Planning
Nearly ten years ago, on May 5, 2002, I started my first long-distance hike: the 2,175-mile Appalachian Trail. The AT was one of my first backpacking trips as well — the first had been only two months earlier during Spring Break, when I’d gone to Yosemite Valley by myself and had gone on two one-night trips, to…
Earlier this Spring I had the opportunity to present at Google’s main campus in Mountain View, CA, as part of the Authors@Google program. Special thanks to Andrew de los Reyes for organizing and marketing the event — it was a huge success. The video below is fairly representative of the clinic with which I’m currently…
I plan for a trip in two stages: 1. The theory. On my computer, I develop, refine, and perfect every aspect of the trip, notably my gear, supplies, route, and logistics. To do so, I rely heavily on applications like Excel, Word, National Geographic TOPO!, and Google Maps. 2. The tangible. I obtain everything that…
Are you planning a trip that is not addressed specifically and perfectly by an existing guidebook or mapset? Then you should learn to use TOPO!. Among this program’s shortcomings is the inability to export and print multi-page custom mapsets, so in this post I’ll explain an alternative and efficient technique.
Prior to leaving for a long-distance hike there is a lot to do—you have to buy gear and supplies, pack maildrops, organize maps and guidebooks, etc. But it is important that you are physically, as well as logistically, prepared for your hike. This page explains how I condition myself for my long-distance hikes. “Training” or…
If you are looking for product and/or financial support for your next expedition, this article may help. It explains sponsorships types, the sponsorship process, and what companies want in return for their sponsorship. What it means to be “sponsored” There are about three levels of sponsorship: Tier 1: Free or discounted gear; Tier 2: Tier…
The secret is not hiking at a faster speed, but hiking for more hours. This article is reprinted here with permission from Backpacking Light Magazine. Fall 2006 During the summer before my senior year of college, when I probably should have had an internship that could be leveraged into a “real” job after graduation, I…
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