Where is the GREATEST hiking experience you've ever had in your life? I mean, the one where you said to yourself "Okay, this is the most incredible landscape I've ever seen in my life".
Northern New Mexico right here. Between Santa Fe National Forest, Bisti Badlands, and every other wilderness area, I've never found anything else as incredible.
A close second is northern Wisconsin. It doesn't look like the rest of the midwest, and it's very eery.
Just last night actually. In the San Diego river valley. It was super clear out with a full moon. I was on top of a hill and the whole valley was lit up by the moonlight. While I was sitting and relaxing after around 8 miles of hiking, I saw a huge meteor with a bright flash, smoke and all. It was awesome. Of course my iPhone doesn't have enough exposure to do any justice.
The top of Mt. Whitney has a view that makes it seem like it is in the middle of Mordor. But it was certainly lacking in the fun for most of the hike. Though the trip did have some really fun individual moments.
My best hiking experiences have been when me and a couple others go super deep innawoods and leave all trace of civilization behind. The beauty is always in the isolation. When we spend a day fishing in a remote place without seeing a single other person, and shoot the shit at night by the fire.
not hiking but bike trekking.
this fall i was in Nepal to do part of the Annapurna circuit. to the highest pass (picture related) then pohkara - ghorka - Kathmandu.
my mind was literally blown, complete experience overload. just so much shit.
power outages, forest full of weed, avalanches, earthquake damages, hot springs, from alpine stone deserts at 5°c to jungles at 38°c. 3000m downhill in a day, and up 1500m the next. Flying with 70 year old Dornier propeller planes into the Himalayas. low budget with no hot water and toilets worse then a public train station.
its travelers crack
>>636997
I did the Annapurna circuit as well and the overall experience was definitely a level beyond anything I have done in North America.
>>636997
Looking to set up solar energy systems in Nepal because I can't see myself only being there on a vacation. I want to be there for months. I've heard the people there are just as beautiful as the landscape (not so much in looks as much as how kind and serene they are). Sound accurate?
>>637059
>Sound accurate?
Not sure if accurate is how it sounds... gay as fuck maybe.
I solo hiked around Mt Hood and almost died traversing snow fields and due to dehydration from vomiting from exhaustion and a broken Steripen. I did about 45 miles in just over 2 days. The view of my truck when I got back was fantastic.
>>637059
Pretty accurate specially away from cities and tourist spots. Really recomend it to you if you really have a skill that may be beneficial for them , and solar system is for sure one of them. Just be careful to avoy scam NGOs
Last year I was there for six months, at a rural school project in the Tamakoshi region east of KTM. Unforgetable experience.
Best out experience was probably at pic related. In the Mid 2000s the BSA rented out a a hunting reserve in the New Mexico desert as a satellite camp of Philmont. You showed up at the base camp, they gave you a map, GPS and a guide (Who was really only there in case you fucked up and vanished into the brush while underway after the first day) . They dropped you off and told you to show up at an outpost in 4 days for resupply after which you had another couple days to hike to a pickup point. Virtually no trails, limited water, and some of the most beautiful night skies I've ever seen.
>>636973
My favorite place that I've been too actually was mordor! I walked the Tongariro Alpine Crossing earlier this year, it was a really cool experience with lots of different landscapes.
>>636941
heading into the rockies has always been special to me. Just the rugged mountains towering over you and the wildlife and scenery. really a wild place.
>>637059
yeah its pretty accurate fantastic people, but you the also see the influence of dumb tourists. they teach kids that begging for chocolate or money is worth it. but its still fine in rural areas.
but just look at the animals and you see how good the people are, never seen so healthy and good looking strays.
solar is really good for their independence while solar electricity might be harder cooking and water did work very well. low tech solution combined with education are key.
Either the Italian Alps or Slovensky Raj in Slovakia.
>>636961
That is a great view...The moon never ceases to fill me with wonder, plus you got the stars.
Nothing like staring into the heavens to get a lovely humbling reminder about the scale of things.
You know when 3D printers come out cheaper someones gonna try and build a rocket ship. I just know it.
New Zealand and Nepal, easily.
>>637149
>most beautiful night skies I've ever seen
What the fuck is up with those New Mexico skies?
I have been to every state in the west and New Mexico and Idaho are just amazing for skies.
Colorado and Utah are nice but its not the same craziness.
Definitely Kalalau Trail on the Na Pali coast in Kauai. Dying to go to Nepal though.
