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Home » Archive for  Musings

Category: Musings

My views on life, the universe, and everything.

The last journey

Posted onJuly 30, 2021August 2, 2021AuthorPaul Mags5 Comments

Polar explorers talk about the concept of last journeys. Maybe we are in the age of last, traditionally defined, other outdoor journeys as well? Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsclimate change, favorite

Bear spray canister copy/pasta

Posted onJuly 23, 2021August 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags12 Comments

More people insist they need bear spray when venturing into black bear country because “it is better to have it and not need it.”—my boilerplate response. Read More …

CategoriesGear, Getting Started, MusingsTagsbears

Ending campfire romanticism

Posted onJune 21, 2021July 19, 2021AuthorPaul Mags16 Comments

I’ve made a case that campfires belong in the past with other practices. And to make that change, we need to change the culture around campfires—some thoughts. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagscampfires, climate, favorite, LNT

To NOT build a fire

Posted onJune 10, 2021July 7, 2021AuthorPaul Mags17 Comments

Why backcountry campfires should no longer be a regular part of the backpacking experience. Updated with modified views. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagscampfires, climate, favorite, LNT

Lightweight backpacking concepts for couples

Posted onMay 4, 2021May 5, 2021AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

A look at lightweight backpacking concepts for couples. More so than solo, lightweight backpacking as a couple means the overall system. Some thoughts. Read More …

CategoriesGear, MusingsTagscouples, partners, sharing gear

The scourge of Rec DOT gov

Posted onApril 12, 2021April 21, 2021AuthorPaul Mags31 Comments

Recreation DOT gov gets managed by the multi-billion dollar DC beltway firm of Booz-Allen-Hamilton. And here’s why I think it’s awful. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagspublic lands

Canyons less traveled

Posted onApril 6, 2021April 6, 2021AuthorPaul Mags1 Comment

Another weekend spent at the bottom of a canyon. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsAncestral Pueblo, Bears Ears National Monument, utah

Rock Images Gallery

Posted onMarch 4, 2021March 4, 2021AuthorPaul Mags5 Comments

A collection of rock images from over the years spanning mainly Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. But also Nevada, the High Plains, and even near Banff. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsArizona, Colorado, Colorado Plateau, High Plains, Nevada, New Mexico, Petroglyphs, pictographs, utah

Images, not vandalism

Posted onFebruary 26, 2021March 18, 2021AuthorPaul Mags3 Comments

Thoughts on why images are not vandalism. And reasons why people are calling them images rather than “rock art” as well. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsAncestral Pueblo, Arizona, Colorado, favorite, New Mexico, Petroglyphs, pictrographs, utah

Website of the week: Drought.gov

Posted onJanuary 19, 2021January 19, 2021AuthorPaul Mags4 Comments

A look at a fascinating, interesting, and ultimately sobering website. Read More …

CategoriesBooks and Media, MusingsTagsclimate, Website of the week

Love letters from devoted readers

Posted onJanuary 6, 2021January 7, 2021AuthorPaul Mags4 Comments

Feeling the love from the wonderful comments from over the years. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagshumor

2020: COVID, disappointment, and giving fewer f****

Posted onDecember 23, 2020December 25, 2020AuthorPaul Mags10 Comments

My year in review. A year I found disappointment but also much happiness. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsyear in review

Thoughts on gatekeeping

Posted onNovember 19, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags18 Comments

What is gatekeeping? And is withholding specific location information a form of it? Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsfavorite, gatekeeping, Wilderness Ethics

Gifts for yourself: A practical gift guide

Posted onNovember 9, 2020November 9, 2020AuthorPaul Mags3 Comments

Here are some gift ideas that an outdoors person can get for themselves. And they can be used in all seasons and in the coming years ahead. Updated for 2020. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsgift guide, gifts, holidays

Signs of the outdoors – Part 2

Posted onOctober 28, 2020October 28, 2020AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

More signs I found amusing over my years of wilderness travel. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagshumor, signs

Back to the 1920s – Thoughts on outdoor rec

Posted onOctober 22, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags15 Comments

Thoughts on the state of outdoor recreation in our modern times. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsfavorite, National Parks, time bank, Wildness

Signs of the Outdoors – Part 1

Posted onOctober 20, 2020October 28, 2020AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

A collection of signs I found amusing from my (mainly) outdoor travels. Part 1. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagshumor, signs

The politics of blaze orange and COVID masks

Posted onOctober 8, 2020November 10, 2020AuthorPaul Mags9 Comments

People on either side of the political divide are often more alike than different. They both eschew practicality and safety for political statements. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsCOVID, LNT, Wilderness Ethics

