Survival Bracelet

So... over Christmas break I was browsing around Backpacker.com and found a very interesting how-to guide.

I found a photo guide to making your very own Survival Bracelet. Basically, it is a way of carrying about 10 ft. of paracord with you where ever you are. That way in a pinch you could use it for fishing line, shoe laces, splints, ect.

Interesting side note: after some research I found out that paracord (a strong rope that hikers are quite fond of) has a bit of a cult following on the internet. There are websites dedicated to how cool paracord is and all the fun things you can do with it...

When I see something like that I just have to try. So my brother and I ordered our first 100 ft of paracord that very day from Amazon. 2 business days later we were busy making our new creations. The backpacker description is really easy to follow.

I have also gotten quite a few remarks about how fashionable the bracelet looks... Wilderness Chic anyone?

Try making one for yourself!

Because I'm sure everyone was wondering....

Imagine with me for a second. You and a friend are on an epic adventure across a huge glacier. As you traverse the ice you come to a cliff. This is not just any cliff, its more like a chasm. You really want to be on the other side (roughly 20 feet away), but a huge fissure separates you from this desire.

This post isn't about how to cross the fissure and continue your imaginary journey (because I have absolutely no idea how). This post is about what that fissure is called. Is it a crevice or a crevasse (kruh-vas)? I would have said crevice unitl I watched the documentary "Touching the Void" which introduced me to a new word, crevasse, when talking about deep clefts in glacial ice. Eager to use my new word (crevasse) in a sentence I found the opportunity a few days later... only to be picked on. My friends told me to be a normal American and just say crevice. I was beside myself; I thought maybe crevasse was only someone's accent on the movie really meaning to say crevice.

I recently remembered that and did a bit of research out of curiosity. According to Dictionary.com a crevasse is specifically for a deep or large cleft in glacial ice or the earth's surface, it is commonly confused with crevice. A crevice is a crack forming an opening (like between your finger and nail) and is generally smaller.

My challenge: go forth and try to use crevasse in a sentence.

Picture from Wikipedia Commons

If Hikers Ruled the World…

Here is another addition to my series of reasons the world would be a better place if everyone spent more time hiking:

4. Get to know the environment you are saving. Its hip to go green. Everyone these days sees saving the environment in a positive light. The thing is, very few people are very deeply interested in our ecological impact. It's mostly superficial for most people. All talk and no walk. I think that if everyone actually spent some time basking in natural beauty they would have a bit of a deeper interest in protecting the world. And if this conviction is deeper, people might actually make some lifestyle changes in response.

Spencer Crest Nature Center

I recently went with my brother to Spencer Crest Nature Center in Corning, NY. Spencer Crest is in the backyard of Corning Community College, all I can say is that I wish my college had a trail network like this so close by. I loved my time here and if you live in Corning it's well worth the trip up the hill to wander these woods. Parts of the trail are even handicap accessible as shown below. 

I have three thoughts concerning this hike. First: this winter is the first time I have really hiked in low temperatures and I have been noticing an interesting feature on most trails that I explore. The ground is really bumpy and when you step on it you unexpectedly sink downward. On closer inspection I noticed that the ground has these ice crystal formation underneath. They are pretty spectacular if you ask me.

The thing is, I wish I knew more about them and why they form. I guess I will have to do some research. If anyone has any information regarding these, let me know!

Second: I wish Spencer Crest had less trails. At some points it feels like a corn maze because there are so many options. They may have tried to put too many trails in too small of an area. I also think this was heightened by the fact that we were walking in winter and could see through the trees and see how close other trails were.

Third: I wish there was a view in Spencer Crest. Its is on a hill and has the potential for a great view of the city of Corning, but you can't see anything above the tree line. I was wondering, maybe we could invest in a fire tower type structure in Spencer Crest to capitalize on it's location? Just an idea I've been mulling over.

Letterboxing 101

Yesterday I went letterboxing...


You may be wondering... what is letterboxing?

