Hiking Dude Blog

I was planning on hiking 6 miles this morning, but when I hit 3 miles it just seemed like I needed to go further. I'm glad I did.

Click the image to see a short video of the three deer I saw, plus one. They were beautiful. And, they were at about 7 miles of my 11-mile hike.

This week I've been trying to identify at least 10 animals on each hike. Today, I got eight - deer, crow, goose, duck, red squirrel, grey squirrel, cardinal, robin. We've had exceptionally nice weather since summer, but that's due to end tomorrow with rain/snow right around 35° all day. But then we're right back to sun for another week.

So, it's not too late to invite some folks out on a hike and stretch your legs.

Hike On

You may have heard that the Appalachian Trail takes 5,000,000 (that's 5 million) steps to thru-hike. Well, my legs are longer than most, so I thought it would be fun to find out exactly how many Hiking Dude steps it takes to thru-hike the scenic trails. After I've hiked a trail, I'll post my step count on the informational page for that trail. Last month, I started looking around for a good pedometer to take on my hikes.

At just the perfect time, an opportunity to test a new GeoPal pedometer came up at OBN and I got chosen as a participant. So, I've been wearing a GeoPal on my hikes for the past week or so to see if it does what I need. I just clip it on my shoelace and walk - pretty simple. When I get home, I look at the number of steps displayed.
It's a very cool little gadget, doing more than just count my steps - which it does very well. It's an accelerometer pedometer which is better than pendulum design. It has the date and time so I don't really need a watch. It stores 21 days of data, automatically starting a new day of steps at midnight. You can wear it on your wrist, hip, or shoe - I use the shoe so it's out of the way and more accurate.

The market for GeoPalz is youth, with a goal of increasing physical activity levels by making running around rewarding. To reach this goal, they've created a fun website called GeoPalz.com where kids can track their steps and earn stuff, ranging from frisbees to gift cards - I've already got almost enough steps for a sports bottle! Each person can set up their step length, height, weight, age, and other details to accurately track miles walked and calories burned. That's probably more interesting to parents or someone on a fitness program. My favorite part of the GeoPalz website is a map that automatically shows how far you walked, from your hometown to neighboring towns. As your accumulated miles grow, you reach distant towns.

Since GeoPalz are aimed at youth, the pedometers have tons of different emblems from which to choose to make them more personal, from butterflies to skateboards. In my case, I didn't really want to walk aroud with a flower on my foot, so I trimmed off the soft plastic piece, reducing the weight of the device as well - it's just 0.6oz now. It has a very strong clip and dust/water cover that I could remove and probably drop it to 0.3oz but I'm not that much of a gram weenie.

I plan to keep tracking my training hikes and then wear my GeoPal across Arizona in the spring. I'll let you know how many steps it is from Mexico to Utah, and other trails after that.

Hike On

After just researching, planning, and training for the past few months, I finally set foot on one of the national scenic trails I plan to thru-hike in 2012. Over Thanksgiving break, I got a taste of the trail by hiking the Kewaskum and West Bend segments of the Ice Age Trail plus the connecting routes between them. It was just 14 miles with on-and-off drizzle but was a wonderful hike!

The volunteers that maintain those segments have done a great job. Along the way, there were four or five placards that described the terrain from the glaciers, the people that created the trail, and other interesting tidbits. If the rest of the trail has such kiosks, and well-marked routes, it will be a wonderful trek.

I did notice that someone had vandalized some of the trail signage - what a shameful way to waste money, effort, and time put out by volunteers to improve life for all of us.

Not all the trail blazes are easy to find, though.
Walking down a sidewalk in West Bend, I could have easily walked right past this pole if not expecting the cut-off into the forest. I found that I got tuned into keeping an eye out for yellow blazes and had no problems.

I stopped at a gas station for a Snickers bar and almost asked the clerk if he knew about the Ice Age Trail just to see. I can see I'll have to work on being a bit more outgoing with strangers to get the most fun out of these hikes. Just a bit over 3 months before I start for real.

Hike On

After my hike last weekend, I'm pondering something. I found this, and a few more, balancing rock formations that someone created along the trail. I think they look pretty neat and I've seen them done as art before.

The quandry comes from the location of this person's efforts. It is in a state park and along a well-trafficked trail. Most people come here, I believe, to walk through the woods and enjoy the natural beauty around them. None are expecting man-made artistic structures along the trail.

So my perceived dilemma is, should I admire the rock pile and leave it as I continue my hike, or should I take off each rock and toss it out into the woods?

The first response recognizes the efforts of the person and leaves the art for others to enjoy because it really does look pretty cool. The second puts more importance on the natural beauty and feeling that the wilds are unspoiled, and also supporting the minimal impact and leave no trace ethics.

