Mar 23 2016

Homemade Backpacking Food & Trail Snacks

Budget Trail Snacks & Outdoor Food

trail workers on the Colorado Trail

Trailside Snacks

We all love our trail snacks and it’s nice to splurge on pre-packaged freeze dried backpacking meals every now and then. Nothing’s better, at the end of a hard day on the trail, than a quick & easy meal of turkey tetrazzini or beef stroganoff. But it can get kind of expensive trying to purchase three meals per day of name-brand freeze dried camping food. Not to worry, though. It’s easy & inexpensive to supplement your store-bought trail meals with homemade backpacking food. You just have to know where to look for trail food recipes & backpacking meal suggestions.

Benefits of Homemade Backpacking Food

  • Less expensive
  • More trail snack & backpacking food options
  • Better portion control
  • Control for dietary restrictions & food allergies

Where to Find Trail Food Ideas

Here are some good websites to help you prepare lightweight meals and snacks for this upcoming backpacking season:

Benefits of Prepackaged Freeze-Dried Foods

  • They’re easy.
  • They’re quick.
  • They usually tastes pretty good.
  • Fairly wide variety of options

Trail Snacks & Backpacking Meal Ideas & Trail Food Reviews

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2016/03/23/homemade-backpacking-food-trail-snacks/

Mar 20 2016

C2 Performance Tights Product Review

Stay Warm on the Trail This Spring

leg warmers for active lifestyle

Activewear C2 Tights

It’s that time of year. At the beginning of your ride, hike or run, it’s freezing cold, and you want to bundle up to stay warm. But half-way into your activity, you’re becoming overheated and uncomfortable. Should you wear shorts and a t-shirt or full-length pants and a sweatshirt? I’ve recently found a way to have the best of both worlds. Of course I’ve long known about the benefits of layering. And that works fine on my top half. I don a light t-shirt covered by a warm long-sleeved shirt. Then when the weather gets warmer, I shed the outer layer. But it’s always been a little trickier on the bottom. Full-length pants don’t fit well over a pair of shorts, so I was always left deciding whether to wear shorts and freeze for half my workout or wear sweats/pants and bake for half the workout. Then I discovered C2 Performance Tights.

C2 Performance Tights

I recently discovered the warmth & convenience of Performance Tights by C2. Performance tights fit snugly so they don’t have that awkward bagging appearance of most full-length bottoms. So they’re ideal for hiking, biking, climbing and running. Yet they’re also incredibly comfortable and snug. They keep you warm when there’s a chill in the air, yet they don’t bog you down like other pants products. Worn under a pair of shorts, they’re easy to shed when/if it starts getting warm outside. And they’re easy to store in a pannier, daypack or backpack. I find them especially handy for spring bike rides. They fit just tightly enough so that I don’t have to worry about getting them caught in my bicycle chain.

C2 Performance Tights Helpful Tips

Performance Tights are a great clothing product to add to your trail supplies. As with most Trailsnet reviews, I have enclosed a couple of easy-to-follow lists of reasons why I like this particular outdoor product and ways to fully benefit from your C2 Performance Tights.

These are a few of my favorite C2 Performance Tights qualities:

  • warmth
  • comfort
  • versatility
  • looks
  • made in USA
  • high quality
  • moisture wicking (comfortable in light rain showers or snow flurries)
  • great for active lifestyle or lounging around the house/tent/trailhead

 

C2 Performance Tights are good for:

  • running
  • Stand-Up PTV activities
  • camping
  • kayaking
  • après ski or après any activity

C2 Performance Tights not recommended for:

  • strenuous activity over 50°F
  • moderate-to-light activities over 60°F
  • swimming
For Performance Tights and other outdoor clothing products, visit the C2 website.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received Performance Tights for free from C2 as coordinated by Outdoor PR in consideration for review publication.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2016/03/20/c2-performance-tights-product-review/

Mar 10 2016

Find Destination Trail Accommodations

Trail Lodging Now Available on Trailsnet.com

screenshot of Trailsnet trail page

Trailsnet Trail Page

Trailsnet is one of the leading websites for finding destination trails and active travel vacation destinations. Now, in addition to pointing you to the best long-distance trails in the world, Trailsnet can also help you find trailside accommodations. We have partnered with Booking.com to provide hotel, guest house and bed/breakfast opportunities near each of the trails and trailheads on our website. This will make it much easier for trail travelers to find lodging near trailheads or in convenient locations along longer trails. So when you visit any of the trails featured on Trailsnet, you will see a banner just like this:

