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Boot choice is really variable. Some people love a very warm boot, others hate getting sweaty feet. Some will hike all day in ski boots. Personally I won't put up with stiff plastic boots or a boot that's too heavy. For hiking and camping I have plain old leather work boots, uninsulated...

If you can't access it from the back to thread it in/out completely, you can cut it short, tie the remainder into a loop (e.g., double fisherman's knot) and tie your new lanyard into the loop.

Danger is not a binary (yes or no), it's relative. Arguing about "is activity X dangerous" without a point of comparison is a waste of time. It usually just means that two people each have different comfort thresholds. There's a Gandalf quote that applies: "Even Sam is dangerous in his...

It was the first thing I thought of when I combined "note mentioning Adams" and "car found in Crawford lot". But we don't know when he wrote that note, or why, or whether he changed his mind at any point after writing the note. It's already a pretty big change to go from "hike up Adams" to...

"Triangular head" is another one that's hard to use in practice. Water snakes (and a few others) also have bulging heads. The variable camouflage color patterns of both rattlers and other species can make it very difficult to judge head shape, even if you get a clear view from a useful angle...

Biddeford is within their historical range but nobody's seen one in Maine in a very long time. You'd think somebody would find a shed skin (with evidence of rattles), or at least get a photo, if there were any left. The idea that they're spreading from New Hampshire is kind of unlikely - they...

It was the 1998 USGS map that placed Redington and Spalding above the 4000' contour line (without supplying an exact summit elevation for either one). AMC promptly updated the Maine 4K list. (As they had promised. List-keeping is sometimes subject to human foibles, but this is not one of those...

Yeah, "1200 feet below the Alpine Trail junction" (by elevation) would put him about the top of the Fan. Seems like an obvious thing to try to access that spot from below, but maybe they had bad information about how far up the ravine he was. (Sounds like a drone might have helped!) Note...

Yep, what others have said. Major reroutes in this area, great views, and you should probably avoid the Mt Coe slide in slippery conditions. The old trail routes aren't too hard to find (at least they weren't, 15 years ago), but include some terrain you DEFINITELY do not want to try in the...

peaks near Concord 38 minutes: Pawtuckaway is a fun set of peaks - it's the rim of an ancient caldera. There's also a field of giant boulders (look for the Boulder Trail northwest of Round Pond) trail map (on page 2). It's still summer season, so you might want to make a parking...

I like the Sunset Ridge route, and I second the recommendation to lengthen the hike by spending extra time on the summit ridge. It'll add distance but the main trial on the ridge is very easy, and mostly flat, and it's spectacular. Stop to rest and have a picnic while you're up there. You...

1 and 2) It's been a few years for me, but yeah: there's a section around 3200' after the trail makes its highest crossing of lincoln brook, where the trail has to cross the valley from the west (Franconia ridge) side to the east (owl's head) side. If you look at a topo map the area is rather...

Both lynx and bobcat are possible throughout Vermont, though lynx is mostly restricted to the Northeast Kingdom. Your description sounds a lot like a lynx, but... - estimating size of a rapidly-moving, quickly-glimpsed animal is just not reliable, even for experienced wildlife-watchers...

Pack-raiding at the start of the Mt Tom spur features in the 2021 thread "Pine Marten Mt Field" which shows up under "Similar threads" at the bottom of this page. PB, did you credit the wrong photographer again?

The bold part is not stated in the order you linked. The order refers to 36 cf4 261.58(cc), which pertains to "possession or storage" of food anytime. The order makes an exception for the times when food is actively being prepared or eaten, but not for food that's being "attended". (Nor...

Diapensia was blooming on Franconia Ridge over Memorial Day weekend. It's been a warm year.

If you're wearing ankle braces, why do you need soft fabric inside the tops of your boots? Rather than cover the fabric, cut it free entirely.

I appreciate that the site prospers if new threads get started a bit more frequently than they have been lately, but really, this was a pretty lame attempt. It reads like Steve Buscemi walking the school halls with a skateboard. "How are you doing, fellow hikers?" The fundraising link in your...

A few issues stood out to me: 1) Unclear leadership roles, and, paradoxically, lack of consultation in decision-making. In your initial report it sounded like you were in charge, or took charge. ("I tell group #2 to wait...") Did you present other options to group #1 or group #2? At the...

The 2CV famously had a two-cylinder engine, a "boxer" design as the French say, i think you call it a "flat twin" in English. And it only used ordinary gasoline. (Leaded originally, but they didn't actually change anything in the engine when they switched the recommendation to unleaded around...