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TrailGroove Blog

A Blog by the TrailGroove Team

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Entries in this blog

Trips

Solitude in the Sapphire Mountains of Montana

I’ve always placed a premium on solitude when planning my outdoor activities and, with some planning and luck, have never found it to be particularly difficult to obtain. However, with trails across the country being more crowded than ever the past few years, it’s taken a bit more effort even in sparsely populated western Montana to have that lake, peak, or meadow all to yourself. Fortunately, with a bit of flexibility and research I was able to turn a short-notice opportunity for an overnight t
Mark Wetherington

Mark Wetherington in Trips

3
Trips

Seeking Solitude: Backpacking in the Bitterroot Mountains

With backpacks loaded and my friend Drew in the passenger seat, both of us eager to head to subalpine lakes with hungry trout, I turned the keys in the ignition and proceeded to break one of my cardinal rules of backpacking: don’t start in a trip in the middle of a holiday weekend. As advantageous as having an extra day off work to extend a backpacking trip is, if you’re spending that time on a crowded trail only to end up at an area where all the best campsites are taken the “victory” is at bes
Mark Wetherington

Mark Wetherington in Trips

1
Trips

Hiking through Rubies: Backpacking the Ruby Mountains

Recently I set out to explore the Seven Devils Wilderness in Idaho and walk a 27-mile loop through those mountains, but a large fire in Hell’s Canyon diverted that plan at the last minute. The Ruby Mountain Wilderness of Nevada had long been on my “to do” list, and this seemed like a good time to change plans and head south. The Rubies were misnamed in the 1800s during the gold rush, when a group of army explorers thought they’d found a range filled with rubies; instead they discovered only
David Cobb

David Cobb in Trips

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Trips

Thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail: Lessons Learned

While any thru-hike will involve an uncountable number of steps, the biggest step of them all is the proverbial first step – making the decision to go hike the trail yourself. After you’ve watched the videos and read the articles, the inspiration is at its highest, and you finally decide to hike a long distance trail, the second major step into the world of long distance hiking is preparing to walk – up to 25 miles every day for up to 6 months straight. Is Hiking the PCT a Physical or Menta
jansenjournals

jansenjournals in Trips

2
Trips

Lakes, Peaks, & Bugs: Hiking the Beaverhead Mountains

Although lacking wilderness status or the “brand name” recognition of Glacier National Park, the Beaverhead Mountains in western Montana are a remarkably scenic landscape with few crowds and plenty of lakes with trout in them. In other words, they contain all the prerequisites for a great backpacking trip. The Beaverhead Mountains, which are at the southern end of the Bitterroot Mountain Range, are also notorious for having millions of voracious mosquitoes which makes early season trips here a f
Mark Wetherington

Mark Wetherington in Trips

1
Trips

Hiking the Grand Enchantment Trail: GET Wet!

Whitecaps swirled in the ochre mixture of water and clay in the flooded wash at our feet. I never knew water so muddy could have whitecaps and now our route lay on the opposite bank of the torrent as it raged over unseen boulders and cut into the edge of its banks. Standing there at the two-track crossing in the middle of nowhere New Mexico, I wondered how many “do not enter when flooded” signs we passed on paved roads in the Southwest. It was late October and the third day in a row o
HikerBox

HikerBox in Trips

3
Trips

Backpacking Kungsleden: Jewel of the Swedish Arctic

If there is such a thing as a backpacker’s paradise then look no further than the Kungsleden, Sweden’s Royal Trail above the Arctic Circle near the border of Norway. If you can hike just one section of the 240-mile long trail, start with the world-class hike between Nikkaluokta and Abisko. Imagine wide Arctic valleys, stunning northern lights, reindeer, and, if you go in September, incredible fall colors covering the landscape. The 80-mile hike from Nikkaluokta to Abisko can work for all skill l
DustyD

DustyD in Trips

0
Trips

Stough Creek Lakes Trail Overnighter: Wind River Range, Wyoming

With limited time and a good forecast, Jen & I decided on a quick overnighter for this trip close by in the Winds. It would need to be a quick trip – obligations (a bit more on that later) would have to keep us close to civilization, and on top of that we would have to work with a later start on Saturday. Our plan was to take the Stough Creek Lakes Trail into the Popo Agie Wilderness up to Roaring Fork Pass / Stough Creek Saddle, then retreat part of the way back to make camp. The
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Trips

