#great smoky mountains camp permit

[lsundarinfo]

The Ultimate Guide to the Top Road Trips in the USA

There are hundreds of reasons why you should plan an ultimate American road trip in the United States. The United States offers a vast range of possibilities and experiences that are unrivalled. From stunning coastlines to majestic mountains and vibrant cities, the US is a road trip enthusiast's dream come true. Forget the mundane routine and embrace the freedom of the open road as we set out to explore some of the must-visit places that will make your U.S. road trip an unforgettable journey.

But first, let’s see what makes the US a top travel destination, especially for a road trip. 

1. Diversity of Landscapes

One of the main reasons why a road trip in the US is highly recommended is the incredible diversity of landscapes. From the stunning coastal drives along Highway 1 in California to the breathtaking beauty of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, there is something for everyone. Don't miss iconic landmarks like the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone National Park, the Great Smoky Mountains, or Yosemite National Park. Every state offers its unique natural wonders, making a road trip an unforgettable experience filled with awe-inspiring vistas.

2. Flexibility and Freedom

Road trips provide a sense of flexibility and freedom that no other form of travel can match. The ability to follow your own schedule, stay in towns or cities that catch your interest, and change plans spontaneously is what makes road trips so liberating. You have the freedom to navigate the vast American highways and explore lesser-known places, experiencing the true essence of each destination.

3. Cultural Exploration

Road trips not only allow you to witness the natural beauty of the United States but also provide an opportunity for cultural exploration. Traveling through different states enables you to experience the diverse regional traditions, local cuisines, and unique local cultures. You can immerse yourself in the vibrant music scenes of New Orleans, Nashville, or Austin, and enjoy a rich tapestry of cultural experiences that define each part of the country.

4. Iconic Routes

The US is renowned for its iconic and scenic road trip routes. Some of the most popular ones include Route 66, the Pacific Coast Highway, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and the Great River Road. These routes offer an unforgettable journey filled with breathtaking sights, charming small towns, and quirky roadside attractions. Driving on these legendary roads will transport you back in time and provide a sense of adventure that is hard to replicate.

5. Memorable Experiences

A road trip in the US is bound to create lasting memories. Whether it's camping under the stars in national parks, encountering wildlife up close, or enjoying epic sunsets on the open road, every day brings new adventures and incredible experiences. You can explore famous cities such as New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, or Chicago, or veer off the beaten path to discover hidden gems that only road trippers get to experience.When traveling to the United States, it's important to understand the regulations and guidelines to ensure a smooth and legal driving experience.

10 Must-See Destinations for Your Ultimate US Road Trip Adventure:

Additional

Step-by-step guide on how to use an international driving permit in the U.S

Grand Canyon, Arizona

No list of must-visit places in the U.S. is complete without the Grand Canyon. Carved by the mighty Colorado River, this natural wonder is a breathtaking display of geological artistry. Stand on the rim and gaze into the vast expanse of the canyon, where layers of rock tell a story that spans millions of years. For the adventurous, hiking trails like the Bright Angel Trail offer a chance to descend into the canyon and experience its grandeur up close.

New York City, New York

The city that never sleeps, New York City, is a global icon of culture, entertainment, and diversity. From the bright lights of Times Square to the serene beauty of Central Park, each neighbourhood in the city has its own unique character. Visit the Statue of Liberty, catch a Broadway show, explore world-class museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and savour diverse cuisine in this melting pot of cultures.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho

America's first national park, Yellowstone, is a wonderland of geothermal features, wildlife, and pristine wilderness. Witness the awe-inspiring eruptions of Old Faithful, marvel at the vivid colors of the Grand Prismatic Spring, and keep an eye out for bison, elk, and grizzly bears. With its bubbling hot springs, dramatic canyons, and expansive meadows, Yellowstone is a haven for nature lovers and outdoor enthusiasts.

New Orleans, Louisiana

Immerse yourself in the vibrant and soulful atmosphere of New Orleans. Known for its jazz music, Creole cuisine, and lively street festivals, the city exudes a unique charm. Explore the historic French Quarter with its colourful architecture and lively nightlife on Bourbon Street. Indulge in beignets and coffee at Café du Monde, and let the music of the city's street performers and jazz clubs enchant you.

Yosemite National Park, California

Yosemite, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a sanctuary of towering waterfalls, granite cliffs, and ancient sequoia trees. Marvel at the sheer magnificence of El Capitan and Half Dome, hike through the enchanting Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, and take in the breathtaking views of Yosemite Valley. Whether you're a seasoned hiker or a casual nature enthusiast, Yosemite offers a variety of trails and experiences for all levels.

Walt Disney World, Florida

For a dose of magic and nostalgia, Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, is a must-visit destination. Explore the enchanting realms of the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, and Disney's Animal Kingdom. From iconic characters to thrilling rides and immersive attractions, Disney World is a place where dreams come to life for visitors of all ages.

How to get an International driving permit in the USA

1. Check the Validity of Your IDP

Ensure that your international driving permit USA is valid. The document is typically valid for one year from the date of issue.

2. Understand U.S. Driving Laws

Familiarize yourself with U.S. driving laws, which may vary from state to state. Each state has its own set of rules and regulations, so it's essential to know the local laws and follow them.

3.Carry Both Your IDP and Original Driver's License

Always carry both your international driving permit and your original driver's license from your home country. The IDP is not a stand-alone document and should be used in conjunction with your valid driver's license.

4. Renting a Car

If you plan to rent a car, check with the rental agency in advance to ensure they accept international driving permits. Most major rental companies in the U.S. do recognize IDPs, but it's best to confirm the requirements and policies beforehand. Here is a list of well-known car rental companies in the United States that you may want to consider for your road trip. Please keep in mind that rental rates, policies, requirements can vary so it is essential to check with each company directly or visit their website for the most up to date information.

Before Driving check the USA Driving Rules

For most of the companies listed above, the minimum age requirement is 21 years, however, it can vary by location. In terms of documents, you must have a valid driver’s license or an International Driving License.

That being said, now let’s embark on a virtual journey to explore some of the must-visit places that showcase the rich tapestry of experiences awaiting you in the United States.

Complete Guide To Overcome Misconceptions About The International Driving License

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, with its iconic Golden Gate Bridge and eclectic neighborhoods, is a city that captivates the heart. Take a stroll along Fisherman's Wharf, visit the historic Alcatraz Island, and ride the famous cable cars up and down the city's steep hills. Explore the diverse cultures of Chinatown and the Mission District, and savor delicious seafood at Pier 39.

Mount Rushmore, South Dakota

A symbol of American patriotism and ingenuity, Mount Rushmore is a monumental sculpture featuring the faces of four U.S. presidents – George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. Carved into the granite of the Black Hills, this iconic landmark attracts millions of visitors each year. Take a scenic drive through the Black Hills National Forest to reach this awe-inspiring testament to American history.

Sedona, Arizona

Nestled amid red rock formations and surrounded by stunning desert landscapes, Sedona is a haven for those seeking spiritual rejuvenation and natural beauty. The striking red sandstone formations, such as Cathedral Rock and Bell Rock, create a surreal backdrop for outdoor activities like hiking, mountain biking, and hot air ballooning. Explore the art galleries and New Age shops in the charming downtown area, and witness breathtaking sunsets that paint the rocks in hues of orange and crimson.

Hawaii – The Big Island

The Big Island of Hawaii is a paradise of diverse ecosystems, from volcanic craters to lush rainforests and pristine beaches. Visit Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to witness the power of active volcanoes, hike through the Waipio Valley, and relax on the white sands of Hapuna Beach. Snorkel in the crystal-clear waters of Kealakekua Bay, and stargaze atop Mauna Kea, one of the best astronomical observation sites in the world.

Conclusion

The United States is a vast mosaic of wonders, each destination offering a unique story, experience, and perspective. From the natural splendor of national parks to the vibrant energy of iconic cities, the U.S. invites travelers to embark on a journey of discovery and adventure. Whether you're drawn to the grandeur of the Grand Canyon, the cultural richness of New York City, or the serene landscapes of Sedona, the must-visit places in the U.S. promise a lifetime of memories and experiences. So, pack your bags, hit the road, and let the wonders of the United States unfold before you.

[gingergarlictv-blog]

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park : Most Beautiful Forest

Cascading waterfalls, roaming wildlife and a view that stretches out over 500,000 acres – that is the nation’s most-visited national park. Vacationers typically begin in Gatlinburg and make their approach to one of many park’s well-known paths the place..

Why we Visit Great Smoky Mountains National Park most? Cascading waterfalls, roaming wildlife and a view that stretches out over 500,000 acres – that is the nation’s most-visited national park. Vacationers typically begin in Gatlinburg and make their approach to one of many park’s well-known paths the place they will discover every little thing they’ve been searching for. A hike by means of the…

[m0r1bund]

[Image: Two spreads from a lab notebook.

The first page has two photos taped into it, a snapshot of an Appalachian highway and a picture of a rusted mile marker that reads “923.” All around the photos are drawings of various local plants and forested vignettes. A bundle of pressed rhododendron leaves are also enclosed, with (legally collected) northern saw-whet owl feathers.

Notes are scribbled all over the page. Some parts are obscured by the pressed leaves, inkblots, etc. They read:

"#923

Date: September 23, 20[…] Site: Unmarked turnoff, Tail of the Dragon, NC Source: “Mile marker 923,” Appy Trails message board

Rhododendron maximum Oconee bells Northern saw-whet owl[…] Collected for[…] With federal migratory bird collecting permit[…]

Recorded by: N. Munemori Date: 9/23”

The second page has two more photos taped into it, along with a scribble on a coffee-stained receipt. One of the photos depicts a gathering of dark-eyed juncos after dark, silhouetted by the moon. Another depicts a gathering of fireflies among the rhododendrons. Two of the flickering lights are rather large, though, and are silhouetted by a big black shape behind a tree.

The drawing on the coffee-stained receipt depicts a ranger, perhaps a member of the Forest Service. She has sharp eyes and a hard-set jaw. Arranged around the enclosed receipt and photos are other drawings, too. A drawing of the wooded creek stretches across the spread, with a sketch of a bank-side tent underneath it. Finally, American chestnut leaves are pressed into the top corner, with a coffee-stained ring around them.

The spread’s notes read:

"#923 cont.

East fork Camp at the creek

‘You lost?’ @ 1.5 mi.

Time: 8:53 PM Temp: 61° F Sky: Partly cloudy […]

Dark-eyed junco […] Red-breasted nuthatch x3 4 Hawk? X1 Barred ow”

The notes abruptly terminate with a sharp scratch of the pen leading off-page. A soggy, three-toed footprint is stamped on the waterlogged edges of the page.]

◆ 

Sorry to cause concern. I’m alive and well.

You have my dear friend and associate, Dr. Harlowe, to thank for this. I wasn’t going to share these, but she urged me to contribute to what little documentation exists on mile marker 923. I hope that my observations shed light on the true nature of this trailhead… Even if I don’t know what they mean.

- N. Munemori

Further reading: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, NCGS 1985. Map Nantahala National Forest, NCGS 1985. Map Hiking Appalachia, S. Hammonds, 1989 mile marker 923

Note: There are more than likely other reasons 923 has fallen into disuse. Bear activity, an underfunded Forest Service, inaccessibility, etc. I have no language to explain what happened to me, and I don’t think it would be right for me as a scientist to speculate. I leave the task of discerning the truth about 923 to you.

◆

wheeze. Not to make a long-winded description longer.

Something I really wanted to do while working on GR was make research / observation spreads for different ghosts in the story. Now that I’m off the shitts, I can do whatever I damn well please. So! I put together this spread for friend vlpn’s lovely character Whisper, #923.

Mile marker 923 (linked in the blurb above) was the first piece I encountered in TWWM that depicted esk as weird, wonderful, and sometimes frightening ghosts in the land that exist outside of our understanding. It’s extremely my bullshit. I couldn’t think of a better character to yoink for this experiment.

I would like to do more, sometime. But for now, I’m just happy this is finished and was such a blast to make : -) ty to vlpn and snoodls for helping round out this spread and for making it such a fun little day-project.

[themountainsbehindus]

AT vs PCT

AT: (NOBO)

1. 515,000 feet of elevation gain and loss from Georgia to Maine

2. Trail takes you to top of mountain frequently, all the way up, all the way down (like a rollercoaster) 

3. Older mountains -- more history, more weathered, full of rocks and roots

4. Foot path

5. Mentally more challenging but this depends on who you are and how you deal. Rain, fog, snow, cold, and humidity are more common 

6. In a green tunnel most of the time, can’t see too far in front of you or to the side of you

7. Less logistically challenging

8. Wanna get to Baxter state park before end of October because they close it and then you can’t finish

9. Getting permits in Smoky mountains can be challenging

10. More room for error 

11. Stronger hiking community

12.  More community around AT (more trail angels, trail towns, hostels, outfitters - goes through 14 states and through small towns. many people wanting to help hikers) 

13. People hike in packs more than in the PCT -- “tramilies” 

14. Vibe is more rooted in history (older mountains and towns. historic plaques and battlefields) 

15. Recommended for first thru hike because more room for error and more community -- great place to learn how to grow as a hiker and exist on a trail.

16. 2189 miles

17. Highest elevation point 6643 feet at Clingmans Dome in Tennessee

18. Water is plentiful (except for new york) -- every five miles

19. Pass road to get into town every 3-5 days

20. Hitches are usually 10 miles or less from town

21. Easier to correct gear mistakes

22. Easier to find hammock set up because more trees

23. 23% of people completed the AT (12% were SOBO)

24. 500-1000 people on average on trail at a time

25. Shelters on trail to camp in or gather in (usually have a toilet, water source, and fire ring) 

26. Log Books are more common (like trail social media) 

PCT: (NOBO)

1. 315,000 feet of elevation gain and loss from Mexico to Canada

2. Trail goes up and then curves

3. Gentle trail 

4. Equestrian trail (graded for livestock) 

5. Minimal rain or fog

6. More mentally stimulating. Much more open space and less trees

7. Logistically more difficult - longer water carries, further from towns and cities for resupply

8. Timing is more important (not in desert when too hot, when in sierra when snow isn’t too bad, finish in Canada before snow and winter) 

9. Community exists but less so, not common to see shelters

10. Grander views, in the middle of nowhere, vast desert, massive mountains, the world feels bigger, may feel less connected to trail and more connected to self

11. Great for second time thru hikers

12. 2650 miles (Mexico, California, Oregon, Washington, Canada) 

13. Highest elevation 13,000 feet at foresters path in Sierra Nevadas

14. Takes less time so its less strenuous. Miles get knocked out faster. 

15. Pass road to get into town every 5-7 days

16. Getting hitches into town can take longer (less traffic but it depends on road) 

17. Hitches into town take longer

18. More specialized gear

19. Bear canisters recommended

20. Need warm weather gear

21. Log Books aren't as common

[mightydogroofinggreenville]

Greenville-SC

Exploring What is New to Greenville SC

There are good deals of wonderful things to do in Greenville SC. In fact, the possibilities for satisfying and experience are unlimited. Something defines: You can constantly find something pleasing to do in Greenville. Whether you're preparing a journey from Greenville to Greenville or a weekend journey to the Greenville location, there are great deals of pleasing activities to consider. Let's take a look at a few of those pleasing activities you can get a bang out of throughout your time in Greenville.

Amongst the outright finest things to do in Greenville is to take a look at the natural appeal surrounding the Greenville Zoo and its stunning grounds. Found finest next to the Greenville airport, the Greenville Zoo includes numerous places established to bring visitors into closer contact with nature. Among the many areas in Greenville SC, the Greenville Zoo consists of numerous screen screens dedicated to African mammals. At the zoo, visitors can see and touch many animals such as the Leopard Gecko, Green Female Bug, discovered deer, and a variety of other types originating from the savanna. At the zoo, you'll likewise have the ability to take part in educational activities that permit kids to find the natural surroundings and how they call it. Other great things to do in Greenville include having a look at the Wild Bird Home, delighting in the outside experiences at Falls Park on the Reedy River, and taking part in the pleasing and activities at the Greenville Zoo.

