New member from SoCal

[Surfcam]

Hi

I've been an active member on backpackinglight.com but finally paid for a membership on Trail Groove. :-)

I live in Los Angeles and try to do a few overnight local trips and 1-2 bigger trips also each year. This year I was lucky to hike the Trans Zion Traverse in June and then thru hike the JMT in July along with local trips near Santa Barbara and San Gabriel Mtns. 

[Aaron Zagrodnick]

Welcome to TrailGroove Surfcam - sounds and looks like some great hiking so far this year and thanks for the support! 

[Mark Wetherington]

Welcome!

Great pictures and sounds like you got some great trips in this year. Anything planned for next year yet?

[John B]

Welcome!

[Surfcam]

Mark,

I have the last 6 weeks of this year off so I'll probably do a 2-3 night trip around Big Sur/Los Padres NF area. Good for weather that time of year. Then I'll have late April to early Aug off next year so I'm thinking of Grand Staircase Escalante for a week in May, then either the TRT solo or the Wonderland trail with friends (if my friend gets permits) later in the summer. Plus, I'll probably sprinkle in some local overnighters in there. 

How about you? Any trips coming up?

-Don

[Mark Wetherington]

Sounds like great plans. I've heard wonderful things about Grand Staircase Escalante.

Nothing too exciting planned for me in regard to "big" trips with multiple nights of lots of travel, mostly just overnights here in western Montana (mostly the Bitterroot range). I got back from a two-night trip near West Yellowstone last weekend, did a quick overnight trip to a lake in the Bitterroots this past weekend, and am heading up to a lookout rental in the Bitterroots this weekend with my girlfriend. Then in September her and I are planning to do an overnight canoe trip on the Flathead River through the Mission Mountains valley, and I'd like to get out for a night or two in the mountains to see the larch and aspen turning colors.

My big trip this year was the Selway River Trail in Idaho (50-miles, four-nights) with a friend of mine (trip report in the most recent issue of TrailGroove) and I'm not sure what I'll do for next year yet.

I plead ignorance, what's the TRT?

[Surfcam]

I'm jealous of your local trips. I'm sure they're better than my local trips. Our locs mountains (1-2 hours from L.A.) are actually pretty nice for quick trips. I really want to get into some canoe and/or packrafting trips. Getting up to your area (Idaho/MT) is really high on my list. 

TRT = Tahoe Rim Trail

It circumvents Lake Tahoe. 165 miles.