Hiking and Backpacking tips, tools and resources | Trailsauce

3 More GPS Satellites Will Help Hikers Stay on Path

meatball — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 01:43:56 +0000

As any frustrated GPS-toting hiker can attest, we’ve come a long way in the location-aware department. But there’s plenty of room for improvement, both with hardware and GPS software.

One of the most common annoyances is losing signal in steep valleys and dense vegetation — just ask the US military operating in Afghanistan.

To help solve this problem, the US Strategic Command is expanding the number of GPS satelites from 24 to 27 over the next two years (the first of which is already en route to its orbiting position). The increase in satellites won’t just help the military, though…hikers, drivers and anything else that relies on global positioning will also benefit.

So, the US Military is stepping it up on the hardware end of things…let’s just hope the Trimbles & Garmins of the world can get their act together and provide more user-friendly, cross-platform software and maps to its hungry users down here on Earth. I mean, it’s not rocket science.

(via NYTimes.com)

National Park visits up 4 percent in 2009

meatball — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:49:43 +0000

285 million visitors made their way to US National Parks in 2009, representing a nearly 4% year-over-year increase and nearly eclipsing 1987’s record attendance.

According to Ken Salazar, the economic downturn helped drive tourists to locations closer to home, and there’s simply no better value in terms of culture, beauty and fun than our country’s National Parks. In contrast, European tourists were lured to the US by the relative strength of the Euro to the dollar, making trips to this side of the pond quite appealing.

Of course, the parks got some help from good ol’ publicity, too. There was Ken Burns’ National Parks tv series and President Obama’s family trips to the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone. In addition, the National Park Service waived admission fees three weekends last summer, a move that particularly helped Blue Ridge Parkway area parks Shenandoah in VA and Great Smoky Mountain along the TN/NC border.

(via MSNBC/AP)

image: flickr / James Gordon

10 Best Hikes In The World

meatball — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 21:55:03 +0000

Trimming the world’s best hikes down to 10 is incredibly difficult, just ask the folks at Gadling.com. Conceding that it’s almost impossible to account for everyone’s style or favorite type of hike, I think they did a pretty nice job of cobbling together a diverse list of must-hikes across the globe.

Follow this link to learn more about the list-maker’s thought process, as well as to learn a little more about each trek.

In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek at the 10 lucky winners:

Mt. Whitney, California
Salkantay Trek, Peru
Timberline Trail, Oregon
Everest Base Camp, Nepal
Appalachian Trail, North Carolina
Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
Zion Narrows, Utah
Haute Route, France/Switzerland
John Muir Trail, California
Cinque Terre, Italy

Win the Gear Backpacker Mag Tested

meatball — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 01:44:32 +0000

Ever wonder what major gear review sites such as Backpacker do with the gear after they’re done putting it the test? This year, the editors of Backpacker’s April 2010 Gear Guide have managed to convince most of the manufacturers to allow them to give their wares away. Good news for us!

This week’s giveaway is Kelty’s new Lakota pack. Read the review and enter to win the pack here.

100+ Gear Lists For Every Type of Trip, Ever

meatball — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 17:49:10 +0000

A benefit of paid membership sites like BackpackingLight.com is they keep most of the spammy riff raff away, leaving room for only highly-enthusiastic, and (mostly) intelligent discourse.

Fortunately for us, there’s portion of BPL that’s both FREE of charge AND riff raff: The Community Section.

There you will find over 100 PDF-downloadable ultalight backpacking lists compiled by members of the community. Then, through the magic of crowdsourcing, the lists are ranked and discussed on the forums so that you can easily identify which lists are credible enough to assist in your own pack planning.

Head on over to BackpackingLight to check them out!

This Backpack Generates Electricity

meatball — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 23:58:33 +0000

Using the same principles as wave generators, U of Pennsylvania biologist Lawrence Rome has created a backpack that generates about 7 watts of electricity. It works by harnessing the kinetic energy of your body’s movements with shock absorbing parts (and some other complicated stuff).

Amazingly, it’s not much heavier than a normal pack — maybe a few ounces — and early testers say it’s actually more comfortable than normal backpacks. This is great news for the gadget gear hiker. Hit up TreeHugger for more details.

Backcountry Bartender: 5 Camping Cocktails That Will Blow Your Boots Off

meatball — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 19:50:54 +0000

I used to bartend for extra cash, now it’s to stay afloat. Since I love making drinks so much — and since sending out resumes on a Sunday should be illegal — I’ve decided to take a few minutes and share some cocktails perfect for hiking or backpacking. Now go get TrailSauced!

Do you have a favorite backcountry drink? Please share it with the rest of us!

Peppermint Patty

1.5 oz peppermint schnapps
1 packet hot chocolate mix

Heat some water, mix in hot chocolate powder, add the schnapps and sip away.

Grandpa’s Ol’ Sleep Medicine

2 oz scotch or whiskey
2 bags Kava tea (VERY mellowing herb)

Steep tea bags in hot water for 10 minutes, then add whiskey. Try not to fall asleep before getting to your tent.

Mountain Margarita

1.5 oz tequila
.5 oz triple sec
1 packet Gatorade Lemon-Lime drink mix

Fill cup with water, add drink mix and stir. Add liquor, stir or shake until mixed thoroughly.

Camper’s Kamikaze

1.5 oz vodka
.5 oz triple sec
1 packet Lime Kool-Aid

Fill cup with water, add drink mix and stir. Add liquor, stir or shake until mixed thoroughly.

Backcountry Bourbon Smoothie

2 oz bourbon
dehydrated milk powder

Mix powdered milk in 4-8 oz of water, add bourbon, shake or stir vigorously, thank me in the morning.

Tip: Pour over a cup of snow if you can. YUM.

A Joshua Tree NP Video To Warm You

meatball — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 05:31:47 +0000

It’s 18 degrees here in PA — 13 w/ wind chill — so I got to thinkin’ about my recent trip to (relatively) warm Joshua Tree National Park last December. Enjoy the vid. My glass of wine and I just got done viewing #3 of the evening. I’ll be back soon, ol’ J-Tree.

Make Your Own Food Dehydrator

meatball — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:33:10 +0000

Dehydrating food for the trail opens up many possibilities for the picky hiker. Cook it, dehydrate it, pack it, add water on the trail and…voila. It’s hard to beat a quickly-prepared, hot, tasty meal at the end of a long hiking day.

The problem: Food dehydrators can be expensive.

The solution: You can make your own!

Grab some duct tape, mosquito netting and a concrete form cylinder (5 bucks at your local hardware store) and head over to instructables.com for easy-to-follow instructions.