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TrailGroove Blog

A Blog by the TrailGroove Team

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Contributors to this blog

  • Aaron Zagrodnick 244
  • Mark Wetherington 76
  • PaulMags 27
  • Susan Dragoo 27
  • Steve Ancik 18
  • tmountainnut 12
  • David Cobb 11
  • Eric 10
  • HappyHour 9
  • jansenjournals 8
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  • Cinny Green 6
  • HikerBox 6
  • Karen Garmire 6
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  • AndreaL 5
  • Daniel Anderson Jr 5
  • Kevin DeVries 4
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Gear | Trips | Food | Technique | Reading

Entries in this blog

Trips

Backpacking in the Porcupine Mountains: A Quick Guide

If you're in the Midwest, the Porcupine Mountains might be your #1 go to backpacking destination. Scenic views abound and old growth forests dominate the interior. Head to the north side of the park and you'll find yourself greeted with the pristine and beautiful waters of the world’s largest freshwater lake. For an excellent day hike, park at the Lake of the Clouds overlook and explore the Escarpment Trail (amazing views). Along the Escarpment Trail in the Porcupine Mountains If
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Trips

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Technique

7 Ways to Make Freeze Dried Backpacking Meals Better

Even the best freeze dried backpacking meals that are out there tend to have some common drawbacks. The most common issue with ready to eat commercial meals is their lack of calories – with meals commonly containing calorie counts in the 400-500 range (or sometimes, even worse at 200-300 calories). Typically these meals will claim to feed 2 – when in fact they're pretty light on calories even for one person after a long hiking day, leaving us to dig through our food bag for anything we can find
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Technique

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Gear

Lightweight Photo Gear and Carrying a Backpacking Camera

Combining cameras with the outdoors and taking one along to document your hiking and backpacking trips introduces a few challenges that must be overcome to take your photos quickly and easily, while still being able to maintain and keep your camera safe from the elements. On the trail, a few key points are worth the most consideration and what follows is the setup that has worked best for me on trips where the hiking is a higher priority than, or at least on equal ground priority-wise, with the
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Gear

6
Trips

From Sea to Alpine: Backpacking in the Trinity Alps

Choosing a trail is often half the adventure in the scenic Trinity Alps Wilderness. The Trinity’s are somewhat like a wilderness island in northern California: to the east you’ll find Interstate 5 and the snow-capped volcanoes of Mount Shasta and Mount Lassen. To the west is the mighty Pacific Ocean and its rugged coastline. All the while to the north and south, wrapping the wilderness is an impenetrable green of mixed pines, woods, and streams isolating the Alps into its own serenity. Choosing
jansenjournals

jansenjournals in Trips

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Gear

The Multi-Purpose Foam Pad & Backpacking Sit Pads

Carrying the additional half-pound or so a three-quarter length closed cell foam pad, in addition to an inflatable pad, is antithetical to the general concept of lightweight backpacking. However, the versatility of this piece of gear and the added level of safety and comfort it provides make it something some backpackers never leave behind, with multiple use cases out on the trail – from a sit pad in camp and on breaks, to extra insulation and protection for your inflatable in longer lengths.
Mark Wetherington

Mark Wetherington in Gear

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Trips

Hiking and Backpacking During Wildflower Season

Nature has a rhythm. The snows covers the landscape in winter. There is beauty to be found, but the beauty is a cold, ethereal one. A landscape with a palette of a few colors. Green trees, white snow, brown grass, gray rocks, and blue skies. But then the snow starts to melt. The mountain streams grow from a bare trickle to a steady flow and then become a raging torrent. The birds are making their morning calls more frequently. Old man of the mountain wildflowers gracing the high count
PaulMags

PaulMags in Trips

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Food

Strawberry Cran-apple Juice Backpacking Drink Recipe

Have you ever been on a long hard trail, sweating like a prize fighter, wishing you could have a cool drink of real juice? Well, you can! It’s simple and (almost) fresh. Last month’s seasonal soup recipe introduced the notion of dehydrated “bark”. Bark is created by spreading any blended ingredients, such as soup, on a solid dehydrator tray (or on baking parchment paper on a mesh tray) and drying it until crisp. Apply this technique to blended fresh fruit and your backcountry refreshment dr
Cinny Green

