Bushwhacking is a form of off-trail hiking where you need to navigate through dense vegetation to locate your destination. Getting really good at it is an art form that takes years of practice and lots of hikes in all kinds of different …
Read More »Navigation and Trip Planning
Trail Blazing Conventions and Guidelines
The first question that most volunteer trail adopters ask is “When do I get to paint a blaze?” I know, because it was one of the first questions I asked when I volunteered to adopt a trail on Mt Washington. But there’s …
Read More »Backcountry Navigation in a Group by Blake Miller
There is nothing more enjoyable than hiking with friends in the backcountry. However, preparation is essential for any wilderness trek. When hiking in a group, it’s important for everyone to be on the same page regarding our navigation. Agree in advance to some …
Read More »Walking in Circles – Common Bushwhacking Mistakes
I got lost in the woods using a compass a few weeks ago when we were bushwhacking West Field, a seldom visited mountain peak near Crawford Notch in the White Mountains. I know how to use a compass quite well, so this …
Read More »Hiking into the Past with Historic Maps
When I plan hikes in the White Mountains, especially off-trail hikes, I try to research the history of the area that I’ll be hiking in before my trip. One of the richest, but rarest forms of information is in the form of …
Read More »Navigating with an Altimeter
If you’re a hiker or a backpacker, an altimeter can be a powerful navigation aid when used in conjunction with a map and compass. Altimeters aren’t new, but they have fallen in price in recent years and are commonly included as a …
Read More »I Don’t Let the Weather Determine When I Hike
I saw someone write “I don’t let the weather determine when I hike” on a hiking message board recently, and it’s got to be one of the stupidest things I’ve ever seen. The weather in the White Mountains kills people all year round because people …
Read More »How to Read a Topographic Map
Whenever you go hiking it’s important to bring a map with you. Ideally, this will be a topographic map, which is the kind with the squiggly lines on it. Called contour lines, they can tell you whether you’ll be hiking uphill, downhill, …
Read More »Pacing and Estimating Distance by Blake Miller
Many outdoors men and women measure distance in the backcountry by using a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver. GPS receivers are reasonably accurate, real time, and provide distance traveled and distance to a destination. But what does the hiker do if they …
Read More »Trip Planning Mistakes
When Wysteria, Sherpa, and I arrived at the trail head we found 4 foot snow drifts covering the trail. It was late March, and we’d planned to backpack north over Mt Greylock past the Massachusetts/Vermont border. We knew that there might be some …
Read More »Hiking Route Planning and Local Knowledge
You should never underestimate the importance of local knowledge when planning a backpacking route or day hike. Trail conditions tend to change far more quickly than the reference information coded in maps or guidebooks and the only way to factor in that …
Read More »The Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Grid System by Blake Miller
Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) is a grid system that describes a person’s location in the backcountry. It is wonderfully simple to understand and use because: It is intuitive – it’s concepts can be understood quickly It can be easily self-taught Young hikers …
Read More »How Often Should You Update Your Maps?
I was giving a talk about hiking the White Mountain 4000 footers last year and one of the attendees asked me “How often should you update your maps?” She asked me this question because several major trails in the White Mountains have …
Read More »GPS Device or Smartphone App Navigation?
I’ve been testing two GPS navigation devices this summer: a higher-end GPS unit and a smartphone app that has very good maps. Except for having a longer battery life and being waterproof, I can’t see what the value is in having a …
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