If you wish to learn more about the wildlife of Greenville SC, you may think about going experience into the Natural Heritage Place. This is an excellent location for nature enthusiasts due to the fact that you get to witness fantastic sights like the Great Smoky Mountains in addition to the natural charm of the surrounding forest. The Great Smoky Mountains National Forest has a lot to utilize; aside from the Great Smoky Mountains, it is house to 3 parks that utilize possibilities for wildlife expedition. Traveling into the park will let you see a lot more of the wildlife found there. Some excellent things to do in Greenville include bird getting a bang out of, mountain biking, and even camping journeys, to name a few.

For those considering experiencing something new, the best method to do it is to go on an aerial adventure park journey. While you remain in Greenville SC nonetheless, why not have a look at the Greenville Zoo? The zoo is home to a broad variety of various animals and it's similarly an incredible location to discover different animals through its display screen screens. In addition to the indoor screen screens, the zoo has a substantial outdoors play ground where homes can select some appealing activity. The park likewise uses unique occasions throughout the summer season. In addition to having a look at the zoo, think about other regional museums and store for appealing truths and mementos.

 If you are looking for a special and romantic holiday, you will definitely want to take a look at the Greenville Zoo. This is one traveler location that homes will remember for a life time. Besides consisting of a variety of species of birds and mammals, the Greenville Zoo is house to many interactive exhibitions, journeys, and programs for kids and grownups alike. Throughout the zoo's summer season, you and your partner can make the most of special discount rate rates, complimentary admission, and complimentary journeys to go to Cleveland Park, Greenville Zoo North, and historical Ellsworth House, to name a few locations.

Greenville is house to 2 substantial historical parks, especially Historical Main Street and Parkside. If you wish to experience history with your liked ones, you need to definitely plan to take a look at the Historical Main Street. The Main Street Museum is devoted to providing Mississippi's past through good deals of exhibitions, including African-American culture and history, early European settlements, early American architecture, folk art, walking antique shops, and a lot more. The museum is also home to a world class stage theater that puts on checking out productions with popular theater company such as Disney and Broadway Play House. If you enjoy shopping, dining, and standard outdoors activities, the Parkside Park will be perfect for you to invest some quality time with liked ones.

If you have an interest in experiencing something new and remarkable, you will definitely wish to have a look at the Zentrum Museum and Historic Park. Integrated in 1923, the Zentrum Museum is South Carolina's extremely first air base and was established by remembered designer Oscar Kerkorian. It uses an exceptional view of the early Capitol and is considered among the outright finest screens in the state. Other things to do in Greenville include taking assisted journeys of the parks and beaches, taking a bike journey around the whole park, and experiencing the many outdoors activities used.

Plainly, if you have an interest in history and in living the life of a former plantation owner, you will wish to take a look at the historical Downtown Greenville. A quick walking range from the popular Clevelander estate, Downtown Greenville consists of captivating historic structures, gardens, parks, museums, and historic gardens. The Greenville Zoo offers a series of natural environments for your home to enjoy in addition to a bargain of scholastic experiences.

Mighty Dog Roofing Greenville 1120 W Butler Rd Q, Greenville, SC 29607 864-513-6569 https://mightydogroofing.com/greenville

[lsundarinfo]

Embarking on an Unforgettable Journey: Your Comprehensive USA Travel Guide

The United States of America, a land of breathtaking landscapes, iconic landmarks, and diverse cultures, beckons travelers with promises of adventure and discovery. But before you dive into this land of opportunity, a well-prepared traveler is a confident traveler. Let's embark on an exhilarating journey through the intricacies of visiting the USA, from visas to hidden gems and everything in between.

Preparation: Unlocking the Door to Your USA Adventure

Visas and Essential Documents

As you dream of exploring the dazzling streets of New York City or the awe-inspiring Grand Canyon, don't forget to secure your visa – the golden key that grants you entry. Based on your purpose of travel, choose the appropriate visa type: the Tourist Visa (B-2) for leisure, the Business Visa (B-1) for work-related endeavors, or the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) for select countries, granting you 90 days of visa-free travel under the ESTA program. Prepare to provide documents such as a completed DS-160 form, passport, and evidence of ties to your home country.

Embarking on Your USA Adventure: Must-Visit Destinations

Exploring Iconic Cities

New York City's Times Square pulses with life, while Los Angeles offers Hollywood allure and breathtaking beaches. Wander through San Francisco's Golden Gate Park or stand in awe before the towering skyscrapers of Chicago. These urban playgrounds are the heartbeats of America, each offering a unique rhythm that resonates with every traveler.

Unveiling Charming Small Towns

Venture off the beaten path to discover the quaint treasures of the USA. Charleston's cobblestone streets beckon with historic tales, while Taos envelops you in artistic inspiration. Bar Harbor's coastal allure promises stunning vistas and serene moments. These towns are the whispered secrets that add depth to your USA journey.

Navigating the USA: Personal Vehicle vs. Public Transport

The Allure of Personal Vehicles

Picture yourself cruising along scenic highways, stopping at hidden viewpoints, and dictating your pace. A personal vehicle grants you the freedom to create your itinerary, allowing spontaneous detours and intimate connections with your surroundings.

Embracing Public Transport

In major cities like New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., public transport systems are the veins that pulse life into the urban sprawl. Subways, buses, and trams offer not only efficiency but also a window into local life. Jump on board and immerse yourself in the city's rhythm.

A Roof Over Your Head: Couchsurfing and Budget-Friendly Hotels

Couchsurfing: A Cultural Exchange

Want an authentic experience? Couchsurfing connects you with locals willing to share their homes, insights, and stories. Create a profile, verify your identity, and embark on a journey of cultural immersion.

The Art of Scouting Budget-Friendly Hotels

Uncover the art of scoring budget-friendly accommodations without sacrificing comfort. Online hotel booking platforms and apps offer a plethora of options, allowing you to filter by price, location, and amenities. Consider staying in neighborhoods slightly away from the tourist hotspots for both savings and a glimpse into local life.

On the Road: Renting Vehicles and Adventurous Pursuits

Renting a Vehicle: Your Key to Exploration

Renting a vehicle is a gateway to endless exploration. Tourists can use their foreign driver's licenses, but obtaining an International Driving Permit (IDP) from your home country can smooth the rental process and ensure you're road-ready.

Into the Wilderness: Tracking and Solo Camping

Great Smoky Mountains National Park: A Nature Lover's Paradise

For those craving the outdoors, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park offers a canvas of hiking trails, rich biodiversity, and the enchanting Smoky Mountains backdrop. Secure a backcountry camping permit for a truly immersive experience.

Joshua Tree National Park: Desert Dreams

Embark on a desert adventure at Joshua Tree National Park, renowned for its otherworldly landscapes and surreal rock formations. This is where solo camping and stargazing under the expansive night sky become cherished memories.

Unleash Your Inner Explorer: Obtaining an International Driving License in the USA

Conquering the Open Road: The International Driving Permit (IDP)

Dream of taking the wheel and exploring the USA's vast landscapes? Tourists can rent vehicles using their foreign driver's licenses, but the International Driving Permit USA (IDP) acts as your global driver's passport. Obtain the IDP in your home country before you depart to simplify the process and ensure smooth travels.

In conclusion, the USA beckons with endless possibilities, from iconic cities to charming towns, and from personal vehicle adventures to public transport discoveries. As you unravel the intricacies of visas, accommodations, and transportation, remember that this is not just a trip – it's an expedition into the heart of America's soul-stirring landscapes and captivating cultures. So pack your bags, secure your visas, and embark on a journey that promises memories to last a lifetime.

[moodboardinthecloud]

Out There, Nobody Can Hear You Scream

Out There, Nobody Can Hear You Scream Sep 21, 2020

https://www.outsideonline.com/2416929/out-there-nobody-can-hear-you-scream

Two years ago, Latria Graham wrote an essay about the challenges of being Black in the outdoors. Countless readers reached out to her, asking for advice on how to stay safe in places where nonwhite people aren’t always welcome. She didn't write back, because she had no idea what to say. In the aftermath of a revolutionary spring and summer, she responds.

In the spring of 2019, right before I leave for my writing residency in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, my mama tries to give me a gun. A Ruger P89DC that used to belong to my daddy, it’s one of the few things she kept after his death. Even though she doesn't know how to use it, she knows that I do. She’s just had back surgery, and she’s in no shape to come and get me if something goes wrong up in those mountains, so she tries to give me this. I turn the gun over in my hand. It’s a little dusty and sorely out of use. The metal sends a chill up my arm.

Even though it is legal for me to have a gun, I cannot tell if, as a Black woman, I’d be safer with or without it. Back in 2016, I watched the aftermath of Philando Castile’s killing as it was streamed on Facebook Live by his girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds. Castile was shot five times at close range by a police officer during a routine traffic stop, when he went to reach for his license, registration, and permit to carry a gun. His four-year-old daughter watched him die from the back seat. In his case, having the proper paperwork didn’t matter.

I’ll be in the Smokies for six weeks in early spring, the park’s quiet season, staying in a cabin on my own. My local contact list will be short: the other writer who had been awarded the residency, our mentor, maybe a couple of park employees. If something happens to me, there will likely be no witnesses, no one to stream my last moments. When my mother isn’t looking, I make sure the safety is on, and then I put the gun back where she got it. I leave my fate to the universe.

Before I back out of our driveway, my mama insists on saying a protective blessing over me. She has probably said some version of this prayer over my body as long as I’ve been able to explore on my own.

In 2018, I wrote an article for this magazine titled “We’re Here. You Just Don’t See Us,” about my family’s relationship to nature and the stereotypes and obstacles to access that Black people face in the outdoors. As a journalist, that piece opened doors for me, like the residency in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

It also inspired people to write me.

Two years later, the messages still find me on almost every social media platform: Twitter, Instagram, even LinkedIn. They come through my Gmail. Most of them sound the same—they thank me for writing the article and tell me how much it meant to them to see a facet of the Black experience represented in a major outdoor magazine. They express apprehension about venturing into new places and ask for my advice on recreating outside of their perceived safety zone. They ask what they can do to protect themselves in case they wind up in a hostile environment.

Folks have their desires and dreams tied up in the sentences they send me. They want to make room for the hope that I cautiously decided to write about in 2018.

Back then, as a realist, I didn’t want my essay’s ending to sound too optimistic. But I still strayed from talking about individual discrimination in the parks, often perpetrated by white visitors, like the woman who recently told an Asian American family that they “can’t be in this country” as they finished their hike near Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, California, this past Fourth of July. Or the now famous “BBQ Becky” who called the police on two Black men at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California, in 2018, for using a charcoal grill in a non-charcoal-grill-designated area. Nor did I mention that when I venture into new spaces, I am always doing the math: noting the lengths of dirt roads so I know how far I have to run if I need help, taking stock of my gas gauge to ensure I have enough to get away.

I have been the target of death threats since 2015, when I started writing about race. I wasn’t sure if magazine readers were ready for that level of candid conversation, so in 2018 I left that tidbit out.

There are risks to being Black in the outdoors; I am simply willing to assume them. And that’s why I struggle to answer the senders of these messages, because I don’t have any tips to protect them. Instead I invoke magical thinking, pretending that if I don’t hit the reply button, the communication didn’t happen. Sometimes technology helps: when I let the message requests sit unaccepted in Instagram, the app deletes them after four weeks.

I deem myself a coward. I know I am a coward.

There are two messages that still haunt me.

The first is an e-mail from a woman who wanted to know what she and her brown-skinned husband should do if they encounter another campground with a Confederate flag hanging in the check-in office. She described to me a night of unease, of worrying if they and their daughter would be safe. I filed her e-mail so deep in my folders that I don’t even think I can find it anymore. I was dying to forget that I had no salve for her suffering.

The second was even more personal. It came via Facebook Messenger, from a woman named Tish. In it she says: “I came across a read of yours when I was searching African Americans and camping. I want to rent an RV and go with my family. I live in Anderson S.C. Had a daughter that also attended SCGSAH. Is there a campground you recommend that is not too far and yes where I would feel comfortable? Thank you.”

The signaling in it, of tying me to her daughter, examining my background enough to offhandedly reference the South Carolina arts high school I attended and saying, Please, my daughter is similar to you.

I leave her message in the unread folder.

These women have families, and they too are trying to pray a blessing over the ones they love while leaving room for them to play, grow, and learn—the same things their white peers want for their offspring. In their letters, they hang some of their hopes for a better America on me, on any advice I might be able to share.

I haven’t written back because I haven’t had any good advice to offer, and that is what troubles me. These letters have been a sore spot, festering, unwilling to heal.

Now, in the summer of 2020, there are bodies hanging from trees again, and that has motivated me to pick up my pen. Our country is trying to figure out what to do about racial injustice and systemic brutality against Black people. It’s time to tell those who wrote to me what I know.

These women have families, and they too are trying to pray a blessing over the ones they love while leaving room for them to play, grow, and learn—the same things their white peers want for their offspring.

Dear Tish, Alex, Susan, and everyone else:

I want to apologize for the delayed reply. It took a long time to gather my thoughts. When I wrote that article back in 2018, I was light on the risks and violence and heavy-handed on hope. I come to you now as a woman who insists we must be heavy-handed on both if we are to survive.

I write to you in the middle of the night, with the only light on the entire street emanating from my headlamp. Here in upstate South Carolina, we are in the midst of a regional blackout. My time outdoors has taught me how to sit with the darkness—how to be equipped for it. Over the years, I have found ways to work within it, or perhaps in spite of it. If there’s anything I can do, maybe it’s help you become more comfortable with the darkness, too.

But before I tell you any more, I want you to understand that you and I are more than our pain. We are more than the human-rights moment we are fighting for.

It isn’t an exaggeration to say that the Outside article changed my life. People paid me for speaking gigs and writing workshops. They put me on planes and flew me across the country to talk about equity, inclusion, and accountability. I know the statistics, the history, the arguments that organizations give about why they have no need to change. I call them on it.

I have to apologize for not being prepared for the heaviness of this mantle at the time. I have to admit my hesitation back then to call white supremacy and racism by their names. The unraveling of this country in the summer of 2020 has forced me to reckon with my actions, my place in the natural world, and the fact that as a Black woman writer in America, I am tasked with telling you a terrible truth: I am so sorry. I have nothing of merit to offer you as protection.

I am reluctant to inform you that while I can challenge white people to make the outdoors a nonhostile, equitable space where you can be your authentic selves, when the violence of white supremacy turns its eyes toward you, there’s nothing I can give you to protect yourself from its gaze and dehumanization.

I do not wish to ask you to have to be brave in the face of inequality. This nation’s diminished moral capacity for seeing Black people as human beings is not our fault. Their perception of you isn’t your problem—it’s theirs, the direct result of the manifest-destiny and “anybody can become anything in America” narratives they have bought into. We are made to suffer so they can slake their guilt. I want you to be unapologetically yourselves.

I check with my fellow Black outdoor friends, and they say they’ve gotten your e-mail and messages, too. They also waffle on what to say, telling y’all to carry pepper spray or dress in a nonthreatening way. I am troubled about instructing people who have already been socially policed to death—to literal, functional death—to change the way they walk, talk, dress, or take up space in order to seem less threatening to those who are uncomfortable with seeing our brown skin.

The Great Smoky Mountains (Photo: Kennedi Carter)

I have no talisman that can shield you from the white imagination. The incantation “I’m calling the police” will be less potent coming from your mouth, and will not work in the same way. In the end, your utterance could backfire, causing you more pain.

I want to tell you to make sure you know wilderness first aid, to carry the ten essentials, to practice leave no trace, so no one has any right to bother you as you enjoy your day. I want to tell you to make sure you know what it means not to need, to be so prepared that you never have to ask for a shred, scrap, or ribbon of compassion from anybody.

