Headaches, nausea, and confusion are wearing you down and you can’t continue. “I have to turn back,” you mumble, calling an end to your bucket-list adventure trip. Months of hard work and training are wasted, and you ask yourself how this could happen. The answer is likely dehydration. Dehydration, commonly perceived as a heat-related illness, can strike under many other …
My [growing] Collection of Top Utah Hiking Trails
In this post I share my top Utah hiking trail posts organized by area, season, difficulty and even one for dogs who hike. Most I published on Ski Utah’s blog under my name or as the “Yeti,” their ultra cool mascot. The lists are simple collections of the most popular hikes or others I’ve discovered are worth lacing up your …
Five great early winter hikes in Salt Lake City
As summer winds down and the days cool, it is a perfect time to hike some of my favorite trails along the “Front Range” of the Wasatch. These are also great hikes for early spring before the high trails clear of snow. These trails are located just minutes from downtown, and are low enough to remain snow-free into early winter. …
A short hike with great views: Mount Van Cott, Salt Lake City
My sister drove from Florida to Utah with me then stayed on a few days while I settled into my new home. Hiking and a visit to Ruby Snap Cookies were top priories while she was here. Looking for a short route near the city, low enough to be clear of snow; we opted for Mount Van Cott, a 6,348-foot …
Finding strength on Lone Peak
Success is achieved by developing our strengths, not by eliminating our weaknesses. – Marilyn vos Savant Utah’s Lone Peak tops at out 11,263’ and is considered the most difficult 11,000+ peak in the Wasatch Rage due to the mileage and vertical gain. It is an imposing peak, visible from Salt Lake City to Provo. With an average grade less than …
Unexpected beauty: Rummana Camp, Jordan
Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living. ~ Mary Ritter Beard Opening my eyes inside the canvas tent, it took me a moment to recollect where I was. It was a disorienting feeling brought on by a combination of deep sleep, a nine …
Canyoneering in the Kingdom of Jordan
Rushing water pushed me off the rocks for the third time, so I finally accepted a hand up the short waterfall. We were a couple of miles up Wadi Ghwayr in Jordan’s Dana Biosphere Preserve. Wadi refers to a valley, stream or channel that is dry except during the rainy season. In this case, it was a slot canyon. While …
Hiking Utah’s Mount Olympus (and telling Asthma to stick it)
You’ll never find a better sparring partner than adversity. ~Walt Schmidt Step pause, step pause, each one just little higher than the last. The trail seemed to have no end of “up” and I was struggling. About that time, and hiker training for a rim-to-rim-to-rim run of the Grand Canyon lapped me for the second time. “Really!?!?” I shouted at …
Red Butte Gardens Loop: A trail and patient friend
I’ve written briefly about this hike in my post, Five great early winter hikes in Salt Lake City, but I didn’t discuss it in depth. I didn’t share how this simple, beautiful, trail has helped me feel and process my emotions. It’s odd to think of a trail as a friend, but I do. I’ve grown a lot since moving …
The value of persistence: Glacier’s Red Eagle Lake
A couple of summers ago I visited Glacier National Park and hiked to Red Eagle Lake. I’d already put on a lot of miles before that 17-mile day. The mosquitoes were relentless at the beginning of the hike and I had a lot on mind. Basically, I questioned myself for heading out. When I got to this bridge, it felt …