Eagle Scout Trail is a 3-mile out-and-back hike with 1043ft of elevation gain. Located between the 57 and 71 freeway, many Southern California residents have probably driven past this hike without even knowing it exists. As soon as you start to gain elevation from the trailhead, you’ll have views of Cal Poly Pomona, Diamond Bar, and the rest of the Inland Empire to the east.
Blue Ridge Campground is a cluster or 8 first come – first served sites near Wrightwood, CA. Situated at 8,000 ft, Blue Ridge Campground is intersected by the Pacific Crest Trail and is the end location of the Blue Ridge Trail hike. The 8 sites offer limited facilities with no piped water. The campground does have vault toilets, fire rings, and tables.
The Scarpa Spin is a lightweight, low-profile trail shoe with a sock-like fit and an aggressive Vibram Megagrip outsole. The responsive midsole is built on a nimble 4mm drop platform that keeps the feet protected with a high density EVA rock shield. I’ve been wearing the Scarpa Spin for the past few months, and will share my experience in this review.
The Levity 45L is a superlight backpacking and hiking backpack made by Osprey. My size medium comes in at a svelte 1lb 12oz (.8kg), and is really comfortable despite its minimal design. I’ve worn the Levity 45L for the 150-miles Camino Portuguese, and on numerous hiking and backpacking outings over the past few months and will share my experience in this review.
The Vivobarefoot Ultra 3 is a lightweight anatomically shaped shoe that gives you a nice barefoot feel. The Ultra 3 provides impressive underfoot protection via a puncture resistant outsole. My favorite part of the shoe is the EVA upper with hexagon cutouts, that allows my feet to breathe in hot weather, drain and dry after getting wet, and still feel protected when kicking around a campsite.
The Adidas Terrex Two Boa is a nimble 13.3oz (size 12US) trail running shoe with a plush midsole and grippy outsole. The uppers breathe well, and utilize a Boa lacing system that allows for quick and precise adjustments on the fly. The Terrex Two Boa rides like a road shoe, but still has the trail-ready chops for most of my adventures in the mountains.
On the seventh day of our Camino Portuguese pilgrimage, we covered 13 miles between Redondela and Pontevedra. This day started out along the Ría Vigo with some amazing views of the Rande Bridge off in the foggy distance. We then completed two seperate climbs totaling more than 1400 ft, with a stop in the beautiful city of Arcade in between. Our day finished at an albergue on the outskirts of Pontevedra, where we got to watch Spain take on Portugal in the group stages of the World Cup!
The week before Labor Day is one of the best weeks each year to score deals on camping, hiking, travel, and trail running gear. It seems that the deals get better each year. This year, REI, Backcountry, Moosejaw, and Campsaver are offering big discounts on tents, packs, shoes, apparel, sleep systems, and more! I’ve put together a list of some of the best deals below. Happy shopping!
After crossing the border from Portugal into Spain on our fifth day of the Camino Portuguese, we began our sixth day with a goal of walking from Tui to Redondela. The stretch of trail out of Tui leaves on highway 342 before passing through a major industrial zone. There is a new scenic route that avoids this, but we decided to take a cab and skip ahead by 11 miles to Porriño. The route from Porriño climbs a few steep asphalt roads before descending into the beautiful town of Redondela.
The Salomon Sense Ultra Pro has been my ‘Goldilocks’ trail shoe of the year so far. From upper to outsole, everything feels ‘just right’ for my feet. I’ve worn these on hikes and trail runs, and have yet to find something that I don’t like about them. The Sense Ultra Pro is built on the same platform as the SLAB Sense Ultra, and as much as I liked the SLAB Sense Ultra, I like the Sense Ultra Pro even more.