Baxter Mountain Earlier this week I posted about my week at the Craigardan Spring Writers Retreat, at a working farm and artists community nestled in the eastern Adirondack Mountains just outside Elizabethtown, New York. But I did not share any details or many photos from the hiking I did there or about how the entire … Continue reading I can’t wait to return one day to Adirondack Park
Tag: backpacking
Looking to Backpack Near Minneapolis? The Western End of the Ice Age Trail May Be Just the Place
As temperatures rise here in Central Florida, I am reminded that there are great places further north to enjoy the outdoors. Like the Florida Trail, Wisconsin’s Ice Age Trail is one of three national scenic trails located entirely within a single state, and its western terminus is located along the St. Croix River only one-hour’s … Continue reading Looking to Backpack Near Minneapolis? The Western End of the Ice Age Trail May Be Just the Place
Pretty scrub and ponds abound in the Juniper Prairie Wilderness
After a month of being prevented from backpacking by flooded trails, a pesky cold, and the national championship run of a certain basketball team, I will finally be able to return to the Ocala National Forest this weekend, possibly for my last one-nighter of the season as the heat of summer approaches. It will be … Continue reading Pretty scrub and ponds abound in the Juniper Prairie Wilderness
Check out my latest love letter to the Green Swamp on FloridaHikes.com
I was honored (again) to have Sandra Friend, the author of The Florida Trail Guide and many other great books on backpacking, post another essay of mine on the FloridaHikes.com. The piece, titled "A Forest is Reborn in the Green Swamp," recounts my experiences hiking and backpacking in the Green Swamp East Tract this spring … Continue reading Check out my latest love letter to the Green Swamp on FloridaHikes.com
The Bull Creek Loop is a Gem on the Florida Trail’s Eastern Corridor
The approaching end of Florida’s winter-spring backpacking season perhaps calls for reflection on where I’ve been this season. Having focused this season more on the eastern portions of the Florida Trail closer to Orlando (as well as the Ocala National Forest), my favorite trip of the year so far may have been the one-nighter I … Continue reading The Bull Creek Loop is a Gem on the Florida Trail’s Eastern Corridor
Lake Kissimmee State Park: Hiking, History, and Hog Heaven
In my first book, I describe my first nine backpacking trips, six of which were at Florida state parks. One of my favorites is Lake Kissimmee State Park near Lake Wales, which introduced me for the first time to hikers-only trails. With two hiking loops of more-than-minimal length and two gorgeous primitive campsites and tons … Continue reading Lake Kissimmee State Park: Hiking, History, and Hog Heaven
Eating, Drinking, and Cooking on the Trail: Tips for Weekend Backpackers
Perhaps the most creative adaptations new backpackers learn to make are culinary. Regardless of what you like to eat or cook at home, your choices change when you have to carry your kitchen and pantry on your back. Although camping brings to mind visions of s’mores and roasting hot dogs over an open fire, the … Continue reading Eating, Drinking, and Cooking on the Trail: Tips for Weekend Backpackers
Concerned About Fire on Your Trail? Use This Link to Know Before You Go
Hopefully I'm not the first person to learn the hard way when I arrived at a trailhead that I'd have to find my way around a controlled burn. It's happened twice, most recently when a controlled burn begun on a Wednesday was still smoldering in several trees on the side of the trail when I … Continue reading Concerned About Fire on Your Trail? Use This Link to Know Before You Go
Chuluota Wilderness Area and the Bronson State Forest: Flatlands, Wetlands, and Much More
In my quest to get acquainted with more sections of the eastern corridor of the Florida Trail, I celebrated this past New Year’s Day backpacking on the Florida Trail in the Chuluota Wilderness Area and the Bronson State Forest. A week earlier (yes, on Christmas Eve), I had done the same in the busy Little … Continue reading Chuluota Wilderness Area and the Bronson State Forest: Flatlands, Wetlands, and Much More
About to Backpack for the First Time? How to Suffer Outside by Diana Helmuth is the Book for You
It is with great pleasure that I am finally writing my first book review on this blog, and it could only be for How to Suffer Outside: A Beginner’s Guide to Hiking and Backpacking. As its title suggests, this award-winning book is the handbook for all things backpacking. But even if you have no interest … Continue reading About to Backpack for the First Time? How to Suffer Outside by Diana Helmuth is the Book for You