 


   
    Booking.com

Book Your Next Active Travel Accommodations With Trailsnet & Booking.com

Booking.com offers the lowest prices on lodging worldwide and, if you book your next accommodations from the Trailsnet website, you’ll get that same low price and be helping support Trailsnet and our goal of being the best trail website on the Internet. So you get a great price on your hotel, and Trailsnet gets a small affiliate marketing fee for each room booked. So whether you are going on a trail trip, a business trip or any other travel situation, please visit Trailsnet and start your lodging search right here using our new Booking.com link.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2016/03/10/find-accommodations-near-destination-trail/

Jan 12 2016

Trail Advocacy and Involvement

Promote Trails by Getting Involved in Trail Advocacy

family on bike trail

Family on Trail

According to numerous bumper stickers, SH*T HAPPENS. Unfortunately, trails don’t just happen. You must contact local regional, state & national representatives. You must serve on Boards. And, if possible, it would be ideal if you could volunteer to work on trails. But this trail blog post is about writing to local officials to promote new and connected trails.

North Trail Study Area

I was recently contacted by a prominent and wonderful local mountain biking advocacy group. They wanted me to contact local officials to encourage an alternative trail plan rather than the two proposed trail plans. Of course, being a mountain bike group, their proposal was specifically for more mountain bike trails. That’s not surprising and commendable that they are getting involved. But that is not exactly what Trailsnet is all about. Trailsnet is indeed about mountain biking trails but also about walking trails, rail trails, commuting trails, recreational trails, etc.

Letter to Open Space, City Councillors & Trail Decision Makers

So I utilized the basic ideas presented by the mountain bike advocacy group (more trails), but heavily revised and edited it so that the emphasis was on more trails in general rather than just more mountain bike trails. Following is the letter that I sent to city, county and open space officials. I hope it serves as a model for your future trail advocacy and promotion:

 

Dear OSBT Members, City Councilors, & OSMP Staff:
Thank you for considering more trails in Boulder County. I’m sure you are receiving lots of emails from my friends at Boulder Mountain Bike Alliance; and they have some good ideas. But this is NOT one of those form letters so I ask you to please read my entire email and consider it carefully.
Unlike BMA & other similar groups, I am not advocating for the interests of any one group. (mountain bikers, equestrians, pedestrians, etc.) Instead, I am advocating for all people who are willing to utilize non-motorized transportation for either recreation or transportation. Therefore, I ask you to consider each of the special interest groups but in the long run to choose a plan that benefits all of them rather than just one group. More than anything, I ask you to implement a plan that provides a vast and accessible network of trails all throughout Boulder County. It is essential that these trails are accessible and connected rather than disparate trails scattered indiscriminately about.
We are incredibly fortunate to have the resources and community interest to make such a plan happen. Unlike the recent Folsom Street incident, a bike (equestrian, pedestrian…) trail is the opposite of disruptive. It is separate from the sights, smells, pollution and (most of all) dangers of the road. It is accessible to people of all shapes, sizes, interests & abilities. I encourage you to consider:
1) A regional multi-purpose trail  on the west side of US 36 to provide a high quality user experience to Lyons & Heil Valley Ranch (Ideally this trail would be concrete or asphalt but could also be hard-packed gravel or dirt.)
2) Access & interconnectivity to as many of the major local trails in the area including Boulder Creek Path, Foothills Parkway Path, LOBO Trail, the new Boulder-to-Lyons Trail,  Marshall Mesa/Doudy Draw Trails, Coal Creek Trail, etc.)
3) The reclamation of unused roads & rail lines into multi-purpose trails
4) Building completely separate but parallel trails along roads rather than just bike lanes
5) Work w/ CDOT, RTD & Denver to insure that the new US36 Bike Path runs all the way from Boulder to Denver as originally promised.
6) Continue promoting the idea of a multi-use path that completely encircles Boulder and ensure that the path is suitable for all non-motorized users and is surfaced for all weather conditions so that commuters & recreationalists can utilize it year-round.
Thank you for working toward a goal of making Boulder County a leader in safe & accessible non-motorized recreation & transportation in the NTSA. A comprehensive, connected & accessible network of trails in Boulder County is a realistic and laudable goal and one that will be beneficial for the environment and health of all Coloradans and county residents.
Sincerely,
Kevin from Trailsnet.com

