Hiking

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Don’t miss the adventure of a lifetime as GreatOutdoors.com editor Peter Potterfield takes an epic 50-mile backcountry journey through the mountains of Jordan. One of the most interesting routes in the Middle East, the hike starts from Jordan’s wild Dana Reserve and follows a rugged wilderness to the country's crown jewel—Petra. This is a journey made entirely on foot, day by day, hour by hour, staying in traditional Bedouin camps, savoring the Jordan countryside at a walking pace, having the time to appreciate this unique landscape.

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Editor Peter Potterfield captured the Islamic call to prayer from his rooftop vantage in Jerusalem.

 “Wadi” is the term used throughout Arabia to describe any wash, or drainage, in the vast deserts of the region, but when we dropped into Israel's Wadi Ze’Elim  last month I wasn’t prepared for the deep, dramatic canyon looming ahead. This rocky feature cuts through Israel’s expansive Judean Desert and was reminiscent of some of my favorite canyons in Southern Utah. But with the turquoise waters of the Dead Sea—at 450 feet below sea level, the lowest place on earth--shimmering just to the east, it’s clear we’re not in Utah any more. Who could have known that here in the heart of the Holy Land we would find a desert canyon to rival any? 

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Staff members here at GreatOutdoors.com (and our parent company, Altrec.com) spend as much time as possible pursuing outdoor adventure: climbing, hiking, skiing and enjoying adventure travel through some of the most fascinating landscapes on earth. So, naturally, they take their outdoor equipment seriously. And there’s no proof of performance better than a genuine field test in real conditions on an extended backpacking or climbing trip.

Each year, we get together to compare notes on the gear we used the most and liked the best for the season. The result is our annual Staff Favorites, and once again we’ll publish that more detailed review in October, just in time for the holidays and a great time to pick up proven gear

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A couple of hours working up two thousand feet worth of switchbacks takes me from the valley floor to Alpine Lake, nestled in its cirque below Packrat Peak, and the smaller “frog ponds” just beyond. But it’s not until I climb the final mile up to the crest of the ridge itself—well above 9,000 feet—and peer over into the Baron Lakes basin, that the scope of the rugged Sawtooth range hits home. The imposing summits of Monte Verita, Warbonnet and Tohobit dominate the massif rising above Baron Lakes, while Decker Peak looms across the valley to the south, and Braxon and Horstman fill the horizon to the east.

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Midway on my 30-mile jaunt across Montana’s Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, I find myself feeling positively smug. Good weather, good company, and outrageous scenery make for a lucky combination. Even the locals consider the East Rosebud one of the prettiest valleys in the Beartooths, and after a couple of days working up through its rugged beauty, I see why. This hike has a high-octane pay off.

After a second full day under cloudless August skies, hiking through the storied waterfalls and craggy peaks of this high valley, we’re now camped in magnificent isolation on a big bench about 15 feet above one of the rock-bound lakes. Clean granite slabs stair-step down to the water from our small meadow, dotted with stunted alpine timber. A soft breeze drifts across the lake, a mere zephyr—and a gentle reminder we are living above 9,000 feet. 

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Even in early spring the New Mexico sun has me shedding layers as I work my way northwest up the sandy wash that defines Chaco Canyon. Here in the backcountry, a palpable sense of mystery and even spirituality permeates this storied landscape. There’s something about Chaco Canyon--and it’s spooky cluster of enormous kivas and great houses so skillfully constructed a millennia ago in a distinctive masonry style--that makes hiking here unique in the Southwest.. 

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I’ve never been good with the cold, so it was with some nervousness that I set off for three months in Canada’s Yukon Territory, where winter temperatures drop to forty below and the sun rises for just a few hours each day. My mission was to learn to drive sled dogs.

 “When you’re in a room of ten people, are you among the five who are too hot, or the five who are too cold,” Frank Turner asked me on my first morning. I was staying at his kennels, Muktuk (it’s the Inuit word for whale blubber), just outside Whitehorse. Frank is experienced with chilly weather; he’s competed in the thousand-mile Yukon Quest dogsledding race more than twenty times. I told him that I would be among the five who were cold. I didn’t like to add that, where nine of those people were perspiring, I would be the one reaching for an extra sweater.

