Camping

Dutch Oven Cooking – Pot Roast and Summer Vegetables

Hey there, folks! It's been hot. Like, really, non-stop heat index well north of 100 deg F hot. Too hot to do much other than hang out in air conditioning as much as possible. So as a result, I've been indoors too much! Now that it is August (classically cool, August...), temperatures have dropped significantly,…Read more Dutch Oven Cooking – Pot Roast and Summer Vegetables

Little Bennett Regional Park, Montgomery County, MD – NuCamp T@G

A couple weeks back I wrote about some modifications I was making to our little NuCamp T@G teardrop camper. This weekend, we took it out to spend some time with some good friends and fellow empty-nester couples. Our destination was new to us, but it came recommended as a place requiring a reasonably short drive,…Read more Little Bennett Regional Park, Montgomery County, MD – NuCamp T@G

Invasive Feral Hogs in the Smoky Mountains

A lot of my blog-posting derives from encountering something interesting that prompts me to go down a road of research and discovery. This is one of those posts. Last week, my son and I spent three days and two nights backpacking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (more on that soon, including video), and we…Read more Invasive Feral Hogs in the Smoky Mountains

Assateague Island National Seashore, MD

Running for 37 miles along Maryland's eastern shore, Assateague Island is wild Atlantic coast. It's a barrier island, long and slender with the Atlantic Ocean on on the east side and a shallow saltwater bay on the west. In between, several different ecosystems and habitats shift with the seasonal ebb and flow of tides, coastal…Read more Assateague Island National Seashore, MD

Haleakala Crater from Pa Ka'oao

Backpacking Haleakala, Maui: Overnight in a Volcano

February 9-10, 2025 -- Most people, when you mention Hawai'i, think of a lush tropical paradise and beautiful beaches. But these islands wouldn't be what they are without the volcanism that created them. On the "newer" islands in particular, Hawai'i has some significant volcanoes that reach above 10,000 feet elevation and create their own weather…Read more Backpacking Haleakala, Maui: Overnight in a Volcano

Backpacking: Browns Hollow and Emerald Knob, Massanutten Mountain, Luray, VA

Aug 31-Sept 1, 2024 -- Racing thunderstorms to reach a beautiful spring-fed pond high up on the ridges of Massanutten Mountain within George Washington National Forest, Luray, VA. The embedded video tracks an overnight trip in late summer, dealing with wet weather and finding surprising isolation within the very narrow Massanutten ridge system. Spring-fed Emerald…Read more Backpacking: Browns Hollow and Emerald Knob, Massanutten Mountain, Luray, VA

Backpacking Sugar Knob / Racer Camp Hollow – VA/WV

Oct 27-28, 2023 -- A beautiful 12 mile loop in the Great North Mountain area of the George Washington National Forest, along the VA/WV border. The embedded video tracks an overnight trip in October, slightly past the peak of fall color in the Allegheny Mountains. I had numerous and varied wildlife sightings and solitude during…Read more Backpacking Sugar Knob / Racer Camp Hollow – VA/WV

New Mexico or Bust

We're almost ready. After numerous small trips (of escalating difficulty and complexity), skills work, planning sessions, gear shakedowns, shakedowns, and more shakedowns, we're on the homestretch. Within 72 hours, we'll all be headed for Colorado, and then New Mexico, for a two-week expedition. The training has paid off. We've managed to get a bunch of…Read more New Mexico or Bust