This article may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I will earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks!I officially departed on my Epic Dirtbag Adventure on Saturday, January 5th for the long drive down to Ouray, Colorado. I blasted through Washington State into the eastern corner of Oregon and on to Boise, …
Backpacking Across New Jersey: Delaware Water Gap to High Point (45 miles)
Ah, Jersey… The butt of oh so many jokes, and the land of Tony Soprano, Snooki, Bruce Springsteen, and Jon Bon Jovi. But backpacking New Jersey, is there such a thing? Do they even have woods or anything resembling wilderness in the most densely populated state in the country? Turns out they do, as I learned when backpacking Delaware Water …
Backpacking the Virginia Triple Crown: McAfee Knob, Tinker Cliffs, and Dragon’s Tooth
Virginia is often overlooked when it comes to the great outdoors, but there are some truly incredible hiking and backpacking opportunities in the state and the Virginia Triple Crown is among the best — check out my list of the top six hikes in Virginia, as well. The Triple Crown is a 37-mile backpacking loop that includes three of the …
Litter Rescue Class and the Potomac Mountain Club’s 75th Anniversary
I joined a crew of a couple dozen or so members of the Potomac Mountain Club (PATC-MS) for their 75th anniversary celebrations at Seneca Rocks. I unfortunately missed out on their DC area celebrations in the days leading up to this event, which also included an alumni and history night with Jan Conn at Hearst Hall and climbing at Carderock, …
Backpacking the Allegheny Front Trail in Pennsylvania (42 miles)
A group of us from DC UL Backpacking decided we needed a change of pace from Virginia backpacking, so we headed north to Pennsylvania so we could hike the Allegheny Front Trail up near State College, Pennsylvania over the recent three-day weekend. The Allegheny Front Trail (AFT) is a relatively recently completed trail (1998) and which forms a nearly 42-mile loop …
Backpacking North Fork Mountain (24 miles) and Climbing at Seneca
I finally got out to North Fork Mountain with a small crew from DC UL Backpacking… This one has been on my to-do list for awhile now, since I have seen some cool photos from friends that have done it in the past and just because I always notice it while climbing at Seneca (it is the long ridgeline to …
Climbing at Indian Grave Ridge
About a dozen of us from the Potomac Mountain Club headed out for a day trip to climb at the relatively off-the-beaten path crag known as Indian Grave Ridge. The crag is located about halfway between Luray and Front Royal, Virginia in the Massanuttens and is considerably remote for a day trip—long drive up a dirt road and a 45 …
Seven Days in the North Cascades: Alpine Mountaineering and Technical Leadership 2
I recently met up with Chad Cochran with the American Alpine Institute (AAI) for a shortened, 1:1 version of AAI’s Alpine Mountaineering and Technical Leadership 2 (AMTL2) course. The AMTL course is a 4-part series, with the primary goal of Part 2 to make you a qualified rope team leader on rock and glacier routes. My seven days in the …