Today's Photo

March greetings! This photo of Grand Teton National Park was taken by our friends at NaturalBornHikers.com...whenever I see photos like this one it makes me glad to live where I do, and glad to be an American, despite the ups and downs our country and our society may go through. One of the big "ups" I've been thinking a lot about lately is World War II, namely because I feel a little "down" when I read daily obituaries for WWII Veterans. Their days are sadly numbered, and they've been a bit neglected as a group. Whether it was our grandfathers in Europe or the Pacific, or our grandmothers known collectively as "Rosie the Riveter," we wouldn't be enjoying vistas like this one, or the freedom to hike around, or well, just about anything the way we know it. So I post this photo and this month we say an extra "thank you with all our hearts" to our World War II veterans, and to those who "fought" behind the scenes on the homefront. Thank you for everything you did, for the sacrifices you made.

-- Rick

Winter Sports!

February, 2008: Working up a new website for (you guessed it) winter sports...it's just underway, not all sports represented, but if you're ready to truck down a bobsled chute at 70 mph or take up the sport of curling, or perhaps do some sledding, or cross country skiing, we got you covered. The site is snow.ws where "ws" stands for, uh, would you believe, winter sports. Anyway, we still gotta work on our snowman construction page.

The American Popular Song Goes On and On...

August, 2007: Slackpacker.com has a new sister website, a free online magazine for fans of American popular song, also known as pop standards, also known as elevator music. Well ok, it's not that exactly, but some people think so. If you're a fan of the stuff by Frank Sinatra, Andy Williams, Dinah Shore, Perry Como, Anne Murray, Neil Diamond, etc., this free monthly online magazine is for you! Plenty of interesting articles, plus music you can listen to, and some old videos too. Find it at PopularSong.org.

Freehiking

June, 2007: Have heard this term bandied about quite a bit lately, used to describe "hiking off trail" or "hiking free from man-made expectations" and such. A little flaky, perhaps, but it seems that enthusiasts are in it more for discovery and NOT for reaching pre-determined scenic viewpoints or summits. Almost like you set off having no idea where you're headed. That's fine, except the problem is that a small group of people known as "naturists" use the exact same term to describe hiking while naked. Hoo boy. We'll have some more information soon about freehiking. The uncertain version, not the undressed version.

Hiking Movie Time!

If you've ever contemplated a trek on the Appalachian Trail, or perhaps the Pacific Crest Trail, or even a shorter jaunt such as the 205 mile Superior Trail, then you really ought to check out an indie film called Southbounders. It's not long on drama or tech stuff, but it accomplishes something much more important in my opinion: A realistic glimpse of what a thru-hike is all about.

It's not politics, it's geology...

Delicate Arch Climb -- Update June 16, 2006
On May 7th, 2006 Moab UT climber Dean Potter did the unthinkable by climbing Delicate Arch at Arches National Park in Utah. Originally Potter boasted of his actions, and sponsor Patagonia revealed a spine of jelly. But we're pleased to say that just over one month later -- thanks to the outrage in the outdoor community -- Potter and Patagonia admit their mistake. Please click here for more of the story.

Fall-out on Trekking Poles: A recent "article" in the LA Times, co-authored by yours truly, turned out to be more like the pre-match prattle heard in professional wrestling than anything else. To set the record straight, here's a link to our new page all about trekking poles. Includes the "pros" and "cons," and a special guest rebuttal prompted by the LA Times piece.

National Park fans: Just launched our new National Parks Trivia & Stuff page. Still under construction, but feel free to check it out and give me your feedback rb(at)slackpacker(dot)com. Also, we're pleased to point out another media mention in the L.A. Times they picked up on my rant on trekking poles. My comments in the Casper, Wyoming Star-Tribune a while back were much more intelligent...Click here and look for mentions of slackpacker.com near the end of the article.

-- Rick Bolger
rick(at)slackpacker(dot)com

Psst...in case you're wondering why you're looking at the same photo you saw yesterday, well, we don't change it at the same time every day. Some days we don't change it at all, especially when we're hiking, camping, skiing, or slacking. But we change it most of the time. Except Sundays. And usually Saturdays. Holidays, of course, we don't change it then either. If, on the other hand, you're looking at the same photo but a new description, it means we did something wrong, or perhaps your computer is about to go HAL on you. Better turn it off and go take a hike.

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