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Home »RamblingsPage 45

Four Days in the Dark

Posted onNovember 5, 2018November 5, 2018AuthorPaul Mags4 Comments

Four days backpacking in Dark Canyon with a friend. Read More …

CategoriesOther Outdoor JauntsTagsColorado Plateau, utah

Review: Desert Cabal by Amy Irvine

Posted onOctober 30, 2018January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

An overlook at a book that is lauded as a response to Desert Solitaire on the 50th anniversary of its publication. Read More …

CategoriesBooks and MediaTagsbooks, Ed Abbey, utah-tip, Wildness

Canyonlands Sojourn

Posted onOctober 29, 2018December 19, 2018AuthorPaul Mags4 Comments

An overnight trip in Canyonlands National Park in the Salt Creek Zone. With meandering canyons, ancient sites, and amazing ancient art. Read More …

CategoriesOther Outdoor JauntsTagsAncestral Pueblo, Canyonlands National Park, Colorado Plateau, Petroglyphs, pictographs, utah

Quick Tip: Easy Cowboy-style Coffee

Posted onOctober 25, 2018October 25, 2018AuthorPaul Mags9 Comments

An easy way to make Cowboy-style coffee without the muss and chewy grounds by using a coffee filter sachet. Read More …

CategoriesGetting Started, Quick TipsTagscoffee, food, quick tip

The Obscure Arches National Park

Posted onOctober 23, 2018April 30, 2019AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

Two days exploring Arches National Park and nearby BLM land a little off the beaten path. Read More …

CategoriesOther Outdoor JauntsTagsArches National Park, Colorado Plateau, Moab, utah

Cedar Mesa Redux

Posted onOctober 22, 2018May 21, 2019AuthorPaul Mags4 Comments

Two days in Cedar Mesa. Camping, hiking, sunset views, canyons, and remnants of the Ancestral Pueblo past. Read More …

CategoriesOther Outdoor JauntsTagsAncestral Pueblo, Bears Ears National Monument, Cedar Mesa, Colorado Plateau, utah

Stove Comparison – Real World Use

Posted onOctober 17, 2018April 26, 2025AuthorPaul Mags37 Comments

An overview of backpacking stove types with their pluses and minuses. No such thing a the “best stove”…just what is best for you. Revised October 2018. Read More …

CategoriesGear, Getting StartedTagsburn bans, popular, stoves

Industry Terms, Outdoor Gear, and Marketing Buzz

Posted onOctober 16, 2018April 26, 2025AuthorPaul Mags5 Comments

Some musings on how industry terms for outdoor gear become marketing buzz. And how people use buzzwords to purchase gear without thinking what the terms mean. Read More …

CategoriesGear, MusingsTagsindustry, outdoor gear

Natural Bridges and Cedar Mesa: A Bit Obscure

Posted onOctober 15, 2018October 22, 2018AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

Exploring two unmarked lesser known canyons in the Natural Bridges National Monument and Cedar Mesa. Read More …

CategoriesOther Outdoor JauntsTagsAncestral Pueblo, Bears Ears National Monument, Cedar Mesa, Colorado Plateau, national monument, Natural Bridges National Monument, utah

Gear review: NatureHike Foam Pad (Z-Lite clone)

Posted onOctober 11, 2018April 26, 2025AuthorPaul Mags9 Comments

Here’s a $27 alternative to the $45 Z Lite or the new $50 Nemo Switchback. Similar specs and performance at about half the price. Read More …

CategoriesGearTagsbudget gear, gear review, sleeping bag, sleeping pads

Quick Tip: Psuedo Deadman Anchors

Posted onOctober 10, 2018April 29, 2022AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

Deadman anchors are the way to secure a shelter in soft sand or snow. But there is a happy medium between a true deadman anchor and hoping your stakes hold. Read More …

CategoriesGear, Getting Started, Quick TipsTagsdead man anchor, quick tip, tent stakes, utah-tip