Cinny Green in Food

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Trips

Canyons & Creeks: Backpacking the Rogue River Trail

I turned up the heat in the car at the trailhead. It was a chilly, near freezing November morning as we finished getting our gear ready. There was a sense of excitement. As I hoisted my pack, I could feel the not-so-gentle protrusion of the solid kitchen frying pan in my back. I knew it would be worth it. I carefully left my key in the car in the prearranged location, hoping that the arranged transportation would deliver it to the end of the trail as planned. There were three of us: a good
Eric

Eric in Trips

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Trips

Section Hiking the Pacific Crest Trail: A 40 Year Hike

It was 105 in the shade at my brother's house near East Los Angeles. Smoke from a foothills fire browned the sky while rolling blackouts swept through the city, defeating the air conditioning, closing restaurants, leaving us to swelter without benefit of even a fan. Darkened traffic lights made the already horrible traffic impossible. We left LA at dawn, escaping north on US395, heading to the southern terminus of the Sierra Nevada at Walker Pass. We had taken this road forty years ag
HappyHour

HappyHour in Trips

0
Food

Chocolate Cheesecake Smoothie Backpacking Dessert Recipe

After a cold day of backcountry skiing, a sheltered spot is found for a campsite. A snug spot located in the trees, it has an excellent view of both Mitchell Lake and the Continental Divide above. The shelter is soon erected, warm and dry clothes are changed into, and the stove is fired up. Dinner is cooked and consumed. But it is not quite ready to be called a night. The sun is setting and the alpenglow on the mountains is delightful. The stove is fired up again. A drink is quickly made. A warm
PaulMags

PaulMags in Food

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Trips

Going Long: Skiing Around Oregon's Crater Lake

One-by-one we traversed the narrow cut in the cliff, careful to lean to the right in case we slipped – the steep drop-off on our left plunged over a hundred feet to the valley floor. The sun had already set behind the western Cascades, painting the sky a burning red but leaving our trail in rapidly increasing darkness. That we were struggling to remain upright on our cross-country skis on even the slightest descent made each step even more nerve-racking. By the time we traversed the top of the c
mgraw

mgraw in Trips

0
Trips

An Ancient Canyon: Hiking in Bandelier National Monument

Birdsong filled the canyon as we stepped into the cool of the morning. By arriving at dawn, my sister, Carol Harper, and I were beating both the crowds and the heat of the late July day, the former objective intensified by our recent escape from the summer hordes at Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park. A stop at Bandelier National Monument near Los Alamos, New Mexico presented an appealing alternative on the way home to Oklahoma. Not exactly on the way, but close enough. Signs of
Susan Dragoo

Susan Dragoo in Trips

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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

Hiking in Yosemite: Waterfalls and Winter Solitude

It's an early December afternoon in Yosemite National Park, and I'm watching a bobcat padding down the trail in front of me. In his mouth is a lifeless gray squirrel, so large that he drops it several times. He turns and surveys me with the lazy arrogance of a house cat who's proud of his kill. I'm unsure if I should be following this wild creature down the trail. I think of how animals are protective of their food. Still, the large cat and I are headed the same way, so I continue at a distance.
Allison Johnson

Allison Johnson in Trips

8
Trips

Bryce Canyon National Park: A Quick Hiking Guide

Bryce Canyon National Park in southern Utah is a popular park and for good reason – its stunning rock spire formations (hoodoos) and the Bryce Amphitheater that can be seen from the canyon rim provide amazing views for those that visit. When it comes to hiking in Bryce Canyon, various trails provide a means for visitors to experience the canyon close up, while getting some good exercise and can offer a bit more solitude than the rim as well, if the timing is right. An array of Bryce C
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Trips

0
Technique

Summer Hiking: Tips & Techniques for Hot Weather Hikes

Summer is a great time to be out on the trail. The long daylight hours expand opportunities, and you can get away with lighter gear when staying warm isn’t as large of an issue during the day and at night. At the same time however, considerations such as heat, hydration, and insect protection must be considered – any one of which can quickly turn a great trip into a journey where putting one foot in front of the other becomes an exercise of sheer determination. Here are a few tips and techniques
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Technique

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Trips

Backpacking the Needles District, Canyonlands National Park

On this trip, I was able to return to Canyonlands National Park, but this time stayed on the opposite side of the river from the Maze to join up with Ted Ehrlich and Christy who drove in from Colorado to backpack through Salt Creek Canyon and the Needles. The Needles offer a near endless array of unique rock formations to find and routes to explore. Backpacking Into the Needles Our respective drives late on a Thursday night resulted in a noon-ish start from the Cathedral But
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Trips

