching is a very popular and addictive hobby not just in America, but all over the world.  The official name for bird watchers is “twitchers”.  One of the perks of being a twitcher is that the hobby is not very expensive and can be done anywhere.  The price of equipment is minimal or as maximum as you want.  One of the relaxing and pleasant ways to get to know Mother Nature is to go on a bird walk around where you live or where you vacation.

Equipment Needed

Most of this equipment is optional for bird walking.  You might not care about identifying every little brown bird you see – you might find that just looking at them is reward enough.  But if you are curious, bird identification guides are a good investment.  Only get the field guides of birds in the areas you do your bird walking.  Field guides for the birds of the world are not only fabulously expensive, but weigh a ton.

You do need good footwear for bird watching.  The shoes or boots need to be sturdy, comfortable and with a minimum of heel.  Depending on where you might walk to follow a bird, you might get into some (literally) sticky situations, so don’t wear you best shoes. Some people prefer to walk in shoe-boots, some in Wellington boots.  If you are only going around your neighborhood or to tourist bird walking tours, then a pair of sneakers is all right.

Binoculars are also optional, but recommended, especially if you are nearsighted.  They needn’t be a huge expensive pair – they could even be pair of tiny opera glasses.  This way you can watch the birds without startling them by getting too close for their comfort.  Binoculars can take a little getting used to, so practice first before going bird walking.

Twitching Vacations

There are vacation packages catered just for those who love bird walking.  You can find them online or ask your favorite travel agent.  You could also take vacations close to nature parks or preserves and do your bird walking then.  You can choose from staying at a hotel, a vacation rental home or camping out.  Before you go, pack for any kind of weather.  Also pack your sense of humor.  Nature rarely performs on schedule.

If you think it might be sunny, be sure to wear a hat or at least use sunscreen.  You will also need bottles of water, tissues and hard candy or jellybeans to stave off the worst hunger pangs.  You could pack a picnic with you, but you might just get caught up in the moment and stay out past your usual dinnertime and need something to get you back home.

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