>>636941
Thanks for the Wisconsin shoutout, we're very underrated imo. I wish we had some mountains though.
Do you know where it was? Nicolet national forest maybe?
I've had a lot of fantastic hikes I'll share two.
First, a day in the Yosemite high country, almost totally deserted and full of views like this. Feeling the sun and the wind and seeing views like this was like a /out/gasm.
>>637373
Second, one half a dozen hikes up Mary's Peak. This one I did on a day when the abnormally cold weather brought the layer of clouds which perpetually sits over the Willamette Valley in the winter down from ~8000 feet to around 3000 feet where I could look down on it.
Didn't see anyone else that day either. Most people go up Mary's Peak by driving there and didn't bother due to the snow. I always biked to the bottom and walked up and got a lovely reward for my devotion.
I went on a rafting trip in the arctic circle in northern Alaska about 4 years ago. The absolute and utter isolation of the place was unparalleled in any other place I've been. We had to take a small 10 seater charter plane from Fairbanks to a remote airstrip, and then from there we had to be carted 2-3 at a time in a small bush plane and land on the bank of the river.
Since it's so far north, there are no trees, but only small shrubs. The terrain is mostly comprised of massive gently rolling hills, and without trees to block your view the sensation of vastness is breathtaking. Often we saw caribou herds moving in the distance that numbered the tens of thousands. That combined with the fact that there isn't a human settlement or road for hundreds and hundreds of miles really gives you a feeling of awe that is beyond description.
>>636941
Cerro Chirripo in Costa Rica is amazing. It's very physically challenging but you pass through 5 distinct ecosystems, tons of interesting animals (wild parakeets, lizards, sasquatch, etc...). The summit is something of a hand-over-hand scramble and on the rare clear day you can see the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico. I wasn't that lucky but it was still an amazing adventure.
Don't go in the rainy season since the trail turns into a river of mud
>pic related
>>636941
I want to do this! I live in southern NM!!!
Can you give more specific directions for me to do this hike?
>>637059
Tourist areas are pretty jaded and they will treat any foreigners like they are only good for squeezing money out of.
Away from those areas and you're golden.
The tourism in Nepal has just gone on for too long and become too intense.
>>637565
OP named two general areas.
My favorite are the hikes near taos along the rio grande.
One leads to Mamby Hot springs and another is called Cebolla mesa which is just amazing but straight up and down a 750 ft deep and narrow canyon.
There are literally hundreds of hikes in the area though, everything from high desert to thick mountain pine forests to aspen groves and waterfalls.
>>636941
Wyoming.
>>636941
Kanab Creek Wilderness, located on the north rim of the Grand Canyon.
>>637343
Yep Nicolet National Forest. Place is FUCKIN INCREDIBLE, but in a very subtle way. It's just creepy. Also, there are small mountains in Wisconsin on the west side. Wildcat mountain state park, and pretty much every park in the driftl was region has 1,500 foot hills. Check it out.
>>638531
Where in Wyoming?
>>636941
There isn't a single one. As long as I can get into the woods, I am happy.
>>638555
Generally this, but Laponia holds a special place in my heart
>>638551
Sadly I don't get out of my county in the most boring part of the state much so you've probably seen more of our natural beauty than me.
Do you remember what county/area you were in?
>>636941
Night time walk in winter. About 2 inches of snow on the ground. Tripping balls from shrooms. All of this done in WA state.
>>636941
Atacama desert. Hands Down.
Went up to northern Finland last March, just south of the border with Norway. For an English city-boy, it was the most beautiful place I've ever seen. Snow blanketed forests, frozen lakes and the most beautiful night sky I've ever seen. 20/10 would recommend. I've got a few pics saved on my computer, will post some tomorrow.
>>638903
Finland is wonderful but you need to have a look at America anon.
The skies there are other worldly.
I think I would rather live in Norway than the states though fram
>>638926
>Finland is wonderful but you need to have a look at America anon.
>The skies there are other worldly.
This is a trap, as soon as you look up this anon will shoot you in the back in self defense
Hiked the Grand Tetons in Wyoming in 8th grade. As a small town boy from Alabama I had never seen anything like that.
>>636941
Carnivorous Plan Bogs in Cape Breton, sooo fucking green
>>638828
In Nicolet Nat. Forest, I checked out Cathedral Pines State Park, Quartz Trail, and some unmarked trail in the wilderness area. Gigantic pine trees that looked like towers all over the place. Slept on a gravel backroad in a storm. Shit was intense.
