Anyone else like backpacking/camping?

cubbieblue82

Anybody else here have a passion for being in the outdoors? I've been doing it all my life, and never feel more relaxed then when I'm hiking or canoeing. If you do, what are some of the best places you've gone? Any crazy stories from camping trips you can share?

I'm planning a trip to Yosemite this summer and cannot wait! Warm weather cannot come soon enough.

josevolution

hell yeah i love all outdoor activities thank god i married a woman who feels the same ,i can remember the time i wen't out west for the US festival camped out in SAN BERNADINO valley freaking hot as hell but really fun ....

Get_Right

YES
big time

counting the days until my boy is old enough to do some fishing, camping and hiking with me

sennin

Yellowstone (5 times)
Mt. Rainier
Lochsa River, ID
Selway River, ID
Kelly Creek, ID
Lena Lakes, WA

Too many stories for one post!

josevolution

Get_Right wrote:

YES
big time

counting the days until my boy is old enough to do some fishing, camping and hiking with me

there you go it will be fun ,i camp out on the beach in SMITHTOWN & it's great i can fish hike and if i have to go home in a blink i'm there talk about spoiled ....:D

Get_Right

josevolution wrote:

there you go it will be fun ,i camp out on the beach in SMITHTOWN & it's great i can fish hike and if i have to go home in a blink i'm there talk about spoiled ....:D

that is spoiled, but its still the sound

Ive got the reservoirs, bear mountain and croton park pretty damn close
but the boy is too young to be near hooks or campfires :(

one more year me thinks, and he will be ready.

polaris

definitely!!

the best nights of sleeping are always in my tent with the fly off ...

yosemite is a great spot ... lots of multi-day hikes on the JMT ...

goto NZ - you'll love it

josevolution

Get_Right wrote:

that is spoiled, but its still the sound

Ive got the reservoirs, bear mountain and croton park pretty damn close
but the boy is too young to be near hooks or campfires :(

one more year me thinks, and he will be ready.

yeah the closer the better when camping with youn'ins i did that for the 1st few yrs, as to get them used to it and as soon as they started to act up i could just drive them home and return to brake camp this yr i'm planning on heading upstate or new england for some .....

edvedder913

cubbieblue82 wrote:

Anybody else here have a passion for being in the outdoors? I've been doing it all my life, and never feel more relaxed then when I'm hiking or canoeing. If you do, what are some of the best places you've gone? Any crazy stories from camping trips you can share?

I'm planning a trip to Yosemite this summer and cannot wait! Warm weather cannot come soon enough.

NO.

beach only

GreenTeaDisease

I love the outdoors, all types of activities, but I have to say, if I can day hike over camping, I will. I really do not enjoying camping out. I have never once slept a wink while camping. I hate sleeping bags. Also, I tend to get bored once it gets dark and you make camp. seems like every time i go camping there are burn bans in effect so I can't even make a fire.

mca47

I pretty much love all outdoor activities! Camping/backpacking is the shit.

I recently went backpacking and camping with a friend who "loved to camp" but had never really been "camping"/backcountry camping, only site camping. I told her it was a HUGE difference...
Well anyways, we spent the entire day hiking, found a good spot out next to this little stream, set up camp as the sun was setting, made some good food, had a few drinks...life was good!!! Needless to say, she won't be doing any site camping anytime soon. hehehe!

chinobaeza

Last year I grabbed my backpack and went to Southeast Asia....lots of hiking (north Thailand, Laos, Malaysia) and canoeing (Halong Bay in Vietnam)...
If you like backpacking you should definitely go there...you also have good parties (South Thailand), shopping (Singapore) and ruins (Cambodia)...I miss those days :(

rhinomagic

Living in Florida, we do a good bit of beach camping. The trails here aren't great, but you can hike them pretty much year-round. We also have done a good bit of kayaking on north FL rivers, Gulf of Mexico, and Carribbean Sea just off Key West.

Right now, my wife and I are laying down early plans to hike the Pacific Crest Trail in 2010. Hope it doesn't 'go to fire'!

.

eyedclaar

Indeed! Do it all the time. I'm never as happy as I am when my wife and I are deep in the wilderness of central Idaho and there are no other humans around. Spent the weekend before last snowshoeing into a remote area to dig and sleep in a snow cave and will do something similar this weekend. Way too many stories to even get started. Got chased by a black bear once and showed the people I was with who was clearly the fastest sprinter.

chinobaeza

eyedclaar wrote:

Got chased by a black bear once and showed the people I was with who was clearly the fastest sprinter.