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2016/01/12/4503/

Jan 04 2016

Through-Hiking Pacific Crest Trail With a Purpose

Pacific Crest Trail Hiker Raises Money for Good Cause

A California man hiked the Pacific Crest Trail to help a man he had never met before. The man had been injured and was unable to walk. Eugene Yoon embarked on a long-distance journey to raise funds to buy the man an exoskeleton walker:

In the past, Trailsnet has focused on trails for fitness, trails for recreation, trails for transportation & trails for the environment. But this story shows that trails can also be used for charity and philanthropic purposes.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2016/01/04/through-hiking-pacific-crest-trail-with-a-purpose/

Dec 19 2015

How to Promote Bicycling to Non-Cyclists

Welcome Love to Ride

Trailsnet is a huge supporter of bicycling for recreation, commuting & exercise. Needless to say, we love it when we find new organizations that promote bicycling for leisure, sport, health & the environment. So you can imagine our excitement when we discovered LovetoRide.org. We especially love to see organizations that encourage cycling among the uninitiated non-cyclists. Let’s face it; we don’t need to promote cycling among current cyclists, because they have already discovered the many benefits to cycling and we’re hooked. It’s that other 97% of people (in America that’s the percentage – slightly less worldwide) who hardly ever (or never) bike. (View LovetoRide CEO Thomas Stokell’s excellent TedTalk video.)love to ride logo

What We Love about LovetoRide.org

How do we love thee? Let us count the ways:

  1. As mentioned above, LovetoRide promotes cycling among the non-cyclists. That’s a great start.
  2. The LovetoRide website looks awesome.
  3. LovetoRide is both international and local. When you sign up, you are connected to your local community of cyclists. But the ultimate goal is a worldwide increase in the number of bicyclists.
  4. LovetoRide seems to truly welcome cyclists of all varieties, and that is sorely lacking in other cycling websites/organizations. (more on that later)

Just take a look at the graphics on the website, and you’ll see an inclusive atmosphere. You’ll notice it’s not just populated with road bikes and mountain bikes but also proudly displays cruisers, urban bikes, kid bikes and more.

albert einstein on a bike

Einstein on a Bike

Advice and Observations from Trailsnet

Albert Einstein once said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” It’s appropriate to quote Albert Einstein here, because he was a lifelong bicyclist, and he truly got the spirit of cycling. He rode his bicycle for transportation, recreation and inspiration. He was also quoted as saying, “I thought of it while riding my bike.” But does anyone know how fast he rode? How about how many miles or even what type of bike he preferred. He didn’t talk much about those things because they didn’t really matter all that much to him. He appreciated the joy and functionality of bicycling rather than the competition.

The Problem With Bicycle Advocacy Groups

bicyclist on road

Life in the Bike Lane

That heading is a bit negative and misleading. I love and appreciate bicycle advocacy groups and rejoice when new ones come on board. But (and here’s why I quoted Einstein regarding insanity) the problem with groups that want to promote bicycling to newbies is that they are headed by avid bicyclists. So what’s wrong with avid bicyclists you might ask? Well, for starters, they think like avid cyclists. Therefore, all of their techniques for enticing new cyclists are misguided. They can’t see the forest… Let’s try a more appropriate metaphor: They can’t see the scenery for the peloton. The very things that they love about cycling are not appealing to the other 90-some percent of people who don’t bike.

What Can We Do to Encourage People to Try Cycling?

So here it is. The heart of this whole blog-post. What should LovetoRide & the other bicycle advocacy groups do to encourage new bike riders?