2
Trips

The Great Divide Trail: Thru-Hiking the Canadian Rockies

The Great Divide Trail in the Canadian Rockies is the stuff dreams are made of. Remote grand mountainous wilderness, picturesque scenery, a level of solitude that’s rare to find these days, and that hint of anticipation and suspense that comes with hiking through grizzly country. There is definitely an intimidation factor that comes with hiking in the lesser traveled Canadian Rockies, but the secret is out, and the GDT is gradually becoming one of the most destined thru-hikes in the world.
Wired

Wired in Trips

0
Trips

Backpacking Wyoming's Breathtaking Bighorn Mountains

As I drove to the trailhead the mountains were hidden in the clouds. The highway allowed me to drive 80 mph through vast open spaces with few signs of human activity. The rain fell heavily. Although a Michigander at heart, a few weeks earlier I had set out on temporary work that would allow the opportunity for adventures out West. While I had enjoyed many backpacking adventures in the West, this short overnighter would be my first near my new home. Into the Bighorn Mountains The Bighor
Eric

Eric in Trips

0
Trips

Backpacking the Lost Coast Trail: Oceanside Wilderness

The Lost Coast Trail (LCT) in northern California may very well be the best beach hike in the United States. The name derives from the fact that it is the only part of the California coast that is not paralleled by a highway. I’m sure the romantic ring of that name only adds to its considerable popularity. It sounds like something from a teenage adventure novel. “The Hardy Boys and the Pirates of the Lost Coast” There is a northern section and a southern section. The southern stretch is muc
George Graybill

George Graybill in Trips

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Trips

The Alpine Lakes Wilderness: A Cascades Backpacking Trip

One can easily say that Washington State holds some of the most beautiful, untouched, and rugged terrain in all of North America. At breakfast one could wake up on a driftwood littered beach on the coastline of a temperate rainforest, and by dinner be jumping into a glacial lake of the high Cascade peaks. With some of the most amazing wildlife covered landscapes and best backpacking in Washington and even in the United States, one can spend the rest of their lives trying to explore and conquer a
J. Parascandola

J. Parascandola in Trips

0
Trips

Hiking Oklahoma: Where East Meets West

Thanks to Rodgers and Hammerstein and the Weather Channel, most folks know Oklahoma as that place in the middle of the U.S. "where the wind comes sweeping down the plains." And the designation is certainly fitting, especially in the spring of the year when it’s time for Oklahomans to hunker down for tornado season. While the plains indeed comprise a large portion of Oklahoma's land mass and contribute significantly to its cultural history, the state is home to more than 10 distinct ec
Susan Dragoo

Susan Dragoo in Trips

0
Trips

Overnight Ski to Section House at Boreas Pass, Colorado

They say fire warms the soul, better yet when that fire is in a potbelly stove set inside a historic cabin atop the spine of the continent burning wood you didn’t have to chop! Rachel and I decided to celebrate my 31st birthday and our recent move to Colorado by booking an overnight stay at one of the over 30 backcountry huts for rent in Colorado through the 10th Mountain Hut Association and the above scenario is exactly what we found. Based on some advice from fellow TrailGroove writer @PaulMag
HikerBox

HikerBox in Trips

1
Trips

Backpacking the Pecos: A Wilderness of Enchantment

Imagine a wilderness area of tundra ridge walks, a place where 13,000-foot peaks tower into the sky, where wildflowers dot the landscape, and bighorn sheep scramble over the terrain. A wilderness area that would seem to be the stuff that backpacker dreams are made of. Now picture this area tucked away in northern New Mexico. An area ignored by many backpackers. No major long distance hiking trail comes through these mountains. No glossy travelogues feature this wilderness area. This wilderness a
PaulMags

PaulMags in Trips

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Trips

Two Short Hikes in Zion: Canyon Overlook & Many Pools

Zion National Park is one of my favorite national parks, and for good reason: there are amazing views, beautiful cliffs and streams, abundant photography opportunities, and wonderful hikes. The park has several well-known popular hikes – The Subway, Zion Narrows, and Angel’s Landing for example – but there are some other shorter or lesser known hikes that are also well worth your while. I have made a couple of short visits as part of my mountain biking and hiking trips over the past two years, a
Steve Ancik

Steve Ancik in Trips

0
Trips

Backpacking the Three Sisters Wilderness in Oregon

After a drive into the night and an examination of the small walk-in Devils Lake Campground by headlamp, I found an available campsite – close enough to the trailhead that it was safe to say the first part of my journey (getting there) was complete. It was quiet, but there were several others camped nearby. The peaks that dominated the wilderness trip ahead of me were obscured by the darkness of the night. I was excited for the backpacking trip ahead of me, a nearly 60 mile variation of one of O
Eric

