I first heard about Injinji socks on my third rim-to-rim hike across the Grand Canyon. While cooling off my hot, sweaty feet at Ribbon Falls, another hiker noticed a few toes wrapped in KT tape—my usual strategy to keep sweat-induced blisters at bay. That hiker must have recognized the struggle, because she asked if I…
Follow the Order of Things
My wife and I just finished binge-watching a documentary on Amazon called Everest: Beyond The Limit. We enjoy watching intense adventure shows like this for very different reasons. She wants to see what happens to those involved in something she with never do. I like to watch and think about what it would take to…
Drinking Lots of Water Does Not Hydrate You
What? Drinking water won’t hydrate you?? Nope. That lesson was learned the hard way after my first hike across the Grand Canyon. Since then, I’ve changed how I handle hydration—adding what’s needed to actually replace what gets lost through sweat. I’ve also come to know that hydration is an important component to avoiding altitude sickness…
An Urban Adventure Game with REI
If you live out West, you may be familiar with the Maverik tagline: “Adventure’s First Stop” Well, REI tends to be adventure’s second stop for us! I was looking back at a season of successful summiting and remembered a common thread around our trips this year… WE STOPPED AT REI! More specifically: Prior to heading…
Brasstown Bald from the Arkaquah Trail
The last stop on my End of Summer East Coast Highpointing Tour is Georgia’s Brasstown Bald. I chose to summit this state’s highpoint using the Arkaquah Trail from Track Rock Gap, not far off US 76 between Blairsville and Young Harris. The parking area on the west side of the road is really for the…
No Sunglasses nor Sunscreen Needed on Sassafras
South Carolina was the next state to get on this year’s End Of Summer East Coast Highpointing Tour. We remained in Asheville for both Carolina’s since Sassafras Mountain is close enough to Mt. Mitchell that it didn’t make sense to relocate between these two states. We also liked the idea of Asheville as our “basecamp”…
Mt. Mitchell Trail to the Top of North Carolina
It’s time to hit the east now that I’m done with all the state high points west of the 100th meridian! After a fun Labor Day weekend in Charlotte, we drove west to Asheville and began my End Of Summer East Coast Highpointing Tour with North Carolina’s Mt. Mitchell. This summit is accessible by car…
Mahalo Mauna Kea
Hiking to the top of Hawaii is definitely one of the more unique states to summit a 13er! I had a hard time seeing how you can go from sea level to almost 14,000 ft on this island when both Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa are nothing more than two little bumps on the horizon….
Walking the Planks of Rainier
Trying to get any sleep the night before a big summit day is always a challenge. Am I ready for this? Did I bring the right boots? Should I have brought that jacket instead of this one? It turns out to be a long restless night of going through all the “what ifs” since a…
The Stars Aligned for Rainier
Rainier was the only peak I didn’t have pre-arranged plans for as we rolled into this season of mountaineering. I knew I really needed to get it done this summer if I were to be more prepared for a run at Denali next summer. I just wasn’t exactly sure how that was going to happen….