I liked Wikipedia's Definition. Letterboxing is "an outdoor hobby that combines elements of orienteering, art, and puzzle solving." Basically you are finding small weather-proof boxes that other people have hid in publically accessible locations (like parks and trails). You find these boxes using story-like clues posted online. When you find this hidden box there is a stamp inside. You stamp that stamp in your log book and then stamp your own personal (usually hand-crafted) stamp into the box's log book.

Think of it like treasure hunting for non-pirates.

Letterboxing has been around for 150 years. A friend (who loves letterboxing) told me there was a box hidden in Erwin Wildlife Management Area so I decided to go have my first letterboxing adventure.

In order to get the whole letterboxing experience I decided to start out by making my own stamp. I also decided I didn't need to look online to seek directions for that which then resulted in having to have two attempts. I admit that I forgot that stamps show up as a mirror image, and my letters were backwards on my first attempt. I then went out and bought my first compass and headed to Erwin. We were victorious and found the box.

The Stamp in the letterbox = very cool

My Stamp (Amateur Guidebook)

What I liked about Letterboxing: It is really fun to know something is there that no one else knows about. The process of following the clue through your hike is also really cool. Learning compass skills is also a plus. All the benefits of hiking with a quirky yet oh-so entertaining twist. 

What I don't like about letterboxing: my lack of stamp making skills made me feel inadequate.  

Something Doesn't Belong... Or Does It?

Over Columbus day weekend I was hiking in Letchworth State Park. I was on a trail and I looked up in the distance and saw a mailbox in the middle of the woods. I thought to myself, "this is strange." 


When I got close enough to read the sign on the mailbox I saw a second strange thing. The first word I was able to read was "Wegmans." So my next thought was, "I love Wegmans, but what is Wegmans doing in the middle of Letchworth?" Finally I got close enough to read the entire sign and it said something about the Finger Lakes Trail Passport Program. I then remembered I was on the Letchworth extension of the Finger Lakes Trail. So as I continued my hike, I still didn't know what the mailbox was for, but I understood it enough that the mystery did not hinder my mind from enjoying my hike and I moved on. 

I then forgot about the strange mailbox in the woods until today while browsing the New York Outdoors Blog and stumbling across this article about the Wegmans Passport to Family Wellness Program. basically, this is a program where families can hike parts of the Finger Lakes Trail, find these mailboxes, and make a rub of the plaque on top of the mailbox in their booklet. This Program offers coupon and prize incentives for anyone who participates. Why does this program exist? To get people outdoors and exercising (which is making the world a better place) and to provide a sort of Finger Lakes Trail 101 for people not familiar with it.

Long story short: I now understand the mystery of the mailbox and love Wegmans even more. 

Thank You Wegmans. Thank You for being a great store and for being really involved in the local community and for supporting worthwhile programs like the Finger Lakes Trail. 

Greg Hill

Humans. Funny creatures aren't they?

We are the only creatures I can think of that create challenges for ourselves. We don't seem to be content with just living. Everyone has these inner drives to create and conquer. I think that's a beautiful thing. Thats a vital part of what makes us human.

We see mountains and we want to climb them. We want to create. We want to make things bigger (or smaller)  stronger and faster. We look for challenges, and when they are completed we call it a triumph of the human will.

Such is the case with Mr. Greg Hill, a 35 year old from British Columbia. He is in the news at the beginning of this new year because he completed his impressive 2010 goal. His self-created challenge for 2010? Ski down 2 million vertical feet of mountain. The kicker? He did it completely by man-power, so you didn't see him taking any ski lifts. Thats right, he hiked up those 2 million feet before skiing back down.

Need Perspective? Climb Everest 69 times. Want to stay closer to home? Hike Mt. Marcy (NY's highest point, 5434 ft.) everyday for a year. 

2 million feet. I'll give him props for that. 

Thinking about this kind of accomplishment makes me think of George Mallory's answer when asked why he wanted to climb Mt. Everest. His answer: "Because it's there."

Greg's Video

About Bears...

Two questions came up recently about Bears. The first was about bears hibernating. My brother and I were pondering how such huge animals can hibernate the way we imagined hibernation to go. We found it unbelievable and even got to the point where we questioned our life-long notions of bears hibernating. Later that day, I read a status from my friend Tai on Facebook where she said she saw some bear prints in the middle of winter. That was the last straw, I had to do some research. 


