I found out that I will be going to Berlin Germany next month. This should be a great business trip but it looks like I may have an extra day to myself. Therefore, I've started to search for a hiking spot. I haven't been there before so I really don't know of any good hiking areas. If anyone out there knows, Berlin, I'd be interested in hearing about hiking spots.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Banff National Park, it's set in the Canadian Rockies outside of Calgary. Banff is called the hiking Capital of Canada with many hiking trail available. It's definitely a hiker's paradise as you can choose from a variety of trails with different levels of difficulty. Lake Louise has incredible scenery including the emerald colored water of the lake, view of the glaciers and various waterfalls. You'll also run across a variety of wildlife during your trip.

And some more pics from Banff...

Somebody asked me where I got the pictures on the let side of the blof. These are from Banff national Park in Alberta Canada. One of the most gorgeous areas that I've ever seen. Here are some images from that trip including pics from Lake Louise.

I started talking the other day about what you need for a hike. First thing was determining what trail that you wanted to go on. Second is to determine what you will bring on the trip. What's the most important piece of hiking gear? It's the Shoes! Or more specifically, the hiking boots. A long hike can really do damage to your feet if you are not equipped with a good pair of hiking boots. There are a couple things to look for in a boot. Even if you are a fair weather hiker, you may run into wet conditions on the hike, therefore, you want a pair of shoes that is waterproof. There's nothing worse than hiking with wet shoes and socks. The Goretex shoes that are available will protect your feet pretty well in the worst of conditions.

The shoes come in three ankle heights: low, medium and high. I like a pair of light-weight mid hikers for a typical weekend hike. They cover your ankle and provide some support for your ankle as well. The high hikers are for the serious hikers who will be traveling through very difficult terrain. I have a pair of these also, however, I will typically stick with my medium hikers for most hikes. I've never quite understood the need for the low hikers. If your just going for a casual walk and don't require any protection of the ankle, I'd rather wear a pair of comfortable tennis shoes.

Hiking boots are readily available in most shoe, sporting goods and outdoor stores as well as on-line so there should be no difficulty in finding them. I like to look at Eastern Mountain Sports or Cabela's for mine. In reality, I just like going into these stores and looking around. There is so much neat stuff to look at. If you go to Cabela's, I'd recommend looking on-line first for a pair of hiking boots. That store is so big, it helps to get an idea as to what you want before you go in. the most important thing is to find a pair of shoes that will protect your feet and feel comfortable. I've had expensive hiking shoes which were not very comfortable and wound up throwing them in the trash can.

Over the weekend, my son and I went hiking through the woods behind our house. I'm truly thrilled that I can provide the opportunity for my son and I to walk out the backyard into a beautiful wooded area. Like his dad, he seemed to like hiking at a very early age. When he was about 4 years old, we went for a hike at Hartwood Acres in the North Hills of Pittsburgh. I was thinking that he would be tired or bored in about a half hour and want to turn back. We went through that area for a couple hours until my tongue was dragging. He just wanted to stay in the woods at Hartwood Acres and explore. He's managed to keep up this interest over the last few years as I've taken him on several hikes a year through the Western Pennsylvania area. Hopefully, when he gets older, he and I can enjoy some hiking adventures in other areas of the US and world.

This a beautiful time of year to hike in Western PA. The leaves are now past peak and have started falling off the trees. As we rustled through the freshly fallen leaves, I could smell the wonderful autumn leaf scent. Nothing beats the smell of the woods in the fall. At one point, while we were walking along a creek at the bottom of the woods behind our house, my son was commenting how he really enjoyed hiking with me. It's fantastic that he and I have something together that we both really enjoy.

We saw a white tailed deer running through the woods and tracked it for a short time. These woods are heavily populated by deer , ground hogs, squirrels and skunk. It's hard to go on a hike here without running into some kind of wildlife. Luckily we haven't encountered any skunks. I wish that I could say the same for my dog!

Well, now that I described what not to do on a hike let's talk a little bit about what you should do. First off: Find a trail. Many people think about hiking but really never do it because they just don't know where to go. How many people have you seen in the gym on a nice day slaving over a treadmill with that blank look on their face? A hike in the great outdoors is so much more enjoyable than a treadmill.

I've lived in a few different areas in my life and my experience is that there is always a place for a hike within a hour or two. They may not all be as beautiful and challenging as Mount Washington, but they are there if you are willing to look. Mount Washington may be a once in a lifetime opportunity, but there are probably many hiking areas within a short drive that you can go on during a weekend. A quick Google search or a look at a map will probably uncover several parks or trails.

Next is to learn about the trail. You should learn the location of the trailheads and how the trail is marked. You should match the trail length with the time that you have available and your ability level. Remember, trails can present a number of different challenges to the hiker. Some are more physically demanding due to elevation. Some trails can have terrain that requires a certain level of skill to negotiate. A beautiful hike can turn ugly if you have overextended your abilities.

Also, we should all remember that we are out in the real outdoors that is not controlled by man. If you sprain your ankle or cross paths with a skunk, you won't be able to hit the stop button on the treadmill! Typically though, with the proper preparation and knowledge, hiking can be a very safe activity with tremendous personal reward. By learning about the trail beforehand and proper preparation, you can take the risk out of the hike and be a happy hiker.

After a few more hours we were able to reach the top of the mountain. By then we were a tired, cold, exhausted, thirsty crew. I was wandering to myself how on earth we were going to turn around and make it to the bottom before it got dark. The leader of our group suggested that we stop at the little shop at the top of the mountain. A shop on top of the mountain? I wondered how the heck a shop got on top of the mountain! When we reached the shop, we noticed that there were a ton of people visiting the shop. How did they get there? Our leader said "Well there's a train and a road that leads up to the top". That was one vital piece of information that I sure wished I knew before the trip. With the one person suffering from a twisted ankle, there was no way that he could make it back down the mountain. The good news was that we would be able to take a van ride back down the mountain.

So ended my trip to Mount Washington where I learned many lessons about what not to do while hiking. The breath-taking beauty and the tremendous experience of hiking up this mountain make it worth the trip. If you ever get a chance to go, I would recommend this trip to anyone. Just don't make the same mistakes that we did!

Mount Washington Continued

Once we rose above the treeline, the temperature fell dramatically, the wind picked up and we started hiking through snow. After a few hours, we all really wished that we had water with us instead of beer. The hiking became considerably more difficult as the slope of the mountain increased. I'm not sure when it happened, but to make matters worse, we deviated from the trail. The reality of the situation that we were in started to hit me. I was feeling a real bad headache and dehydrated and wished that I was sleeping back at the bed and breakfast.

This situation didn't seem to affect one of the guys that we had with us. At one point, we were close to a cliff that I believe led to Tuckerman's Ravine. He seemed to be really enjoying the scenery close to the edge. I wouldn't consider this a major problem but the wind was howling at about 40-50 MPH and he seemed to be swaying back and forth. One good gust of the wind and he could have been another fatality of Tuckerman's Ravine. Luckily, this didn't happen.



Now that we were off the trail, we had to do some simple climbing up the mountain at some points. While it wasn't difficult, it certainly wasn't something that I expected on this hike. One of the guys with us slipped and managed to twist his ankle. Of course, we had no first aid equipment with us so we couldn't tape his foot. He had to continue the climb up the mountain to survive.