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Hiking Guides
I arrived at Silverton’s Columbine Lake Trailhead on an ominously overcast afternoon with dull thunder rumbling overhead and cold rain sprinkling down. I started the high-elevation hike against my better judgment, unsure of what the weather would bring. But the dark clouds above never cracked as I traversed through some of Southwestern Colorado’s finest backcountry. … Read more
The Herman Gulch Trail is undoubtedly one of the best day hikes near Denver. With its trailhead situated just an hour’s drive from the heart of Colorado’s bustling capital, this Arapaho National Forest hiking gem is as beautiful as it is easy to reach. Over its 6.4 idyllic miles, this out-and-back gem captures nearly everything … Read more
I’d been eyeing Vail’s Booth Falls Trail to Booth Lake day hike for a couple of years, and on a perfect Colorado July day, I finally pulled the trigger. The ensuing adventure was a breathtaking and ass-kicking journey through the Gore Mountain Range’s more rugged and raw terrain. It was well worth the trip. Tucked … Read more
The Chicago Lakes Trail exemplifies everything I love in a Colorado day hike, even if its high-elevation ascents had me pouring sweat and gasping for air. I guess it’s hard to complain about such challenges when the trail I was hiking lead to a crystal clear glacial lake at the base of a towering 14,000-foot … Read more
The 4th of July Trail is just a short drive from my hometown, yet I’d never experienced its staggering beauty until my recent hike exploring its wide-open spaces. Hiking the trail’s breathtaking Arapaho Pass to the pristine Lake Dorothy blew my mind at every single turn. It was worth the 32-year-long wait. Nestled in the … Read more
I was bored and stir-crazy, itching for something new. The cramped and hectic streets of Seoul were starting to get under my skin. I needed a break from South Korea’s booming capital of 10 million people. It was time for a nature fix. A scenic hike up Seoul’s Dobongsan Mountain in Bukhansan National Park seemed … Read more
Past attempts at organizing my backpacking food and creating meal plans were always a bit reckless for me. My old approach usually involved jamming a hodgepodge assemblage of hiking food into my over-stuffed bag and hoping for the best. Ensuing days on the trail were spent hiking around dull and nutritionless food, falling short on … Read more
I’d heard rave reviews about the stunning beauty of Torres del Paine’s ‘O’ Circuit, but I wasn’t prepared for it to take me to a transcendent new world. Towering granite spires, sprawling glaciers, breathtaking mountain passes, intense and ever-changing weather — I experienced it all on every step of my six-day journey. Trekking Patagonia’s ‘O’ … Read more
Sunblock and sweat run into my eyes as I trudge through a harsh, unearthly landscape. Ahead, the trail is fading away and a blast furnace sun beats down. A whisper of self-doubt reminds me that I’m completely alone in the middle of the driest desert in the world. I take a slow, deep breath and … Read more
Profound Patagonian winds tear into my tent as I begin to realize that sleep is a fleeting possibility. Rest, however, is of little concern. Because I will soon be watching the sunrise over a pastel-blue bay of untainted water. The mountains at my back will burn orange as calving glaciers crack softly in the distance. … Read more