But that is misanthropic—maybe, at its core, inhumane.

I resist the urge to pass on to you the instinct my Black foremothers ingrained in me to make ourselves small before the denizens of this land. I have watched this scenario play out since I was a child: my father, a tall 50-year-old man with big hands, being called “boy” by some white person and playing along, willing to let them believe that they have more power than he does, even though I have watched him pin down a 400-pound hog on his own. I have seen my mother shrink behind her steering wheel, pulled over for going five miles above the speed limit on her way to her mom’s house. She taught me and my brother the rules early: only speak when spoken to, do not ask questions, do not make eye contact, do not get out of the car, keep your hands on the wheel, comply, comply, comply, even if it costs you your agency. Never, ever show your fear. Cry in the driveway when you get to your destination alive. Those traffic stops could’ve ended very differently. The corpses of Samuel DuBose, Maurice Gordon, Walter Scott, and Rayshard Brooks prove that.

I will not pass on these generational curses; they were ways of compensating for anti-Black thinking. They should never have been your burden.

It would be easy to tell you to always be aware of your surroundings, to never let your guard down, to be prepared to hit record in case you run into an Amy Cooper or if a white man points an AR-15 at you and your friends as you take a break from riding your motorcycles, hoping to make the most of a sunny almost-summer day in Virginia.

These moments—tied to a phone, always tensed in fear—are not what time in nature is supposed to be. Yet the videos seem to be the only way America at large believes us. It took an eight-minute-and-forty-six-second snuff film for the masses to wake up and challenge the unjust system our people have had to navigate for more than 400 years. They are killing us for mundane things—running, like Ahmaud Arbery; playing in the park, like Tamir Rice. They’ve always killed us for unexceptional reasons. But now the entire country gets to watch life leak away from Black bodies in high definition.

I started writing this on the eve of what should have been Breonna Taylor’s 27th birthday. The police broke into her home while she was sleeping and killed her. I write to you during a global pandemic, during a time when COVID-19 has had disproportionate impact on Black and brown communities. I conclude my thoughts during what should have been the summer before Tamir Rice’s senior year of high school. All the old protective mechanisms and safety nets Black people created for ourselves aren’t working anymore. Sometimes compliance is not enough. Sometimes they kill you anyway.

Having grown up in the Deep South, I have long been aware of the threat of racial violence, of its symbolism. In middle school, many of my peers wore the Dixie Outfitters T-shirts that were in vogue in that part of the country during the late nineties. The shirts often featured collages of the Confederate flag, puppies, and shotguns on the front, with slogans like “Stand and Fight for Southern Rights” and “Preserving Southern Heritage Since 1861” printed on the back.

I was 11 years old, and these kids—and their commitment to a symbol from a long-lost war—signaled that they believed I shouldn’t be in the same classroom with them, that I didn’t belong in their world.

But that was nothing compared with the routine brutality perpetrated upon Black people in my home state. In 2010, years before the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and Sandra Bland, there was the killing of Anthony Hill. Gregory Collins, a white worker at a local poultry plant not far from my family farm, shot and killed Hill, his Black coworker. He dragged Hill’s body behind his pickup truck for ten miles along the highways near my grandmother’s house, leaving a trail of blood and tendons. Abandoned on the road, the corpse was found with a single gunshot wound to the head and a rope tied around what remained of the body. Collins was sentenced for manslaughter. Five years ago, a radicalized white supremacist murdered nine Black parishioners as they prayed in Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston. South Carolina is one of three states that still does not have a hate-crime law.

All the old protective mechanisms and safety nets Black people created for ourselves aren’t working anymore. Sometimes compliance is not enough. Sometimes they will kill you anyway.

Before my writing residency, I did not own a range map. Traditionally, these are used to depict plant and animal habitats and indicate where certain species thrive. Ranges are often defined by climate, food sources, water availability, the presence of predators, and a species’s ability to adapt.

My friend J. Drew Lanham taught me I could apply this sort of logic to myself. A Black ornithologist and professor of wildlife ecology, he was unfazed by what happened to birdwatcher Christian Cooper in Central Park—he’s had his own encounters with white people who can’t understand why he might be standing in a field with binoculars in his hand. Several years ago he wrote a piece for Orion magazine called “9 Rules for the Black Birdwatcher.”

“Carry your binoculars—and three forms of identification—at all times,” he wrote. “You’ll need the binoculars to pick that tufted duck out of the flock of scaup and ring-necks. You’ll need the photo ID to convince the cops, FBI, Homeland Security, and the flashlight-toting security guard that you’re not a terrorist or escaped convict.” Drew frequently checks the Southern Poverty Law Center’s hate-group map and the Equal Justice Initiative’s “Lynching in America” map and overlays them. The blank spaces are those he might travel to.

I never thought to lay out the data like that until the day I went to Abrams Creek.

Three weeks into my residency, I made an early-afternoon visit to the national-park archives. I needed to know what information they had on Black people. I left with one sheet of paper—a slave schedule that listed the age, sex, and race (“black” or “mulatto”) of bodies held in captivity. There were no names. There were no pictures. I remember chiding myself for believing there might be.

Emotionally wrought and with a couple of hours of sunlight ahead of me, I decided to go for a drive to clear my mind. I came to the Smokies with dreams of writing about the natural world. I wanted to talk about the enigmatic Walker sisters, the park’s brook trout restoration efforts, and the groundbreaking agreement that the National Park Service reached with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians about their right to sustainably harvest the edible sochan plant on their ancestral lands. My Blackness, and curiosity about the Black people living in this region, was not at the front of my mind. I naively figured I would learn about them in the historical panels of the visitor’s center, along with the former white inhabitants and the Cherokee. I thought there would be a book or a guide about them.

There was nothing.

Vacations are meant to be methods of escapism. Believing this idyllic wilderness to be free of struggle, of complicated emotions, allows visitors to enjoy their day hikes. Many tourists to Great Smoky Mountains National Park see what they believe it has always been: rainbow-emitting waterfalls, cathedrals of green, carpets of yellow trillium in the spring. The majority never venture more than a couple of miles off the main road. They haven’t trained their eyes to look for the overgrown homesites of the park’s former inhabitants through the thick underbrush. Using the park as a side trip from the popular tourist destinations like Dollywood and Ripley’s Believe it or Not, they aren’t hiking the trails that pass by cemeteries where entire communities of white, enslaved, and emancipated people lived, loved, worked, died, and were buried, some, without ever being paid a living wage. Slavery here was arguably more intimate. An owner had four slaves, not 400. But it happened.

There is a revisionist fantasy that Americans cling to about the people in this region of North Carolina and Tennessee: that they were dirt-poor, struggled to survive, and wrestled the mountains into submission with their own brute strength. In reality, many families hired their sharecropping neighbors, along with Black convicts on chain gangs, to do the hard labor for them.

These corrections of history aren’t conversations most people are interested in having.

After a fruitless stop at Fontana Dam, the site of a former African American settlement where I find precious little to see, I try to navigate back to where I’m staying. Cell service is spotty. My phone’s GPS takes me on a new route along the edge of the park, through Happy Valley, which you can assume from the moniker is less than happy.

Early spring in the mountains is not as beautiful as you might believe. The trees are bare, and you can see the Confederate and Gadsden flags, the latter with their coiled rattlesnakes, flapping in the wind, so they do not take you by surprise. At home after home, I see flag after flag. The banners tell me that down in this valley I am on my own, as do the corpses of Jonathan A. Ferrell and Renisha McBride, Black people who knocked on the doors of white homeowners asking for help and were shot in response.

In the middle of this drive back to the part of the park where I belong, I round a corner to see a man burning a big pile of lumber, the flames taller than my car.

I am convinced that pyrophobia is embedded in my genes. The Ku Klux Klan was notorious for cross burnings and a willingness to torch homes. The fire over my shoulder is large enough to burn up any evidence that I ever existed. There is a man standing in his yard wearing a baseball cap and holding a drink, watching me as my white rental car creeps by. I want to ask him how to get out of here. I think of my mama’s frantic phone calls going straight to voice mail. I stay in the car.

Farther down the road, another man is burning a big pile of lumber. I know it’s just coincidence, that these bundles of timber were stacked before I set off down this path, but the symbolism unnerves me.

I round a bend and a familiar sign appears—a national-park placard with the words “Abrams Creek Campground Ranger Station” in white letters. Believing some fresh air might settle my stomach and strengthen my nerves, I decide to enter that section of the park. The road I drive is the border between someone’s property and the park. Uneven, it forces me to go slowly.

The dog is at my car before I recognize what is happening. It materializes as a strawberry blond streak bumping up against my driver-side door. Tall enough to reach my face, it is gnashing at my side mirror, trying to bite my reflection.

I’m not scared of dogs, but this one, with its explicit hostility, gives me pause.

Before emancipation, dogs hunted runaway slaves by scent, often maiming the quarry to keep them in place until their owner could arrive. During the civil rights movement, dogs were weaponized by police. In the modern era, use of K-9 units to intimidate and attack is so common that police have referred to Black people as “dog biscuits.”

I force myself to keep driving.

When I reach the ranger station, the building is dark: closed for the season. I see a trail inviting me to walk between two shortleaf pines, but I decline. There is something in me that is more wound up than it has a right to be. No one knows my whereabouts. Despite making up 13 percent of the population, more than 30 percent of all missing persons in the U.S. in 2019 were Black. A significant portion of these cases are never covered by the news. The chances of me disappearing without a mention are higher than I’d like.

There are three cars in the little gravel parking lot. A pair of men, both bigger than me, are illegally flying drones around the clearing, and there is palpable apprehension around my presence. They don’t acknowledge me, and I can’t think of what I’m supposed to say to convince them I’m not a threat. I have no idea who the third car belongs to—they are somewhere in my periphery, real and not real, an ancillary portion of my calculation.

I take photos of the clearing, including the cars, just in case I don’t make it out. It is the only thing I know to do.

I run my odds. No one in an official capacity to enforce the rules, no cell service to call for help, little knowledge of the area. I leave. Later, my residency mentor gently suggests that maybe I don’t visit that section of the park alone anymore.

A favorite spot in the Smokies (Photo: Kennedi Carter)

Ipromise that there are parts of this park, and by extension the outdoors as a whole, that make visiting worth it. Time in nature is integral to my physical, spiritual, and mental health. I chase the radiant moments, because as a person who struggles with chronic depression, the times I am enthusiastically happy are few and far between. Most of them happen outside.

I relish the moments right before sunrise up at Purchase Knob in the North Carolina section of the Smokies. The world is quiet, my mind is still, and the birds, chattering to one another, do not mind my presence. I believe this is what Eden must have been like. I still live for the nights where I sink into my sleeping pad while I cowboy-camp, with nothing in or above my head except the stars. I believe in the healing power of hiking, the days when I am strong, capable, at home in my body.

The fear, on some level, will always exist. I say this to myself all the time: I know you’re scared. Do it anyway.

Toward the end of my writing residency, the road to Clingmans Dome opens. At 6,643 feet, Clingmans is the highest point in Tennessee and in the park. About two days before I’m scheduled to leave, I go to see what this peak holds for me.

There is a paved trail leading to the observatory at the summit. It isn’t long, just steep. Maybe it’s the elevation; I have to do the hike 20 steps at a time, putting one foot in front of the other until I get to 20, then starting over again. I catch my breath in ragged clips, and there are moments when I can feel my heartbeat throbbing in my fingertips. I’d planned to be at the top for sunset, but I realize the sun might be gone when I get there. I continue anyhow. I’m slow but stubborn.

If there’s anything I appreciate about the crucible we’re living in, it’s the role of social media in creating a place for us when others won’t. We’re no longer waiting for outdoors companies to find the budget for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. With the creation of a hashtag, a social media movement, suddenly we are hyper-visible, proud, and unyielding.

As I make my way up the ramp toward its intersection with the Appalachian Trail, I think about Will Robinson (@akunahikes on Instagram), the first documented African American man to complete the triple crown of hiking: the Appalachian, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trails. I understand that I’m following in Robinson’s footsteps, and those of other Black explorers like writer Rahawa Haile (@rahawahaile) and long-haul hiker Daniel White (@theblackalachian)—people who passed this way while completing their AT through-hikes and whom I now call friends, thanks to the internet. I smile and think of them as the trail meets the pavement, and stop for a moment. We have all seen this junction.

Their stories, videos, and photographs tell me what they know of the world I’m still learning to navigate. They are the adventurers I’ve been rooting for since the very beginning, and now I know they’re also rooting for me.

It’s our turn to wish for good things for you.

We’re no longer waiting for outdoors companies to find the budget for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. With the creation of a hashtag, a social media movement, suddenly we are hypervisible, proud, and unyielding.

When I get to the summit the world is tinged in blue, and with minimal cloud cover I can see the borders of seven states. There is nothing around me now but heaven. I’m grateful I didn’t quit.

My daddy had a saying that I hated as a child: “The man on top of the mountain didn’t fall there.” It’s a quote by NFL coach Vince Lombardi, who during the fifties and sixties refused to give in to the racial pressures of the time and segregate his Green Bay Packers. It took me decades to understand what those two were trying to tell me, but standing at the top of Clingmans Dome, I get it. The trick is that there is no trick. You learn to eat fire by eating fire.

But none of us has to do it alone.

America is a vast place, and we often feel isolated because of its geography. But there are organizations around the country that have our backs: Black Outside, Inc., Color Outside, WeGotNext, Outdoor Afro, Black Folks Camp Too, Blackpackers, Melanin Base Camp, and others.

The honest discussions must happen now. I acknowledge that I am the descendant of enslaved people—folks who someone else kidnapped from their homeland and held captive in this one.

We were more than bodies then.

We are more than bodies now.

We have survived fierce things.

My ancestors survived genocide, the centuries-long hostage situation they were born into, and the tortures that followed when they called for freedom and equality. They witnessed murder. They endured as their wages and dreams were taken from them by systemic policies and physical force. And yet, because of their drive to survive, I am here.

I stand in the stream of a legacy started by my ancestors and populated by present-day Black trailblazers like outdoors journalist James Edward Mills, environmental-justice activist Teresa Baker, and conservationists Audrey and Frank Peterman. Remembering them—their struggles and triumphs—allows me to center myself in this scenery, as part of this landscape, and claim it as my history. This might be the closest thing to reparations that this country, founded on lofty ideals from morally bankrupt slaveholders, will ever give me.

I promised you at the beginning that I would be candid about the violence and even-keeled about the hope. I still have hope—I consider it essential for navigating these spaces, for being critical of America. I wouldn’t be this way if I didn’t know there was a better day coming for this country.

Even when hope doesn’t reside within me—those days happen, too—I know that it is safely in the hands of fellow Black adventurers to hold until I am ready to reclaim my share of it. I pray almost unceasingly for your ability to understand how powerful you are. If you weren’t, they wouldn’t be trying to keep you out, to make sure they keep the beauty and understanding of this vast world to themselves. If we weren’t rewriting the story about who belongs in these places, they wouldn’t be so focused on silencing us with their physical intimidation and calls for murder.

The more we see, the more we document, the more we share, the better we can empower those who come after us. I’ve learned during all my years of historical research that even when white guilt, complacency, and intentional neglect try to erase our presence, there is always a trace. Now there are hundreds of us, if not thousands, intent on blazing a trail.

It is true: I cannot protect you. But there is one thing I can continue to do: let you know that you are not alone in doing this big, monumental thing. You deserve a life of adventure, of joy, of enlightenment. The outdoors are part of our inheritance. So I will keep writing, posting photos, and doing my own signaling. For every new place I visit, and the old ones I return to, my message to you is that you belong here, too.

Latria Graham is a journalist and fifth-generation farmer living in South Carolina. Her writing has appeared in Oxford American, Bicycling, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Backpacker, The Guardian, Southern Living, and other local and national outlets. You can find more of her work at LatriaGraham.com.

