News / hiking

We had a great little get away this past week and shit down to go visit the in-laws in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. This was my first trip to the U.P. and I have to say I absolutely loved it up there

Survival Starts at Home: Signaling, one of the more underused, carried and understood concepts of backcountry travel is signaling. Like what am I talking about when I even bring it up, who are we trying to signal and how are we doing it. Well like we say Survival Starts at Home with planning, training and communicating a plan.

Survival Starts at Home, Shelter; when we are talking “survival” we love to jump right into the worst case and learn the cool skills (which are important) but the true mark of a backcountry pro is not having to use those skills because of things that they can control.

Fire roads and truck trails are a great way to get your feet wet when it comes to back country travel and backpacking. Lately with all of the shutdowns I have been exploring local places I have usually overlooked.

This last weekend was an amazing trip and my first non-local escape ion a little while, we headed up to the Alabama Hills Just outside of Lone Pine Ca and positioned at the foot of the eastern sierras and Mt Whitney.

Mini Backpacking trips have become one of my favorite ways of getting out and enjoying a little nature with out totally impacting my schedule.

The “fanny pack” is back, and it’s cool again to be able to store extra stuff securely, outdoors people rejoice! I have been using my Vanquest Dendrite Large for a couple months now and am pretty stoked to have something new.

Getting creative with your trails and hikes, this shelter in place and social distancing thing has got me thinking we need to be more creative with how we enjoy the outdoors and about getting back to the idea of exploring.

Mt Gower Open Space Preserve is located southeast of Ramona at the end of Gunn Stage Rd back in the Ramona Country Estates. I think it is one of the better kept secrets for those who want to enjoy a challenging hike with amazing views