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The three of us stood stripped to our underwear and contemplated the rushing glacial stream. The water came to hip height—if we wanted to stay dry we’d have to undress still further—but wordlessly we agreed to cling to this one last vestige of propriety. And then, backpack waist straps unclipped in case of calamity and using each other’s bodies for support, we inched our way through the numbing torrents.

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 One of the best aspects of working in the outdoor industry is living the life: climbing, hiking, and adventure travel through some of the most fascinating landscapes on earth. Staff members here at GreatOutdoors.com (and our parent company, Altrec.com) spend as much time as possible pursuing outdoor adventure, so they take their outdoor equipment seriously. As we roll into the busy fourth quarter, a great time to pick up deals on the best in outdoor gear, here are some favorite pieces of equipment we found useful in 2008. 

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Keith and I scramble up the steep, muddy slope using roots and tree limbs for purchase. Overspray from the big waterfall just to our left settles on us like a light rain. It’s tough going here in the thick vegetation of lower elevations. But I was forewarned: there is no trail through the Long Range Mountains in Newfoundland’s Gros Morne National Park. If you want to do this route, it’s all map and compass work, so pay attention.   

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 Several years ago I visited Ecuador to photograph Cayambe, the highest and coldest place on the equator, a volcano rising above 20,000 feet. If I looked more closely at the map, I would’ve noticed that it was surrounded by a cloud forest, and those clouds blocked my view the entire time.

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Still looking boyish at 49, John Harlin speaks with intimate knowledge—and a sense of pride--as he points out on a map the direct  route on the North Wall of the Eiger that his father and Scottish climber Dougal Haston attempted together in 1966. The two of us are on a Swiss train headed up to the base of the Eiger two years after the younger Harlin made his own climb of the mountain's North Face. For me, it’s my first visit to the Eiger, so I’m excited to see the legendary Alpine face up close. 

Harlin’s father, also named John Harlin, had been the first American to do the standard route on Europe’s most feared big wall in 1962. He went back four years later with Haston to try a direct line up the face—in winter. The attempt, which pushed the limits of alpine climbing at the time, ended in tragedy. The elder Harlin was killed while jumaring up to a bivouac in an ice cave during the long siege. The climbing rope suddenly broke, sending him plummeting thousands of feet to his death. 

Now, more than 40 years later, I’ve come back with John Harlin to see the Eiger for myself, and to feel it’s powerful presence. We made the journey in September, often a month for stable—if cool—Alpine weather. While only a handful of climbers, such as Harlin, are motivated to take on the daunting objective of the Eiger, this is the Swiss Alps, where any fit hiker can stroll under and among these famous peaks. Hiking among these mountains and glaciers reveals the Alps' tremendous drawing power that has been bringing hikers and climbers here for more than a century. 

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“I spend every possible minute immersed in the natural wilderness of Canada's Yukon Territory and Alaska. I work as a hiking, canoeing and dogsledding guide and, whenever I have a day off, I'm outdoors skiing, snowshoeing, fishing or cycling. Whenever I'm out, I have a camera with me. The Yukon offers so many extraordinary panoramas, its light shifts in such incredible ways, and its seasons change so fast and are so different that I always feel I might miss something if I'm stuck indoors. Both in my guiding and in my photography, I'm attempting to capture something of this northern land and its wildlife - - so I can share my fascination with others.”  --Stefan Wackerhagen

GreatOutdoors.com staffer Gordy Skoog spends more time outdoors than he does at home, and luckily we can all follow along on some of his adventures via his blog. Check out his gripping story of crossing the Alps on skis, a blog entry he dubs, The Tale of Two Haute Routes.

And follow along as he and his brother Lowell make yet another first ascent in the remote North Cascades of Washington in a post he calls A Magical First Ascent. The two brothers, sadly missing the company of their brother Carl, who was killed in a climbing accident in South America, venture into one of the wildest parts of the range to put up a new route on Natal.

GreatOutdoors.com staffer Mike Rougeux and a partner took a wild trip down to the Northern California Coast for some boulder and crag climbing in an entry he calls Climbing on California’s Lost Coast. The pair, engaged in the mythical search for  what they call Chester Copperpot and One Eyed Willy’s Treasure, find secret camp sites and stellar bouldering within site of gray whales just beyond  in the surf. 

