(Part 2) Top products from r/hiking

Sure! I started out with "Tom Brown's Field Guide to Nature Observation and Tracking". He's one of the more well-known names in tracking, but also a little controversial -- he makes some claims that sound pretty outlandish and his whole background story sounds like a myth.

But overall it's a really good book! It was a good first step, and it got me to start paying attention to what was around me. From there I've spent years practicing. When I'm hiking, I have one eye in front of me and one eye on the ground, trying to spot subtle little things even in really challenging terrain (like pine needles!). Any time I come across something interesting, animal or human, I stop and take a closer look. (I totally love trail poo too.) I also make it a game to try to count the number of people that might be ahead of me on the trail and their gender -- how many different tracks there are, what size they are, how recent they are, how many go out and come back vs. just going out. It's sort of become second nature now.

When I head out on a trail and then come back, I try to find my own prints and pay attention to how they change in the conditions: how long does it take mud to try, bits of snow to melt, plants to return to their original position. And I totally blew it with this on Thursday when hiking with a friend! We crossed some snow on the way out, and on the way back I wasn't positive we were on the correct fork of the trail because I didn't see recent tracks in the snow. My buddy and I spent a few minutes debating it and taking a closer look, and it turned out that they had melted way faster than I was expecting in those conditions -- they were there, but they looked like they were days old, not hours.

I don't have any certifications or professional training at it, although I'd like to, but I recently joined my county's search and rescue team and it looks like I'm decent enough to join their tracking team. I'll find out on Tuesday evening!

I excerpted this from an email I sent to a buddy of mine. I used to guide hikes in and around RMNP.

The Completer Hiking Guide by Lisa Foster is the best guide to Rocky. She's a ranger there, or at least was when I was there.The only problem is that she doesn't really differentiate between hard scrambling and easy climbing.

http://www.amazon.com/Rocky-Mountain-National-Park-Complete/dp/0615526845/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

Hikes

Easy

• Bridal Veil Falls
  
• Lumpy Ridge
  
• Circle of Lakes (Mills Lake, The Loch, Lake Haiyaha, Dream Lake)
  
• Fern-Odessa Loop (start at the Bear Lake Trailhead. Use the shuttle to get back to the Bear Lake parking lot)
  
• Cub Lake
  
• Emerald Lake, good after dinner hike
  
• Bighorn Mountain
  
  
  Medium
  
  
• Lake of Glass/Sky Pond
  
• Flattop, Hallets and Otis peaks
  ~Go up Flattop. Hike the tundra to Hallets and Otis. Glissade down the Andrews Glacier, b/t Otis and Andrews. Hike out on the Loch trail. Check the conditions on the Andrews Glacier before doing this one. Also if there's still a snow pack, you may want to go with a guide, i.e. a hikemaster form the YMCA of the Rockies.
  
• Tyndall Tarn?
  ~This is above Emerald Lake at the base of the Tyndall glacier, which is a hanging glacier. To get there, find a route over the boulder field to the South, left, of Emerald Lake. I made it most of the way there and got turned around by a storm.
  
• Timber Lake
  
• Ptarmigan Tarns?
  ~There's a climber's trail heading toward the saddle between Flattop and and Notchtop Mtn, called Ptarmigan Point on the quads. You should look for it just past Two Rivers Lake, prior to heading down toward Lake Helene. It will be off to the left of the main trail. Follow it until your reach Ptarmigan Tarns. I think there are two.
  
• Joe Mills Mtn.
  ~There's no trail once you turn off the trail to Odessa Lake. Scramble to the top and head to the west for the high point. Very nice view of Lake Helene.
  
• Chasm Lake
  
• Teddy's Teeth
  
• Twin Sisters
  
  Hard
  
  
• Mummy Mtn./Lawn Lake (very long hike)
  
• Chapin, Chiquita and Ypsilon (high elevation, hike from the Fall River Rd. trailhead)
  
• Mt. Ida, from Timber Lake
  
• The Never Summer Range ~These peaks are characterized by long approaches over rotten, unstable rock. The advantage is there are lightly visited, compared to other areas of RMNP.
  
  Restaurants
  
  
• Smokin Daves
  
• Poppy's
  
• Kind Coffee
  
• Hayley's
  
• Breakfast place in Allenspark, CO
  ~can't remember the name of it. Really, really good breakfast. Find a local and ask them. They should know about it. Head about 16 miles south on C0-7. It's right in the main part of Allenspark.
  
• Rock Inn
  ~don't remember much about the food. I went there for the live bluegrass every weekend. Here's the schedule: http://www.rockinnestes.com/
  
  
  You should definitely spend a day hitting the breweries in Fort Collins.There are six breweries, I think. The tour at The New Belgium Brewery was a favorite. The EP Brewery isn't bad, either.
  
  Lastly, some general tips for hiking there. Most of the rock there is granite. It is very hard on footwear. There will be perpetual construction on Trail Ridge road. This can lead to very long delays in both directions (hours). Plan accordingly. Much of the park is at high elevation. Afternoon thunderstorms are very common. If you're attempting a summit, or heading to a high elevation lake, you should be on your way down by around lunchtime. Plan on the early starts others have mentioned. You will probably have to acclimatize. Start with easier stuff and work your way up to more difficult hikes.The best source of information will be the rangers. They know their park and what goes on in it. Sorry for the wall of text. Enjoy the trip, RMNP is an amazing place.
  

