I do a lot of hiking (I’m a hiking guidebook author) and I live in British Columbia, Canada where we get dozens of wildfires each summer, so unfortunately, I’m well versed in safe hiking in wildfire season. It’s easy to hear about wildfires on the news and freak out. While wildfires are a real danger …
Backpacking advice
We’ve all heard this advice: “Make sure you are prepared. Check trail conditions online before you go.” But how do you actually find trail conditions? How do you find out if the trail is muddy, snowy, unmaintained, full of bugs, or closed? I wish I had one easy answer for you. Wouldn’t it be great …
If you’re shopping for hiking clothing you’ve probably heard all kinds of great things about Merino wool. But Merino isn’t perfect – to start with, it’s expensive. You might be wondering, is Merino wool worth it? I’ve been hiking and backpacking for two decades (I even wrote a hiking guidebook) and have tried a lot …
Backpacking is a natural extension of day hiking as you trek further into the wilderness. The major downside is having to carry all that gear. I’ve been backpacking for 20 years and have come up with lots of ways to reduce your backpack weight. I’m definitely not an ultralight hiker (more on what that is …