How to use Sierra Club Trails

sierra-club-trailsSomething that tends to hold us back from camping in unknown areas is the fear of the unknown. What kinds of activities are available in the area? Will there be any interesting places to explore or hike to? The Sierra Club has launched a new interactive site that seeks to answer some of these questions for you, using actual user-content that is accurate, fresh and based on the actual experiences of outdoor enthusiasts just like you.

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The Backcountry Essentials

the-essentialsThe “Ten Essentials” is a list of emergency items that is supposed to support you through an unexpected overnight stay in the backcountry and has been around for nearly 80 years. I was first exposed to the ten essentials as a Paratrooper in the Army, where the typical mission was 36 to 72 hours long and the only supplies we had was what we could stuff into small “butt packs,” or hip packs as they are known in the civilian world.

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