What Are The Best US National Parks Purely for Hiking? For a long time we have wanted to make a list of the best US National Parks for hiking. A REAL list, mind you…not just a crappy click bait article, of which there is no shortage. Problem was, we had not yet visited enough of the National Parks to put forth […]
…What’s Not (Yet) in the Bucket List
The Bucket Reserve List: Potential Future BucketList Destinations Alas, our Bucket runneth over. Or maybe that should read…”Yippee! There’s too much cool sh-t to do!” Brian and Sylvia hope to complete all the BucketList adventures in about ten years…or at least as many as they can in that time. But we’ll always be adding new adventures to the Bucket. Here’s […]
Are These Really the Best Hikes in Every State?
Outside Magazine Online recently released a list of the Best Hikes in each State. We were made aware of it through Besthike.com as many people were…they were in turn clued on by the Adventure Blog, which we also follow. https://www.outsideonline.com/2393036/50-best-hikes-us We have bashed Outside Magazine in the past, and this is exactly the type of thing — a try to […]
The Most (Potentially) Dangerous National Parks
What are the Most Dangerous National Parks for Hikers? Last time we talked about safety in the National Parks and speculated if accidents in the parks are on the rise. We were unable to find any evidence this is so. But the parks remain wild and potentially dangerous places. The wildest of them are not places to tread into lightly. […]
On A Clear Day…Olympic National Park
A while back we did a post about our visit to Hurricane Ridge in Washington’s great Olympic National Park. Hurricane Ridge is one of the best viewpoints in the Pacific Northwest, for sure, with a tremendous panorama of the Olympic Range. But this was not Brian’s first visit to the area. He first visited Olympic National Park in 2007, during […]
Can I Hike Mount St. Helens?
*Brian completed the Monitor Ridge Route Hike of Mount St. Helens in 2007…it was his second solo Bucketlist hike. Conditions on the mountain today may not be exactly as described here, and the permit system has changed. Check with the National Forest Service website before attempting this hike.* **This is NOT a hike that we would recommend to novice hikers. […]
A Sea of Clouds: Hiking Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens via the Monitor Ridge Route: Part Two Almost nothing about the hike up Mount St, Helens is easy. Even reaching the trailhead involved some serious driving. The Monitor Ridge hike leaves Climbers Bivouac, which is located on forest service roads some ten miles outside of the tiny town of Cougar. But it’s a good hour from the […]
To Kingdom Come: Hiking Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens: Part One *Completed by Brian solo in 2007, Mount St. Helens via the Monitor Ridge Route was his second Bucketlist adventure. It is one of the best day hikes in North America for sure, but be warned: This is NOT something that anyone can just show up and do. It is a long, steep, difficult and potentially […]
Uneasy Ground: Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens by the Monitor Ridge Route On May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens changed forever. That day the top quite literally below right off of the mountain. The explosion was measured in the megatons (the same yardstick commonly used for nuclear weapons.) Combined with powerful flood waves of ash, mud and debris, the catastrophic blast resulted in the […]
A Rainbow in the Mist: Rainbow Falls
Waterfall Week II: Rainbow Falls, NC **DISCLAIMER: While all of the waterfalls featured here on Becauseitzthere can be safely hiked and enjoyed, be aware that there is GREAT RISK involved in venturing off trail near ANY of the waterfalls described here. We advise you to HIKE SAFELY. Please remember that you are responsible for your own safety on the trail. […]