  1. Safety – The fact: Over a thousand bicyclist die in America each year. What avid bicyclist think: It’ll never happen to me. What the non-cyclists think: Are they crazy?
  2. Comfort – We all know that autos create pollution, odors, toxic gases, etc. But here’s the irony: Those who drive/ride in the autos are sheltered from the very pollution they create. They ride along in air-conditioned comfort while road-bikers are huffing and puffing on those fumes. Although I haven’t seen exact statistics, I would guess that the slight majority of avid cyclists are road riders. They’re willing to overlook the lack of safety on roads. They’re willing to suffer the odors and risks of sucking in car exhaust. But can you blame newbies for wanting to avoid those discomforts and inconveniences?
  3. Scenery – Both roads & trails can be scenic. But your average non-cyclist would be mystified as to why you’d ride a bike up that steep mountain or into that beautiful valley when you can just as easily view it from the comfort of a car… on a road. (Remember – I’m thinking like a non-cyclist here.) Plus, how can you really focus on the scenery when you’re constantly concerned (as you should be) that you may get squashed by a car at any instant. Once again, avid road-bikers are willing to overlook the downsides of road-riding. Newbies probably aren’t.
  4. Affordability – I have been in many cycling groups over the years, and it never ceases to amaze me what the majority of my fellow bikers spend on their cycles and cycling gear. Once again, that mentality is a complete mystery to non-cyclists. I have often heard non-cyclists, upon hearing what avid bike riders pay for their gear, say, “I could get a car/motorcycle for that kind of money.” For the bike shop owner who likes bicyclists to spend more money on biking equipment, don’t worry. It seems to be a natural progression for new cyclists to look for the cheapest bike possible when they first get started, then gradually keep moving up.
  5. Bike culture – You know what I’m talking about. The spandex, lycra, fancy helmets, snot-rockets, biking terminology, etc. It’s normal for avid bikers. It’s bizarre to non-bikers.
  6. Competition – What is it with bike riders? They love their statistics. How fast, how far, how much, how many… I wonder how many longtime riders remember when they just biked for fun or relaxation or to get from point a (home?) to point b (school?)? Once again, it all seems so strange to non-bikers.
    ride-type

    Limited Ride Types

  7. Variety – We’re all different. But you wouldn’t know it by visiting most of the bike-mapping websites. When you try to enter your bike ride, they often give you two choices: mountain & road  But what if I’m riding a rail-trail or an urban trail or a canal trail or a river trail or a… You get the picture. I’m happy to announce that some of the mapping sites such as Strava are gradually starting to get it and offering categories for ellipticals, electrics, cyclocross, etc. But they still ignore the fact that many people like to ride their bikes on courses other than roads & mountains. And this is especially true of beginning bicyclists. They don’t feel safe or comfortable on either roads or single-track trails.

Here’s How to Promote Bike Riding to Newbies

  1. Encourage diversity – Not everyone wants to ride an expensive, uncomfortable road or mountain bike. So let’s be more supportive and encouraging of cruisers, tandems, recumbents, urban bikes, stand-ups, ellipticals and electric bikes. (My dad was a lifelong cyclist until his mid-80s. Then he started riding his bike less and less. We got him a pedal-assist electric bike and he’s back to pedaling again and loving it.)
    family on bike trail

    Family on Bike Trail

  2. Be more inclusive – Don’t send out subtle or not-so-subtle messages that biking is an elite hobby. It shouldn’t be. New riders shouldn’t be intimidated by expensive bikes, exclusive clothing, confusing lingo or endless statistics. Whatever happened to just hopping on a bike and riding for enjoyment without the fear of cars, customs or bike snobs?
  3. Relax & enjoy the ride – If all the newbies hear and see from bicyclists is racing & competition & prohibitive rides, they’ll remain non-bikers
  4. Trails – You knew this was coming. We need to show new bicyclists that there are safe, clean, beautiful, relaxing and enjoyable alternatives for bikers. I’m not against road biking and I’m an avid mountain biker. But new bicyclists would love to know that there is a vast network of safe, comfortable and scenic trails out there. They can use these trails for exercise, recreation, socialization and fitness. After they’re comfortable on a bike, they may branch out to road biking, mountain biking, maybe even competitive biking. But most non-bikers have no idea how easy it is to ride on a beautiful rail trail, local urban trail, scenic river trail or historic canal trail.
  5. Take a look at your staff – How many of them are lifelong bikers? How many of them truly understand how intimidating it is for non-bikers to get started  or restarted as a biker in the chaotic world of competitive and obsessive bicycling? If the members of your staff look at the information above and roll their eyes or poo-poo it, maybe you need to look for some staff-members who are willing to ride a mile in the novices shoes. And keep in mind, they won’t be biking shoes. They’ll be ordinary sneakers.

Permanent link to this article: https://trailsnet.com/2015/12/19/how-to-promote-bicycling-to-non-cyclist/