If I were to encounter this in a wild area, my choice would easily be made to dismantle the structure. In my view, the wilds should remain as natural and wild as possible and man-made impacts should be removed.

But, this was along a frontcountry trail where folks hike for an hour or so and there are rest benches, toilets, water fountains, and picnic tables in the area. For all I know, it's possible this art was approved by the land manager to make the trail more interesting. After all, lots of other people have walked past them and left them there.

In this case, I left them alone but have sent an email to the Department of Natural Resources contact to ask what they would prefer to have done with them.

Whatever the response (I'll let you know), I do hope we all agree that it is not our place to create artistic sculptures, structures, drawings, or whatnot out in the public wild places. Minimizing our impact and allowing future visitors to experience as wild and natural a place as we enjoyed is our duty.

Would you have taken the rock piles apart or left them for others to enjoy?

Hike On

I'd like to elaborate on two points that came up in the comments of my last post - and thank you for all your thoughts.

Cairns vs. Art
Some people mentioned that rock cairns are useful for marking the trail so the rock stack I found should be left alone. The rock stacks were most definitely NOT cairns. The trail is manicured and so encompassed by forest that a person would need to work at getting off the trail.

Rock Art does not adhere to the ethics of Leave No Trace. Some of the specific LNT items to consider are:

• Use a map and compass to eliminate the use of marking paint, rock cairns or flagging.
• Leave rocks, plants and other natural objects as you find them.
• Do not build structures, furniture, or dig trenches.
• Respect other visitors and protect the quality of their experience.

If a person subscribes to the LNT philosophy, then piling rocks isn't something that person would do. It is something we should be teaching youth not to do when we have the opportunity.

There is certainly a place for rock art, and nature art in general. Some people make a living from it - see Andy Goldsworthy. But, we shouldn't be building artworks in the wild, or on public lands, and leaving them for others to observe after our hike.


Building Cairns
Cairns are definitely useful in some areas. Many land management groups build and maintain cairns to mark the trail, similar to blazes on trees. For example, see this cairn construction page. A group spends time removing unofficial cairns and rock art to improve the usefulness of the maintained cairns.

In a pristine environment, hikers should have the opportunity to feel like they are the first explorers. No trail markings are needed through an area with no trail. Cairns in a pristine area may concentrate traffic to a specific path, creating a trail counter to LNT philosophy, rather than dispersing traffic to keep the area pristine.

In an area with established trails, cairns or blazes made by the responsible land agency are adequate. Individuals adding to them can cause confusion and unneeded visual impact.

Here are a couple other pages you might review - Leave what you find, LNT Blog

If you are a proponent of LNT, please take care in how the philosophy is shared with others. You can do it reasonably in an effort to help others understand the value, or this way - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jdfr9x8M8Vw

Hike On

On this hike, it was 5 degrees - see the frost all over my head? :-)

I've decided 5 degrees is about as cold as I enjoy being out hiking miles. Colder and the layers of clothes make walking less enjoyable. But, down to 5 and my trail shoes, longjohns and nylon pants, fleece jacket and rain coat, mittens, hat, and scarf work perfectly without being overly bulky. This week it's popped back up to 40 with mist and fog so I've got at least a few more days to hike.

In wilderness first aid, we discuss what time of year is the most dangerous for hypothermia. When your body loses more heat than it can generate for long enough, your core temperature drops, resulting in hypothermia. Often, the first thought right out of the gate is 'January!' but then we chat a bit.

Hypothermia can happen any time of year, but the colder the temperature gets, the faster your body loses heat. So, January makes sense. But, in the dead of winter around here with -20° days, we expect cold so we wear parkas, mukluks, mittens, and balaclavas to insulate us. Besides that, and just as important, everything is frozen solid - that means it's not wet. You can hike through miles of snow and stay completely dry.

Staying dry is a great defense against hypothermia. Hiking at a steady rate without working up a sweat, dressing in layers, ventilating your clothes, and wearing rain gear are all good ways to minimize moisture on your skin. Water transfers heat 50+ times as much as air.

So, spring and fall tend to have more wet weather. Which is worse?
After warm summer days, a wet Fall day feels cold so we protect ourselves. A 35 or 40 degree day in Spring feels tropical and people are tempted to go out with inadequate protection - especially youth. When they get wet, real trouble can happen quickly.

Whether heading out for an afternoon hike or a long trek, staying warm and dry should be part of your preparation.

The cold won't kill ya - the wet will.

