Category: hiking

leaving Las Vegas

On By Rick McIn Cirque du Soleil, hiking, miscellaneous, travel, traveloguesLeave a comment

Had a great couple of weeks in Vegas, being trained in the circus arts. Where else to learn but in the true Entertainment Capital of the World?

I saw the 5 awesome Cirque du Soleil shows currently playing and spent time backstage. As well, I observed two auditions and assisted my she-mentor Dana with evaluations.

It was an eye-opener! And a learning experience big-time.

If you want to know more, I post Cirque du Soleil notes on my gymnastics blog.

THANKS Dan & Terri, and Dana & Fred who hosted the perfect houseguest (… at some point in the past. This time it was me eating their food and drinking their booze.)

Next adventure?

Hiking Paria Canyon on the Arizona / Utah border. I plunge into the slot canyon Thursday Oct. 26th.

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» next travelogue post on this trip – hiking – survived Paria Canyon

hiking Mt. Shasta California

On By Rick McIn blogs, hiking, photos, travel, traveloguesLeave a comment

Thanks to Tom Mangan, a hiking blogger from San Jose, I travelled to the first annual outdoor bloggers meetup. Tom put together a nice photo report on the weekend.

Tom first collected myself and Szu-ting Yi (a Taiwanese blogger living in Philadelphia) from the airport, then drove us 5hrs to gorgeous Mt. Shasta to rendezvous with the rest of the gang.

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larger version

Though strangers, we had much in common — the outdoors and the internet.

Russ the Wine Hiker supplied us with great reds and prepared gourmet Thai food. The best meal I ever ate around a campfire. Though he knows the lyrics, I am quite sure he never actually toured with the Eagles.

Tom Chandler (Trout Underground) and his wife Nancy provided the local information — they live in Shasta — though we did not find time for Tom to teach me to fly fish. Perhaps he was worried I might be a natural Brad-Pitt-River-Runs-Through-It-type and make it look too easy.

The hard-core hiker amongst us was techie John Fedak who lives down the street from Apple Computer (but works mostly for Intel). John’s a blogger — but his forte is photography. Check some of his favourite pics.

Lastly, Adam and his almost-3-year-old son kept up to the rest of us on the trail. Adam is a climber who loves Mt. Shasta. He blogs as climb_ca on GoBlog which supports the GetOutdoors.com — everything you need to GetOutdoors.

Photos of camping, fishing, drinking, dining and even some hiking on Flickr.

» next travelogue post on this trip – San Francisco?

Cartwrights hike Lake O’Hara

On By Rick McIn hiking, photos, travelLeave a comment

It was pouring rain on what I thought was my last hiking weekend of the year. Rocco and I cancelled.

But the following September weekend turned clear. I insisted on joining the Cartwright clan on their annual Lake O’Hara adventure. This was the 14th year for Judith Cartwright. Her husband Rob was chief organizer.

Turned out that 6 of 7 siblings were able to make it up to the mountains with various family members and a few (how did they get invited?) friends. What a turn-out!

100_4585-crop.jpgClick on the thumbnail photo for a (slow loading) larger version or see all full resolution photos on Flickr.

We were there for the spectacle of the changing of the Alpine Larch from green to golden yellow. This signals the start of winter in the Canadian Rockies.

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details on how to organize a hike to O’Hara – besthike.com

outdoor bloggers “meetup”

On By Rick McIn blogs, hiking, travelLeave a comment

You know those oddball conventions you hear about? Freak gatherings. Pug dog owners, paranormal ghost busters, or atheists.

I am going to one.

I am forced to travel to Northern California to attend.

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Needless to say, bloggers meetups get a LOT of coverage on the internet. I’ll be posting on my hiking blog.

Blogs for the outdoors have just taken off in the last few months. I expect I’ll be one of the founders of a huge annual event.

Yellowstone National Park

On By Rick McIn cycling, hiking, photos, travel, traveloguesLeave a comment

I was ride-along shotgun on a hiking / biking trip with George Novak to Yellowstone National Park. It truly is a fantastic destination, much improved (I feel) by the forest fires of 1988. The park is open and bright. There is a real feeling of renewal.

It’s famous for geysers, hot springs, and other geothermal features and is home to grizzly bears, wolves, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk. We saw a lot of wildlife.

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Photos and video clips I posted on besthike.com. See those by searching besthike for “Yellowstone”.

This is the last post in this travelogue. But you can find photos & a video clip of Grand Teton National Park on my hiking blog.

climbing Crowsnest Mountain

On By Rick McIn hiking, movies, traveloguesLeave a comment

15yrs or more since I had last seen Scott Whiteside from Lethbridge, we hooked up to scramble the most enticing peak in the Crowsnest Pass.

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Originally a gymnastics coach, Scott now runs the climbing wall at the University of Lethbridge and has climbed the highest mountain in South America, Aconcagua. (Actually his group turned back before the top even though Scott was feeling great at the time.)

Scott and his wife recently purchased a holiday home in the Pass with a view of this mountain. To find out how we made it to the summit — check the comic video clip.

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photo – George Novak

» next travelogue post on this trip – cycling Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

for those who love to go barefoot

On By Rick McIn hiking, humourLeave a comment

Fivefingers are “shoes” designed to provide support and protection for your tender feets while still keeping the sensation of traipsing around barefoot.

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Ted McDonald (aka “Barefoot Ted”) recently ran the Boston Marathon in Fivefingers.

2Dolphins.com Blog: Fivefingers For Your Ten Toes

Who wants to try wearing them on a multi-day hike?