What county are you in? I know every good place in WI
>>636941
Anyone been too Baffin Island?
>>636941
The narrows in Zion. Hiking 15 miles through a river ankle to chest deep at times was amazing. And the looming rain clouds which could potentially be a flash flood certainly added some thrill to the hike.
Zion
>>638903
This is the sort of place I was hiking through.
>>639061
kek
>>639143
Waukesha.
Just out the Milwaukee metro
>implying you aren't an NSA informant
I've been to Devil's Lake (with my family when it was busy so I didn't get too wild), and the whole of the kettle moraine is pretty close so I've been to a few of those (they're in units, Pike Lake, Lapham Peak, north, south etc).
Whenever I drive anywhere north of here all I do is just stare out the window, it's fuckin mystical senpai.
>>637374
Holy fuck. That's stunning.
>>637373
Goddamn I need to get back to Yosemite
Mauna kea in Hawai'i was pretty cool. The terrain was mars-esque.
>mfw my phone died and I have no pictures
>>639931
Hello, brother.
Good luck getting out of that place.
Table Rock in NC. Went on an Outward Bound thing when I was a kid and loved it there. Not much of a hiker, but chilling on that rock over night and the next morning was nice.
>>639157
No, I want to go up to Nunavut one summer though, I hear it's breath taking up there.
>>636941
Red River Gorge, Kentucky
>>639143
different anon here, I camp right near cathedral pines all the time, been going up to that area since I was 7
>>636941
Isn't that Acoma?
>>641893
really? I stumbled upon it by accident. It's incredible. I want to go back soon, where do you camp? Is it dangerous in that area? Also, are there any other good areas in Cathedral pines state park?
Also, I'm talking about the one in WI, not NJ
>>641931
boot lake national park
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Boot+Lake+Campground/@45.2685778,-88.6456583,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x5daa53e818557676?sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwiBlaj7uMbJAhXBPCYKHQcZBTYQ_BIIbDAN
i went alone this fall, there was one trailer on the far loop and one tent on the lake. no one from the trailer ever was there, i think they were just parking it. tent was never occupied and disappeared one morning early. i think they pussed out when it got cold and stayed somewhere else.
amenities are pit toilets, boat launch, and a hand pump well. never saw a forest ranger, must have all been out west putting out fires.
in colder weather it is a great place to stay and totally abandoned.
pic related, typical spot. the ones on the lake are close together, the other loops are very secluded and heavily wooded
>>641931
not dangerous, only coyotes. my dad and i went up there when i was 7, stopped at a ranger station and they told us about the campground. been coming ever since. saw the cathedral of pines on a points of interest map, went there exploring first or second trip.
>>641931
here is a pic of my ex gf walking in the cathedral
>>641936
>boot lake national park
wut? there is no boot lake national park
>>641974
typo while drunk, boot lake national campground. it is run by the US forest service.
>>641708
This x10000
>>642970
>A-are you going to tell me all the good places in Wisconsin?
I didn't even see your post. Here's a list of my favorite places.
Ellison Bay Headlands (Door county)
Ellison Bay bluffs (Door County)
Cave Point county park
Peninsula State Park
Ice Age Trail, Kettle Moraine Southern Unit
Wildcat Mountain State park - Mt. Pigsah
Gibraltar Rock
Baxter's Hollow (Place basically has no trail)
- Pretty much anything in Nicolet National Forest. Definitely Cathedral Pines state park.
Governor Dodge State Park
Spring Green Preserve (Wisconsin's only desert)
Rock Island
Newport State Park
That's all I've seen so far. Check out Door peninsula, Nicolet national forest, and "The driftless region". I haven't checked out the driftless region much, but it has huge hills and is supposedly the most interesting part of Wisconsin.
>>643003
Thank you anon! That's actually really helpful, those all sound cool. Yeah the driftless region is the only part that didn't get touched by the glaciers of the last ice age so it's interesting.
Recently, I've had the worry that I'll never truly be fulfilled in my /out/ spirit in the Midwest because there's no mountains or any really remarkable sights, and that I'll have to travel hundreds of miles to see these things.
Is that true at all? Can I really be fulfilled in Wisconsin or will I be doomed to travel the world looking for cool mountains?
>>643027
I've been around the Midwest and West. Wisconsin is fucking rad. Wisconsin and UP of Michigan are easily the best /out/ places in the Midwest.
Nicolet National Forest is probably the closest thing to a forest you'd find out West, because it's the "northern highlands", and the whole area is around 1,500 feet elevation, so the landscape looks different up there.