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@ramblinghemlock used a cotton bandanna pee rag re @ramblinghemlock used a cotton bandanna pee rag regularly since 2010 in environments as diverse as the desert of the Colorado Plateau to hikes in the Smokies. ... This past year she started using the well-known and popular @kulacloth favored by many backpackers. ... Here are Joan’s thoughts on contrasting the Kula Cloth to the humble bandanna EDIT: For the curious, we added a link to a $10 MYOG kit (with 100 fasteners) that requires no sewing! ... 🥾More thoughts via link in profile.⛺ ... #hiking #backpackpacking #camping #LNT
Hiking and camping with friends in the La Sal Moun Hiking and camping with friends in the La Sal Mountains. ... #hiking #camping #utah #Moab #LaSals
After our time in the San Juans, we went to the ed After our time in the San Juans, we went to the edge of the Colorado Plateau to Chimney Rock National Monument. This Ancestral Pueblo settlement perches on a prominent overlook with rock formations that line up with an 18.5-year lunar cycle. … Located at the edge of the mountains and the Colorado Plateau, this area also served to trade with various goods found onsite. Most prominently, Chimney Rock is in direct alignment with Chaco Canyon ninety miles away, with possible signal fires getting seen across the distance between these two points. The Pueblo founded other settlements in the area. … I last went there just after Chimney Rock became a national monument but glad to return as there’s always more to see, and it is a place where Joan’s never visited. We both enjoyed seeing Chimney Rock while in the area. .. #colorado #sanjuans #sanjuansmountains #ChimneyRock #ChimneyRockNationalMonument #archeoastronomy #ColoradoPlateau #AncestralPueblo
@ramblinghemlock and I went to the Weminuche Wilde @ramblinghemlock and I went to the Weminuche Wilderness in the San Juan Mountains.  Though still summer in our desert home, autumn’s arrived in the alpine terrain. The ground cover’s russet, you can hear the elks bugle, and there’s a nip to the night air. … With no 14ers or prominent alpine lakes, we had this stretch mainly to ourselves. Just how we like it! ... #colorado #sanjuans #sanjuansmountains #continentaldividetrail #Weminuche #hiking #backpacking #camping
@ramblinghemlock shows her patented technique for @ramblinghemlock shows her patented technique for drying tents. .. #hiking #Backpacking #colorado
@ramblinghemlock and I started a volunteer role as @ramblinghemlock and I started a volunteer role as a Utah cultural site stewards ( @ut_shpo ) at @fremontindianstateparkmuseum. What does this mean? Joan and I perform monitoring, make notes about site conditions, outreach, and give information about the sites we assist in overlooking. … The state park is just off I70, has camping, and makes an excellent stopover point on your way to and from other areas in Utah. The park itself is along a vital travel corridor both now and in the past. Additionally, the park had a significant settlement of the Fremont people ~700 years ago and later formed an important place for the Paiute, Shoshone, and Ute. In the 19th century, traders and settlers came through. … Pictured here is the well-known and easily accessed “Cave of 100 Hands” that features petroglyphs and pictographs created by the Fremont. And one of the sites we’ll monitor. .. #utah #fremont #fremontindianpark #petrogylphs #pictographs
A Pando-rific Weekend … @ramblinghemlock and I s A Pando-rific Weekend … @ramblinghemlock and I started a volunteer role at @fremontindianstateparkmuseum this past weekend (more to come on a future post) and took the opportunity to explore more of the nearby area. … And that meant hiking and camping at Fish Lake. At nearly 9,000 feet in elevation and six miles long and one-mile wide, this natural lake (the largest in Utah) makes for a unique and historical landscape. The Paiute long inhabited this area, along with forming a significant trading route along the historic Spanish Trail. And a place we want to see more. .. Among the highlights of this area include Pando - an aspen clone considered by many to be among the oldest and largest living organisms in the world. And we camped within sight of it all weekend. .. I have a feeling the Fish Lake area will become a frequent stomping ground for Joan and me. … #hiking #camping #Utah #FishLake #Pando #spanishtrail #greatwesterntrail
The Sunday of Summer in the San Juans … The loca The Sunday of Summer in the San Juans … The local forest service social media page recently called August the “Sunday of Summer.” And I can’t help but think how apt of a descript that ends up being for this time of the year. You see the last of the wildflowers, the aspen leaves start to show some yellow, and there’s a chill in the night air. Summer fades, and fall starts to arrive. … @RamblingHemlock backpacked a thoroughly enjoyable loop that took in the Colorado Trail highway (6+ thru-hikers and 12+ thru-hikers in a 10 mile or so stretch!), an obscure dirt bike trail with no traffic, and a jeep road with only three vehicles on a Sunday. .. Overall, a fine loop to see the last bit of wildflowers, enjoy some ridgeline walks, and ascend from a mountain canyon. .. … #hiking #backpacking #camping #colorado #sanjuans #sanjuanmountains #ColoradoTrail
A Grand weekend … Due to various delays, @Rambli A Grand weekend … Due to various delays, @Ramblinghemlock ‘s flight ended up moving from our small air terminal in Moab to the slightly larger airport in Grand Junction, CO...and not until nearly midnight! … So we took advantage of the change of plans, planned a backpacking trip in Grand Mesa, and ran some errands. Errands that included something we talked about for the past year now and figured, “What the hell, we have a weekday off. Let’s do it!” ;) … So, yes, we got married and enjoyed a “honeymoon” on the world’s largest mesa, hiked at 10k feet, and took a trip that included astounding views, easy walking, and deluxe honeymoon accommodations in the Aspen Lodge for two nights. Or pretty much our typical weekend. … #hiking #backpacking #camping #colorad #grandjunction #grandmesa #newlyweds Photos 8 - 10 c/o @ramblinghemlock
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  • Ramblings
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    • Videos
    • From The Web
    • Thru Hikes, Long Walks, or Routes
      • 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)
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    • Other Outdoor Jaunts
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