(This is my new column in the Mercury News Eye section; I’m archiving it here.) An easy oasis amid civilization’s sprawl Fremont will never be mistaken for an outdoors mecca – you either dodge the throngs at Lake Elizabeth or…
Tom's travels
Hikes column debut
by tmangan • April 19, 2007 • 7 Comments
My first attempt was at Coyote Hills Regional Park.
Hiking
Guess where the John Muir’s Birthday Hike is
by tmangan • April 18, 2007 • 0 Comments
Not in California, where if you fall off a long there’s a fair chance you’ll land on something named after Muir. It’s in Madison, Wisconsin. Wisconsin has been home to some of the most visionary environmental thinkers of all time.…
Hiking
Got Fourteeners on the brain?
by tmangan • April 18, 2007 • 3 Comments
The Denver Post has a nice rundown of how to prepare for hiking Colorado’s high peaks. “Ascending from 5,000 feet to 14,000 feet in one day is dangerous,” DiMartino says. “If you are not used to hiking, do several weeks…
Gear
New cozy for munchies at freezerbagcooking.com
by tmangan • April 18, 2007 • 0 Comments
Sarah has a new must-have item for hungry hikers. Made of a mylar infused fabric, they are durable, crushable, packable and machine washable. They are sized to fit 2-3 energy or candy bars-and help with the worst part of summer:…
Gear
Nifty alcohol stove report
by tmangan • April 17, 2007 • 0 Comments
If you ever find yourself camping with Steve Sergeant, you can be assured that whatever he plucks from his pack will be the cream of the gear crop — not typically the priciest, probably the lightest, inevitably the coolest. The…
Gear
Fed up with buyer’s remorse
by tmangan • April 16, 2007 • 3 Comments
Something that occurred to me over the weekend: Almost every piece of gear I’ve ever bought has turned out to be the wrong thing. Tents, packs, sleeping bags/pads, you name it. They serve their purpose but are always flawed —…
Ohlone Wilderness Trail
Two days on the Ohlone Wilderness Trail
by tmangan • April 16, 2007 • 9 Comments
Some part of me wanted to hike all 28 miles of the Ohlone Wilderness Trail in the worst way, which I can safely say includes: Hiking in rain and pea-soup fog for the five miles of the trail I’d never…
Backpacking
22 pounds fully loaded
by tmangan • April 13, 2007 • 6 Comments
That’s my pack weight for this weekend’s overnighter on the Ohlone Trail. I’m going along on one of Steve Sergeant’s Sierra Club “fast and light” outings. We’re starting out at the Livermore end of the trail, hiking about 11 miles…