Category: Hiking with ropes
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Becoming a competent outdoorsperson
Discretion may be the purview of a gentleman but hyperbolic modesty is not something to be proud of. I am a competent outdoorsperson, having spent decades and lot of time and effort becoming one. Cast your net across the broad enough range of outdoor pursuits and do them all long enough to learn more than…
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Grand Canyon with mom, part 3
The evening of the second day we sat in camp and changed plans. The first two days had been harder on everyone than anticipated. Mom had come into the trip nursing an IT band problem aggravated back in early September. Having gone through something similar myself years ago, I could look at her gait through…
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Grand Canyon with mom, part 2
The oases within the Grand Canyon are formidable, vibrant and tenacious against vast backdrops. We woke up in the middle of a particularly bright one, right at the mouth of Timp Canyon. Water ran fast for a mile or so. Signs of wildlife were regular, including lots of ringtail tracks. There were a few puzzles…
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Grand Canyon with mom, part 1
I was not sleeping well the first night of our trip, an unusual thing. A number of years ago I weaned myself off the need to read before falling asleep, and since have normally slept like the dead in the backcountry. The next morning my mom mentioned that in the approximate quarter century between when…
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How to make Cowboy coffee
I grin a little everything some new gadget comes out for making good coffee in the backcountry. As with many things, the original method is still the best, and in this particular case has the added benefit of requiring no equipment at all, aside from the pot, stove or fire, and ground coffee you already…
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The 2014 shoe report
Disclaimer: Several of the shoes discussed below were given to me, free and under the expectation of a published review, by the manufacturer. Others were purchased at an industry discount, while one was bought at full retail. Clockwise from upper left: LaSportiva Vertical K, Altra Lone Peak 1.5, LaSportiva Boulder X Mid, LaSportiva Anakonda, Patagonia…
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The Glacier Divide route: a sketch
A trend has emerged lately, to construct a high route through a given range, the idea being to create a rugged backpacking path which is non or minimally technical, and maximizes scenic value. No route will ever be definitive, but a high route should be as close to a one-stop-shop for an experienced visiting hiker…
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Hiking with ghosts
Rob Kehrer is dead. Based on reports I assume he and the other founding member of Team Heavy, Greg Mills, hiked around the Tana River canyon and put back in on the river, where Rob was quickly flipped by a boil or whirlpool, became separated from his packraft, and drowned and/or succumbed to hypothermia before he…
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Paradox Unaweep: the category killer
Regular readers will know that I have a deep and abiding fascination with backpacks, though terms such as obsession or problem would not be entirely amiss. This being the case, the Paradox Unaweep I’ve been using for not quite three months now presents a serious problem. Our lookout rental this past weekend was a steep…
Bedrock & Paradox 
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