Fjällräven NYC

Fjällräven opened up their first American store today at 262 Mott Street in New York City. I stopped by last night's pre-opening celebration to stare at all the pretty Swedish girls and drink a few beers. If you have any affinity for vintage camping gear, and I would assume you might if you're reading this, then get on the subway or hop on the plane and go check it out. You might know Fjällräven from the mini-backpacks you see around town (and in my apartment) but they started out as, and still are, a technical outdoor gear company, something that they want you to know as soon as you walk down the steps into the store. Filled with axes, tents, sleeping bags, boots from yesteryear and new alpine coats that you clearly don't need for urban life, people who complain that "outdoor gear just isn't stylish" will complain no longer.More photos of the new store can be found at Paul + Williams Flickr.

20 Least Crowded National Parks of 2009

Not surprisingly, Alaska is home to 4 of the 5 least visited National Parks this year, with Kobuk Valley National Park taking the #1 spot. The park only had 1,250 visitors in 2009. Other parks that made the list are Great Basin National Park in Nevada, Congaree National Park in South Carolina, Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Texas and Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (pictured above) in Colorado. The L.A. Times has the whole list and more info.(via The Goat)

Coghlan's

If you've ever been in a camping store, you've most definitely seen products from Coghlan's. The "outdoor accessory people" started 50 years ago in 1959 while Norm Coghlan was running Coghlan's Gas Appliances in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Campers would come in for repairs on their camp stoves and lanterns, so Norm started selling tents, sleeping bags and air mattresses.Customers wanted a way to make toast on their pump-up gas camping stove, and since Norm's store carried such an item, he found out the U.S. based company that manufactured the toaster was discontinuing it. He bought the entire inventory, rented a storage facility and began Coghlan's distribution of camping accessories. The Camp Stove Toaster has been made in Winnipeg, Manitoba since the mid-1960s. Coghlan’s has assembled and packaged over 7 million 504D Toasters.Coghlan's now sells over 450 accessories including bear bells, whistles, squeeze tubes, hammocks, fire starters, hot dog skewers, signal mirrors and compasses. All Coghlan's gear comes in those green and yellow packages above that make them look like they were made in the 50s - the reason they're so damn cool (and unreliable).Do y'all ever buy Coghlan's stuff when you're at the camping store?

The Devil's Path

Stephen Reingold (The Gear Junkie) hiked the Catskills' Devil's Path and wrote about it for the NYT:

The Devil’s Path, an east-to-west voyage along the spine of the Catskills, is often cited as the toughest hiking trail in the East. In 25 miles it ascends six major peaks, plunging into deep valleys between climbs.“From end to end the Devil’s Path is one of the more challenging trails around,” said Josh Howard, a director at the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference, which publishes detailed maps of area trails, including the Devil’s Path.Backpackers hoping to complete the route face a total climb and descent of more than 14,000 feet. Steep ascents include cliff bands and traverse terrain that is vertical enough at times to be confused with a mountain climb.

Urban Camping

by Mark Cahill

A few years ago while in grad school I was working on a design project for an "alternative hotel." The problem: It's super cheap to travel, but too expensive to stay the night. At the same time I was planning a trip out to the west coast for a few days of site seeing and backpacking. Looking for that perfect hostel, I began to think about what exactly to bring. I definitely wasn't going to miss the opportunity to spend some time in San Francisco, but was also not going to miss Yosemite. I pictured myself walking through the streets of the city with my pack on and my tin cup clanking as I hopped the street car tracks; climbing those infamous hills; roaming about the wilderness of Haight Ashbury.And it dawned on me: I was carrying shelter in the form of my tent anyway so why shouldn't I be able to just pitch it somewhere in the city? Why couldn't this be part of how we travel and how we stay in urban areas. So I used this idea on my hotel design. I had already decided to design the roof as a green roof, so it was easy to designate the area as a "campsite." And so there it was: Urban Camping.As it turns out, this has been done before, and is being done now to some extent. In San Diego in 1914, a Hotel placed a "Tent City" on top of their roof to make use of that wasted space. That was nearly a century ago, and it seems that again the idea is gaining some more steam. An Architecture firm called import export have created a mobile multi-level tower (pictured above) that allows for tents to be pitched in urban settings. Another young designer named J. Enrique Enriquez entered this idea into a design competition and it fetched him an honorable mention.Would you camp in a city?