Here are some things I learned from the North American Bear Center:

Before Hibernation bears enter a prep period where they rest up to 22 hours a day. They make dens, purge waste from their bodies through drinking lots of water, and eat a lot. We are talking up to 20,000 calories and 2 gallons of water a day. 


During hibernation bears "do not eat, drink, urinate, or defecate. They can reduce oxygen consumption and metabolic rate by half and breathe only once every 45 seconds. Heart rate can drop periodically to 8-21 beats per minute."


Now to solve Tai's question about her bear prints I found this tidbit....

"The activity schedule is very different in eastern North America where acorns, hickory nuts, beech nuts, and other foods become available in fall and some foods remain available all winter. Bears there are genetically programmed to delay hibernation until late November or December... hibernation there is typically not as deep, and some bears emerge to forage during winter thaws. Food sometimes remains available throughout winter there, and some bears continue foraging throughout winter." (emphasis added)

Now for the second Bear question, my brother was wondering about Bear Grylls (Man vs. Wild). Is Bear his real name, or is that a nick name? If it is a nick name, we wondered if he got it from being an adventurer or if he had it before. 


The Answer (according to Wikipedia): It is a nickname; his real name is Edward Michael Grylls, but there is an interesting twist. He got the nickname when he was a week old from his big sister (which is funny cause we started calling my niece bear when she was a baby also). So the name came before he became an outdoor adventure extraordinaire. 


Pictures Courtesy of Wikipedia Commons

Erwin Wildlife Management Area

Trail: Erwin Wildlife Management Area

Town: Painted Post NY. This is my hometown. I loved hiking this place because it just goes to show how this area is so rich in places to hike. Never underestimate the power of your own back yard.

Get there: Follow Beartown Rd. until it comes to a fork (after the field and stream club). Go to the right and follow the dirt road until it is blocked by a barrier with a parking lot.

My Hike: I hiked here on New Years day, the weather was mild but a bit unpredictable, at some points it was windy and at some points it was rainy, but it was always muddy. At one point I completely submerged my right foot in a hidden mud puddle, at which point my dry feet fell in love with my new Gore-Tex hiking boots. We spent 2 hours here, we hiked to the pond and looped back. To do this, follow the dirt road till you come to a trail on the left (pictured on the left).

The trail will lead you to the pond (right top), on the opposite end there is a man-made jetty and another dirt road. Follow this road till it comes to a T. Go right and it takes you back to the parking lot with a very pretty view on the way (right bottom). There is a lot more trails that we didn't have time to go on.

While there, we saw two people biking and that was it. This is really secluded and beautiful for being so close to town. This Wildlife Management Area goes heavy on the "managed" part. In some parts, diseased oaks have been cut down to make room for smaller trees. This makes it feel naked at points. Also, both ponds are man-made. The road is not exactly a trail and there are signs and barriers on parts of the road. In all though, it still feels remote and is a great hike.

Lesson learned; always over prepare, even for a little hike. We came to cook a lunch and test some of our Christmas presents (including our new stoves and our hiking boots). We got rained on while sitting for lunch. Rain isn't so bad but we got a bit chilly because we were under prepared and decided not to linger. There were a lot of foot prints so this place must get some good use.

Happy New Year!

My New Year's resolution is to hike... a lot. I say a lot because I don't really have an exact number in mind. I just want to have the mindset of hiking as much as possible. Besides, I'm not all that into new years resolutions so I don't feel like I am a failure for not having a specific number. (side note: I am a fan of big goal setting, but just not the fad of new years resolutions and the trap that most people fall into of not fulfilling those resolutions)

Today I started the new year out right by going for a nice hike with my siblings. I found myself pondering the new year at about 1:45. I wanted to set the tone for the year so I shot out the idea of going for a hike and we were out the door by 2:00. We decided to go to Erwin Wildlife Management Area (more on that later) and test out our new stoves by having lunch out there (a can of ravioli). 

The weather is great in this area, its muddy but I'm not going to complain since I was hiking on New Years day in only two layers.

Happy New Year Everyone!