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Home » Archive for  Musings (Page 2)

Category: Musings

My views on life, the universe, and everything.

Small, good things.

Posted onSeptember 30, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

A recent social media post made me think about shorter hikes and how they add up to a collective whole; much like a collection of well-crafted short stories. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsfavorite, gift of time

How to make staying local into a #epicadventure

Posted onSeptember 15, 2020October 8, 2020AuthorJoan2 Comments

Joan shares five tips on how to find joy in the local areas. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagscovid 19, Joan West, keep it local, Wilderness Ethics

Green friendly, consumerism, and minimalism – Some thoughts

Posted onSeptember 14, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags11 Comments

Thinking (virtually) out loud about some ideas on the green-friendly movement, consumerism, and minimalism as it pertains to the outdoors. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsconsuerism, favorite, green friendly

Times are a changin’ – Walking in time of weather extremes

Posted onSeptember 13, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags4 Comments

Call it climate change, weather events, cycles, or bad juju. But there are more fires, swings in snow levels, droughts, closures, etc. Some thoughts. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsclimate, favorite, weather, wildfires

An ode to the USPS

Posted onAugust 19, 2020August 22, 2020AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

Why the US Postal System holds so much importance during my outdoor travels. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsmaildrops, postal service, USPS

How to get ultralight?

Posted onJuly 30, 2020August 3, 2020AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

Going ultralight with your gear is a Holy Grail of sorts for many new to backpacking. Here are some thoughts on achieving that goal. Read More …

CategoriesGear, Getting Started, MusingsTagsultralight

On being an amateur professional

Posted onJune 26, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

What is a professional outdoors person? Who knows for sure. But I am an avowed amateur. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsfavorite, time bank

RIP Kia Sorento, 2005 – 2020

Posted onJune 25, 2020June 25, 2020AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

The Kia Sorento died this past Sunday. Long live the Kia Sorento. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsKia Sorento

How did I get Joan into backpacking ???

Posted onJune 8, 2020June 10, 2020AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

Another “Tales from the trail” as I answer the odd question of how I convinced Joan to backpack. 😉 Read More …

CategoriesMusings, VideosTagsvideos

The Onion, 2014

Posted onJune 4, 2020June 4, 2020AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

A classic of sorts written six years ago. Read More …

CategoriesMusings

Thoughts on the Seventh Principle of Leave No Trace

Posted onMay 22, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags2 Comments

Some thoughts about the Seventh Principle of Leave No Trace: “Be Considerate of Other Visitors.” Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagscommunity, favorite, LNT, Wilderness Ethics

Outdoor pursuits and the greater community

Posted onMay 1, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul MagsLeave a comment

The priority of self vs. the community in outdoor pursuits. And when thinking of the community, you help yourself in the long run. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagscovid19, favorite, giving back

Outdoor Gear and Disaster Preparedness

Posted onMarch 24, 2020January 22, 2021AuthorPaul Mags5 Comments

The recent flood in Boulder had me thinking: Being an outdoors person works well for disaster preparedness.
Read More …

CategoriesGear, MusingsTags72 hours, car camping, gear, outdoors, preparedness, time bank

Why you should stay local for outdoors

Posted onMarch 16, 2020October 8, 2020AuthorPaul Mags3 Comments

Hey folks, please don’t go to small tourist towns for outdoor recreation. It is irresponsible. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagscovid 19, economics, tourism, Wilderness Ethics

Outdoor participation down – Some thoughts

Posted onFebruary 7, 2020December 12, 2020AuthorPaul Mags10 Comments

Less than half of all Americans recreate outdoors, with only one-third recreation ten days or more a year, including day-use activities — some thoughts. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsfree time, time bank

Thoughts on hiking solo

Posted onJanuary 24, 2020January 24, 2020AuthorJoan17 Comments

Joan shares some thoughts on her solo hiking experience. Read More …

CategoriesGetting Started, MusingsTagsJoan West, solo

Musings on backpacking consumerism

Posted onJanuary 10, 2020January 3, 2021AuthorPaul Mags24 Comments

Just some thoughts on gear and clothing as the outdoor equivalent of a fashion item. Read More …

CategoriesMusingsTagsconsuermism, favorite

A Decade of Hiking

Posted onDecember 31, 2019January 7, 2020AuthorPaul Mags1 Comment

I am looking over ten years of outdoor activities that defined a part of my outdoor experience. Read More …

CategoriesMusings, Other Outdoor Jaunts

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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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  • Home
  • Ramblings
    • Musings
    • Books and Media
    • 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)
      • The Northern New Mexico Loop
    • Other Outdoor Jaunts
      • Utah
      • Colorado
      • New Mexico
      • Arizona
      • California
      • Florida
      • Georgia
      • Nebraska
      • New England
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      • North Carolina
      • Oregon
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      • Texas
      • Wyoming
    • Photos
    • PMags News
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  • Nuts and Bolts
    • New to the outdoors? Start here!
    • Getting Started
    • Quick Tips
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    • Quick and Dirty Guides
    • Food
    • Gear
      • All Gear Posts
      • Gear Reviews
      • Gear Quivers
      • Gear Lists
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      • What I’m Wearing
      • Clothing and related
      • Footwear
      • Packs
      • Shelters and related
      • Sleeping bags, quilts, and pads
      • Stoves, cooking, and related
      • Water containers
    • Road trip and car camping – gear and techniques
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