Sleepings Pads – A grounded view

Posted onOctober 9, 2018April 26, 2025AuthorPaul Mags22 Comments

An overview and comparison of sleeping pads for backpacking and camping. Updated October 2018. Read More …

CategoriesGear, Getting StartedTagspopular, sleeping bag, sleeping pads

Gear review: Altra Superior 3.5

Posted onOctober 9, 2018April 26, 2025AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

A very comfortable and light shoe that fits wider toe-boxes well. Not durable, however, and best for maintained trails and non-rough terrain. Read More …

CategoriesGearTagsAltra, footwear, gear, gear review, review

Rainy Arches Weekend

Posted onOctober 8, 2018October 8, 2018AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

An overnight backpacking trip in Arches National Park and nearby BLM land. Read More …

CategoriesOther Outdoor JauntsTagsArches National Park, Colorado Plateau, utah

Gear Review – Atlas Guides GDT app

Posted onOctober 5, 2018January 3, 2020AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

A review of the Atlas Guides (Guthook) Great Divide Trail app for Android and iOS-based devices. More than just navigation, it works as a guidebook, too. Read More …

CategoriesGearTagsapp, electronics, gear review, maps, navigation

Gear Review: Montbell Versalite

Posted onOctober 4, 2018December 21, 2023AuthorPaul Mags3 Comments

A light, functional, and effective jacket that packs a lot of features in a 6 oz package. Including pit zips! Read More …

CategoriesGearTagsclothing, gear review, montbell, rain gear, versalite

Rain Gear – What To Wear?

Posted onOctober 4, 2018February 4, 2026AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

Which rain gear or shell to wear? Depending on the conditions, one piece of gear may be better than another. Updated October 2018. Read More …

CategoriesGear, Getting StartedTagsclothing, rain gear, shell, wind shirt, winter

Gear review: Salomon X Ultra 3 Hiking Shoes

Posted onOctober 3, 2018April 26, 2025AuthorPaul Mags6 Comments

An all-purpose hiking shoe good for rough trails and conditions in addition to off-trail jaunts. Reminiscent of the old Montrail Hardrocks in many ways. Read More …

CategoriesGearTagsfootwear, gear, gear review, review

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A Quick Guide to Moab

The Squak – A readily available, $60, active-focused grid fleece hoodie from a Utah-based company. Read the review.

Women’s | Men’s | Children’s   

The Squak Camp Dress 

One of Joan’s favorites!

The Squak Alpha Fleece 

                                                                    

– 15% off coupon = PMAGS-SQUAK                                                                                                      

  • REI: Shop Deal of the Day at REI Garage!
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PMags Instagram

Bearing witness in a changed, post-fire landscape. Fire and flood shape the environment; some history passes away, while other traces remain untouched. The land eventually recovers: Some of it recently, some of it long after my lifetime.
On a rare group trip, we heard rain overnight and woke to this raging torrent. After the Babylon Fire, flooding was inevitable. The water carried a lot of ash.
@ramblinghemlock and I went to a place above the desert floor, where elk bugled, and there were expansive views of Capitol Reef and the Henry Mountains.
The hot and dry summer may account for the early leaf changing and somewhat muted colors. Still, not a bad sight.
@ramblinghemlock and I did an overnight to an obscure peak with an amazing viewscape. From the summit, we could see the Abajos and La Sals (our “home” mountains), distant 13ers and 14ers along the horizon, and the red rock country over the horizon. An incredible sunset capped off the evening.
Local mountains view. A touch of fall up high.

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      • My Alphabet Soup summary
      • Vermont’s Long Trail
      • Appalachian Trail
      • Pacific Crest Trail
      • Colorado Trail
      • Continental Divide Trail
      • Ring The Peak Trail (Pike’s Peak)
      • Benton Mackaye Trail
      • Tahoe Rim Trail
      • Uinta Highline Trail
      • Collegiate Loop
      • A Walk Across Southern Utah
      • Great Divide Trail (Canada)
      • The Northern New Mexico Loop
      • Grand – Moab Route
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