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Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The Swallow Fork Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains is my daddy

on November 19, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, hiking

In the Great Smoky Mountains National Park lies a beautiful little 4 mile trail called the Swallow Fork Trail. It is halfway between the Catalootchee and Cosby trailheads in the less visited eastern side of the park. In 2003 after losing to the New York Yankees, Pedro Martinez said in a post game interview: “They [...]

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Charles C. Deam Wilderness

Charles C. Deam Wilderness fall photo essay for #frifotos

on November 12, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, hiking, Photograph of the week, United States

Every Friday on twitter travelers share their pictures dedicated to a theme. This week it is fall. Since I just returned from a hike with the Chicago Backpackers in the Charles C. Deam Wilderness in the Hoosier National Forest, I thought I would partake in this grand tradition. The Charles C. Deam Wilderness is a [...]

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Steripen

Five holiday gift ideas for your backpacker

on November 10, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, camping, Gear review, hiking

Black Friday is just around the corner, so now is the time to start thinking about what to get your loved ones for the holidays. If one of those loved ones is an adventure traveler or a backpacker, think of these possibilities. Steripen adventurer- This item can decontaminate a liter of water in seconds with [...]

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Chicago Backpackers

Ten reasons to join the Chicago Backpackers

on November 8, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, camping, hiking

In the past two weeks, I have been on two backpacking trips. One was a solo trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The other was with the Chicago Backpackers to the Charles C. Deam Wilderness in the Hoosier National Forest in Indiana. The backpacking experience is quite enjoyable whether it is solo or [...]

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Mt. Sterling Smoky Mountains

On top of Mt. Sterling all covered in trees in the Great Smoky Mountains

on October 27, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, camping, hiking, United States

Mt. Sterling is located on the northwest side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is the twelfth highest mountain in the park, and one of the highest not found on the Appalachian Trail outside Mt. Leconte. Mt. Sterling is 5,842 feet high. The highlight of the mountain is an old fire tower situated on its peak. [...]

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Backpacking picture

10 Top Tips for Backpackers

on October 24, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking

The anticipation of your first backpacking trip can fill you with both excitement and a sense of trepidation.  You’ve most probably been planning it for some time; having carefully selected the destinations on your itinerary, scrimped and saved your hard earned cash and chatted to your fellow backpackers, the time has finally come to pack [...]

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Drive south to the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee

on October 19, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, camping, hiking, Photograph of the week

A couple of years ago, I was heading down to Knoxville, Tennessee for a college football game between Georgia and Tennessee. After the game, I was going to hike in the Great Smoky Mountains. Before I left on my way from a Chicago suburb to Tennessee, I called the local radio station and talked to [...]

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Big South Fork National Recreation Area

How to choose a backcountry camping site when backpacking

on August 3, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, camping, hiking

It seems it would be easy to choose a backcountry camping site while backpacking; however, there is more than meets the eye when making this decision. One would think it would be only a matter of throwing down the pack on a flat piece of ground and setting up the tent. More variables need consideration [...]

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Peru and Machu Picchu via the Inca Trail

Machu Picchu, Peru, and love for the Inca Trail

on July 18, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, hiking, South America

Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail is the subject of this guest post by Christine Garland. A few months ago she reached out to me on twitter. It has been a perfect match as she is the marketing director for Chicago’s Uncle Dan’s Great Outdoor Store, and I am one of Chicago’s most prominent adventure [...]

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Top 10 essential hiking items from Simply Hike

on May 23, 2011 in Adventure travel, backpacking, hiking

Those that are experienced hikers sometimes take for granted that new hikers might have no clue how to begin as far as equipment is concerned.  The guys at Simply Hike have been in touch with me over doing a blog post. Here it is and in it they make it easy for hiking newbies to [...]

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