Wild Horse Ridge has open karst alpine ridges that extend for 5 km in a U shape. Once we have hiked to the saddle area on the ridge, we can bear left to go around the North Ridge or we can bear right to continue up toward Mt. Kerr, the highest peak in the Marble Range. Our goal for this … Continue reading…
Mt. Bowman is in the Marble Range. To get to the trailhead, we drove to Clinton, turned west onto the Kelly Lake Road, then north on the Jesmond Road for about 21 km. . At a double curve in the road (N51° 9.435′ W 121° 55.649′ ) a side road leads off to the right. We followed it to the … Continue reading…
The summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii is 4207 m (13 802 feet). A road goes all the way tot he top, but the road past the 9400 foot elevation is gravel and 4WD is recommended. The road is reasonable, but it is steep and rental vehicles may not have the clearance for the way up, … Continue reading…
The Ragged Red Ridge Route is not a designated trail in Lac du Bois Protected Area. The official trail from the Dewdrop Range to the rim of the Red Plateau Escarpment is the 3.75 km (one way) climb to Red Plateau. The Ragged Red Ridge is a parallel route that goes straight up the 410 m (1345 ft.) climb in … Continue reading…
The Frederick Bluffs area is a rugged series of rocky hills in the Dewdrop Range overlooking the seasonal community of Frederick on Kamloops Lake. Access to them is on a good gravel road but from the start, there are no trails to follow. By exploring the area we have worked out routes and variations to fit the season and conditions. … Continue reading…
As the hills dry out we can hike the grassland benches above the river. By late March this year, the first buttercups were out. The grasses are flattened by the winter’s snow cover and the benchlands look barren, but all of the various plants will emerge in spring and with them the insect and animal life that feeds on the … Continue reading…
In this transition period, we can make some good choices for hiking and some more challenging routes too. Generally speaking, the first trails to melt also get mud first. Second, any trail that is on a side slope will drain faster. Third, any trail that has a south-facing slope will dry faster. Fourth, forested trails are slower to clear. Fifth, … Continue reading…
One of the premier resorts and beach areas on the coast of the Big Island of Hawai’i is at Anaehoomalu Bay but almost everyone calls it A Beach. It is a beautiful, protected sandy crescent, perfect for families. Lava flows surround the resort and even the beach access road goes through the rugged black a’a lava flows. It is not … Continue reading…
December, 2017 Dec. 1 – Uplands Bench hike Dec. 3 – Snag Hills hike Dec. 6 – Lower Rose Trails hike Dec. 8 – Lodgepole Lake hike Dec. 15 – Sugarloaf Hill hike Dec. 27 – Bush Lake snowshoe November, 2017 Nov. 1 – Watching Creek trails hike Nov. 6 – Mesa Trail hike Nov. 9 – South Kohala … Continue reading…
Kalepa Ridge overlooks the shoreline of the east coast of Kauai between the Wailua River and Hanamaulu. The highest point on the ridge is 709 feet so there is a short steep climb on an access road to the south end of the ridge. From there the ridge route (informal trail) goes north to a point overlooking the Wailua River. … Continue reading…
The open hills above Kamloops Lake have no trails and access may be limited by grazing leases, mine use, and some private property. A long traverse may be required to get to some of the hills on the south side of Kamloops Lake. We only go into the area in winter when snow covers the ground and all is quiet. … Continue reading…
This was our favorite hike of 2017. Sidewinder Canyon is a rugged barren, deep canyon penetrating into the hills above, but there are 6 side slot canyons, several natural bridges, and a number of side routes to explore, worth a whole day on the trail. Sidewinder Canyon is in the Black Mountains in Death Valley National Park. The trailhead is … Continue reading…
The western end of Kenna Cartwright Park has some of our favorite trails. We usually access the trails from Hillisde Drive past the Kamloops Regional Correctional Center at a gate heading north through the grasslands and sagebrush. We follow the pipeline route up over the shoulder, then we pick a loop. On this day there was lots of snow, so … Continue reading…
Goblin Valley State Park lies in the desert hills of Utah between Green River and Capitol Reef National Park. Highway 70 is a major route connecting Colorado (the pass through the Rockies from Denver) and the highways on the western side of Utah, but it passes through no cities and only a few towns in the desert hills and mountains. … Continue reading…
Island in the Sky is one of four Canyonlands National Park Districts and the easiest one to access from Moab and paved roads. The route to the high mesa is to drive 16 km north of Moab, then 35 km southwest. The road goes through the Park gate then continues on to the edge of the mesa. At … Continue reading…
The trail/route up Funeral Canyon starts next to the Texas Springs Campground not far from Furnace Creek in Death Valley. There are no signs nor trail markers, but the start of the route is obvious as it gently climbs through the Funeral Wash into the East Colman Hills. We hiked on a horse track through scenic badlands up to the … Continue reading…
