News / Trail

The spirit of adventure and exploration doesn’t have to be super dangerous and difficult sometimes it’s just going a different route or somewhere you have not been before. That’s not to say planning and preparation are not important either. One of the great things about San Diego’s backcountry is an area you have been to many times can still have a few surprises up its sleeve.

Survival Starts at Home: Water, we spent an amazing week in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and you can read about it HERE, but it was definitely a stark contrast from the water situation down here in SoCal.

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, 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.

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.

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

If you have taken one of my fire backcountry skills classes you have heard me rant about the need for packing a stove, we you will hear it again. Making a fire takes time and effort two things that can be critical to a trip.

Coming back from 4XFAR (read about that here) we were driving through Anza Borrego Desert State Park (California’s larges state park) and figure instead of wasting the gas and a two-hour trip we would break it up and get a camp in.