2
Trips

Backpacking North Cascades National Park: A Smoky Trip

After the landscape itself, the memories made with companions, and the wildlife seen, the weather is usually one of the most memorable parts of a backpacking trip. Bluebird skies, sideways rain, scorching heat, unexpected inches of snow – these are often the things which come to mind when reminiscing on trips where weather was either a blessing or a curse. In much of the West, another weather phenomenon also has an outsized influence: smoke. Even if you’re hundreds of miles from an active wildfi
Mark Wetherington

Mark Wetherington in Trips

0
Trips

Thru-Hiking the John Muir Trail: A Day in the Life

The first light of morning begins to stream over the mountains, through the tree’s canopy, and into your tent. These mornings were welcome, as seeing the sun’s morning glory while still bundled up warmly inside your tent was actually a rarity on the JMT. More often than not, however, you’re confronted with the unenviable task of rising to the dark, cold blanket that lies heavily on your campsite before the sun’s rays have the chance to lift it off. Chilly mornings thicken the blood and slow
Tucker Ballister

Tucker Ballister in Trips

0
Trips

Hiking Maine's 100-Mile Wilderness | Appalachian Trail

I’m no stranger to a new challenge. Two years ago, after two decades as a carpenter and building contractor, I took a chance and changed my life. Though sawdust runs in my veins and I’ve always imagined myself as a builder to the end, the only other profession I thought I might like is teaching. In October 2019 that notion became reality when I became an instructor in the Building Construction Technology Program at a local Community College. That’s when the challenge began. The idea of teac
Curry Caputo

Curry Caputo in Trips

0
Food

Backpacking Food: Core Food, Staples, & Meal Ingredients

Stay fueled. Here are some versatile items that we like to always have in our food bag to add extra calories, flavors, and variety to backcountry meals. The possibilities are endless, but by carrying these ingredients you can take any off-the-shelf backpacking meal to the next level or add calories and taste to your own creations. Dehydrated or Freeze-Dried Vegetables A great way to add flavor and variety to your meals, as well as have a few servings of veggies during the day or with d
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Food

0
Trips

Hiking the Canyons & Trails of Southern Utah

Canyons are compelling for reasons I rarely consider on a conscious level. Like no other terrain they attract me with an intrigue born of curiosity and an underlying sense of danger. The potential for flash floods, snakebite, falls, and losing my way brings an edge to the experience of walking a path between walls of stone, not knowing what’s around the next bend – this is the essence of a canyon. Slot canyons compound the appeal – their narrow, sinuous heights enclose me as I probe their depths
Susan Dragoo

Susan Dragoo in Trips

0
Gear

Backpacking Hydration Options: An Overview and Guide

As soon as we set foot on the trail, a way to carry one of the most essential ingredients for a successful hike – water – becomes essential. With a myriad of options available from bottles of nearly every variety to dedicated, and often complex, hydration systems on the market today, when choosing a way to carry your water while backpacking the shopping experience can become complicated quickly. What follows is an overview of options that are available for this task along with my preferences, an
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Gear

0
Gear

How to Choose the Best Backpacking and Hiking Backpack

No matter your approach to backpacking – ultralight, comfort light, traditional, or whatever our own unique approaches may be in the gear department, backpacking in and of itself goes hand in hand with a gear list (whether on paper or simply in our heads), making a way to carry all that stuff one of the most important gear related items we need to consider. What follows is a guide to selecting an appropriate backpack for hiking and backpacking, including an overview of features, technologies, ma
Aaron Zagrodnick

Aaron Zagrodnick in Gear

0
Trips

The New Hardest Thing: The Trek to Everest Base Camp

Strong men and women are laid low by this place. Acute mountain sickness, the “Khumbu cough" (also known as the high altitude hack), gastroenteritis, the cold, the food...what makes them want to come here? What made me want to come here? Our friend Paul walks down the hall of tonight’s tea house, remarking on the sounds of hacking and coughing emitting from the guest rooms. “This place is full of crazy people.” And I can’t argue otherwise. I wondered, before I came to Nepal to hike to
Susan Dragoo

Susan Dragoo in Trips

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