There are so many small, shiny objects that vie for my inclusion in my pack but each one weighs something. It’s easy to say, “It’s not very big and it weighs nothing.” I had a small stuff sack in my hand that felt like air but weighed in at one ounce. Put 16 of those …
I had trouble finding detailed information about how to hike the 31 mile (50 km), four-day Santa Cruz Trail in Peru. For being such a popular trail, planning a backpacking trip on the Santa Cruz Trail was difficult. Most people do it as a guided hike, but the track is well signed, and backpackers with …
I had trouble finding detailed information about how to hike the 31 mile (50 km), four-day Santa Cruz Trail in Peru. For being such a popular trail, planning a backpacking trip on the Santa Cruz Trail was difficult. Like most of the backcountry trails in the mountainous areas of this region, it’s an Inca trail, …
I got interested in Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) because I always seem to suffer from mild symptoms above 11,000 feet no matter how much I acclimate, including difficulty sleeping, headache, low-grade nausea and fatigue. I also develop significant puffiness around my eyes, an indication of Altitude Induced Peripheral Edema. When I hiked the John Muir …
I don’t think I cooked more than a handful of meals for immediate consumption during the six months prior to our hike on the John Muir Trail (JMT)—thank goodness my husband likes to cook, otherwise we would have starved while I prepped all the food for the hike. Whenever I’d think of an idea for …
The John Muir Trail (JMT), which traces a 210.4 mile path along the jagged spine of the Sierra, is one of the premier trails in the U.S. It’s only a fraction of the length of the 2,663 foot Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), with which it shares much of its length, but is one of the …
Watching people drag their wheelies through a weed-infested field after a three day tour of the Mekong Delta in Vietnam was comical, while I just shouldered my day pack and skipped over to the bus from the boat. In Amsterdam a narrow, twisting staircase to our room would have presented a challenge had we been …
Handling bills and other financial matters from another country used to be a giant headache back in the day when I was a child growing up in South East Asia. In this era, thanks to online banking and bill paying, it’s pretty easy to manage your finances when you’re traveling much the same way as …
I love the preparations for a big trip: considering the itinerary, pouring over guidebooks, talking with others to gain insider tips and organizing my packing. Unfortunately the responsibilities of adult life don’t go away just because we’re stepping away for a period of time. There are several important facets of life that take quite a …
Sometimes it’s a funny coincidence when a new product, service or advice from friends meets a need like a hand in a glove. Singapore-based GuideGecko, a new travel guide website, just launched a series of Backpacker Cheatsheets that are turning out to be a very useful starting point for our upcoming trip to SE Asia. …