Chad and I do a great two-day trip in Joshua Tree. But the route is secret 🙂
Review of the gear I use on my backpacking trips.
Above: The backpacking, hiking, camping, and boating equipment I have accumulated over nearly 50 years. To see what I use today continue reading…

This weekend, with our balmy spring weather I decided to go searching for palm trees — or rather palm oases to be exact. And to be more precise, I already knew where they were, since I have hiked the area extensively over the years. I also explored a few side canyons I had not been in before.
The high temperatures were over 100F, which is okay as long as you have plenty of water. When visiting a palm oasis, plan on there being no water available unless you can verify water from a reliable source ahead of time. Palm Trees do not rely on surface water to survive and the water can be dozens of feet below the surface.
In the temperatures I encountered, most people need at least two gallons of water per day, so plan accordingly.
Anyway, it was a fun trip.

Sunshine and Balls, a well known long distance hiking father and daughter team, had their water cache stolen yesterday. Apparently other hikers stole it. This is beyond comprehension. I hope the thieves read this. My message to you is that your are less than scum. What goes around comes around, and I hope you get yours in the end. You can read Balls’ post here.

I am a runner. I don’t run competitively any more, but I run. I am a student of distance running. And because I am a runner, two days ago I decided to visit the site of the April 15, 2013 Boston Marathon bombings. Until I got there, I wasn’t sure why I was making this trip.