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Camping Essentials - What To Pack For A Weekend Of Tent ... in Lake Isabella

Keep these items on your person UnderwearBras/camis/undershirtsSocks (plus at least one additional set) PJsTrail pants Long-sleeve shirtsT-shirtsShorts Rain jacketRain pantsFleece jacket Hats * Gloves * Bandana Cross-trainers Treking bootsSlip-on camp shoesShower shoes Toothbrush/toothpaste/dental flossBody wash/soapDeodorantFace washLip balm*Sunscreen* ShampooBrush/combEarplugs/eye maskHair elasticsTampons/pads * Birth control/condoms * Hand sanitizer *First-aid set* Insect repellent * Medications/vitamins *Discomfort relievers* Map and map case * Camping/hiking guidebook * Compass * GPS *Walkie-talkie* Personal location beacon * Emergency contacts * Camping area booking printouts and allows * Maps/directions * Bank/credit card contact information * While the above packaging lists will get you through practically any automobile outdoor camping or backpacking journey in spring, summertime, or fall, there are products you'll need to switch out for extremely cold conditions, and a couple of to consider packing for backcountry outdoor camping.

The type of outdoor camping and variety of people on your journey will determine the kind of tent you'll need. When we invest in a camping tent, we search for low-volume three-season tents made with durable materials, like aluminum poles and breathable polyester walls. For solo backpacking, we like Marmot's one-person Tungsten UL Camping Tent for its fully-sealed waterproof flooring and rain fly, and added vestibule for boot and pack storage to keep it neat.

We like compact double-door alternatives, like Mountainsmith's Celestial Camping tent, for duo backpacking treks. Both featured tents will get you through years of journeys and tracks, as long as you're not planning for any major mountain climbing up or cold-weather outdoor camping. For that, you'll require a four-season camping tent, like Marmot's Thor model, with a sturdy six-pole style to keep your camping tent grounded in harsh winds and secure versus heavy snowfall that would weigh down the roofing of a two or three-season camping tent.

A spacious 4- or six-person camping tent, like these options from Kelty and Big Agnes, are best for families and large groups looking to bunk together. We specifically like their big panel mesh ventilation and additional in-tent storagejust do not pack either for a winter season weather vacay! You'll need a large four-season option, like Marmot's Lair Camping tent, for any mountain trips.

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Most camping journeys only truly need two pairs of shoes: a tough pair of boots to cover your daytime experiences, and a water resistant set of slip-ons or sandals for showering, popping in and out of your tent, and walks to close-by lakes or beaches. If you have additional space in your pack, add a little luxury to your journey by packing three sets of shoesboots, flip flops, and waterproof slip-ons.

Under Armour Post Canyon Low Hiking Boot Hunter Norris Chelsea Boot Birkenstock Arizona EVA Sandal Timberland White Ledge Mid Waterproof Boot Merrell Waterproof Slip-On Shoe Rainbow East Cape Molded Rubber Sandal Simply say no to excess! Makeup, various clothing for every day, not practical shoes, hardback books, brass instrumentsleave all of it in your home.

While parks often have visitor centers and park stores with some basics, it's not like you'll have the ability to simply run around the corner and select up something important that didn't make the cut due to packing your entire closet - kern river ca. The point of camping is to take pleasure in the excellent outdoor and to exist off of simply what you require.

And while it's fun to bring a guitar, parlor game, or book along, don't bring a lot of. Among each will likely be more than you'll use. If you're solo backpacking and wish to bring a book for business, tear the pages out as you check out and recycle them when you can or use them for campfire fuel to keep your pack light.

Packing For A Family Camping Trip - Modern Tent Camping in Lake Isabella

They're snug, safe, and would never imagine riding up, dropping, or becoming a sweaty swampfesteven after miles on the path in the dead of summer. They're made with super-strong natural cotton threaded with antimicrobial silver, implying a single pair can be worn more than one time in between washes.

A UNESCO World Heritage Website, Great Smoky Mountains National Park is popular for its clear streams and waterfalls, incredible wild- and birdlife, and 850 miles of treking routes. Fishing, rafting, horseback-riding, skiingor merely taking in the gorgeous viewsare other popular activities in the Smokies. The park's Cades Cove is one of the National Park Service's a lot of sought-out automobile camping spots in all 50 states for its extensive views and simple access to landmarks, like Rocky Top and Abrams Falls.

Numerous nature fans cite the one-million-acre Glacier National forest as their absolute preferred destination. The park's huge surface, open all 365 days a year, consists of lovely lodges on all sides, like Numerous Glacier Hotelwith simple access to spectacular Grinnell Glacierand Lake McDonald Lodge, which watches out onto the park's largest, deepest lake.

Famous for its awe-inspiring granite cliffs, towering sequoia trees, stunning canyons, sky-high waterfalls, and dozens of walkings leading to sweeping views of the valley, Yosemite National Forest lures countless visitors of visitors every year. The UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to tops El Capitan and Half Dometwo of the most most popular websites within Yosemite's nearly 750,000 acres - rv booking.

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Specifically daring spirits aiming to deal with Half Domea 16-mile round-trip trek with a 4,800-foot elevation gain!must pack at least one one-liter Camelbak for each person treking, along with a headlamp, extra batteries, and a set of climbing up gloves for the notorious 400-foot stretch of cables to the walking's top.

For skilled backpackers searching for a tough trip, there's nothing quite like treking the 47 miles of trail around the Grand Canyon, from rim to rim to rim! For long backpacking trips with numerous days spent straight in the components, we suggest packing additional requirements in your bag, like water filtration tablets, in case you need to establish camp wherever you land, and extra compression bags to assist maintain your limited pack area as you unload and repack your fundamentals like your range kit and fuel, silverware, and dishware day after day.

The most popular warm-weather tourist attraction lacks a doubt a trek through The Narrows, an area of the Virgin River that streams through the narrowest area of Zion Canyon. If you pick to do the complete hike (which we highly advise!) arrive prepared to wade through the river by packing a pair of boots made particularly for water hikes, like Merrell's Waterpro Maipo Water Shoe, and a quick-drying outfit, like this SPF 50+ athleisure gown from Nuu Muu.

Unlike backpacking, glamping suggestions the scales of excess when it pertains to taking what you can bring. As long as you can fit it in your automobile, do not hesitate to bring any of life's high-ends into the outdoors with you on your glamping adventure, like a full canvas tent, wood-burning stove, portable hot showereven inflatable pull-out couch.

What Is The Most Important Gear To Bring On A Camping Trip ... Bakersfield

And don't forget the canopy lights!.?.!! From Mammoth Hot Springs to Old Faithful to Grand Prismatic Spring, there are a lot of stunning sights to take in year round at Yellowstone, the very first National forest in the U.S. While most of the park's yearly three million visitors are households visiting in the spring and summertime, devoted outdoor adventurers enjoy Yellowstone for its winter season backcountry campingwhen temperatures can plunge to 30 listed below zero and conditions include snow and even avalanches.

In addition to your cold-weather camping outfit, ensure to bring water resistant utility snow boots, an insulated hat, neck warmer, safety glasses, winter gloves, and ear warmers. Likewise required are a, ice axe, trekking poles, and snowshoes. While an over night trip in Yellowstone's winter backcountry is a severe undertaking, it would no doubt be an once-in-a-lifetime experience.

If your trip is over a weekend, you can most likely skip the shower. If you'll be camping for a variety of days, however, prepare to brave the general public centers. Constantly remember to load shower shoes in your bag, and arrange your toiletries in a method that permits you to carry and hang them in the shower while you utilize them.

If your camping site does not provide showers and you intend on staying awhile, you can always bring your own. All you require is a couple of gallons of water and the completely located tree branch. The outright most convenient way to start a campfire is to utilize newspaper, branches, wood, lighter fluid, and a match.

Tent Camping 101: Tips For Beginners - Tent Camping Tips in the Sequoias

Collect twigs from around your camping site and organize them in a pyramid shape around the wood. Utilizing ripped and crumpled newspaper for starter at the base of the pyramid, squirt lighter fluid onto the paper and twigs and light it with a match. The paper and twigs will burn initially, but flames from the pyramid should capture on the wood, beginning your real campfire, which will burn through the night just by adding logs as needed.

Constantly remember to pack your tarp, and cover your camping tent with its rainfly when you've ended up establishing camp. Bring a water resistant jacket or hooded poncho, and purchase a solid pair of waterproof treking boots. If you choose to pack on the extra-safe side, an extra tarpaulin or 2, and a handful of bungee cables or zip ties, are your best choice for keeping yourself and your personal belongings dry if rain begins to fall.

Numerous camping areas have their own water pumps with stations for refilling water bottles and containers. It's best to load 5 or more gallons to begin your trip, and refill every water container as you go. Similarly, it's finest not to presume the camp host or ranger station will have fire wood waiting upon your arrival.

Whether you're backpacking or automobile outdoor camping, opportunities are your trip will consist of time on the tracks. The finest method to prevent blisters as you acquire mileage on foot is to measure a minimum of a half or even a full size when you buy your treking boots. Many outdoor enthusiasts discover their feet swell after an hour or more of consistent hiking, so your shoes might feel loose when you begin your trip, however will likely feel tight by the end of the day. rv booking.

The Millennial Woman's Guide To Camping: Necessities - Medium in Lake Isabella

Band-Aid's blister cushions are the very best item for quickly recovering a blister as soon as one has actually formed. All items have actually been carefully picked by our authors and editors. Products acquired through links might earn us a commission. vacation trailer rentals.

From beginners to veterans a list can make the difference in between an outdoor camping journey that is as fun as you hoped, or one you suffer through. They can be particularly valuable to brand-new campers since they may likewise suggest outdoor camping items you might not have actually thought of. As you scan the list listed below, do not get overwhelmed remember, you will not require whatever on it.

Also, when printed or deemed a pdf, (links listed below), this checklist is formatted as a one-page "checkable" list Bonus blankets/sheets Pump for air mattressesTip: A pillow isn't really "optional," you will want one, even if it is only a little camping-size pillow. Also, whether it is a convenience or age option lots of cars and truck campers, (this isn't gear you wish to back-pack into your site), have switched from sleeping pads to inflatable air mattresses/beds.

Have a look and see what is readily available for your outdoor camping comfort. Camping tent rain-fly or tarpaulin Entryway door mat/carpet Sm. Wisk broom dust pan Cot( s) Mosquito/Insect netting Rope for extra tie-down lines Extra tent stakes Duct tape or camping tent repair package Tent-pole repair work sleeve Guy-line markersTip: Much like a camping pillow, a camping tent light isn't truly "optional" unless you are a back-packing or "bare-bones" camper.

[c00lmint8123-blog]

Winding its way from Maine to Georgia, the Appalachian Trail spans 2,190 miles through 14 states. About 320 of those miles are found in North Carolina (including 224 miles along the Tennessee border).

The North Carolina section offers many of the Appalachian Trail's highest peaks, several above 6,000 feet. Hiking enthusiasts can set out on a multiday or weeklong journey (keep in mind that you'll need permits to camp and hike in some areas, especially inside the Great Smoky Mountains).

If you're just looking for a little taste of Appalachia, you can venture about 35 miles northwest of Asheville to the town of Hot Springs, where the Appalachian Trail runs right through town on Bridge Street. From there, park at the Silvermine trailhead and follow the Appalachian Trail until you reach Lover's Leap Ridge. You can continue to hike along the Appalachian Trail or follow the orange blazes to complete the Lover's Leap Loop.  

While the trail is moderately difficult, hikers say the views from its peaks and outcroppings are worth the climb.

To reach Hot Springs, take Interstate 26 North to Highway 25/Highway 70 North. There's ample parking available and travelers will find the Nantahala Outdoor Center on-site. For more information on the trail, visit the Appalachian Trail Conservancy website.

#David #Brodosi #family #travel #hiking #outdoors #photography #wildlife #adventure #wanderlust #nature #amazing #backpack #love #wanderlust #bucketlist

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https://chiefbrodosi.blogspot.com/2019/08/dream-job.html

[entirebodyexercise]

Altitude Training: How Much Is Enough?

It takes greater than a day to really feel the blood-boosting advantages of training at altitude.

In the Stone Establishment For Sports Medication (BCSM) performance lab, I relocate on to one of the a lot more pressing concerns joggers considering a job at elevation have: Exactly how long is enough? That is, what's the minimum amount of time a jogger has to remain at high elevation in order to accumulate maximum advantages and also get to a plateau phase? Keeping in mind the 10-day lag between EPO manufacturing as well as RBC synthesis, I propose, based upon that EPO degrees go back to guideline after regarding 25 to 28 days, five to six weeks need to give joggers all that they need.

Adam St. Pierre answers this comprehensively. "People ask this a lot," he says. "My solution is always, some is better compared to none. If you can only do seven days, after that do seven days." He notes that a great deal of altitude camps run for 3 weeks, as well as recommends that since of adaptations that happen in the 4th week, extending such journeys by an additional seven days is well worth it.

Rob Pickels, meanwhile, confirms exactly what I have long thought: that runners who do an elevation job without the live-high/train-low facet and also still improve their efficiencies after going back to sea degree practically certainly do so as an outcome of just training more compared to they had actually trained formerly during their remain at elevation, where the accessibility of trails, training partners and also positive weather is basically infinite.

Both physiologists supply some general suggestions: When you reach high elevation, take iron supplements-- your body will require the added iron for the enhanced hemoglobin synthesis that's soon to follow. If you are ill when you arrive, despite a chilly, never mind trying to make the most of the elevation due to the fact that EPO is reduced under such problems. If you turn out to be amongst the people who establish high-elevation illness-- something unassociated to fitness that strikes genetically predisposed individuals idiosyncratically-- quit the program as well as go back to the lowlands.

When I note exactly how lengthy it takes me to recover in between brief, quick intervals-- 400s at 3,000-meter race speed, say-- Pickels discusses a fascinating aspect of doing these kinds of exercises with additional oxygen.

"Not just can you do the representatives quicker," he claims, "but the recuperation time is much shorter, and that cuts down on the complete exercise time. That implies you recuperate faster in between workouts overall."

This leads me to ask whether he thinks that a provided degree of mileage run at high elevation equates right into something better at sea degree. If I run 70 miles a week in Boulder, does that entail the physical amount of work of something more-- maybe 80, 85 at sea level? Pickels agrees that it does, but whether this is just tiresome versus something that leads to an efficient training-stimulus boost is unclear.

I note consuming a lot of water and other fluids considering that pertaining to Colorado, and also that unlike my encounter in South Florida-- where vast sweating was the standard for 10 as well as a half months of the year-- I really did not always feel dehydrated when I in theory should, which I needed to compel myself to consume sufficient to stay hydrated enough to generate clear pee consistently. Pickels once again has the answer.

In very completely dry climates such as Rock's, sweating is an extremely effective process, suggesting that just a percentage of sweat needs be excreted in order to cool down a running body off. This is since in Rock, sweat vaporizes basically right away on encountering the dry ambient air, unlike Ft Lauderdale sweat, which collects in gross wealth on the body due to the fact that the humid air can't accept it.

"That amount of sweat means shedding a great deal of electrolytes with it," clarifies Pickels. "That triggers a huge volumetric drive to consume alcohol. We don't have that here." Rather, individuals living at high altitudes experience a great deal of "insensible water loss"-- water lost through the lungs and skin that can not be seen, a scenario intensified by the reality that individuals take even more breaths at high altitude compared to at sea level, even at rest.

Moving on the raison d'etre of high-altitude training, I ask just how much lead time a jogger must enable between going back to sea degree as well as racing there. Pickels suggests concerning a couple of weeks, as this suffices to permit a few top quality rate sessions, yet inadequate to lose the blood-boosting advantages of high elevation. He likewise states that opinions regarding sea-level-based joggers prepping for a race at altitude differ, some wait up until the eleventh hour to take a trip to the race site to ensure that their training isn't really endangered, while others opt to acclimatize for numerous weeks.

With that, I thank my hosts and obtain on my way.

