Last June, I hiked the Inca Trail with my family and it hit me that trekking/hiking appeals to me a whole lot more than I had realized.
What are your favorites? There's obviously the Inca Trail, as well as: Kilimanjaro, Everest base camp, the Long Trail, Appalachian Trail, etc. I've heard of a week-long (?) trek on Tasmania... help me out!
Which (multi-day) hikes have you done? Which were your favorites?
Thronging of the thousands up that labour under sea White for bliss and blind for sun and stunned for liberty. -Lepanto, GK Chesterton
The best hike I've ever taken was through Mahoosuc Notch. You rarely set foot on the ground - it was all rock hopping, which I LOVE. Plus the last site we stopped at before we hiked out - it was a reserve where students stayed. The tent sites overlooked a lake cradled in a valley, and it was turning fall (up there, anyway) so the foliage looked amazing. The students that stay there for a week or two take care of the compost and hike it out. Since it's a reserve, you're not allowed to pee in the woods, and since they do compost, you're not allowed to pee in the outhouse, so you have to pee on the trail. Ironically, we had a bunch of boyscouts camping with us that night so I kind of decided to hold it until we got outta there. I always thought it'd be awesome to be one of the people who maintained the site, though.
Posts: 9 | Location: Old Town, ME | Registered: 19 February 2007
The Great Walks in New Zealand are all incredible. I have only done 3 (Routeburn, Kepler, and Abel Tasman) and they were all RIDICULOUS.
I am going to do the Inca Trail next year, and I could not be more excited. Did you go on your own or with a guide when you went with your family? Did you plan it ahead of time or arrange details when you got there?
The Torres del Paine Circuit in Chile is easily the most beautiful and adventurous trek I ever tried. Everything about it--the wind that knocks you on your ass, the mountain scenery that also knocks you on your ass, and the rugged hiking--is epic.
One of the most underrated is the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail in the Santa Cruz mountains of California.
It's about 50 km, and takes two or three days to go from Castle Rock state park downhill to Big Basin state park. You begin hiking in barren scrub brush, then slog through a dank primeval forest of massive redwoods, and finally end by strolling through a meadow of wildflowers that leads you to the beach.
Also in California, Yosemite Nat'l Park has some outstanding backcountry trails. I've only done three or four, but the ones around Tuolumne Meadows have got to feature some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. Best part about it is that only about 5% of Yosemite visitors actually get out of the Valley, so even in summer you'll have some space.
Adventure of the Yangtze, Mekong and Salween is ideal for adventurous exploration. Originating from the Tangula mountains in Tibet, the Yangtze, Mekong and Salween rivers flow from west to east through the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. At the juncture of Yunnan, Tibet and Sichuan, blocked by a great fault fracture caused by the plateau’s collision with the Indian sub-continental plate, the three great rivers are forced to turn south, all flowing through Northwest Yunnan, sometimes at distances as close as 66km apart. ........... http://www.edward-adventures.com/Article_Show5.asp?ArticleID=18
I haven't personally done it yet (but soon hopefully), however a bunch of my family and friends have gone on the West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island, BC. It is about 7 days and looks amazing gorgeous! That and the Juan De Fuca trail are my goals...
My two favorite two-day hikes have been Mount Olympus in Greece and Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia. Both are incredible climbs -- several thousand vertical feet in each case and pass through incredible varieties of scenery and flora. I'd do either one again in a heartbeat.
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Posts: 5549 | Location: Jackson Heights, Queens | Registered: 11 September 2006
Sadly I'm stuck on day hikes. (Can't get past that whole needing a toilet thing.) My favorite place to hike is in the Redwood National Park in Northern California. Lovely scenery plus you never know if you'll stumble on a dinosaur or an Ewok.
My dream hike, the one I've wanted to do most of my life and have done parts of many times is the Pacific Crest Trail. A 2,600 mile long trail that goes from the Mexico border into Canada. An interesting fact about it, less people have completed the entire trail than have climbed Everest. One day I will take it on!
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Posts: 212 | Location: Oroville, CA | Registered: 12 October 2006
My dream hike, the one I've wanted to do most of my life and have done parts of many times is the Pacific Crest Trail. An interesting fact about it, less people have completed the entire trail than have climbed Everest. One day I will take it on!
Don't just dream ... practice your squatting and go do it!
Posts: 1233 | Location: The Republic of Cascadia | Registered: 25 March 2005
I know its become a bit of a cliche to mention it, but...the Camino Santiago. Some beautiful, if somewhat wet, country on both sides of the Pyrenees. Catholicism or belief in reincarnation (thank you, Shirley Maclaine) not required.
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Posts: 1999 | Location: Retired. | Registered: 30 June 2005
In New Zealand the Cascade Saddle-Dart River route is just gorgeous. The climb up to Cascade Saddle is pretty tough but the view from the top is truly spectacular. If you really went fast you could do it in 3.5 days, but 6 or so gives you some time for side trips and a slmewhat slower pace.
In Nepal the Annapurna Circuit is just fabulous, especially if you can tack the trip up to base camp on the end. It's a looooong trip, 17-28 days but is probably my favourite hike/trek ever. The mountain scenery is probably the most awesome in the world, and the cultural experience is fabulous as well, especially near the middle of the trip.
Never done the Inca Trail, but I can definitely agree that Torres del Paine is fabulous. Also in South America, the walks in Aconcagua Provincial Park (and the other nearby natural areas) are spectacular. Himalayan scale mountains with beautiful colour to boot.
I imagine the Tasmanian trek you're thinking of is the Overland Track (though there are some other great ones there, the Overland is the best known.) It's a beautiful walk in its own right, but the side trips off of the main trail were what REALLY made it for me. The huts along the way are quite comfortable, which is probably part of whay the trip must now be booked in advance.
Wow... I could just keep going on and on, but I think I'll leave it there for now. Happy Trails!
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I booked my spot on the Overland Track (Tasmania, Australia) just the other day, it will be my first big walk.
And here is a good free tip, you can avoid the fee by starting at the Walls of Jerusalem instead of Cradle Mountain but you need to be an experienced walker. You could also just walk out of season when it is free.
The hike on Kauai, Hawaii to see the Napali Coastline is incredible!!! Helicopters flew below us!!! This portion of Kauai can only be seen by boat, helicopter, or an all-day 16 hour hike. It's pretty treacherous at times with drops of 2000 plus feet on either side and sometimes with only a couple of feet's width on the trail. However, the view and the experience is well worth it!
I have yet to hike to the "Wettest Spot on Earth" on that island. Going down was a killer on the Napali hike as it was very slippery. I'm told that the mist is so thick that you cannot see a thing. Well, I'll have to give it a go the next time I'm on the island...meaning in January!!
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Posts: 11 | Location: Between the USA, a pacific isle, or some island in the Caribbean somewhere. Ya never know! I never know! | Registered: 03 December 2005
Over four years of worldwide wanderings (and counting!) 