Wisconsin has it's surprises, you have to dig for them though. I like Wisconsin because you don't have to worry about dangerous wildlife. No rattle snakes (except for driftless region), no grizzlies, not many wolves, and no mountain lions.
I think Wisconsin is somewhat fulfilling, especially for the Midwest, but the West has the advantage because it has SO MUCH PUBLIC LAND. I mean if you look at the map, like 1/4 of entire states are just public land filled with mountains/canyons/messas ect.
I would say just take a drive out to New Mexico/Colorado/Wyoming/Utah/Oregon, and maybe sleep in your car or a tent when you have some time. You can always move out there too if you have a degree in something or a skill. I think Wisconsin is more fulfilling than a lot of other states. I'd take it over the South and most of the East.
>>639061
Underrated post.
>>643038
Yeah, don't get me wrong, I love Wisconsin to death. What state are you based out of? You sound like you've been everywhere.
And I wish there were all sorts of dangerous creatures to fight off, I'd personally take mountain lions over our mosquitoes anyway.
We're going to take it back one day anon, we're going to take it back.
It'll be Wisconsin's once again, forever.
Boulder Pass trail in Glacier
>>638836
>trippin balls on shrooms
Yep you sound like a typical insufferable Seattle hipster
>>639160
I did that as a little kid. It really was amazing. I wanna go back now :'(
Angels landing, Zion national park in Utah
pic not great but the area is surreal. if you visit would recommend hidden canyon in the same park
>enter thread
>its only places in Murrica
feels bad man, would wish bros from other continents would drop some knowledge too
>>643465
Holy shit, that photoshop is awful.
>>643469
it is i just liked the street glowing in the valley
>>643469
Pretty sure thats an ultra long night exposure.
We used to do those back in the days of film.
Not sure if its done now with digital cameras
>>643474
>ultra long night exposure
Yes, but the sky is horribly photoshopped.
>>643474
Could explain why it's not, but whatever. It just really irks me when people do shit like that.
Here's the original.
>>636941
I technically didn't hike the whole thing, but the park and the peak of Mount Haleakala were on another level. Looking down at an ocean of clouds from 10k feet up, with the clouds rising and falling down the mountain in giant waves.
This was years ago (im an oldfag), but day seven of nine in Yosemite, we were just dropping down toward Rancheria Creek and came across a hiker slouching on a rock. He was dirty, the skeeters has fuuucked him up good, and he was out of food. Probably a solid day of walking away from any road, and we were the first people he had seen in two days.
So we stopped and brewed up, fed him soup and chocolate and some bacon we still had for some reason. The tears just flowed out of him.
He bucked up pretty fast though, the food did him good. We set him up with some bug juice and my buddy gave the guy his "Chinese mosquito helmet" and some oatmeal to get him out of the woods. We left him, he was grinning like an idiot and assured us he would be ok.
Anyhoo it made a lasting impression on me. The things we take for granted, being out of food a days walk from anywhere, and people looking out for one another. The views were even more profound after that.
>>643791
Also, the time we carried a small bbq and a case of Budweisers and a bag of ice up Half Dome. We had a little party at the top and shared beers and dogs with the people who were up there. It wasn't much of a spread, but people were really happy to drink a cold one and shoot the shit.
My usual antipathy evaporated and it was good times.
My favorite trip was in Big Sur. The parts we were at didn't have the breathtaking sights like Yosemite or Death Valley but it was still great. Relaxing at hot springs and jumping into the cold river.
This is my favorite. My buddy and I set our tents up at the top of this plateau out in Canyonlands, then proceeded to smoke some weed we picked up in Colorado and sip whiskey by our little brush fire.
10/10 would hike in the blistering sun with fixed water supply again
>>641898
No thats Taos pueblo.
Acoma is even cooler and is the pueblo that Aldus Huxley used to write Brave New World.
Good luck attacking this city surrounded by rock cliffs .
>>639241
I second that. Ended up there last June.
>>637384
how'd you get involved in that anon? I'm guessing that was Gates of the Arctic NP?
>>643946
>making fires in non established rings in a national park of all places.
Fuck You
>>636941
state side
Acadia
outside of us....
>>644654
outside of use
north side of the north island new zealand
>>636941
Several years ago me and my friends traveled down the Danube on a raft made out of empty plastic bottles for two weeks (something like 150 km). The whole thing was something you could call life changing.