Conclusions

You currently recognize what to anticipate if you're considering educating at high altitude or will simply be taking a ski vacation or various other travel to a high-altitude location such as the Mountain ranges, the Sierra Nevadas, or perhaps the greater components of the Smokies in the East. Understand that if your journey lasts much less compared to a week, you won't have remained for enough time to get used to the altitude distinction, yet you'll certainly have really felt the results. Drink lots of water, relax on your runs, and if you happen to find on your own in Colorado's Front Array, enjoy the surroundings.

Join virtually 30,000 joggers like you who understand where to opt for everything operating, 'Like' us on Facebook.com/ CompetitorRunning!

[j0sgomez-blog]

By Michael Lanza

The first time I backpacked in Yosemite National Park, more than 25 years ago, I applied for a permit to start at the park’s most popular trailhead, Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley—and I got it. I had no idea at the time how lucky I was (and it’s even more difficult to get that permit now). Over the years since, I’ve been shot down trying to get permits for popular hikes in parks like Yosemite, Grand Canyon, and Glacier. But I’ve also learned many tricks for landing coveted backcountry permits in those flagship parks and others—which receive far more requests than they can fill. I share what I’ve learned in the following, detailed tips, which I’ve just updated.

And if you want to take a trip in one of those popular parks this year, the time for reserving permits is upon us or coming up quickly.

Following these 10 tips won’t guarantee you get the permit you want, but I’ve had pretty good success over the years using these strategies—which I regularly update, including the information specific to each park mentioned in this story.

In fact, in just the past five years, I’ve gotten permits for trips in Glacier (twice), Great Smoky Mountains, Zion’s Narrows and Subway, The Needles District of Canyonlands, North Cascades, Death Valley, a very popular hike in Canada’s Kootenay, Paria Canyon (not a national park, but a backpacking permit in high demand), Yosemite twice (this trip and this one), and Grand Canyon three times (this trip and this one, and another for this spring)—with zero rejected applications.

  A backpacker in the northern Bailey Range, Olympic National Park.

A friendly warning: Don’t backpack without a permit. Backcountry rangers might issue you a citation for camping without a backcountry permit, which could involve a fine and a court appearance. The more immediate problem with lacking a permit for where you’re trying to camp is that all established campsites there could be occupied, leaving you the only option of camping illegally in a potentially uncomfortable spot and causing damage to a sensitive area. That’s not fun or cool.

When you’re frustrated over being denied a permit for the hike you really wanted to take, keep this in mind: The permit system in parks imposes quotas on the number of backpackers in order to protect the landscape from overuse and give all of us an uncrowded, better wilderness experience. It’s a good thing.

Please tell me what you think of my tips or share your own in the comments section at the bottom of this story, and consider sharing this story using any of the social buttons below. Thanks.

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  Backpackers hiking up Clouds Rest in Yosemite National Park.

Do Your Homework

Research your route in advance. Know where you want to go and how far you intend to hike each day. Keep in mind that your party’s speed will be determined by the experience and fitness level of the slowest person, and factors like the terrain’s ruggedness, total elevation gain and loss on your route, and whether it’s at high elevations. Plan daily distance and pick campsites that make sense for your group, so you don’t increase the likelihood of either not reaching one or getting to a site so early in the day that you’re tempted to push on farther and camp illegally.

See my downloadable e-guides to backpacking trips in several popular national parks for detailed hiking itineraries, expert planning advice, on-the-ground knowledge, and tips specific to getting a permit in those parks.

  Insider Tip

If you sound like you’ve done the research and know your options in the park, and come across as experienced, a backcountry ranger may feel more comfortable sharing details with you that he or she might not share with a novice.

  A hiker on the Grand Canyon’s South Kaibab Trail.

Know When to Apply

Especially if you’re traveling a long distance for the trip, to avoid disappointment, check the park’s website months in advance for the procedure to apply for a permit reservation (it varies from park to park).

Plan on applying on the earliest date possible—especially for popular hikes in parks that attract a lot of backpackers (like any parks and trails mentioned in this story). Some parks, like Glacier and Grand Teton, provide an online listing of current availability of backcountry campsites.

Some parks still do not have an online reservation system—it’s done in person (not an option for many people), by mail, fax, or over the phone. The National Park Service has an online reservation system, operated through recreation.gov, and it’s one that that many national parks use, NPS spokesman Jeffrey Olson explained to me via email. But he emphasized that “it is still up to the individual parks and regions to determine what to use to meet their needs.” The NPS anticipates that cost and efficiency incentives will gradually prompt more parks to use the recreation.gov system.

  Insider Tip

Learn a trick from river rats: Pool your efforts. Have everyone in your party submit one or more permit applications in multiple popular parks for a range of potential dates; maybe one will be successful. You can always cancel any you can’t use.

  Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside, which has made several top outdoors blog lists. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Subscribe now to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Please follow my adventures on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

    Here are the dates to apply for a backcountry permit reservation in some major and popular parks:

•    For backpacking in the Grand Canyon, you can apply online for the free permit up to 24 weeks (168 days) before the date you want to start hiking and you will get a response within one or two business days. That means that for starting on a date in late July, you would need to submit your application in early February. There is a fee based on the number of people and stock in your party. Get expert guidance planning your trip from my downloadable e-guide “The Complete Guide to the Best First Backpacking Trip in the Grand Canyon.” Find more info at nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/backcountry-permit.htm. •    In Yosemite, you can apply for the free permit up to 24 weeks (168 days) before the date you want to start hiking. That means that for starting on a date in late July, you would need to submit your application in early February. See my downloadable e-guides to three stellar, multi-day hikes in Yosemite, including “The Best First Backpacking Trip in Yosemite.” Find more info at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/wpres.htm. •    To thru-hike the John Muir Trail southbound, apply for a permit from Yosemite National Park exactly 24 weeks (168 days) in advance of the date you’d like to begin. Increase your chances by applying for a range of start dates in Yosemite. Permits for hiking northbound, starting at Whitney Portal, are reserved through a lottery system at recreation.gov; apply online between Feb. 1 and March 15. Visit my Ask Me page to see how I can help you plan a successful and unforgettable JMT thru-hike or any other trip (as I’ve done for other readers). Find more info at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/jmtfaq.htm.

  Start planning now to take one of “The 10 Best National Park Backpacking Trips.”

  Backpackers on the Piegan Pass Trail in Glacier National Park.

•    In Zion, apply for a permit starting at 10 a.m. on the 5th of the month, two months prior to the month in which you want to take your trip—for example, apply on Feb. 5 for a trip in April. There is a fee based on the number of people in your party. Popular routes like The Narrows require a permit whether backpacking or dayhiking, and some one-day canyon descents, like The Subway, also require a permit that must be reserved three months in advance. Learn all you need to know about taking this trip in my downloadable e-guide to it. Find more information at nps.gov/zion/planyourvisit/wildernesspermitinfo.htm. •    At Glacier, backcountry sites can be reserved online starting March 15 for groups of one to eight people, and March 1 for groups of nine to 12. There is a fee based on the number of people and backcountry nights. Don’t neglect to check out my downloadable e-guides to the best backpacking trip in Glacier and backpacking the Continental Divide Trail through Glacier. Find more information at nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/backcountry-reservations.htm. •    In Grand Teton, reservation applications are only accepted from the first Wednesday in January (starting at 8 a.m. Mountain Time) through May 15; after that, all permit requests are handled first-come, first-served. Popular backcountry camping zones, like those along the Teton Crest Trail, get booked up very soon after the park starts accepting reservations in January—often within a few days, sometimes within hours. There is a fee for each permit. See my downloadable e-guides to the Teton Crest Trail and the best short backpacking trip in the Tetons, or my Ask Me page to see how I can help you plan that trip. Find more information at nps.gov/grte/planyourvisit/bcres.htm. •    In Great Smoky Mountains, reservations may be made up to 30 days in advance of the first night of your trip. There is a fee based on the number of people and backcountry nights. Find more information at smokiespermits.nps.gov.

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  Hikers on the Chesler Park Trail, Needles District, Canyonlands National Park.

•    Rocky Mountain starts accepting permit reservations online or in person on March 3 (starting at 8 a.m. Mountain Time) for that calendar year. Phone, mail, email and fax reservations are not accepted. There’s a fee for making a reservation. Find more information at nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/wild_guide.htm. •    For Canyonlands, including backpacking in the Needles District and multi-day float trips on the Green River, apply up to four months in advance of your starting date. There’s a fee for each permit. Find more information at nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/backcountrypermits.htm. •    In Sequoia and Kings Canyon, you can apply beginning on March 1 for a permit reservation during the trailhead quota period of late May through late September. There’s a fee for each permit. Find more information at nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/wilderness_permits.htm.

  Get inspired. Read my book Before They’re Gone—A Family’s Year-Long Quest to Explore America’s Most Endangered National Parks.

  Sahale Glacier Camp in North Cascades National Park is one of my 25 favorite backcountry campsites. Click photo to see them all.

• As of early 2019, Olympic’s website indicated that the park was exploring new methods for processing permit reservations. In 2018, the park had started accepting advance reservations on Feb. 15 for permits issued for popular “quota areas” between May 1 and Sept. 30. Find current information at nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/wilderness-reservations.htm. • North Cascades accepts advance reservations for up to 60 percent of park backcountry camp capacity, while permits for the other 40 percent are still issued only on a first-come basis no more than one day in advance. Advance permit reservations are accepted from March 15 through April 30 for camping between the dates of May 15 through Sept. 30. Find more information at nps.gov/noca/planyourvisit/backcountry-reservations.htm. •    Mount Rainier begins accepting reservations online on March 15 for trips beginning through Sept. 28; after Sept. 28, permits are only issued in person at the park. All requests received between March 15 and March 31 will be processed in random order. By April 1, it’s possible that all campsites available for reservation on the Wonderland Trail will be booked for the entire backpacking season. There is a fee per party. Find more information at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/wilderness-permit.htm.

  Insider Tip

For parks like Yosemite, Zion, Grand Teton, and Grand Canyon, submit your permit application the very minute they begin accepting applications on the first date you can apply for your trip dates. You can submit more than one permit application at the same time, but make clear if you are requesting multiple permits, rather than just submitting alternative itineraries for one permit.

  Noland Creek, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, N.C.

Plan Alternative Itineraries

If you want or need to take a popular trip during its peak season, this is the single most-effective strategy for maximizing your chances of getting a permit. Whenever I apply for a permit in parks like Yosemite, Glacier, Grand Canyon, or most others mentioned in this story, I put in as many alternative itineraries (at least two or three) and starting date options (often spanning a week or more) as are feasible.

Have at least one or two backup routes or date options in case you can’t get a permit for your first choice. That may be as simple as starting a day earlier or later for the same route, reversing your route’s direction, starting midweek instead of on a weekend, or choosing an entirely different, less-popular route.

At some parks, you absolutely have to prepare at least three itineraries. For instance, in Denali or Everglades, which do not accept advance reservations for permits, you will find out which backcountry zones have campsite availability when you show up at the backcountry office, so be familiar with the park map and have some ideas on where you want to go. When applying for an advance permit reservation in the Grand Canyon, include alternatives outside the park’s popular “corridor” trails (Bright Angel, South Kaibab, and North Kaibab). In Great Smoky Mountains, shelters along the Appalachian Trail are the most popular, but tenting campsites elsewhere in the park are easier to reserve. At some parks, you will be able to get useful help in selecting an itinerary from backcountry rangers over the phone or in person.

  I can help you plan the best backpacking, hiking, or family adventure of your life. Find out more here.

  The Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River in Yosemite.

While first-time visitors to a flagship park tend to gravitate toward its best-known areas—Half Dome and the John Muir Trail in Yosemite, the Grand Canyon’s South Kaibab Trail, Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail, the Appalachian Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains—areas that are lesser known are often just as scenically impressive, and may give you a more rewarding experience because of a higher degree of solitude. The first time I backpacked in Rocky Mountain National Park, I went on the less-visited west side and saw waterfalls and elk and bagged a summit on the Continental Divide.

In the Grand Canyon, some 75 percent of people who apply for a permit to hike across the canyon on the South and North Kaibab trails are denied. But you will find it easier to get a permit for the 29-mile hike from Grandview Point to the South Kaibab Trailhead, or the 25-mile hike from Hermits Rest to Bright Angel Trailhead, either of which is done in three to four days and quite beautiful (as you’ll see in the photos in my stories about them), or two much more rugged trips: the 15-mile hike from the New Hance Trailhead to Grandview Point and the 34.5-mile Royal Arch Loop.

Similarly, about 70 percent of hikers who apply for a permit to begin a thru-hike of the John Muir Trail in Yosemite get denied, but it’s much easier to score a permit to backpack in Yosemite north of Tuolumne Meadows or in the Clark Range, both of which are stunning. Learn more in my downloadable e-guides to three stellar, multi-day hikes in Yosemite.

  Insider Tip

If you’re determined to hike in a park, make any permit reservation, even if it’s not for your desired route. When you show up at the park to pick up your permit, you may be able to change it to a more-desirable itinerary, because more sites may be available than when you applied, due to cancellations and some sites being held for walk-ins. Ask a backcountry ranger for suggestions.

  Below Forester Pass on the John Muir Trail, Sequoia National Park.

Think Small

Parks generally limit the number of people allowed on one permit, often to six or seven; otherwise, it’s considered a group permit, and there are far fewer campsites for large groups. Keeping your party small—as in two to four people—can increase your odds of landing a permit in parks where permit quotas are based on the number of campers in an area each night or departing from each trailhead daily.

  Think Outside the Box

Each park has it’s own system for issuing permits; examine it and you might think up a way to work within it to get what you want or close to it. For example, in Yosemite, permits are issued according to a maximum quota of hikers starting at each trailhead in the park. Some trailheads, like Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley, are so popular it’s very difficult to get a permit to start your hike there; but you might be able to hike the same or nearly the same route by simply starting at another trailhead along it.

  Insider Tip

While it’s hard to get a permit to dayhike Yosemite’s Half Dome, it’s probably less difficult to add Half Dome to your backpacking permit because many more people apply for the dayhiking permit than do for backcountry permits. See my Ask Me post, “Where to Backpack First Time in Yosemite.”

  Teton Crest Trail, Death Canyon Shelf, Grand Teton National Park.

Camp Outside the Park

National parks often border on other public lands, like national forests, where there’s no limit on the number of backpackers—which may give you campsite options when sites or camping areas within park boundaries are full on your trip dates. For instance, Alaska Basin, along the Teton Crest Trail, is not within Grand Teton National Park; so if you can’t get a permit to spend a night on Death Canyon Shelf in the park (a gorgeous spot, by the way), Alaska Basin is a very nice alternative and may fit neatly into an itinerary for which you have the other sites you need inside park boundaries.

At other parks, like Yosemite and Sequoia-Kings Canyon, you can start your trip in a national forest wilderness area—which, in the High Sierra, are just as spectacular as the parks—and camp a night or two before entering the park, perhaps increasing your chances of getting a permit in the park.

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A backpacker in The Narrows, Zion National Park.

Try For a Walk-In Permit

If all else fails, show up at the park at least an hour or two before the backcountry office opens and try to get a front spot in line for a walk-in, or first-come permit. Parks reserve a certain percentage of permits for walk-in backpackers, issuing those usually no more than a day in advance. Some parks post the current availability of backcountry campsites online; check that and prepare a hiking itinerary accordingly before you show up. Expect applying for a walk-in permit to take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, possibly longer, especially in parks like Yellowstone, Glacier, and Denali, where you’re required to watch a video about camping safely in bear country.

  Insider Tip

Start a trip from a less-popular trailhead and you might be able to land campsites in more-popular areas later in your trip.

  The difficulty of landing a first-come permit varies during the peak hiking seasons: At Zion, Yosemite, Glacier, and Grand Teton, you might get lucky and score a permit to start that day, but plan on having to wait at least one day. At Grand Canyon, Denali, and Everglades, you may not be able to start your trip until two or three days after you first start waiting in line. If you don’t get one of the available permits the first day you show up—you’ll often know within an hour—you will have to return each morning until you do.

