Tim’s Backpacking Page

Of all my favorite outdoor sports, hiking and backpacking may still be my all-time favorite. I’ve backpacked in about 20 states, a half dozen countries, and an incredible number of trails — and I still feel like I’m just getting started.

I’ve climbed up and down the 12 highest peaks in Maine, the 5 highest in Vermont, and 47 of the 48 highest in New Hampshire. I was saving the last one, Owl’s Head, for my 48th birthday. Someday I’ll make it into the 4,000-footers club.

I’ve hiked or backpacked in probably three dozen National Parks and National Forests. I’ve spent many months on backcountry trails in Montana, Idaho, Washington, Wyoming, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and plenty of other places.

Long Trail, Baxter, and the White Mountains

I backpacked over 200 miles of Vermont’s Long Trail one September. The autumn foliage was spectacular. I was only four or five days from the Canadian border when I realized that my favorite backcountry place in New England — Baxter State Park in Maine — would be closing for the season on its traditional final day, October 15.

So I bushwhacked down a side trail, got out to a road, bought hot chocolate, a Milky Way, and a Long Trail Ale, then hitchhiked back to my car. Seven different rides and about four hours later, I headed immediately to northern Maine.

At Baxter I got permits for ten nights and spent two excellent weeks in the frontcountry and backcountry. Mile-high Katahdin, also known as Baxter Peak, is the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. I climbed it three times that week from three different trails, but one climb up the Abol Trail with a group of AT thru-hikers was especially memorable. I shared their tears as they approached the end of a six-month journey, and we all shared champagne, smoked oysters, and frozen beers on the summit.

My favorite hiking playground was just a few hours north in the magnificent White Mountain National Forest of New Hampshire. I spent so many nights in the backcountry up there that I would never be able to count them all.

Adirondacks, Bivy Sacks, and Lightning

The Adirondacks of New York have always been a favorite winter destination. The New York DEC maintains an excellent system of Adirondack lean-tos throughout the backcountry and frontcountry, and Heart Lake is the starting point for many adventures.

One Easter weekend, Dann and I arrived around midnight and made the icy hike toward the Marcy Dam lean-tos. We kept saying we should stop and put on crampons. Sure enough, about a hundred meters from the lake, I lost my footing and took a whipper down a short, steep, ice-covered stairway. My ankle swelled up like a football, and I spent the next four days in the lean-to with my foot elevated while Dann climbed the High Peaks.

Luckily, in all those hikes we never had a truly serious injury far out in the backcountry. Still, I now carry a bivouac sack even on short day hikes. A broken leg or blown knee only a mile from the trailhead can mean a nasty night on the mountain if you are caught unprepared.

The big killer on the summits is sometimes nearly impossible to prevent: lightning. We were always careful not to get caught above treeline when storms were approaching, but sometimes stuff happens. One time on Pamola, our hair was standing up. Another overnight bivouac on Mount Haystack in the Adirondacks nearly got me good. After lightning bolts started hitting all around me at 4 a.m., I grabbed everything and ran down toward treeline in rain and hail.

No-trace camping is the only way to go.

Western Parks, Coast Trails, and Canyon Country

Grand Teton National Park is my favorite western U.S. National Park. I’ve hiked there more times than any other western park, and it still feels like one of the great mountain playgrounds.

The Wilderness Coast in Olympic National Park is one of my favorite trails. It runs along a deserted section of the outer tip of the Olympic Peninsula, with beach camping, driftwood, surf, and some of the best bonfire nights I’ve ever had.

The West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island is an awesome trek through coastal rainforest. Part of the trail follows the rocky coast, and some headlands are tide-bound and impassable except during low tide. Our campsites were mostly secluded coves — some of the most incredibly beautiful spots on earth.

The Grand Canyon is a backpacker’s paradise during the cooler parts of the year. I’ve done multi-day backpacks down to the river a couple of times, and both were excellent.

Costa Rica, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, and the Bugaboos

An eight-day backpack in wild and beautiful Corcovado National Park in Costa Rica was one of my best weeks living out of a backpack. The Osa Peninsula is a huge tropical rainforest, and you hike for hours along the coast just to reach the first legal overnight camping area.

One of the best weeks I ever spent living out of a backpack was in Colombia, at a tropical National Park with no roads leading in or out. If you ever get a chance to go, that kind of place beats the tropical resorts a million times over.

I also did an incredible four-day backpack in the Cordillera Blanca of Peru. We were at altitude the whole time, around 15,000 feet, so the altitude sickness and fatigue were constant. A month later I climbed to about 19,000 feet on Cotopaxi Volcano in Ecuador.

The Bugaboos in southwestern Canada were a great backpacking trip, although most days were spent on alpine climbs. We had met a couple of cool Aussies a few days earlier and somehow convinced one of them to carry an extra case of beer to the Conrad Kain Alpine Hut. Porcupines were a major problem at the parking lot, so everyone’s vehicle was tightly wrapped in chicken wire. We climbed Bugaboo Spire one day, but the snowbridge we crossed collapsed overnight.

Why I Keep Going

Lots of folks have emailed me over the years and asked, “How do you do all this stuff?” All this time traveling or in the backcountry is possible because of lifestyle choices. I work long hard hours, save my money, and choose experiences over things.

No perfect green lawn in summer. No new SUV in the driveway. No spending every night staring at a screen. Some folks accumulate lots of stuff. I’d rather do stuff than have stuff every time.

Someday, when I’m close to the end and wishing I had just a few more chunks of time, I doubt I’ll wish I had spent more of it mowing the lawn, watching TV, waxing a vehicle, or shopping at the mall. I’ll wish I was at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, on top of Grand Teton, or in one of those other places that are there for the effort.

I think heaven is probably right here on earth.

Backpacking and Outdoor Links

Some of the original links from this old page may have moved or disappeared over the years, so I’d treat this section as a place to update with your current favorites.