Mt. Marathon Race Seward

by Erik Olsen on


It was just a few years ago that I was in Seward after a wonderful multi-day hike into the nearby mountains, and
after a stomach expanding meal of fish and chips on the water, we watched the
Mount Marathon running race. It takes place very fourth of
July in the town of Seward, a very relaxed and charming town in Alaska that reminded me of how Seattle probably used to
be.

The race is grueling for those who have to run it. It’s basically a dead sprint to the top of a mile-high mountain and
down. Hard core. And every year some uber-athlete wins, and some poor guy falls on his face and gets a full-body
raspberry. I actually

wrote about it last year…although it looks like the MSNBC redesign dumped the link.

North Coast Trail BC

by Erik Olsen on

A brand spanking new trail is opening this August on Vancouver Island, and all gadling fans should take note. The
North Coast Trail on the northern side of the island
promises 31 miles of hiking, camping, biking and general outdoor fun. Honestly, this is an opportunity to tread some
nearly untouched North American terrain.

It’s a pain in the arse to get there. You have to take a pricey water taxi, but it is utterly going to be worth it.
This is God’s country and with the new trail opening a true once in a lietime opportunity.

The Color of Your Pee

by Erik Olsen on

Some long-time gadling readers might wonder if we have a bit of a
scatological fascination with pee. Not true,
but when nature calls, you do have to pick up the phone, and there have been some pretty interesting stories about
doing number one.

For example, over at Divester, I posted about
the important things you can learn about the state of your health merely by checking the color of your pee. This
article actually features a color chart wherein
you can determine your level of hydration, a matter of no small importance to everyone from hikers to divers.

The article actually goes deep into the physiology of dehydration and makes for a superb read. At the very least I’ll
bet it will get you to head out to the store pronto to get your hands on a bottle of Poland Springs.

Mark Jenkins Hard Way

by Erik Olsen on

As a passionate reader of
Outside, I am always curious about the lives of certain writers for
that magazine. Some of the names they publish are legendary, people who’s love of adventure is matched only by their
ample skills as writers. Once such guy is Mark Jenkins, whose work
always dazzles.

Jenkins is a monthly adventure travel columnist for Outside magazine, and the author of the recent books:
The Hard Way, To Timbuktu and Off the Map. He
has a Web site that I discovered over at
Rolf Potts‘ site, and I spent a fair amount of time here checking out his work.
It’s a great place to get inspired about trip ideas and travel writing, should you want to pick up some tips from a
master of the craft.