White Sands National Monument

White Sands, New Mexico, November 28, 1975 by Snap ManWhite Sands National Monument:

Rising from the heart of the Tularosa Basin is one of the world's great natural wonders - the glistening white sands of New Mexico. Here, great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert and created the world's largest gypsum dune field.White Sands National Monument preserves a major portion of this unique dune field, along with the plants and animals that have successfully adapted to this constantly changing environment.

MP3: Bob Dylan - Pressing On

Sassafras

Sassafras, found mostly in the eastern United States, is characterized by its' three distinct leaves on the same tree - unlobed or oval (top left); bilobed or mitten-shaped (top right); and trilobed (bottom). If you've living in New York City like I do, you can find it in Prospect Park. Root beer was originally made from sassafras until the FDA banned it in the late 1960s as a potential carcinogen, but no human studies have ever been made and many believe the ban to be unwarranted. (Read more about that here.)The roots of a sassafras sapling can be uprooted and used to make a damn good tea - it tastes just like root beer - so next time you're out east and want something other than pine needle tea, look around for some sassafras. It won't hurt you.

"Smoothing It"

From Nessmuk's Woodcraft and Camping:

With a large majority of prospective tourists and outers, “camping out” is a leading factor in the summer vacation. And during the long winter months they are prone to collect in little knots and talk much of camps, fishing, hunting, and “roughing it.” The last phrase is very popular and always cropping out in the talks on matters pertaining to a vacation in the woods. I dislike the phrase. We do not go to the green woods and crystal waters to rough it, we go to smooth it. We get it rough enough at home; in towns and cities; in shops, offices, stores, banks anywhere that we may be placed – with the necessity always present on being on time and up to our work; of providing for the dependent ones; of keeping up, catching up, or getting left. Alas for the life-long battle, whose bravest slogan is bread.As for the few fortunate ones who have no call to take a hand in any strife or struggle, who not only have all the time there is, but a great deal that they cannot disposte of with any satisfaction to themselves of anybody else - I am not writing for them; but only to those of the world's workers who go, or would like to go, every summer to the woods. And to these I would say, don't rough it; make it as smooth, as restful and pleasurable as you can.

Woodcraft and Camping on Google Books after the jump...

The Tallest Man On Earth

Several months ago, I shared a lean-to on the AT with a few medical school students who, when all the jokes were told and all the food was eaten, asked if it was okay if they put on some music while the fire was dying down and laughable whispered talks of troubling long-distance relationships were beginning. Much to my dismay I agreed, and seconds later, the sound of The Tallest Man On Earth filled a small section of New York forest until the sun finally went down. Truth is, it was kind of nice. But don't tell anyone.Watch, Watch, Watch: The Tallest Man On Earth on NPRRead: The real tallest man on Earth.

West Rim Trail, PA

by Jeff Stockdale The West Rim Trail is a 30.5 mile trail located along the west rim of Pine Creek Gorge, "The Pennsylvania Grand Canyon", in the Tioga State Forest of north central Pennsylvania. It picks up outside the small town of Wellsboro, home of George Washington Sears, pen name “Nessmuk,” an early environmentalist/writer whose stories first appeared in Forest and Stream magazine (of which Field and Stream acquired in 1930) in in the 1880’s. Portions of the trail follow old logging roads and railroad grades left over from the 19th century. There are numerous campsites, located either in laurel-lined vistas overlooking the gorge or deep in hollows along the Allegheny mountain streams.Be sure to pick up a copy of Chuck Dillon’s Guide to the West Rim Trail, which provides details about the geology of the places and the legendary tales of their founding. In his highlighting of Barbour Rock, we learn of Samuel Barbour, a logger who lost his life after unpinning a log jam; and at Dead Man Hollow, where a trapper was found in his own trap after the spring thaw.Look: Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources' West Rim Trail Map

