Hiking the Desert: how to be safe and have fun
I gave this talk as part of BackpackingLight’s Trail Days Online event. Click here to access the event. My talk is at about 2:30 on day 2.
Tag: DT
Down to the Valley
A leisurely morning spent watching the sun slowly light up Telescope Peak. I had only 8 or so miles to go by 4pm. That shouldn’t take too long. I would be netting a big downhill. My camp was at 4000 feet, and Badwater is of course below sea level. I did start off going downhill Read More …
Sole surviving
A pretty average day, spent walking north through the Greenwater Valley then west into what the map calls the Black Mountains but which I thought was the Funeral Range. Mostly open walking without a lick of shade, and just enough wind to make a nuisance of my umbrella. Stopped for a morning break and as Read More …
A flower day
Not a superbloom by any means but much more than I was expecting or perhaps even deserve. Got shuttled to the trailhead by Janis who runs the Shoshone RV park. She said that the clayish domes south of town are actually ash from when the Yellowstone caldera went off. Another reminder of the precarity of life, Read More …
Zero in Shoshone
A fair amount of trouble getting here, but Shoshone is actually a pretty nice little roadside stop. Stayed at the pricey ($150) motel last night but it is not a ripoff. The rooms are nice and well maintained and the staff is friendly. There is a group of geologists that had bought the place out Read More …
Slow walking it in the Amargosa Canyon
In no big rush this morning. Tecopa was some 12 miles further and I was ambiguous as to whether I wanted to go there or just stay in the canyon. I was a bit ahead of schedule and could easily make it to Tecopa where there would be beer and also steaks. That is, if the Read More …
Hot and thirsty in the Amargosa Canyon
My camp last night was on the edge of the Valjean Dunes area. I stopped a little early because dunes make for poor camping. Dunes are formed by the wind and it is wind that makes their shapes interesting and attractive. Not a problem for day trips. But nights spent on dunes are not so Read More …
The Kingston Wilderness
It was surprisingly cold last night, although there is no good reason I should be surprised at a cold night in the desert. At any rate, I had to get up and put my bag cover on over my quilt and then put my down coat on over me. I probably lagged in bed a Read More …
Back in the Big Empty – Halloran Summit to the Shadow Mountains
Back for this year’s installment of the Desert Trail, having spent an entire winter without sufficient physical punishment to humble me. Looking at the map, I’m not sure I’ll get it here. Most of the walking is across basins and valleys, not a lot of steep climbs. But maps can only tell you so much. Read More …
Mojave Preserve day 2 – Providence Mountains to Hole in the Wall
A cold wind howled and tore at my tarp last night, making for a chill and restless sleep. Though secure inside, the violence outside refused to be ignored. It pushed and slapped the thin fabric a few inches from my face, insistent and unrelenting, like a bully trying to pick a fight. I declined the invitation Read More …