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The rocky slope is dusted with light snow and coated with freezing rain. I take one more big step—slowly and carefully--and then another. Here, on the steepest part of this storied route, the next step is the only one that matters. These are the so called Golden Stairs leading to Chilkoot Pass, and a similar caution must have been the mantra of hardy miners who plied this cruel slope in 1898. Here, the most trying section of the long ascent climbs steeply up past the “Scales,” the historic rocky ledge where miners had to prove they carried the requisite weight of equipment and supplies to pass muster with the Mounties.

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In it's biggest gathering of the year, the Pacific Crest Trail Association will host it's Trail Fest event this month in Sacramento. The March 28-30 celebration is expected to draw hundreds of hikers, backpackers, trail maintenance volunteers, equestrians and other trail aficionados to the Wildland Fire Training and & Conference Center in Sacramento for three days of programs and events.

"This is an opportunity for those who have done the trail, or parts of it, or just want to, and those who volunteer to maintain it, to gather and share their enthusiasm for the classic route," said Jennifer Tripp of the Pacific Crest Trail Association (PCTA).

The Pacific Crest Trail runs from the Mexican border to the Canadian border along the crest of the Sierra and Cascade ranges. Along with the venerable Appalachian Trail, the PCT was designated a National Scenic Trail in 1968. It is generally considered to be one of the three classic long distance hiking routes in the lower 48, the so called Triple Crown of American hikes.

The route traverses 26 national forests, 8 national parks, 4 state parks, 2 BLM management areas and 33 federally mandated wilderness areas. It reaches more than 13,000 feet at Forester Pass in the Sierra, and drops as low as 100 feet at the Columbia River on the Washington-Oregon border.

This month's trail fest will feature a number of events that highlight the unique qualities of the Pacific Crest Trail:

? Mary Chambers, who at 10 years old became the youngest person to through-hike the trail, will speak (she is now 14 years old).

? Arlen Blum, best known for leading an expedition of women climbers on Nepal's Annapurna, will also speak.

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Seattle photographer Dave Schiefelbein has based his photographic career around his excursions to the backcountry. Backpacking, mountaineering, snowshoeing and skiing are the methods that bring him to his ultimate playground...the wilderness spaces of North America. What does he find there? "The things that fuel my addiction to those places," he says.

"When people ask me why I do what I do, I tell them I like feeling the morning breeze stop and then witnessing the calm moment of a big mountain reflected in a still lake. I like the peacefulness of walking alone across a plateau of untracked snow. I like the distinguishing spectacle of a tree in spring. I enjoy equally the last gasp of a setting sun or a setting moon. I'm intrigued by the odd juxtaposition at sunset when a cold and frozen lake looks like it's on fire."

Schiefelbein's ability to depict the majesty of wild places provides the viewers of his images with the same calming sensations of solitude sought by those who travel to those astonishing environments.

Dave's photographs are sought after by both private collectors and commercial/editorial clients throughout the world. His work is presented by Getty Images and Danita Delimont. See his early gallery on GreatOutdoors.com.

Rested now after the long journey from Auckland, and already missing the warm spring sunshine of New Zealand. Here in Seattle it's back to the reality of a wet, cold Pacific Northwest winter. This final of four hiking trips to New Zealand in the past five years showed me parts of the country I had not visited before, and left me longing for the warmth of the Marlborough district.

After finishing the 71 kilometer Queen Charlotte Track I spent one more night in Picton, and the next day visited some wineries and Peter Jackson's (director of Lord fo the Rings) museum of World War I airplanes before heading to the small airport at Blenheim; the combination made for a unique final day in New Zealand. With hikes in four distinct districts--the Bay of Islands, and Cape Reinga, and Lake Waikermoana before the Queen Charlotte--this was a visit that reflected all the secret tips I had picked up on in the five years of coming here.

The fact is, there are so many beautiful places to see down here, traveling and hiking in New Zealand can keep you busy for a lifetime. But it's the personal connections I make with the people of this island country that keeps me coming back. When all is said and done, that's the best part of any trip to New Zealand.