Time for a solo adventure to bag Humbug and Eagle Mountains in Joshua Tree.
Continue reading “Humbug and Eagle Mountains Joshua Tree National Park 2023”Pinion Wash March 2023
With enough of the cold, wet winter in San Diego, Dorie and I decide to go to the Anza Borrego Desert for a warm and sunny camping trip.
Continue reading “Pinion Wash March 2023”Norway: Hiking, Camping, and Backpacking
(I finally got around to finishing off this trip report…)
In August 2022 Bianca and I traveled to Norway for two weeks of hiking, camping, and backpacking. Instead of flying we drove from Antwerp to Eemshaven on the north coast of The Netherlands and there took an overnight cruise ship to land us in Kristiansand, at the southern tip of Norway. This let us bring our own car pre-packed with all of our gear and camping food ready to go. We lucked out on the weather and had only 1-2 days of rain in what was otherwise reported to be a very rainy summer in Norway. It was an amazing trip, especially coming from being stuck in the flatlands of Belgium…
Continue reading “Norway: Hiking, Camping, and Backpacking”Carrizo Mountain and Eagle BM January 2023
To start the year Uwe and I went to the Coyote and Fish Creek Wildernesses to hike Carrizo Mountain and Eagle Benchmark.
Achensee, Tirol, Austria
We spent a few days in Achenkirch, Tirol, Austria. My nephew wanted to do some hikes. So he chose a few in the area resulting in 4 great days in the mountains.
Continue reading “Achensee, Tirol, Austria”A Few Hikes Around Belgium
I realize I haven’t posted anything here in a long time so I thought I’d drop in to say hi and offer some photo evidence I am still alive. I am still working on a TR for our Norway trip this summer and that will go up sometime in the next month hopefully. In the meantime I thought I’d share a little bit about some of the hikes/walks that Bianca and I go for around Belgium. We usually go walking every other weekend or so, most often in Wallonia (the southern half of Belgium). There the Ardennes has some nice scenery of forest, fields, and rolling hills, but no real mountains. Highest point is 694m (2277ft). I haven’t posted much about these walks because individually they aren’t too impressive or noteworthy, but all together I think it could be nice to see what walking around Belgium can look like (at least the nice parts).
Hautes Fagnes (High Fens)
An area we have gone for a few hikes in, one of the more “wild” places in Belgium (for what it’s worth). This area is a high plateau with a mix of forest and swampy fen. One of my favorite places in Belgium, while the main trails are very popular with tourists there are plenty of less well maintained trails off the beaten path that see almost no traffic and give you a rare feeling of solitude here.
(The picture of us together is at Signal de Botrange, highest point in Belgium and literally just a 6m concrete staircase in a parking lot…)
Achouffe
Nice walk through forest / fields, good example of walking in Wallonia.
MTB in La Roche en Ardenne
A fun afternoon mountain biking with a couple friends who I actually know from San Diego / Scripps, a German couple who moved back to Europe a year before I came over here.
Hamoir / Ourthe River
This was a very nice hike through some small villages, forest, and field. Good example of the mix of scenery found across Wallonia. Passing through these small villages along our walks is often a fun highlight, especially if it involves stopping for a kebab or some frituur (Belgian fries) ;).
Trooz
Another nice example of the forest / fields / small villages style of walk.
https://www.outdooractive.com/en/route/hiking-route/belgium/mr.-pfade-abenteuertour-trooz/119275773/
Pinnacles National Park October 2022
Time for a road trip so Dorie and I took off for Central California.
Continue reading “Pinnacles National Park October 2022”Wyoming Wind River Range August 2022
Uwe, John, and I set out to traverse the Wind River Range. It was truly an adventure filled with awesome beauty, a little adversity, and some minor distress. (Read on)
Continue reading “Wyoming Wind River Range August 2022”Split Mtn., Arrow Peak, Striped Mtn.
This was a multi-day solo backpacking trip to climb some of the peaks in the Taboose Pass area. I put this together after learning that there is a good route up Split Mtn. and I wanted to climb Arrow Peak after seeing it so prominently earlier in June.
Continue reading “Split Mtn., Arrow Peak, Striped Mtn.”Sawmill Pass, July 2022
Jack, John, Srisuda and I met at the trailhead for Sawmill Pass the night before the hike since we wanted to get an early start. There were a few peaks we wanted to try to climb and Srisuda and I also wanted to enjoy some time at nice Sierra lakes.
Continue reading “Sawmill Pass, July 2022”