The Grayson Highlands, VA *We hiked the Grayson Highlands in April 2014 over a period of two consecutive days, first starting from the Mount Rogers Trailhead and later from Massie Gap in Grayson Highlands State Park. We covered a variety of trails on these hikes and saw virtually every part of the highlands, excepting the treed-in summit of Mt. Rogers […]
Damascus VA: Adventures In Trail Town, USA
Grayson Highlands and the Virginia Creeper Trail *Sylvia and I visited Damascus VA and vicinity in April 2014. Some things may have changed since so please check with the locals before heading out. But you will NOT be disappointed is all we can say. Located in the very far southwestern corner of Virginia is the town of Damascus. It is […]
What’s Been Going On?
Taking a much needed rest the last few days. But we’ll have more posts soon! The the meantime we have updated our Bucket List, Best Hikes in the Southern Appalachians and Local Hikes pages. We are also finished with all of our preparations for the Tour Du Mont Blanc, now just a few weeks away! Brian is hastily cramming to […]
A Trail to Fall For
The Falls Lake Trail, Raleigh/Durham. NC *We had added the Falls Lake Trail to our list of recommended local hikes in the Raleigh/Durham area.. We often train here for the bigger adventures. Being an outdoors adventurer requires a willingness to travel long distances in search of the great adventures of life. Adventures don’t generally come to you, after all. […]
The Linville Gorge: A GoPro Blockbuster!
Video of the Table Rock and Chimneys Hike Now Online! Check out some of the gorgeous scenery of the Linville Gorge Wilderness — in our opinion , the best place to hike in North Carolina — on our new hiking video. This is at the top our list of Best Places to Hike in the Southern Appalachians and Carolinas. The cast […]
The Downhill Run
The Standing Indian Loop, Day III We emerged from our tent on the last day surprised to find that the shelter and campground were almost empty. The early departure of the hikers did not surprise me – Thru hikers have their miles to bag and therefore are used to getting an early start. What did surprise me is how quietly […]
Our (mis)Calculations Prove Right!
The Standing Indian Loop, Day II The second day dawned crisp and sunny through the newly budding trees of Beech Gap; the night had proven to be nowhere near as cold as the previous one. Sylvia reported no issues with her ‘manos’ and was generally in better spirits, the lingering effects of her fall having passed on like bad weather. […]
West to go South to go North
The Standing Indian Loop: Day I We arrived at Standing Indian Campground just after 5 pm on Thursday….though we had another 30 mins or so delay as we had to backtrack into Franklin to stop at an ATM machine (we had forgotten to bring cash.) If you stage out of this campground, remember to bring it. The camp host warned […]
The Cold Equations
The Standing Indian Loop: Preparations and Decisions Gen. Dwight Eisenhower once said that before a battle, preparations are everything; but once a battle is joined, preparations mean nothing. So it goes with hiking. Good preparation is absolutely essential for a multi-day hike, and most hikes that fail do so because the hiker was poorly prepared. But the trick is knowing […]
The Hundredth Mile Wilderness: The Standing Indian Loop via the AT
The Standing Indian Loop Three Day Backpacking Adventure *We have added the Standing Indian Loop to our list of Best Hikes in the Southern Appalachians. The SIL is a surprisingly straightforward two or three-day backpacking adventure on the Appalachian Trail and adjacent side trails, located entirely within North Carolina’s Nantahala National Forest. We loved the wilderness character of the hikes […]