When you say next August, I presume you mean 2017? The reason I ask is SOBO hikes (ones starting out at a Yosemite TH) are notoriously booked months in advance. In fact, the reservations for August are almost up. So the first and hardest part of hiking the JMT SOBO is just getting a permit that allows you to!

I'd check out this site: http://bearfoottheory.com/john-muir-trail-permit/

Gives you the info you'll need.

As for gear, you don't need too much over the standard. You'll need a decent pack that can hold 35-40lbs. You'll need a bear canister per code. After that, just any tent that you like. Most would recommend something lightweight.

In August, the snow should already have melted in a lot of the Sierras, so you shouldn't need an ice ax or crampons or anything strange. You'll probably want a 40 degree rated sleeping bag or better depending if you sleep hot or cold.

You'll want to plan some basic resupply. Nothing too fancy. Mostly sending a resupply to the Muir Trail Ranch or others depending on how much food you want to carry at once. There's plenty of reliable resupply strategies out there, pick one you're most comfortable with, even if it includes going overboard.

A great guidebook that has a lot of info: http://www.amazon.com/John-Muir-Trail-Essential-Americas/dp/0899977367/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

And yeah, that's about it. Then you just get out and hike it. Depending on your pace you can complete the JMT in 10-14 days if you're trucking through, but if you want to soak in the scenes you can go at a slower pace.

I'm hitting the JMT SOBO out of Happy Island in July. Lemme know if you have any other planning or readiness questions!

You're not going to find any 3-4 day loops in that area. Your best bet would be something along the AT in MA, or a shorter loop in Greylock State Reservation.

Have you considered Harriman State Park? It's about 35 miles north of NYC, and has plenty of options that could be used to make a 3-4 day loop. The only drawback is that the park is likely to be very busy on the holiday weekend.

There's also the Catskill State Park in NY, but there aren't many loop options there.

The PA Wilds of Pennsylvania (basically the north central portion of PA) has a bunch of good options. The Old Loggers Path, a 27 mile loop, might be just what you're looking for. It's about the same distance from Philadelphia as eastern NY/western MA (maybe slightly closer). It's got a couple of rugged climbs but overall it isn't too difficult, and if you take 3 full days to do it, you only need to average 9 miles a day. This book is a good resource for planning backpacking trips in PA: http://www.amazon.com/Backpacking-Pennsylvania-37-Great-Hikes/dp/0811731804

Hope this helps!

Where's the trip? I'm curious about the need for that much water, but could see it in a desert. The pack should be fine, if a tad heavy, but if you end up having to carry bulky items it may be too small. (Worry about that later though.)

Aside from /r/Ultralight, Skurka's blog has good content both his book and this other one are good to look through.

One other suggestion I'd make is to adjust the gear list people get, otherwise you could end up with a bunch of inexperienced people with 60lb packs and all the fun that brings. There are a number of threads (on BPL, in /r/ultralight, and elsewhere) that list ultralight setups that try to stay under a given dollar amount. You can use those give people lists that include both common lightweight items and their budget alternatives. Remember, if they pack too much, you might end up having to carry it.

The Ultimate Navigation Manual is one of the best reference books to any skill that I have ever encountered, very clearly written with tons of clear photographs and illustrations to help depict concepts. I highly recommend it to anyone that might have need of navigation skills.

Buy this book and read it before you spend any money. This will give you a great idea of how to squeeze a lot of enjoyment out of hiking & backpacking (IMO). It might not all appeal to you, but there are some real great tips and philosophies in here that will help a new hiker.

ultralight backpackin’ tips

I picked up copy of this [book] (http://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Glacier-Waterton-Lakes-National/dp/0762772530/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394469414&sr=1-1&keywords=hiking+glacier+national+park) which I found quite interesting and contains lots of information on the trail and areas.

I am hoping to do a similar trip this summer and will be interested to read what you find out.

When are you going?

These guys or these guys might let you borrow a guidebook or two like this one.

Simple google searches like "hiking near rhode island"will also get you a number of places to start your exploration.

If you like waterfalls, I recommend Pennsylvania Waterfalls.

A couple parks worth visiting are Delaware Water Gap NRA and Ricketts Glen SP.

I've got the best one. This. Mine came in the mail today. It's by far the #1 survival book.

If you do three consecutive years, you won't really need to worry about getting in shape, just staying in shape during the off seasons (I assume you won't be hiking in the winters). If you live in the south, you can still get outdoors to hike. If you live in the north, then treadmills and stair steppers are the way to go if you can't stand the cold (like me). The bigger concerns, at least for me, are personal health and money. Injuries and sickness happen, so you have to avoid those. And you need to make sure you're insured while on the trail. You also won't have much, if any, income for 3 years. That's tough. I have an AT thru-hike slated for 2015 and a PCT thru-hike for 2016, but it's already tough on me financially. Things keep popping up and eating into the PCT fund.

For general long distance hiking, here are some of my favorite books:

Andrew Skurka

Michelle Ray

Jan Curran

The Logues

Bradford Angier's book is a good resource for plants found in North America.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0811720187/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

This is a good reference for central PA (the only area I'm familiar with) if you can find a copy at a local library: http://www.amazon.com/50-Hikes-Central-Pennsylvania-Backpacking/dp/0881504750

Personally, I use a rain skirt. Easy to put on and take off as needed.

Added link.

Start reading ... https://www.amazon.com/Thru-Back-Again-Journey-Country/dp/0692880909/

And then put together trail guides, maps, apps, etc

Colin Fletcher, The Complete Walker, is a classic.