See my story “How to Get a Last-Minute, National Park Backcountry Permit.”

  Want a better backpack? See my picks for “The 10 Best Backpacking Packs” and the best ultralight/thru-hiking packs.

  Backpacking the Wonderland Trail, Mount Rainier National Park.

Go Outside Peak Season

I’ve always been amazed at how few backpackers there are in the Tetons in September, when, while it could snow, you can often enjoy perfect weather. In Yosemite and Sequoia-Kings Canyon, and sometimes at Mount Rainier and Rocky Mountain, good hiking weather can extend into October. At Sequoia-Kings Canyon, the 2019 quota season ends on Sept. 21, and at Mount Rainier the permit-reservation season ends Sept. 28; if you have a good forecast after those dates, you are almost guaranteed to get a last-minute permit.

I backpacked Zion’s hugely popular Narrows and dayhiked The Subway (which requires a permit that’s hard to get) in early November in very pleasant weather (albeit short days) and low water (a plus); I saw a good forecast and grabbed a permit through the park’s Last Minute Drawing system for claiming unreserved campsites—a good method for getting a Zion permit if you have the flexibility to act on short notice. Good weather and hiking conditions can last into late autumn and return by late spring in Great Smoky Mountains.

In mountain parks, the most popular season extends from early or mid-July to Labor Day. In desert parks like Grand Canyon and Zion, it’s April, May, September, and October. Although summers are too hot for backpacking, watching for a good forecast and going in early spring or late fall means you will have a much easier time getting a permit.

  Plan your next great backpacking adventure using my downloadable, expert e-guides. Click here now to learn more.

  Backpackers on the Chimney Rock Trail, Capitol Reef National Park.

Go to a Less-Popular Park

Okay, this tip and the next one don’t help you land a permit for a popular hike—but they do offer alternatives worth considering if you fail to get that desired permit. National parks that are off the radar of most backpackers are never a disappointment. At two of my favorite Western parks, North Cascades and Capitol Reef, walk-in permits are relatively easy to obtain (although North Cascades does accept reservations for popular areas).

  Go where others don’t. See my “Top 5 Backpacking Trips For Scenery and Solitude.”

  Dayhike It

When all efforts to secure a permit to camp in the backcountry fail, ask yourself: Is it possible to dayhike all or part of my route or another trail in the same area? It’s often easier to hike a long distance in one day than it is to carry a heavy backpack a shorter distance. Choose well-maintained, well-graded trails and keep your pack light, and if you have the stamina for it and can average even a modest 2 mph pace over a 10-hour day, you can cover 20 miles.

See my stories “Training For a Big Hike or Mountain Climb” and “10 Tricks For Making Hiking and Backpacking Easier,” and all of my stories about ultra-hiking at The Big Outside.

If I were to add an eleventh tip, it would be this: When your first attempt fails, find another trip to do that year instead, and try again the next year. Wherever you go, the effort to plan and pull off that adventure will pay off.

  Tell me what you think.

I spent a lot of time writing this story, so if you enjoyed it, please consider giving it a share using one of the buttons below, and leave a comment or question at the bottom of this story. I’d really appreciate it.

  See my Trips page and All National Park Trips page at The Big Outside.

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[jenhikes]

Hiking the Great "Soaky" Mountains - My Flash Flood Experience

I recently had a brand new experience during a guided trip - a flash flood.  While many of us go through our daily lives and hear or see the words "Flash Flood Warning" pop up on our phones or scrolling across the screen during a weather report, none of us ever actually get a chance to see or experience one.  While I hope you never do, I'd like to recount my experience, share a video, and let you know how you can avoid a situation like that while you're out on your next hike.  

During my most recent Women in the Wilderness trip thunderstorms were again in the forecast.  So far this year it has rained on every single trip I've taken.  Granted, after our severe drought last year, the rain is a welcome sight.  Even though I'm grateful for the rain and the fact that we are now two inches over our normal rain level, I'm starting to get a bit sick of it.  Knowing rain was in the forecast I made sure I had packed my usual rain kit for a guided hike, including my uncomfortable and hot rain jacket and a large and incredibly heavy (when it's dry) tarp for my clients to relax under.  While our first day on the trail only gave us a sprinkle or two when we first took off, our second day was calling for afternoon thunderstorms.  It was while we were lunching that we heard our first thunder clap, but after about 45 minutes of all bark and no bite the storm never materialized.  However, just as we arrived at camp, around 3:30 in the afternoon, the sky in front of us was nearly black.  I knew we'd be pushing the rain and we hiked downhill to my favorite campsite in the park, campsite 49 (Cabin Flats).  We walked back to the farthest site from the trail, right next to the river, and immediately put up our tarp to keep us dry.  We assembled all the tents and got underneath the tarp as the first rain drops started to fall.  Our group joked how this would be our trip high point - we assembled the tents and tarp just before it got wet, assuring that when we finally set up our tents on the inside (putting our sleeping gear inside) it would be nice and dry.  

At first, the rain was steady and not out of the ordinary; however, after approximately 15 minutes, the rain began falling in heavy sideways sheets.  The tarp quickly slackened from becoming wet and due to the sideways rain and winds we ended up holding some of the edges, moving to the middle of the tarp with all our gear and hoping the storm would let up.  The sideways rain continued for about a half hour before it finally let up, but the rain continued steadily.  After approximately 1.5 hours the rain had let up to the point where one of my clients asked "so, how much longer will we have to do this?" meaning stand under the tarp before we set up the rest of our gear.  As if on cue, as soon as those words escaped her mouth, we all heard a deafening roar.  Looking toward the river, we all watched the water level rise from normal to just at the shoreline and ready to breach.  After looking at each other and saying "did everyone just see that?" we ran over to the tents, picked them all up, and moved them to a higher point in the campground.  After standing for a few minutes and chatting, we decided I would head up to the top of the campsite, which was higher up, and see how the river looked.  When I got there, the water had risen to above the shoreline and was beginning to cover the upper part of the area.  I instructed everyone to grab their packs and head up the hill, leaving the tents for the moment.  

After bringing all our gear, minus the tarp and tents, to a safe point we came up with a game plan.  We definitely weren't staying at the campsite because it could still be raining upstream and the water could get higher.  We now had a few choices - grab the tents and stay right on the main trail, hike up to a different site about 3.5 miles away and stay there illegally without a permit, or hike out to our cars.  My group was shaken, but not ready to call the trip.  We decided to grab the gear and camp somewhere else.  Staying as a group, we broke down the tarp and three tents quickly and brought them up the hill to pack them up.  On our way back the second time, the water level had risen even more, despite the rain stopping where we were.  We sloppily packed the gear as best we could and decided to make the 3.5 miles trek to campsite 50.  

My biggest concern with hiking down to campsite 50 was the fact that it was at an even lower elevation than our campsite at 49.  I also knew the water would be higher down lower and that we had four bridges to cross to get there.  After approximately half a mile we came to the largest and what I considered the most secure of those bridges and I looked to see the water was only about a foot and a half from the bottom of the bridge.  This water, at normal levels, comes up to about my mid calf.  We paused on the bridge to take photos of the water and I shot a video as well.  You can see that below: 

From 3:30 to 5 pm it rained approximately 1 inch at Campsite 49. At around 4:45 we heard a roar and watched the water rise to flood levels in a period of approximately 15 seconds. We moved to Campsite 50 approximately 3.5 miles away shortly after. . #flashflood #flood #floodwater #REIAdventures #REI1440project #OptOutside #AppalachianTrail #AppalachianTrials #whiteblaze #greatsmokymountains #GSMNP #Smokies #hiking #backpacking #hikingguidelife #criticalthinking #backpackingsafety #safety #womeninthewilderness #wiw #outdoorwomen #dontpanic #forceofnature

A post shared by Sprinkles (Jennifer Kelley) (@sprinkleshikes) on Jul 9, 2017 at 11:49am PDT

Our walk continued along the Bradley Fork Trail and over a few more bridges that spanned the raging river.  We could see several walls of debris that were freshly piled up on the shorelines at the turns of the water.  Thankfully though, the water never breeched the trail.  When we got to campsite 50 we were shocked to find it was empty on a Saturday night.  We set up our tents, cooked dinner, and spent a dry night cozy inside them.  

I would be lying if I told you I felt 100% calm about the situation.  I've never experienced water like this in the Smokies before, although flash floods have been known to happen in other parts of the park.  Now that I've been through the experience, I can be better prepared for dealing with this situation in the future.  Here are my tips for dealing with a flash flood: 

1) Stay Calm: If you panic your body won't help you make a rational decision.  In retrospect, it may have been safer to break down the tents and the tarp first to avoid taking that second trip down to the site.  Either way it would have taken the same amount of time.  

2) Know your outs: Even if you're backpacking someplace new to you, having an evacuation plan is key for a situation like this.  The most important thing you can do during a flood like this is getting yourself to higher ground.  Knowing how you can get back to your car is even more helpful, but it's not always possible. 

3) Keep paying attention: Even though we had a plan to continue onward with our hike, and even though we were still talking, laughing, and joking, I was still paying attention to that water and listening for anything out of the ordinary.  While you want to get out of the area quickly if possible, it's also important to stay safe while doing so.  

4) Report the incident to the proper people ASAP: I had no cell phone service on this entire trip.  For me to report what I had seen I actually had to talk to the backcountry office at the park once I drove to it.  Letting the proper people know will get someone out there to check the site for anything unsafe and possibly close it to keep other people safe as well.  

While I hope I never have to deal with a situation like that again, I know that hiking for a living in a park with more than 3,000 miles of flowing stream it is a distinct possibility that I will.  I'm hoping to be better prepared and even more in control if I ever do. Have you ever experienced a flash flood?

[karissalegere1-blog]

French Village Spellbound Through Prophetic Strangers.

I am actually a hubby and also a papa aiming to make thus added cash for my family members while I possess a little enjoyable. As our experts climbed in the direction of the optimals our experts passed by a handful from kids, out watching herds of llamas and also alpacas, prior to leaving behind all traces from civilization behind our company. Up below there was just Andean geese, a sizable native mountain bird phoned the Cara Cara, and large, stone-colored rabbits, the Viscacha, to maintain us firm.

If you are actually an enthusiast from sport there is certainly that you will definitely be amazed by hill community golf properties offer for sale or the mountain range community ski homes for sale for that matter; this among the primary causes that the Telluride location is actually coming to be the dream place for cream of the crop as well as personalities and also because there are actually additionally condominiums up for sale Hill Village Telluride you can be certain that you don't need to be very wealthy for you in order to get a part of the pie. For those who need a mountain bike, Bogus right now has a squadron from 20 Diamondback mtb for rent/demo. A fantastic forerunner will certainly even aim to obtain you upward the hill also greater than the leader is actually. The Great Smoky Mountain ranges themselves, created nearly a billion years back, had actually been actually made when the early sea had flooded what is fit4you-17.info actually currently the far eastern USA, submerging a mountain chains. Much more than 900 thousand folks live in mountain range locations, house to some 70 per-cent from the world's freshwater products as well as 25 percent from the planet's biodiversity, according to the Mountain range Relationship. Some places where the 1st mountain range bikers have actually ridden have experienced harsh restrictions or even removal from using. Right now, do not start thinking of stony and chalky views up, this hill is forested completely up to the acme, however just what fantastic woodland that is actually along with knotted, mossy plants close orchids and also brushes, like one thing coming from a fantasy motion picture. Anyway, this Disney app for iPhone launched through Walt Disney delivers you with info about Disney personalities, permits you participate in video games, as well as supplies numerous various other nice time-wasters that will definitely be actually enjoyed by Disney enthusiasts. I could possibly play it secure and relocate my family to city, thereby removing the possible hazard from water, snakes, bears, and mountain lions (all of who have paid brows through to our community), yet then I would skip the natural beauty that is located prior to our company. Called for the design of its top, Teapot Hill is located near the Gold Ecological Playground (near Jinguashi) on Taiwan's north-east coast. CO2 ink cartridges are actually a nice comfort, which I still advise, however may likely break, thus permitting all the air out too soon. Starting today, I'm visiting enter my base instruction stage to begin getting ready for the mtb ratty nation ethnicities in the spring. One of the best crucial elements from a mtb is actually the mountain bicycle disk brakes.

Merely reaching center camping ground called for an increase with winding mountain roadways, passing a strand of Inca damages as well as rustic villages where our team stopped for bread as well as other stipulations to prepare for our 4 day explore deep into the wild of the Peruvian Andes.

[jimt484157332-blog]

What Is Actually The Highest Hill In England?

Wish to get out of bed personal as well as near along with several of the Smokies most famous citizens? The whitewater on the Nahatlatch is actually superb, flowing right out of an establishment of organic pond prior to creating a fast-paced rush by means of mountain range terrain and diving deeper in to a vertical-walled gulch. Though he can certainly not be actually compared with the wonderful victors from Record, yet his ventures are worthy of all the honors that people could give on this soldier, who did the Hindus proud for productions ahead.

These lakes offer a good topic, especially with the bordering mountain range scenery and a quick walk will certainly produce several perspective. Phyllis Coletta and also Cowboy Bob McConnell run KB Mountain Journeys http://sportanddiet.info at Bear Container Farm in Westcliffe, Colorado. Therefore, that simply makes sense that the premium of lighting plays the one essential consider a good, well-exposed picture, and also mountain digital photography is no exemption. You possess 3 speech alternatives: 1) The very first possibility stating that you are a 'enthusiast of the Super Mutants' sends out every Super Mutant on Afro-american Mountain to your area. There is always visiting be actually technology and also competition on the maker edge of the single-serve coffee formula and also Keurig Veggie Hill has always succeeded at fending off the competitors until lately. This trekking groundwork has our company via the journey to note higher heaps from the area, appeal from the desired Gosainkunda Lake and also the fantastic Helambu lowland, close by the checking out of the rare untamed life from the Langtang National Park. The back revocation is actually wonderful when you land on a hard surface area as the suspension obtain the bumpiness and smooths your withstand. Take the perspectives in on your mountain bicycle or even comply with some of the various walking paths in the location. The mountain range tapir is located in the mid- as well as high-level montane cloud forests and paramo from Colombia, Ecuador and also much north Peru. Thumper Mountain range Trail supplies a couple of pleasant benefits, to begin with this is camp-side surrounding and also quickly available. The Rainbow Drops Trail task supplies a wonderful option to strengthen a component of the playground that was actually wrecked by 2016 wildfires.

Thank you for the fantastic ideas ... This may be the excellent journey to have my grandson on this summer! The staff at Great Smoky Hills National forest made a series of approaches to comply with the targets of the initiative and also have actually had THIRTEEN ventures permitted for fiscal year 2008.

For 3 months atop that hill Eric and also his team discussed a typical target as well as recognized one another, which over and over again led them past the breaking point, where other groups typically stopped working. They descend the mountain range and Jesus tells all of them to become quiet concerning exactly what they viewed and also heard.

