The outdoor blogosphere is gaga over this story: SNEWS reporting that the Chinese government has “seized control of all Chinese-owned tent factories,” presumably to help the millions left homeless by the massive earthquake (one can never be sure of the…
Photography
Camera bags, packs for hikers
by tom • June 3, 2008 • 5 Comments
Trailspotting reviews the Kata T-214, a way-cool sling bag for carrying your cameras into the woods. It’s built by a company that makes bags for the Israeli military and looks tough enough to intimidate a terrorist (and might well convert…
Media (books, DVDs, etc)
Golden Gate National Recreation Area on “Bay Area Backroads”
by tom • June 3, 2008 • 2 Comments
In case you missed it on KRON4 over the weekend, Doug McConnell’s “Bay Area Backroads” profiles the history of the Golden Gate National Recreational Area. You can watch the videos or read text of the highlights. In a way, the…
Gear
The bad news on backpack straps
by tom • June 3, 2008 • 3 Comments
Outdoor Tech blogger Clyde Soles notes a study which says pack straps decrease circulation in hands and fingers. Using ultrasound and a pulse oximeter, the scientists measured brachial artery pressure as well as capillary flow in the finger tips. After…
Backpacking
REI backpacking courses
by tom • June 2, 2008 • 1 Comment
REI in Fremont is offering a free backpacking course at 7 p.m. June 10. Join REI backpacking specialist Joe Schaffer for a review of the fundamentals of selecting gear for a weekend backpacking trip: layering your clothing for maximum warmth;…
Wildlife
What is it about redwoods?
by tom • June 2, 2008 • 5 Comments
Walking through a new forest of redwoods always gets me thinking about the old ones. If a Hollywood Indian chief were handy, he’d probably tell me it’s the spirit of their ancestors tweaking my conscience. We call the remaining ones…
Phleger Estate
Hiking the Phleger Estate
by tom • June 2, 2008 • 3 Comments
Whoever the Phleger’s were, they had fine taste in terrain. The Phleger Estate, now safely in the hands of the National Parks Service, has some of the best trails through redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It’s very remote —…
Huddart County Park
Off to hike at Phleger Estate
by tom • June 1, 2008 • 0 Comments
The Estate is the the national parks property next to Huddart Park. Here’s a profile of a ranger who used to work there. Sandwiched between Huddart County Park in Woodside and the San Francisco Watershed land to the north, the…
Mangan's memoirs
Crass commerce era returns
by tom • May 31, 2008 • 9 Comments
When I paid $4.39 for gas the other night, it occurred to me that hiking is getting to be an expensive hobby, given that I live in town and all the good trails around here seem to require an 80-mile…