LOL...:D can imagine that!

GreenTeaDisease

eyedclaar wrote:

Indeed! Do it all the time. I'm never as happy as I am when my wife and I are deep in the wilderness of central Idaho and there are no other humans around. Spent the weekend before last snowshoeing into a remote area to dig and sleep in a snow cave and will do something similar this weekend. Way too many stories to even get started. Got chased by a black bear once and showed the people I was with who was clearly the fastest sprinter.

aren't you supposed to slowly back away from a blackbear?

chinobaeza

GreenTeaDisease wrote:

aren't you supposed to slowly back away from a blackbear?

I think you answered your own question: "supposed" :)

ajedigecko

yes...each year me and my wife backpack into canyonlands at the end of june/beginning of july. there are no other people in the park, due to heat. after a day of hiking around and finding areas to cool off (joint trail is the best), we get back to camp. it is an amazing feeling to peel off all the clothes and just lounge around the camp.

eyedclaar

GreenTeaDisease wrote:

aren't you supposed to slowly back away from a blackbear?

Most theories regarding appropriate reactions to dangerous wildlife are thrown out the window when said beasty is charging right at you. Technically, I should have played dead, but I'm a fast sprinter and the people I was with were not. You don't have to outrun the bear, just the people you are with.

ajedigecko

also...i think it would be a fun if someone started/planned an adventure for pj fans to do together.

a couple of years ago i wanted to have some fans meet up so we could raft the grand canyon.....seems most fans spend their money on pj related issues. no big deal, the trip was still a great experience.

could you imagine the thread, instead of talking about shows, we could talk about rapids and getting our asses kicked.

ohhhh.......the dreams i have.

josevolution

ajedigecko wrote:

also...i think it would be a fun if someone started/planned an adventure for pj fans to do together.

a couple of years ago i wanted to have some fans meet up so we could raft the grand canyon.....seems most fans spend their money on pj related issues. no big deal, the trip was still a great experience.

could you imagine the thread, instead of talking about shows, we could talk about rapids and getting our asses kicked.

ohhhh.......the dreams i have.

that would be awsome i would do that ,why should we just keep it to pj activities ...

ajedigecko

josevolution wrote:

that would be awsome i would do that ,why should we just keep it to pj activities ...

exactly.....i noticed you have a wife, would she be up for the trip, as well?

josevolution

ajedigecko wrote:

exactly.....i noticed you have a wife, would she be up for the trip, as well?

hell yeah she loves outdoor activities hell she camped ALASKA one summer, so for her it would be great ok maybe we can see if people are interested in getting something done uhmmm ....

ajedigecko

josevolution wrote:

hell yeah she loves outdoor activities hell she camped ALASKA one summer, so for her it would be great ok maybe we can see if people are interested in getting something done uhmmm ....

so i am going to make the assumption that the both of you are in good health. also, where do you live?

josevolution

ajedigecko wrote:

so i am going to make the assumption that the both of you are in good health. also, where do you live?

yeah i would consider my self & her in very good health we just skiied the whole weekend no problem ,we live in NY long island ...

rhinomagic

ajedigecko wrote:

it is an amazing feeling to peel off all the clothes and just lounge around the camp.

It only took 18 posts to find the first nudist/nature-lover.

Anybody else?

.

ajedigecko

last month i finally went showshoeing in rocky mtn nat'l park for the first time. we got up to about 11K feet and realized we were beginning to lose the trail (lightsnow + 50mph wind = blizzard).

we would have kept going, our goal was to get to the top of hallet's peak, if we would have had a gps.

i will be going again next year, and i have already talked to some others who live in the denver area who want to get together.

edpearson

cubbieblue82 wrote:

Anybody else here have a passion for being in the outdoors? I've been doing it all my life, and never feel more relaxed then when I'm hiking or canoeing. If you do, what are some of the best places you've gone? Any crazy stories from camping trips you can share?

I'm planning a trip to Yosemite this summer and cannot wait! Warm weather cannot come soon enough.