[brajeshupadhyay]

The glories of the national park system draw hundreds of millions of visitors each year, even in normal times. But in this upside-down year, with the pandemic still limiting much travel in and outside the United States, it’s likely that the National Park Service’s 419 sites, 62 with a “national park” designation, will attract even more people looking to get away. For potential park-goers who wish to avoid these crowds (and this season, who doesn’t?), one strategy is to skip the Grand Canyon, the Great Smoky Mountains and the other top 10 parks that typically receive the majority of visitors. There are alternatives that are still awe-inspiring for your summer and fall fresh-air retreats, ones that offer many of the Top Ten’s sights, sounds, wildlife and activities. You may need to drive, either for safety or a lack of transit options, but these lesser-known crown jewels, all off the beaten path, are almost always mercifully free of the large groups and car traffic found in the more popular parks. Wherever you decide to go, remember that this is a new world. As the majority of on-site visitor centers will remain closed, contacting the parks before your trip for up-to-date information and any necessary permits is highly recommended. For the parks’ main draws — the great outdoors — the reopenings are staggered and may be confusing; your desired destination may be limited to day-use, or welcome visitors during restricted hours or offer only backcountry camping. Local stores may be closed, too, so plan to bring food and all of your supplies. You might try camping to avoid crowded lodges, and even consider hauling a portable toilet. When you go, best to arrive early to avoid crowds, limited parking and the likelihood of being turned away at the gates. But heading to a new park and taking these new and necessary precautions will be worth it: to breathe in the fresh air, stretch your legs in the woods, dip a paddle in the water and rejuvenate in the natural world. South Carolina Congaree, instead of Great Smoky Mountains Congaree, a park named after the original Native American inhabitants, was created in central South Carolina to preserve 15 different species of trees that are the tallest such specimens anywhere. These includes the most statuesque loblolly pine in the world, towering 167 feet above the surrounding tupelo forest. Tree lovers know Congaree, with only 159,445 visitors last year, as the Redwoods of the East — this year it’s worth forgetting about nearby Great Smoky Mountains and its 12 million-plus visitors. Congaree reopened some of its hiking and paddling trails for day use on May 28, but the visitor center will remain closed until further notice. It’s best to experience this floodplain park — locals will bristle if you call it a swamp — on the water, paddling several different canoe trails or fishing for yellow perch or bass on its lakes. When the park offerings increase in its second phase of reopening, consider an overnight Congaree River paddle trip. Congaree National Park | Operating Status | Hopkins, S.C. | (803) 776-4396 Minnesota Voyageurs National Park, instead of Glacier Bay If you haven’t seen the Northern Lights, never mind Alaska. Instead, grab a camera and a paddle and head to Voyageurs National Park, named after the French Canadian canoeists who plied these waters three centuries ago. This park of lakes is 40 percent water and adjoins another 10,000 square miles of aquatic wilderness. Its remoteness, flanking the Canadian border in northern Minnesota, enables incredible stargazing opportunities all year long and an estimated 200 nights of Northern Lights (even in summer). While the 341-square-mile park reopened in mid May, its three visitor centers are likely to remain closed all summer. However, houseboat and canoe rentals are available online, along with permits for camping among the park’s hundreds of islands. Most visitors, less than a quarter million per year, come to fish the more than 50 different finned species, play on the water or listen to loons yodeling across the mirrored waters. Voyageurs National Park | Operating Status | International Falls, Minn. | (218) 283-6600 Colorado Great Sand Dunes or Black Canyon, instead of Rocky Mountain Reopening on this week, Colorado’s Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve features the highest dunes on the continent, towering 755 feet above the surrounding trails. These are set in an otherworldly catchment basin, below the 14,000-foot high Sangre de Cristo Mountains, some 200 miles south of Denver. All trails and one campground at this national park will be open, but overnight backcountry access and the visitor center remain closed. Sand boarding and fat-tire mountain biking are popular on and among the dunes, as is horseback riding on surrounding trails. If you want another sight, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is 195 miles west, and features a spectacular half-mile-deep river gorge that recently reopened for day use. Both parks average less than a half-million visitors per year, one tenth the traffic of nearby Rocky Mountain National Park, a roughly four-hour drive away. Great Sand Dunes National Park | Operating Status | Mosca, Colo. | (719) 378-6395 Texas Big Bend or the Guadalupe Mountains, instead of a trip to Mexico Opening for day use on June 1, this park in West Texas lies along the namesake curl of the Rio Grande, marking the Mexican border. At this renowned dark-sky park, you can count more than 2,000 stars — 10 times the number typically seen above most cities — surrounding the canvas of the Milky Way. During the days, especially when temperatures cool in the fall and early winter, enjoy 150 miles of trails throughout the park. You might be joined by a bird watcher or two, who roam Big Bend’s 1,200 square miles to spot more than 400 avian species, more than in any national park. This collection includes seldom-seen Southern migrants, such as Lucifer hummingbirds, black-tailed gnatcatchers and Colima warblers. Tens of thousands of fossils have also been discovered here. In 1971, fossil hunters poking around a dusty arroyo found a protruding bone belonging to a pterosaur with a 35-foot wing­span, now considered to have been the largest flying creature in the world. If Big Bend is too crowded for your taste, consider driving 235 miles north to the scantly visited Guadalupe Mountains National Park, along the border of New Mexico. Below the park’s mountains, originally formed by an ancient sea reef, are 2,000 acres of shining, white gypsum and pale-red quartz sand dunes. Big Bend National Park | Operating Status | Big Bend National Park, Texas | (432) 477-2251 Arizona Petrified Forest, instead of the Grand Canyon In east-central Arizona, 110 miles from Flagstaff, the Petrified Forest adjoins the Painted Desert, 7,500 square miles of badlands and hills tinted lavender and red by Triassic Age strata. The annual visitation of this park is one-tenth that of the nearby Grand Canyon. The Petrified Forest, a drive-through park, holds the greatest and most spectacular concentration of fossilized, coniferous tree logs in the world. Once a lush and subtropical climate, the forest of 200-foot-tall trees was buried by volcanic ash and preserved 225 million years ago. Now petrified into waxy, bright quartz, the tree pieces lay scattered across the Painted Desert, along with hundreds of plant and animal fossils, including dinosaurs, reptiles and ferns. The park also protects thousand-year-old Ancestral Puebloan rock art. The park, reopened to limited day use in last month, has a 28-mile main road with turnoffs for viewpoints. Its visitor center and other facilities are likely to open after mid-June. There are few trails, so hiking cross-country with map and compass is the optimal way to take in and discover the splendors of this park’s primordial remains. Be sure not to leave with any petrified wood in your pocket, lest you become, as local legend claims, cursed for life. Petrified Forest National Park | Operating Status | Petrified Forest, Ariz.| (928) 524-6228 Utah Canyonlands, instead of Arches Instead of ogling the sandstone formations in traffic-jammed Arches, opt for a wilderness desert experience amid the reddened Wingate sandstone in Canyonlands. Canyonlands is southwest of the tourist mecca of Moab, Utah. Most visitors take the Island in the Sky scenic drive out to spectacular overlooks, but otherwise the 527-square-mile park has few roads. Hardier souls go for multiday paddles down the gentle Green River, which, after its confluence with the Colorado, plunges into the maelstrom of Cataract Canyon. When the desert begins to cool in August, hikers and canyoneers can lose themselves to wonder on trails and backcountry routes that pass Ancestral Puebloan art sites and ruins. And though it’s not widely known, Canyonlands has its own natural sandstone arches (more than 80). You just have to walk a good distance to see them. Restrooms will open at the end of May, along with backcountry trails for overnight use. But the two visitor centers remain closed until further notice. Canyonlands National Park | Operating Status | Moab, Utah | (435) 719-2313 Nevada Great Basin, instead of the Grand Circle The “Grand Circle” marketing campaign pushed Utah’s national parks to record-setting visitations in recent years, but Great Basin — a few miles over the border in eastern Nevada — got left out of the loop. The 121-square-mile park is named after the enormous basin it sits in (spanning nearly all of Nevada, it is 20 times larger than the park), which pulls all water underground so that it can’t reach the ocean and other waterways. Updated June 2, 2020 Will protests set off a second viral wave of coronavirus? Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases. While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission. How do we start exercising again without hurting ourselves after months of lockdown? Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home. My state is reopening. Is it safe to go out? States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people. What’s the risk of catching coronavirus from a surface? Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. What are the symptoms of coronavirus? Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days. How can I protect myself while flying? If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) How many people have lost their jobs due to coronavirus in the U.S.? More than 40 million people — the equivalent of 1 in 4 U.S. workers — have filed for unemployment benefits since the pandemic took hold. One in five who were working in February reported losing a job or being furloughed in March or the beginning of April, data from a Federal Reserve survey released on May 14 showed, and that pain was highly concentrated among low earners. Fully 39 percent of former workers living in a household earning $40,000 or less lost work, compared with 13 percent in those making more than $100,000, a Fed official said. Should I wear a mask? The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing. What should I do if I feel sick? If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. Yet this arid park has surprising diversity and, from cool caves as deep as 436 feet below ground to the 13,060-foot Wheeler Peak, a landscape like no other park you’ll visit. During a hike up Wheeler Peak, you can commune with some of the oldest living trees on earth. (It was here that the most ancient tree ever recorded — a Bristlecone pine named Prometheus, at 4,862 years old — was cut down by a researcher in 1964 before the park had been created.) The restrooms and park are open for day use only, with both visitor centers presently closed. Great Basin National Park | Operating Status | Baker, Nev. | (775) 234-7331 California Lassen Volcanic, instead of Yellowstone or Yosemite In place of the crowded Yellowstone geysers or Yosemite mountains, a panorama of wildflowers, volcanic peaks and steaming fumaroles can be seen at Lassen Volcanic, 180 miles north of Sacramento. The 30-mile park highway reopened in late May, along with most of the trails and overnight backcountry camping. The still-smoking, glacier-clad Lassen Peak is one of only two volcanoes in the contiguous 48 states that erupted in the 20th century (Mount St. Helens erupted 40 years ago last month). Today, more than 100 years after magma first flowed from the Lassen Peak, amateur volcanologists can delight in finding the remains of the four types of volcanoes: shield, cinder cone, strato and plug. The 167-square-mile park is also crisscrossed with 150 miles of trails for day hikes or extended backcountry trips. These wind up through different plant zones to alpine lakes, and hikers can expect to see a wealth of wildlife, there are more than 300 vertebrate species alone. If you fly fish or paddleboard, check out Manzanita Lake. Lassen Volcanic National Park | Operating Status | Mineral, Calif. | (530) 595-4480 Washington state North Cascades, instead of Mount Rainier Although still emerging from snow banks and currently open for only day use, North Cascades is typically one of the less-visited parks of the entire parks system, seeing less than 3 percent of Mount Rainier’s yearly traffic. Adjoining the Canadian border, 120 miles northeast of Seattle, this wilderness has only six miles of internal roads — all unpaved — and stretches over 1,000 square miles. It boasts 312 glaciers (12 times Mount Rainier’s), as well as more than 500 lakes and a lush carpet of old-growth evergreens. From its dry ponderosa pines in the east to the temperate rain forest in the west, this is landscape of tremendous biodiversity. It’s also a great place to beat the heat, watch one of the most intact wildlife populations in the lower 48 (the huge and remote acreage still offers ideal habitats for all its original species.) But don’t forget to play, whether on day hikes or epic backpacking tours, perhaps peak bagging, fishing, boating or horseback riding. North Cascades National Park | Operating Status | Sedro-Woolley, Wash. | (360) 854-7200 Jon Waterman, a former park ranger, is the author of National Geographic’s “Atlas of the National Parks” and 13 other books. He lives in Carbondale, Colo. The post 11 Great Alternatives to the Top National Parks appeared first on Sansaar Times.

http://sansaartimes.blogspot.com/2020/06/11-great-alternatives-to-top-national.html

[thedonisborn]

10 Tips For Getting a Hard-to-Get National Park Backcountry Permit | The Big Outside

10 Tips For Getting a Hard-to-Get National Park Backcountry Permit

By Michael Lanza

The first time I backpacked in Yosemite National Park, more than 25 years ago, I applied for a permit to start at the park’s most popular trailhead, Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley—and I got it. I had no idea at the time how lucky I was (and it’s even more difficult to get that permit now). Over the years since, I’ve been shot down trying to get permits for popular hikes in parks like Yosemite, Grand Canyon, and Glacier. But I’ve also learned many tricks for landing coveted backcountry permits in those flagship parks and others—which receive far more requests than they can fill. I share what I’ve learned in the following, detailed tips, which I’ve just updated.

And if you want to take a trip in one of those popular parks this year, the time for reserving permits is upon us or coming up quickly.

Following these 10 tips won’t guarantee you get the permit you want, but I’ve had pretty good success over the years using these strategies—which I regularly update, including the information specific to each park mentioned in this story.

In fact, in just the past five years, I’ve gotten permits for trips in Glacier (twice), Great Smoky Mountains, Zion’s Narrows and Subway, The Needles District of Canyonlands, North Cascades, Death Valley, a very popular hike in Canada’s Kootenay, Paria Canyon (not a national park, but a backpacking permit in high demand), Yosemite twice (this trip and this one), and Grand Canyon three times (this trip and this one, and another for this spring)—with zero rejected applications.

A backpacker in the northern Bailey Range, Olympic National Park.

A friendly warning: Don’t backpack without a permit. Backcountry rangers might issue you a citation for camping without a backcountry permit, which could involve a fine and a court appearance. The more immediate problem with lacking a permit for where you’re trying to camp is that all established campsites there could be occupied, leaving you the only option of camping illegally in a potentially uncomfortable spot and causing damage to a sensitive area. That’s not fun or cool.

When you’re frustrated over being denied a permit for the hike you really wanted to take, keep this in mind: The permit system in parks imposes quotas on the number of backpackers in order to protect the landscape from overuse and give all of us an uncrowded, better wilderness experience. It’s a good thing.

Please tell me what you think of my tips or share your own in the comments section at the bottom of this story, and consider sharing this story using any of the social buttons below. Thanks.

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Backpackers hiking up Clouds Rest in Yosemite National Park.

#1: Do Your Homework

Research your route in advance. Know where you want to go and how far you intend to hike each day. Keep in mind that your party’s speed will be determined by the experience and fitness level of the slowest person, and factors like the terrain’s ruggedness, total elevation gain and loss on your route, and whether it’s at high elevations. Plan daily distance and pick campsites that make sense for your group, so you don’t increase the likelihood of either not reaching one or getting to a site so early in the day that you’re tempted to push on farther and camp illegally.

See my downloadable e-guides to backpacking trips in several popular national parks for detailed hiking itineraries, expert planning advice, on-the-ground knowledge, and tips specific to getting a permit in those parks.

Insider Tip

If you sound like you’ve done the research and know your options in the park, and come across as experienced, a backcountry ranger may feel more comfortable sharing details with you that he or she might not share with a novice.

A hiker on the Grand Canyon’s South Kaibab Trail.

#2: Know When to Apply

Especially if you’re traveling a long distance for the trip, to avoid disappointment, check the park’s website months in advance for the procedure to apply for a permit reservation (it varies from park to park).

Plan on applying on the earliest date possible—especially for popular hikes in parks that attract a lot of backpackers (like any parks and trails mentioned in this story). Some parks, like Glacier and Grand Teton, provide an online listing of current availability of backcountry campsites.

Some parks still do not have an online reservation system—it’s done in person (not an option for many people), by mail, fax, or over the phone. The National Park Service has an online reservation system, operated through recreation.gov, and it’s one that that many national parks use, NPS spokesman Jeffrey Olson explained to me via email. But he emphasized that “it is still up to the individual parks and regions to determine what to use to meet their needs.” The NPS anticipates that cost and efficiency incentives will gradually prompt more parks to use the recreation.gov system.

Insider Tip

Learn a trick from river rats: Pool your efforts. Have everyone in your party submit one or more permit applications in multiple popular parks for a range of potential dates; maybe one will be successful. You can always cancel any you can’t use.

Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside, which has made several top outdoors blog lists. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Subscribe now to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Please follow my adventures on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

Here are the dates to apply for a backcountry permit reservation in some major and popular parks:

•    For backpacking in the , you can apply online for the free permit up to 24 weeks (168 days) before the date you want to start hiking and you will get a response within one or two business days. That means that for starting on a date in late July, you would need to submit your application in early February. There is a fee based on the number of people and stock in your party. Get expert guidance planning your trip from my downloadable e-guide “The Complete Guide to the Best First Backpacking Trip in the Grand Canyon.” Find more info at nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/backcountry-permit.htm. •    In , you can apply for the free permit up to 24 weeks (168 days) before the date you want to start hiking. That means that for starting on a date in late July, you would need to submit your application in early February. See my downloadable e-guides to three stellar, multi-day hikes in Yosemite, including “The Best First Backpacking Trip in Yosemite.” Find more info at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/wpres.htm. •    To thru-hike the southbound, apply for a permit from Yosemite National Park exactly 24 weeks (168 days) in advance of the date you’d like to begin. Increase your chances by applying for a range of start dates in Yosemite. Permits for hiking northbound, starting at Whitney Portal, are reserved through a lottery system at recreation.gov; apply online between Feb. 1 and March 15. Visit my Ask Me page to see how I can help you plan a successful and unforgettable JMT thru-hike or any other trip (as I’ve done for other readers). Find more info at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/jmtfaq.htm.