Eric in Trips

0
Trips

Hiking the Wailau Trail: Lost in a Hawaiian Jungle

I was muddied, bloodied, and soaked, but I had reached my goal. I was standing on the rim of Wailau Valley. Just beyond my toes, the land dropped away steeply to the valley floor 3,000 feet below. Waterfalls streamed down the cliffs that surrounded this lost world as it swept away before me to the north shore of Moloka’i. It was hard to believe that 50 years ago I had descended this cliff and then hacked my way through five miles of jungle to the ocean. I must have been crazy. I was definitely l
George Graybill

George Graybill in Trips

1
Trips

Hiking & Camping in Goblin Valley State Park Utah

Located a solid 102 miles from the tourist base at Moab, Goblin Valley gives quiet respite from all things civilized. First discovered by cowboys roaming the range in search of lost cattle, this geological playground was designated as a state park as recent as 1964. Originally the site was known as Mushroom Valley, the name inspired by the comically organic appearance that the rock formations take. Since then, the title of Goblin Valley was added, giving the park an otherworldly name
Jessica Smith

Jessica Smith in Trips

0
Trips

Towering Beauty: The Wahweap Hoodoos of Southern Utah

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is a huge 1.9 million acre park in south central Utah, full of scenic wonders and surprises. One of my favorite subjects to photograph is the scattering of hoodoo formations that are found here and there on cliff edges and slopes. Hoodoos are formed when a harder, more resistant layer of rock protects a softer layer underneath. As erosion from water, freezing, thawing, and wind all work their magic, the rock layers are exposed and form into towers of r
Steve Ancik

Steve Ancik in Trips

0
Trips

Backpacking the Kalmiopsis Wilderness: A 50 Mile Loop

I awoke in the comfort of the back of my vehicle as the Pacific Ocean’s peaceful waves gently moved across the nearby beach. I quickly drove away and soon found myself driving on a remote forest road. Fortunately I had checked road conditions and discovered that I needed to detour to avoid a landslide. The road was bumpy and had deep cracks. My vehicle has all-wheel drive, but not high clearance. With careful maneuvering I arrived at the Chetco Divide/Vulcan Peak Trailhead and the edge of Oregon
Eric

Eric in Trips

0
Trips

Hiking & Exploring The Great Plains: Overlooked Wildness

The Great American Desert. The flyover territory. Flat. Boring. Uninspiring. All names or descriptions given to an area of North America that is five-hundred miles wide and two-thousand miles long. This area is The Great Plains. The Great Plains are arguably the most American of all landscapes. What people over the world often conjure up when the American West is thought about. The wide open spaces, the vast landscape and the sky above. Seemingly limitless. Extending forever. The Grea
PaulMags

PaulMags in Trips

0
Trips

Skiing to Hogan Cabin: Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest

In typical backpacker fashion, I did my solemn duty of taking off the Thursday before a federal holiday falling on a Friday to schedule a two-night trip followed by a day of rest. A stroke of good fortune allowed me to book Christmas Eve and Christmas night at a small, rustic Forest Service rental cabin in the mountains of the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest. Given the frigid forecast, it was well worth the nominal fee to know that after skiing around all day I’d have four walls,
Mark Wetherington

Mark Wetherington in Trips

1
Trips

Biking the Burr Trail, Utah

The last two winters I’ve spent living in the American southwest, and before I left I planned to take a long bike ride. I wasn’t quite sure where I wanted to go, but I was leaning towards somewhere way out in the desert. I changed my mind many times in the months before the trip, but eventually decided to leave sunny California, and drive further inland, to Utah. I had driven this highway once before, a scenic route through the southern part of Utah. Highway 12, “The All American Road
michaelswanbeck

michaelswanbeck in Trips

0
Trips

Hiking, Backpacking, & Exploring Enchanted New Mexico

In the “must see” places of the outdoors, certain areas seem to garner the most publicity. All names that are found in glossy photos for post cards, magazines or coffee table books. Destinations any backpacker would love to, and should, see at some point. Places to be added to their memories and experiences of where they have spent time in the outdoors. But among these places cataloged, discussed and portrayed in glossy photos is a place of deep canyons, ancient Puebloan sites, high a
PaulMags

PaulMags in Trips

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