In 1851, William Nobles founded a new route to California through lands of the Northern Paiute Tribe. The new trail left the Applegate Trail at Black Rock Springs in Nevada, crossed the Black Rock Playa, passed near what is now Susanville, California and ended at Shasta City, California. It was generally considered the easiest route […]

There is a fourth lesson of the trail. It is one which John Muir taught me .  There are always some people in the mountains who are known as “hikers.” They rush over the trail at high speed and take great delight in being the first to reach camp and in covering the greatest number […]

National Park Shutdown National Parks in the U.S.A. are usually open 365 days a year.  When legislators and the President fail to fund the operations of government, the Park Service furloughs non-essential workers.   Usually these periods are short and the parks are open after a few days.  This year’s long shutdown left the parks […]

Sometimes I answer questions posed by members of Quora.  Here is one question and my answer:
What are the most common, likely dangers facing hikers in North America?

The history of the Lava Beds National Monument is rough, with a bloody history of the Modoc Indian War.  Many people died there during the war under horrible circumstances.  Do their spirits live on? Frank Bagges was quite certain they do.  He related his first person report to the The Morning Call, a San Francisco newspaper.  The story was […]

A map created German cartographer Henricus Martellus (aka Heinrich Hammer) in 1491 depicts the world as known to Europeans at that time. Recent studies reveal more details than ever seen before.

The Rainbow by Charles Lamb
After the tempest in the sky
How sweet yon rainbow to the eye!

  REI continually develops new products for those of us that enjoy exploring the outdoors.  Today they announced their latest clothing product, the ZipAll.  This outfit is incredibly designed to offer the maximum in versatility. The REI video offers a great demonstration of the many uses for this remarkable item: Get all the background on […]

Changing our perspective . . . sometimes it’s easy.

This new fork in the EXPLORE! Blog will discuss things that are Great in the World. I hope these posts will inspire you to get outdoors , put on the lens of celebration, and discover what is great in the world around you.