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A big 'ol list of the hikes I've done, with a quick description/review for each, updated as I do more hikes.
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I visited Switzerland for a week in April while working in Germany.
Gorgeous valley, great views while hiking along the cliffs on the Shilthorn side, and the falls were pretty magnificent as well.
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The famjam went to Hawaii in May 2019.
The first couple kilometers is pretty uneventful since you're just going up a steep service road, but the rest of the trail gives a great view of the island.
Lots of ladders, rope climbs, and scrambling through muddy inclines.
We ended up stopping pretty close to the summit because there was an steep incline covered in much which, if someone let go of the rope or slipped, they'd be jetissoned off the mountain.
I think we passed one person the entire time.
Arguably a nicer view than Mount Kaala, shorter, and easier to get to.
Also way more trafficked.
All incline from top to bottom.
The old rail "logs" you're climbing/running up are also spaced out enough that you can't take baby steps.
We tried running from top to bottom and were tuckered out within a couple minutes.
A great workout.
It's a lot of descending winding switchbacks covered in a bed of roots until you reach the falls, at which point you can either swim, or swing from a rope, or jump off a cliff into the water.
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There's a rope somewhere on the route which you can use to swing out over and into the lake.
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It's about 20km there-and-back, covering the arguably hardest chunk of Mantario; lots of ups and downs, exposed shield and boggy forest.
Ticks and mosquitoes too; I hate Canada.
While there was smog from the forest fires, we still had good visibility for adjacent mountains.
I highly recommend wading all the way to the bridge at the upper end of the walkway, as the walls close in and wind more and more (and there are less people too).
I also recommend bringing watershoes and sandals, as you can only get so far in while keeping your feet dry.
A good hike for those that can't do more rigorous ones, I guess.
You get a nice view of Waterton and the surrounding peaks at the top.
We continued a bit higher up the mountain, but turned back after 20-ish minutes when scrambling over boulders became necessary.
We stopped part of the way up at a little waterfall and (tried) to wade around in a crystal clear, absolutely freezing water pool.
The section with the ladder, tunnel, and rope at the end is fun, if not slightly sketchy.
The lake is beautiful, and there's a nice spot for cliff jumping.
Across the lake, you can get up a ridge of shale to the leftover snow, where there are some cute little waterfalls leading down into the rock (which I assume eventually makes its way into the lake).
We took the detour to Hells Roaring Falls on the way back down, which was okay, but due to dry weather was nothing special.
While Crypt Lake has 900m elevation gain in 20km (and was still pretty difficult), Mount Galwey does about the same elevation, but in 5.5km.
We did the math, for every km of horizontal distance, you're going one third that upwards, making the average angle of incination 30 degrees.
I'd say most of the time, you're going up 45 degree hills of shale and pebbles.
Then there's the 70 degree shale scramble up to the rocky outcrop at the top, and for every step you take, you lose half your stride because of sliding back down.
We ended up stopping before reaching the summit because the trail disappeared and we weren't experienced enough to try and find out own way.
AllTrails said this trail would take 2 hours, but it took us 2.5 just to get to the top and another hour to get down.
I'd love to do this again with more experience under my belt (and a lighter pack, and trekking poles).
Lots of uphill, cute lake in the bowl of some mountains.
We didn't have time to try for the summit, unfortunately.
Cute and with lots of berries at the end.
Gorgeous view from the top of Zuerich and, if the weather permits it, the distant Alps.
It was 0 celsius, raining, and windy, but absolutely gorgeous; I'd love to go back when the weather it nicer.
We took the big bowl route, so started at Wasserauen, hiked up to Schäfler, then along the mountain ridge to Säntis, then down the opposite side of the bowl back to Wasserauen.
It was absolutely gorgeous, possibly the nicest looking hike I've done.
It definitely didn't match Galwey in terms of difficulty, but still had plenty of steep switch-backs and cable-guided fall-to-your-death sections.
It was cool getting to see mountains I've previously hiked in the distance, like Santis and Jungfrau (well, I hiked to Shilthorn, so close enough).
The clouds were incredibly low and covered everything which wasn't a mountain; it felt like we were above a massive white lake.
A welcomed change of pace after being stuck under those same clouds in Zurich for the last few weeks.
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I've also heard that the mountains are more visible in colder months, which I certainly won't complain about as a trade-off.
We got a nice view of San Jose and the surrounding hills in the process.
The weather was surprisingly mild, although I guess it makes sense, being the rainy season and all in February.
It was my first time outside the Bay Area and was very nice; we hiked Bluffs and Panorama Trail via Creamery Meadow, which was a cute little 12k trail along the coast.
The last time I was near the ocean was Hawaii; mixing tall-ish hills with ocean cliffs was definitely a change of scenery from the snowy mountains I've been doing for the last couple months.
We also did the first few km of the Vicente Flat Trail starting outside Kirk Creek Campground, but turned around to get a campsite when they opened.
I may have burned a little bit; I definitely need to get my hands on some long-sleeve clothes and a wide-brim hat for hiking.
We started at Agnew Meadows and hiked the JMT up past Shadow Lake, Garnet Lake, and finally reached Thousand Island Lake for the night.
We then took the PCT on the way back.
The way up was quite intimite, with close-up views of the Minarets and Banner Peak across from crystal-lakes.
It also had decent tree coverage and very few bugs.
The way back was kind of brutal, with very little cover to protect from the sun and a ludicrous number of mosquitoes.
Getting to see the rest of the valley, as well as parts of the path we had hiked the day prior, such as Shadow Lake, was well worth it though.
I ended up getting a wide-brim hat and long-sleeve sun-shirt, and my ears, neck and arms have never been so unburned.
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11 July 2022.
=> https://milddermatographia.com/the-mantario-trail/ [1] here (https://milddermatographia.com/the-mantario-trail/)
Living and Studying in Switzerland - 4 Month Retrospective
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