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The trail to the campsite is mostly maintained fire road. There is a final short section that branches off from the main road/trail that is somewhat less maintained, but is nonetheless sufficient for a honey wagon to get to the outhouse. I have no experience with outdoor wheel chairs, but I...

I had stayed at Christmas Meadows on a Monday night in July of last year and backpacked up to Kermsuh Lake the following day. A nearby scout camp was using Christmas Meadows as an overnight staging area for scout troops leaving for and returning from backpacking trips up to Ryder Lake or...

I get a kick out of vintage gear too. Below is my old 1980ish Trailwise Goretex parka. It was expensive and I still can't believe I convinced my frugal father to buy it for me, but he did and it served me well for a long time. The Patagonia Pile jacket is probably better left to the closet of...

You could probably find a small 12V coffee maker at one of the larger truck stops, something like one of these: http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=81109

I have the 12x12 Noah's Tarp and have used it quite a bit, and have mixed feelings about it. What I like: plenty of length to set up over a picnic table, packs up fairly compact (compared to my wife's Easy Up), holds up fairly well in windy conditions (when fully guyed), pleasant color. What I...

That looks like a superb campsite. One of these days I need to make it out there.

At one time or another I've used lightweight french presses, 3 cup Bialetti moka pot, Melitta drip cone, both sizes of GSI espresso makers, Starbucks Via, MSR Mugmate, Aerobie Aeropress, and a GSI folding drip cone. I'll probably never settle on just one thing, but lately I most often reach for...

Wow! Such amazing scenery. Thank you.

Fishing for Drone:

At just under .5 miles, this overnight hike sort of flirts between the border of a long walk-in camp site and a really short backpack trip. Frankly, this is just about the finest campsite to be had along the southern California coast, unless perhaps solitude, quiet and lack of congestion...

Yosemite is such a zoo that bear spray is probably banned there as an effort to curb misuse by ill-informed individuals firing off cans every time they see a bear or wetting down their coolers with the stuff. I've never seen any regs against bear spray in the National Forests or SEKI; if bear...

A few years ago, in October, I undertook a long weekend getaway to dayhike Funeral Slot Canyon in Death Valley National Park. My kids had a three day weekend off from school and their Grandmother- a full time RV'r- was parked at a casino in Amaragosa, so it was a perfect opportunity to both let...

I've had 4 different models of hiking boots over the past 14 years and found that for each I've kind of had to fine tune their fit with the appropriate sock and insole. Socks have been thin to fairly thick and in between.

NIce! Humphrey's Basin has a special place in my heart. In fact, my avatar is a sunset shot from Muriel Lake.

Ok, thanks! I assume bear canisters aren't required in the backcountry? Do most people hang their food or keep food in a tent or pack? The mountains near where I live in California have a good population of reputedly large black bear (apparently they really fatten up off of acorns) but they tend...

Specifically, I've got Christmas Meadow in mind. Never been to the Uintas before. Do Uinta trailheads require the same kind of bear precautions that Sierra trailheads do? In the Sierras, it is unwise to leave coolers and other smellable items in a car. Though I've not yet seen a bear there...

Of the three basins, which approach has the most difficult water crossings? Possibly mud, or wet meadows to cross? I'll be there mid July, should I assume conditions could still pretty wet?

I remember reading that story a few years back. It was sobering, following a sobering experience in the Sierras not long before that. On a solo 5 day backpack through Humphrey's Basin and French Canyon in the Eastern Sierra outside of Bishop, I descended the North side of Puppet Pass enroute to...

If I'm to be camping near an alpine lake n the Sierras, camping higher up a farther from the water tends to ensure greater privacy and minimize intrusions, although I do so primarily for the view and longer exposure to late afternoon/evening sun when possible. Most people seem to want to...

My usual stomping grounds in the summer tends to be the Eastern Sierra in California but this year will be embarking on what I like to think of as a brief sampler (about 2 1/2 weeks) of the Intermountain West, to include 3 nights solo backpacking in the Uintas. I'm thinking of camping at...