Start planning now to take one of “The 10 Best National Park Backpacking Trips.”

Backpackers on the Piegan Pass Trail in Glacier National Park.

•    In , apply for a permit starting at 10 a.m. on the 5th of the month, two months prior to the month in which you want to take your trip—for example, apply on Feb. 5 for a trip in April. There is a fee based on the number of people in your party. Popular routes like The Narrows require a permit whether backpacking or dayhiking, and some one-day canyon descents, like The Subway, also require a permit that must be reserved three months in advance. Learn all you need to know about taking this trip in my downloadable e-guide to it. Find more information at nps.gov/zion/planyourvisit/wildernesspermitinfo.htm. •    At , backcountry sites can be reserved online starting March 15 for groups of one to eight people, and March 1 for groups of nine to 12. There is a fee based on the number of people and backcountry nights. Don’t neglect to check out my downloadable e-guide to the best backpacking trip in Glacier. Find more information at nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/backcountry-reservations.htm. •    In , reservation applications are only accepted from the first Wednesday in January (starting at 8 a.m. Mountain Time) through May 15; after that, all permit requests are handled first-come, first-served. Popular backcountry camping zones, like those along the Teton Crest Trail, get booked up very soon after the park starts accepting reservations in January—often within a few days, sometimes within hours. There is a fee for each permit. See my downloadable e-guides to the Teton Crest Trail and the best short backpacking trip in the Tetons, or my Ask Me page to see how I can help you plan that trip. Find more information at nps.gov/grte/planyourvisit/bcres.htm. •    In , reservations may be made up to 30 days in advance of the first night of your trip. There is a fee based on the number of people and backcountry nights. Find more information at smokiespermits.nps.gov.

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Hikers on the Chesler Park Trail, Needles District, Canyonlands National Park.

•     starts accepting permit reservations online or in person on March 3 (starting at 8 a.m. Mountain Time) for that calendar year. Phone, mail, email and fax reservations are not accepted. There’s a fee for making a reservation. Find more information at nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/wild_guide.htm. •    For , including backpacking in the Needles District and multi-day float trips on the Green River, apply up to four months in advance of your starting date. There’s a fee for each permit. Find more information at nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/backcountrypermits.htm. •    In , you can apply beginning on March 1 for a permit reservation during the trailhead quota period of late May through late September. There’s a fee for each permit. Find more information at nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/wilderness_permits.htm.

Get inspired. Read my book Before They’re Gone—A Family’s Year-Long Quest to Explore America’s Most Endangered National Parks.

Sahale Glacier Camp in North Cascades National Park is one of my 25 favorite backcountry campsites. Click photo to see them all.

• As of early 2019, website indicated that the park was exploring new methods for processing permit reservations. In 2018, the park had started accepting advance reservations on Feb. 15 for permits issued for popular “quota areas” between May 1 and Sept. 30. Find current information at nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/wilderness-reservations.htm. • accepts advance reservations for up to 60 percent of park backcountry camp capacity, while permits for the other 40 percent are still issued only on a first-come basis no more than one day in advance. Advance permit reservations are accepted from March 15 through April 30 for camping between the dates of May 15 through Sept. 30. Find more information at nps.gov/noca/planyourvisit/backcountry-reservations.htm. •     begins accepting reservations online on March 15 for trips beginning through Sept. 30; after Sept. 30, permits are only issued in person at the park. There is a fee per party. Find more information at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/wilderness-permit.htm.

Insider Tip

For parks like Yosemite, Zion, Grand Teton, and Grand Canyon, submit your permit application the very minute they begin accepting applications on the first date you can apply for your trip dates. You can submit more than one permit application at the same time, but make clear if you are requesting multiple permits, rather than just submitting alternative itineraries for one permit.

Noland Creek, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, N.C.

#3: Plan Alternative Itineraries

If you want or need to take a popular trip during its peak season, this is the single most-effective strategy for maximizing your chances of getting a permit. Whenever I apply for a permit in parks like Yosemite, Glacier, Grand Canyon, or most others mentioned in this story, I put in as many alternative itineraries (at least two or three) and starting date options (often spanning a week or more) as are feasible.

Have at least one or two backup routes or date options in case you can’t get a permit for your first choice. That may be as simple as starting a day earlier or later for the same route, reversing your route’s direction, starting midweek instead of on a weekend, or choosing an entirely different, less-popular route.

At some parks, you absolutely have to prepare at least three itineraries. For instance, in Denali or , which do not accept advance reservations for permits, you will find out which backcountry zones have campsite availability when you show up at the backcountry office, so be familiar with the park map and have some ideas on where you want to go. When applying for an advance permit reservation in the Grand Canyon, include alternatives outside the park’s popular “corridor” trails (). In , shelters along the Appalachian Trail are the most popular, but tenting campsites elsewhere in the park are easier to reserve. At some parks, you will be able to get useful help in selecting an itinerary from backcountry rangers over the phone or in person.

I can help you plan the best backpacking, hiking, or family adventure of your life. Find out more here.

The Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River in Yosemite.

While first-time visitors to a flagship park tend to gravitate toward its best-known areas— and the in Yosemite, the Grand Canyon’s South Kaibab Trail, Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail, the Appalachian Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains—areas that are lesser known are often just as scenically impressive, and may give you a more rewarding experience because of a higher degree of solitude. The first time I backpacked in , I went on the less-visited west side and saw waterfalls and elk and bagged a summit on the Continental Divide.

In the Grand Canyon, some 75 percent of people who apply for a permit to hike across the canyon on the South and North Kaibab trails are denied. But you will find it easier to get a permit for the 29-mile hike from , or the 25-mile hike from , either of which is done in three to four days and quite beautiful (as you’ll see in the photos in my stories about them), or two much more rugged trips: the 15-mile hike from the  and the 34.5-mile Royal Arch Loop.

Similarly, about 70 percent of hikers who apply for a permit to begin a thru-hike of the in Yosemite get denied, but it’s much easier to score a permit to backpack in or in the Clark Range, both of which are stunning. Learn more in my downloadable e-guides to three stellar, multi-day hikes in Yosemite.

Insider Tip

If you’re determined to hike in a park, make any permit reservation, even if it’s not for your desired route. When you show up at the park to pick up your permit, you may be able to change it to a more-desirable itinerary, because more sites may be available than when you applied, due to cancellations and some sites being held for walk-ins. Ask a backcountry ranger for suggestions.

Below Forester Pass on the John Muir Trail, Sequoia National Park.

#4: Think Small

Parks generally limit the number of people allowed on one permit, often to six or seven; otherwise, it’s considered a group permit, and there are far fewer campsites for large groups. Keeping your party small—as in two to four people—can increase your odds of landing a permit in parks where permit quotas are based on the number of campers in an area each night or departing from each trailhead daily.

#5: Think Outside the Box

Each park has it’s own system for issuing permits; examine it and you might think up a way to work within it to get what you want or close to it. For example, in Yosemite, permits are issued according to a maximum quota of hikers starting at each trailhead in the park. Some trailheads, like Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley, are so popular it’s very difficult to get a permit to start your hike there; but you might be able to hike the same or nearly the same route by simply starting at another trailhead along it.

Insider Tip

While it’s hard to get a permit to dayhike Yosemite’s Half Dome, it’s probably less difficult to add Half Dome to your backpacking permit because many more people apply for the dayhiking permit than do for backcountry permits. See my Ask Me post, “Where to Backpack First Time in Yosemite.”

Teton Crest Trail, Death Canyon Shelf, Grand Teton National Park.

#6: Camp Outside the Park

National parks often border on other public lands, like national forests, where there’s no limit on the number of backpackers—which may give you campsite options when sites or camping areas within park boundaries are full on your trip dates. For instance, Alaska Basin, along the , is not within Grand Teton National Park; so if you can’t get a permit to spend a night on Death Canyon Shelf in the park (a gorgeous spot, by the way), Alaska Basin is a very nice alternative and may fit neatly into an itinerary for which you have the other sites you need inside park boundaries.

At other parks, like Yosemite and , you can start your trip in a national forest wilderness area—which, in the High Sierra, are just as spectacular as the parks—and camp a night or two before entering the park, perhaps increasing your chances of getting a permit in the park.

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A backpacker in The Narrows, Zion National Park.

#7: Try For a Walk-In Permit

If all else fails, show up at the park at least an hour or two before the backcountry office opens and try to get a front spot in line for a walk-in, or first-come permit. Parks reserve a certain percentage of permits for walk-in backpackers, issuing those usually no more than a day in advance. Some parks post the current availability of backcountry campsites online; check that and prepare a hiking itinerary accordingly before you show up. Expect applying for a walk-in permit to take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, possibly longer, especially in parks like , Glacier, and Denali, where you’re required to watch a video about camping safely in bear country.

Insider Tip

Start a trip from a less-popular trailhead and you might be able to land campsites in more-popular areas later in your trip.

The difficulty of landing a first-come permit varies during the peak hiking seasons: At , Yosemite, Glacier, and Grand Teton, you might get lucky and score a permit to start that day, but plan on having to wait at least one day. At Grand Canyon, Denali, and Everglades, you may not be able to start your trip until two or three days after you first start waiting in line. If you don’t get one of the available permits the first day you show up—you’ll often know within an hour—you will have to return each morning until you do.

See my story “How to Get a Last-Minute, National Park Backcountry Permit.”

Want a better backpack? See my picks for “The 10 Best Backpacking Packs” and the best ultralight/thru-hiking packs.

Backpacking the Wonderland Trail, Mount Rainier National Park.

#8: Go Outside Peak Season

I’ve always been amazed at how few backpackers there are in the Tetons in September, when, while it could snow, you can often enjoy perfect weather. In Yosemite and Sequoia-Kings Canyon, and sometimes at Mount Rainier and Rocky Mountain, good hiking weather can extend into October. At Sequoia-Kings Canyon, the 2019 quota season ends on Sept. 21, and at Mount Rainier the permit-reservation season ends Sept. 28; if you have a good forecast after those dates, you are almost guaranteed to get a last-minute permit.

I backpacked Zion’s hugely popular and dayhiked The Subway (which requires a permit that’s hard to get) in early November in very pleasant weather (albeit short days) and low water (a plus); I saw a good forecast and grabbed a permit through the park’s Last Minute Drawing system for claiming unreserved campsites—a good method for getting a Zion permit if you have the flexibility to act on short notice. Good weather and hiking conditions can last into late autumn and return by late spring in Great Smoky Mountains.

In mountain parks, the most popular season extends from early or mid-July to Labor Day. In desert parks like Grand Canyon and Zion, it’s April, May, September, and October. Although summers are too hot for backpacking, watching for a good forecast and going in early spring or late fall means you will have a much easier time getting a permit.

Plan your next great backpacking adventure using my downloadable, expert e-guides. Click here now to learn more.

Backpackers on the Chimney Rock Trail, Capitol Reef National Park.

#9: Go to a Less-Popular Park

Okay, this tip and the next one don’t help you land a permit for a popular hike—but they do offer alternatives worth considering if you fail to get that desired permit. National parks that are off the radar of most backpackers are never a disappointment. At two of my favorite Western parks, and , walk-in permits are relatively easy to obtain (although North Cascades does accept reservations for popular areas).

Go where others don’t. See my “Top 5 Backpacking Trips For Scenery and Solitude.”

#10: Dayhike It

When all efforts to secure a permit to camp in the backcountry fail, ask yourself: Is it possible to dayhike all or part of my route or another trail in the same area? It’s often easier to hike a long distance in one day than it is to carry a heavy backpack a shorter distance. Choose well-maintained, well-graded trails and keep your pack light, and if you have the stamina for it and can average even a modest 2 mph pace over a 10-hour day, you can cover 20 miles.

See my stories “Training For a Big Hike or Mountain Climb” and “10 Tricks For Making Hiking and Backpacking Easier,” and all of my stories about ultra-hiking at The Big Outside.

If I were to add an eleventh tip, it would be this: When your first attempt fails, find another trip to do that year instead, and try again the next year. Wherever you go, the effort to plan and pull off that adventure will pay off.

Tell me what you think.

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See my Trips page and All National Park Trips page at The Big Outside.

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12 Responses to 10 Tips For Getting a Hard-to-Get National Park Backcountry Permit

Shannon   |  May 29, 2018 at 7:39 pm

Glad I stumbled upon this article! Currently planning a 5 day backpacking trip through Zion covering 45 miles give or take depending on campsites (skipping the Narrows though — may visit for a day trip after the hike, may not). I’ll be applying for our permit in a couple months, thank you for the tips!

Michael Lanza   |  May 29, 2018 at 9:02 pm

Thanks, Shannon, I’m glad you found my blog, too. Good luck with your Zion plans and keep in touch.

Naomi   |  January 22, 2018 at 2:34 am

Photos are amazing of national parks. I have never done anything backcountry before. However, I really like your idea about camping outside of the park and going outside of peak season to do that. Thanks.

MichaelALanza   |  January 22, 2018 at 7:08 am

Thanks, Naomi. Try starting with an easy backcountry trip and experiment with pushing your comfort zone.

Howard   |  April 30, 2017 at 2:34 pm

Hey, Michael, just seen your post and these are great tips. I have been denied access to National Parks several times in my country and I got some of these tips to see if I get a green light this time. I like going outdoors with my dog, especially in places with Bears, and that is a major hindrance. Thanks again.

Thank you for this backpacking tips Michael! I’ve been to Yellowstone and will be visiting more soon. Will do a list about backcountry outdoor adventure next time.

Thanks, Julia, and good luck with your trip planning.

Tom Beckman   |  March 20, 2017 at 8:20 pm

Dear Michael,

Great advice! 3 weeks ago I applied and got a permit for 8 for July 29th to do a 4-day loop above Yosemite Valley including Cloud’s Rest, only because I decided to start up the Yosemite Falls TH, rather than Happy Isles.

Btw, you must do Buckskin Gulch, and in the Winds, Titcomb Basin and Cirque of the Towers! And in the Weminuche Wilderness, Chicago Basin.

Happy trails, Tom

MichaelALanza   |  March 21, 2017 at 9:02 am

Smart strategy, Tom, and thanks to that you have a great trip ahead of you. Congrats. Thanks for the suggestions. I’ve been to several spots in the Winds, including the Cirque of the Towers several times (https://thebigoutside.com/tag/cirque-of-the-towers/), but not Titcomb yet; and I’ve hiked Buckskin Gulch, although on my most recent backpacking trip of Paria Canyon, we didn’t hike Buckskin because it was flooded (https://thebigoutside.com/the-quicksand-chronicles-backpacking-paria-canyon/). I backpacked through Chicago Basin in the Weminuche some years back and would like to return.

Faylinn   |  August 3, 2016 at 8:59 am

I love visiting National Parks like Yosemite and Zion’s, but I have never done anything backcountry before. However, I really like your idea about camping outside of the park and going outside of peaks season to do that. Since August isn’t a peak season for Zion, I think that I will try and do something backcountry when I am there in a few weeks. However, what are some simple (not too long of a trek or too difficult to climb) hikes that I could do that are backcountry?

michaellanza   |  August 6, 2016 at 5:40 am

Hi Faylinn, August is hot in Zion, but the high country like the West Rim Trail will be less hot. See this Ask Me post about backpacking there: https://thebigoutside.com/ask-me-whats-your-favorite-backpacking-trip-in-zion-national-park/.

Good luck.

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