Hike On

Another year about to begin - endless possibilities and opportunities ahead. Over the holidays, I've been enjoying time with relatives and away from computers. I got in a couple 15-mile hikes in the snow, received a few very cool hiking/camping items, and ate way too much. I'll tell you more about the first two next week. I even made two sets of moccasins for gifts and have one more to do today.

It's always a good thing to take some time to reflect on what you've accomplished and make goals you'd like to attain. January 1 is a perfect date to do this, being sort of a reboot of time each year. Being resolute is a characteristic of good leadership and self-discipline - defining success and then pushing ahead until success is reached.

If you've not made any new year's resolutions yet, take ten minutes and jot down a few so you can check your progress over the year. Here's a couple of mine:

• Walk 3000 miles - that's 800 on the AZ Trail, 1100 on the Ice Age Trail, and 1100 on conditioning hikes.
• Blog 300 times - this will be the most difficult
• Make 30 new friends - not Facebook friends, real people. I hope to meet them on the trail, at presentations, church, and in business.

Now, I need to set my resolve and make these more than just wishes.

Hike On
(and have a Happy New Year)

What do cigarettes, guns, spray paint, knives, and rocks have in common?

They account for the majority of vandalism and litter I see on the trail and at trailheads. I often wonder what person does this. Maybe I know him. Maybe he's a friend of mine.

This Ice Age Trail route sign is a perfect example of someone with a gun, boredom, and low braincell counts. OK, that wasn't very nice, but really? I mean, Come On!
This was at a point where the trail crosses a fairly remote dirt road and that small yellow sign makes a great target.

I also imagine the vast majority of trail vandalism is done by males, and probably young males. Does this sound like a good opportunity for discussion the next time you go hiking with some youth? Keep your eyes open for vandalism and ask what they think of it.
Who does it effect?
What cost does it have?
How does it diminish the outdoors experience?
What can we do about it?

This is a small kiosk sign on the IAT. It was slashed and cut with a knife which allowed water and freezing to damage it further. The IAT has many informational signs like this along its route. I learned about kames and kettles last week by reading these.
Now this one will take volunteer time and money to replace - efforts that could have been spent on trail improvements elsewhere.

Hike On

This 4x3x2 inch bag contains my latest MYOG project that weighs 1.4 ounces. My wife showed me how to use the sewing machine this weekend and I made this myself - I'm so proud! :-)

Sewing is actually a lot easier than I expected. The seams aren't perfectly straight, but it turned out like it was supposed to.
And, it only took about 2 hours for the tutorial and completing the project.
Now I'm looking forward to seeing what else I can create.



It's an insulated hat!

It's mostly intended for sleeping when winter camping, or at elevations such as those found on the Pacific Crest or Continental Divide trails which result in freezing nighttime temperature. I was expecting to use it this winter, but we've had much warmer than normal weather.

As you can see, the hat expands and has about an inch of loft all around. The drawstring is to hold it as snug as you like.

It is reversible so I can wear it with either my blue or grey outfit and stay fashionable. :-) As a matter of fact, it is so cool, I had to wear my shades when modeling it here.

Hike On

A headlamp is a great outdoors tool. It frees up both hands, lights your way or work area, and is convenient. I've got a few different ones (one I even found ontrail at Philmont) that have evolved from incandescent bulbs to LEDs, reducing the weight and power usage. But, I just got a way cool upgrade.

I received a Photon Freedom LED light. It is a single LED but is dimmable so I can choose the brightness, and corresponding power consumption. I can't show you how bright it really is, but this tiny light delivers as much light as my previous 4 LED headlamp.
It weighs just 0.25 ounces and is as bright as my 7.6 ounce headlamp. When I add the clip, it weighs 0.4 ounces. To reduce weight, I removed the keyring, cut the tiny magnets off the clip, and left the lanyard on the table.

I'm impressed (it has a big 'fun factor') and am very excited to use it on my long hikes. I don't expect to do any night hiking, instead using it for a camp light. The clip allows the light to swivel around into any position, and is tight enough to hold it in position.

This one light should last for at least a month of hiking, but I ordered a bunch of CR2016 batteries for cheap online and will take a few, just in case. It's supposed to last from 12 to 50 hours, depending on the brightness I use. Since I expect to be in my shelter right after nightfall each day, I don't think I'll put many hours on it.

I'd prefer rechargeable batteries and Photon has a version that can be recharged. There's also a solar charger accessory which could be useful, but may weigh more than carrying a few extra batteries.

I also received an ultraviolet version from my brother, concerned about scorpions on my Arizona Trail hike - he figured I could use it to see them before stepping outside or into by shoes. :-) For the extra .25 ounces, I'll probably take it along - who knows what I'll find with it.

Hike On