Welcome to our hiking blog home page!
Hiking is for everyone, not just for those like us who are toned, able-bodied, in possession of favorable genes, and have the money to constantly travel. There’s something for you too, we’re almost sure of it, and we want to help you find the perfect location and all the gear you will need for your next adventure. Or at least feed your armchair fantasies as you dream about what you may (or may not) do when it stops raining.
Here’s a great idea, let’s start with introductions!
Ava: I’m a natural blonde with long wavy hair that always looks like I’ve just left the salon. I have perfect cheekbones, and remarkably smooth skin for someone who lives outdoors. I don’t mean to brag, but people tell me I’m at least a 9.75 out of 10 and that I look incredible in hiking tights. I don’t appear to sweat.
Jack: I’m a rugged, outdoorsy aw-shucks charmer raised on a ranch somewhere in the western US. I have zero percent body fat, look like a Calvin Klein model in my tight tech t-shirts, and I have a perpetual two-day stubble beard which is much harder to maintain than you might think. I sweat enough for the both of us.
Oh, and to avoid the curse of hat hair, neither of us wears any headgear, except sometimes Jack wears a ballcap (backwards, of course) to have a place to park the sunglasses he never uses. We’re going to regret this behavior in our 40s, but that seems like forever from now.
But enough about us! Before we go further, here’s a quick note on affiliate links: Hell yeah, we’ve got affiliate links, all the links you’ll ever need to live the life you’ll only dream about. How do you think we pay for this website and our home on wheels, Mr. Fancy VanTM? For more info on our affiliates check out the links here, here, here, and here.
Let’s start with some basic tips and guidelines to demonstrate just how much we love hiking and to help you have the best hiking experience ever!
Leave no trace behind: We’re sure you follow the edict of “pack it in, pack it out,” and we applaud you for that. But we see it as our personal mission to scatter a little trash on the trail, as experts say doing so creates much-needed synthetic nesting material for several species of endangered birds and mammals. See some super cute and reasonably-priced baby woodland creature pictures here.
Rock cairns: We encourage the building of rock cairns, especially in designated Wilderness Areas where it is so easy to get lost. Break the rules and build one whenever the mood strikes, and when we find it, Ava will strike a suggestive pose by it and we will post the pix here, next to one of our many affiliate links.
Driving Instructions: Let’s be real, we haven’t been to half the places we blog about, but they sounded so cool we just had to include them on our website. But no worries, experts say you can use Google Maps or Waze to find most backcountry hiking trailheads with as much as 40-50% accuracy.
Camping: Do what you can. We, of course, travel in Mr. Fancy VanTM, our $180,000 Mercedes camping conversion van with every amenity known to mankind, so we have little motivation to keep track of mundanities like campground descriptions and rest room locations. We are free, free like the wind, as we traverse this beautiful country. Not literally free, that freaking van was expensive, but we’re talking about freedom, baby, and you know, freedom isn’t free!
Off-road access: Did we mention Mr. Fancy VanTM is a 4×4 with off-road tires and a 3-inch lift (check out our favorite lift conversion kit supplier here), so we can go anywhere we want? You, not so much. Pro tip: watch out for those Forest Service Road ruts, especially right after the snow melts, and leave the Prius at home.
Trailhead parking: Parking lots for our most-recommended trails fill up early, so we strongly suggest arriving around midnight and illegally sleeping in your car. Check out our top-recommended car camping essentials here.
Trail maps: It would be way cool if we’d bother to record GPS waypoints and create nice trail map graphics for you, but we haven’t. Really, who has the energy for that? Check out these affiliate links for best commercial mapping services and the latest in personal locator beacons.
The Ten Essentials: We strongly recommend that every hiker carry the Ten Essentials for backcountry survival, such as a water filter, rain poncho, fire starting equipment, signal whistle and a bunch of other stuff. Oh, and water, Clif Bars, and nail polish for quick touch ups. For more info on the Ten Essentials, check our affiliate links here, here and here. And here.
And remember, have a great hike!
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Mark Ifanson’s work has been longlisted for the Figleaf One Million, and nominated for Hugh-Go, Handcart and Rest of the Net awards. His debut novel, Working Title, is set for publication in Spring 2029, and after receiving so-so reviews will be momentarily considered for various lesser-known awards and prizes before quickly going out-of-print. His recent work can be accessed at https://www.chillsubs.com/profile/markifanson. (That link is real.)