Last week I took a 5-day Leave No Trace, Master Educator class in the White Mountains. This is the highest level of training provided by the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics and enables me to train people who want to become Leave …

I popped up to New Hampshire for a quick hike last week, climbing two 4,000 footers, Mount Osceola and and bushwhacking to Middle Osceola. The first time I climbed on Mount Osceola, this was a few years back, I met a guy named …

One of the downsides of carrying an ultralight or lightweight backpacking load (20 pounds or less) is that it makes you weak. If you’re not used to carrying a 40 or 50 pound load, including food, fuel and water, you’ll run out …

I am really good at finding summit signs and canisters on trail-less bushwhack peaks. I have an uncanny ability to find herd paths, clear water sources, and even parking spaces in Harvard Square. I’m not sure if it’s attitude or karmic alignment …

It was fine day for a hike, blustery with 40 mile per hour winds, but plenty of sunshine. My destination was Zealand Mountain in the Pemigewasset Wilderness, approaching from the north along the Zealand Trail and The Twinway and returning via the …

The Jetboil Helios is a highly technical, group cooking system designed to accommodate the larger capacity cooking needs of 3-5 people at a time. As a result the Helios is not necessarily a small or lightweight set, but considering it serves the …

Skunk Cabbage is one of the first plants to bloom in spring time along the east coast of the United States and certainly one of my favorites. I love how their bright green color contrasts with the brown leaves of the forest …

I’m leading a challenging day hike in the White Mountains on Wednesday May 2, 2012 (you can still sign up) and thought I’d publish my trip plan to show you what goes into planning a hike like this as an Appalachian Mountain …

Do you dream of adventure? Do you want to backpack a long trail, hike up high peaks or across pristine wilderness areas? Do you want to accelerate your transition to lightweight or ultralight backpacking? Do y0u want to build the confidence to …

Every time we drove by those cliffs overlooking the Colorado, Daddy would say “I’d like to climb those someday. I wonder what’s up there.” The cliffs towered above the river, a couple of hundred feet at least, disappearing downstream at a bend …

The MSR Fast Stash is a bold crossover shelter that offers all of the ventilation benefits of tarp camping with the comfort of a mainstream hiking tent. Based on a traditional flat tarp pitch tarp called an Adirondack Wind Shed (my favorite), …

The REI Stoke 29 is perfectly sized for long day hikes, with a large main compartment and three exterior mesh pockets (2 side, 1 front.) I adore mesh packets like this because I can me stow all of the gear or food …

Ultralight backpack maker Gossamer Gear announced a new backpack today that includes a rechargeable iPad Pocket™ for ultralight backpacking. Built using Kinetic Recharger Technology™, the iGorilla™ backpack automatically recharges your iPad or any other USB compatible electronic device by converting the energy produced by …

Ultralight Titanium Camping Pots I use an Evernew Titanium Pot (1.3 L) for melting snow for winter hiking and camping. It only weighs 4.8 oz, which is pretty respectable for a winter cook pot. It’s a little larger than the 900 ml …