I'm all about the outdoors! When are you heading to Yosemite? It's a pain in the Summer to get a camping spot, but if you don't have one yet, you can try Curry Village. I'm heading there the last weekend of April and the 2nd weekend of June. Planning on doing Half Dome in June. I've done that beast twice and it's a fantastic hike. I recommend being in decent shape. It's about an 18-mile round trip trek and the last couple miles are tough. Still, I think it's one of the best hikes ever. Just make sure you get a super early start (like hit the trail at 4AM-5AM) because in the summer (weekends esp.) there are hordes of people trying to get to the top. Heck, if you're going in that same June weekend as me, we have an extra campsite and I plan on singing and strumming PJ songs on my guitar around the campfire (a necessity when I camp).

Other places that stand-out as magnificant hikes in my life time are:
1) Mt. Whitney -- the highest point in the contiguous (or Lower 48) United States. It's about a 23-mile round trip hike and brutal because you start freakishly early (about 1-2AM) and gain about 6500 ft. in elevation. Worth it and we're doing that one again this September/October.

2) Mt. Rainier -- did this just before all those people died -- kinda eerie! A far more difficult beast than Mt. Whitney even though it's just a bit shorter in elevation (there's very little snow on Mt. Whitney making it easier).

3) The Highline Trail in Glacier Nat'l Park -- perfect day hike and you will see lots of wilderness (ie, dall sheep; I saw a bear and her cub!). I did this one solo and was lucky enough to meet some Deadheads on the trail which made it a more far-out (wink wink) journey.

4) Chesler Park loop trail in Canyonlands Nat'l Park (Needles District near Moab, Utah) -- Perhaps my favorite hike ever! Me and my buddy decided to do this one on LSD. Talk about being blown away!!!! I have a picture of this actual hike (and me tripping my balls off) on my MySpace photos. Definitely a religious experience!!!!

ajedigecko

rhinomagic wrote:

It only took 18 posts to find the first nudist/nature-lover.

Anybody else?

.

good call.

ajedigecko

josevolution wrote:

yeah i would consider my self & her in very good health we just skiied the whole weekend no problem ,we live in NY long island ...

do you get out west often.....the farthest east if have been is tn/ky/oh area. i know the both of us (me and wife) would love to go rafting in the northeast, we just have such a hard time pulling ourselves away from southern utah. i have read about many rivers in your area that get into the class iv/v.

polaris

edpearson wrote:

I'm all about the outdoors! When are you heading to Yosemite? It's a pain in the Summer to get a camping spot, but if you don't have one yet, you can try Curry Village. I'm heading there the last weekend of April and the 2nd weekend of June. Planning on doing Half Dome in June. I've done that beast twice and it's a fantastic hike. I recommend being in decent shape. It's about an 18-mile round trip trek and the last couple miles are tough. Still, I think it's one of the best hikes ever. Just make sure you get a super early start (like hit the trail at 4AM-5AM) because in the summer (weekends esp.) there are hordes of people trying to get to the top. Heck, if you're going in that same June weekend as me, we have an extra campsite and I plan on singing and strumming PJ songs on my guitar around the campfire (a necessity when I camp).

Other places that stand-out as magnificant hikes in my life time are:
1) Mt. Whitney -- the highest point in the contiguous (or Lower 48) United States. It's about a 23-mile round trip hike and brutal because you start freakishly early (about 1-2AM) and gain about 6500 ft. in elevation. Worth it and we're doing that one again this September/October.

2) Mt. Rainier -- did this just before all those people died -- kinda eerie! A far more difficult beast than Mt. Whitney even though it's just a bit shorter in elevation (there's very little snow on Mt. Whitney making it easier).

3) The Highline Trail in Glacier Nat'l Park -- perfect day hike and you will see lots of wilderness (ie, dall sheep; I saw a bear and her cub!). I did this one solo and was lucky enough to meet some Deadheads on the trail which made it a more far-out (wink wink) journey.

4) Chesler Park loop trail in Canyonlands Nat'l Park (Needles District near Moab, Utah) -- Perhaps my favorite hike ever! Me and my buddy decided to do this one on LSD. Talk about being blown away!!!! I have a picture of this actual hike (and me tripping my balls off) on my MySpace photos. Definitely a religious experience!!!!

the thing with doing a big hike in yosemite is that the park can be rammed and the trail heads completed full ... but by the time you start getting to switch backs - it starts to dissipate real fast ... you'll only ever see the hearty at the top of any hike ...

the chesler loop is cool cuz for the most part it keeps you up top of the needles offering lots of varying landscapes ... although i did it with a sober head ... so, hard to say ...