>>636941
In scouts, at a huge camp in west Virginia called the summit. It was a brutal fucking hike up a mountain to a shitty activity day, but the scenery going up was incredible. Giant red cliffs with natural reflecting ponds under them, small waterfalls and streams, with nearly tropical looking vegetation everywhere. Once we got to the top, it was super misty and incredibly beautiful, it looked like the kind of thing that would be a desktop wallpaper. Sadly, my camera I brought was only a phone camera, so any pics I took came out super shitty.
>>636941
>Northern New Mexico right here. Between Santa Fe National Forest, Bisti Badlands, and every other wilderness area, I've never found anything else as incredible
Good to see another New Mexican on here OP.
The San Juan Basin badlands (which includes Bisti) is one of my favorite places in northern NM. But let me tell you--New Mexico is NOTHING compared to Southern Utah. Go to Moab, or Canoyonlands, Or Capitol Reef, Or Zion or Bryce. There is nothing in NM that even comes close. Even the Cretaceous badlands east of Capitol Reef blow away those in the San Juan Basin of NM. I go to southern Utah every chance I get (more than 30 trips). The mountains are better in Utah, the Indian ruins are better, the petroglyphs are better, the canyons are better, the rivers are better. There is just one thing better in New Mexico than in Utah...and that would be the cave in Carlsbad. There is even a line in the Bible: "My heart cries out for thee Moab!"
BTW...i just recently moved to a small town (134 people) that is completely surrounded by the Carson National Forest. I'm probably less than 30 miles from Taos Pueblo in your photo. Before that i was 50 hiway miles farther southwest, but believe it or not, I have never been to Taos Pueblo.
![11754753_10207316208653342_2329900389456597093_o[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/vwcoM37.jpg "11754753_10207316208653342_2329900389456597093_o[1].jpg")
I had a trip to southern Poland for a week, the view everywhere was amazing.
But I've only been hiking for 3-4 years so I'm hoping for more great trips to come.
![11411702_10207316050969400_6485470713758843464_o[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/eJXYtJW.jpg "11411702_10207316050969400_6485470713758843464_o[1].jpg")
>>644780
Another one from Poland
>>637192
Your enthusiasm is amazing! lol
Point Magu Peak in Ventura County. Its only a two hour walk, but walking above the Pacific is just magical.
White Mt Peak. I've done it twice, both times leaving the parking lot at around midnight and being on the summit for sunrise. Also magical.
best hike is at the john muir trail
you cannot possibly do better on earth
>>645037
You have got to be joking.
That trail is more crowded than disney land.
The last time was pretty memorable.
I decided to take a one night hike at Urho Kekkonen National Park. Took my tent and hammock and hiked about 10 km first day with bad shoes. I was going to pick some berries but there weren't any. I took some pictures and ate in a day trip hut. The shoes hurt my feet pretty bad so all i managed to do was to pitch the tent and eat.
After only about four hours of sleep I packed up and left. It was middle of the night and it rained a bit. I walked another, longer trail back and stopped only to eat at a campfire site and to fill my water bottle in a stream. The trail rose through a fell but because of the mist visibility was bad. The night was extremely misty but it wasn't dark because it was summer. All in all great trip, because the walk back was so much fun and the atmoshpere was just awesome.
Here's a pic from the top.
>>643454
I'm becoming more and more convinced that I want to live in Utah
>>636941
Hard to pick a fave but the Tête de Chien above Monaco was pretty memorable.
We were in France to do some work in Monaco. Our rental house was right on the beach at the bottom of Les Pissarelles on the west side of Cap d'Ail. We had a free day and I wanted to hike the mountain the whole time, so a buddy came with me.
Mapped and planned the hike: 3 hours up, 2 down. Six liters of water per dude, because I knew it would be hot.
Halfway there and my buddy wanted to turn back, but we persevered. It was over 100 degrees, no shade, no clouds, just the hot-ass sun. Made it to the top in about 4 hours. Ran out of water before we even got there.
Buddy wouldn't go back down the way we came, too steep. So we started walking to La Turbie, down the back side of the mountain (we had come up the front from Cap d'Ail). Figured we could take a bus back to Cap d'Ail but it was like 3 hours before the bus came so I told him lets walk and maybe someone will give us a ride. No one did, unfortunately.
All in all took 8+ hours to go the whole way. We also stumbled through some giant hogweed and got painful as fuck blisters from it. But the view was awesome and I felt very accomplished doing such a strenuous hike in that kind of heat.
Next time I take more water.
