travel light, wake early, walk far
False Cape State Park is unique among Virginia's state parks in that it's inaccessible except through Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. You have to bike or walk to get there. Similar to other barrier islands the eastern side faces the ocean and the western side faces the bay. Because Back Bay doesn't have overnight parking,... Continue Reading →
“David! A giant moose is 5 feet from your tent!” Logan (“Professor”) whispered this warning flatly but urgently. I had been lying comfortably on my back under a fluffy down quilt, reading before falling asleep after a strenuous day hiking in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Of course I had heard an animal outside my... Continue Reading →
Intro to Packrafting: Pray for Rain Originally I'd planned for this weekend to be the latest Intro to Packrafting trip. DC UL has occasionally done this trip which involves backpacking along part of the Massanutten Trail, camping overnight, then paddling back to the starting point on packrafts. While researching this trip I found helpful trip... Continue Reading →
(Based on a true story) Mark V (“Brightside”) thought he found the perfect way to avoid starring in one of my Trip Reports. We’ll see how that worked out for him. Due to a hip injury Brightside could not hike the 2026 iteration of the “Tour de Sods.” This annual, epic route circumnavigates both the... Continue Reading →
“Stop looking at the GPS and just push through the brush!” Wesal (“WB”) exclaimed. We had been trying to follow an unblazed, wildly overgrown trail in the mountains of Cranberry Wilderness in West Virginia. Nature clearly had reclaimed this trail. Our shins were cut up from brambly, low growth and my thighs started developing red... Continue Reading →