The Long Trail

The Long Trail:

Built by the Green Mountain Club between 1910 and 1930, the Long Trail is the oldest long-distance trail in the United States. The Long Trail follows the main ridge of the Green Mountains from the Massachusetts-Vermont line to the Canadian border as it crosses Vermont's highest peaks. It was the inspiration for the Appalachian Trail, which coincides with it for one hundred miles in the southern third of the state.Although the Long Trail is known as Vermont's "footpath in the wilderness," its character may more accurately be described as backcountry. As it winds its way to Canada, the Trail climbs rugged peaks and passes pristine ponds, alpine bogs, hardwood forests and swift streams. The Long Trail is steep in some places, muddy in others, and rugged in most. Novice and expert alike will enjoy the varied terrain of the trail as it passes through the heart of Vermont's backwoods.With its 270-mile footpath, 175 miles of side trails, and nearly 70 primitive shelters, the Long Trail offers endless hiking opportunities for the day hiker, weekend overnighter, and extended backpacker.

Backpacker.com has mapped out the Long Trail for your hiking and camping needs. Click here to check it out.MP3: The Strokes - You Only Live Once

Ten Mile River Lean-To

A few weeks ago I went camping on the AT at the Ten Mile River Lean-To. Situated in a monster field of weeds and wildflowers surrounded by tall trees, the clean (!) lean-to is only a few hundred feet from its namesake river. Take the Metro North to the Appalachian Trail stop (weekends only) and head northeast (cross the highway) for about 10 miles. You'll pass the Wiley Shelter 6 miles into the hike, but keep going, because it's worth the extra time. Only bummer about the Appalachian Trail in Connecticut is that there are no fires allowed. But that ain't no thang. There's a huge river to keep you busy.I spent the night in the lean-to watching and listening to a storm pass over the field while sipping on tequila and blackberry brandy with two friends that I met on the trail. Was a real time. I had put in a fresh roll of film before I headed out of my Brooklyn apartment but the shitty photo above was the only one I took on the entire trip. For the first time, I had no interest in taking out my camera.

That 70s Guy

I hadn't heard this podcast in a while when it came on my iTunes this morning, so I thought I'd repost if you want to take a listen. Originally posted September 12th, 2008. As you probably already noticed, we post a lot of pictures from the 70s and 80s on this website thing we got going. It wasn't until this morning, while coming across a wonderful picture of this dude camping, that I remembered a mildly funny podcast from Outside's Eric Hansen where he decides to turn back the clock and dress the part of a 70s outdoor enthusiast. It's worth taking a listen.From the podcast:"The stars and stripes are flying proudly thanks to my super bitchin' American flag backpack. 'Looooking good,' I say to myself. And it's true. I am the avatar of the bicentennial outdoors, embodiment of all that is joyous and unbridled."MP3: Cactus - Parchman Farm

Colorado

The prickly pears were in full bloom a few miles down the road from the fields of Columbine and Indian Paintbrush. I was all set to sleep in a tent right along side those handsome results of a rainy Colorado spring/summer until a neighbor volunteered their bright orange 1974 VW Camper Bus. Can you say no to an opportunity like that? Yes, you probably could, but there was no way in hell I wasn't going to fall asleep on that plaid bed. I spent the weekend driving up and down Canyon Road, back and forth from Boulder and Nederland, hiking, watching fireworks, drunkenly sneaking up on a fast flowing creek, eating food made on planks of wood, thinking of dog names for when the time is right, and trying to figure out why I ever left for the big city.She's quite a lady, that Colorado.MP3: Townes Van Zandt - Columbine