Standing on the slope of Algonquin in the Adirondacks, N.Y. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

You probably hate it when someone asks, “Hot enough for yah?” But this year, 2010, there’s a new bit of irony to that question. That’s because we’re dealing with heat of historic proportions, which means hydrating is more important than ever.

This week’s Backcountry Radio looks at staying hydrated on the trail and the warning signs of heat illnesses.

Backcountry Radio also focuses on a proposed service corps of workers for national parks and public lands, and the featured hike of the week sets out for arctic-alpine zones in the Adirondacks.

Backcountry Radio comes to you every Thursday morning, and you can subscribe to it at iTunes.

Hike on, hike on!

Backcountry Radio – July 29, 2010

Alison Pidgeon helps film a segment of Compass Points TV. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

Compass Points Media released Friday on its Backcountry Radio feed the latest episode of Compass Points TV, a segment about the Cedar Run-Whiteoak Canyon loop in Shenandoah National Park, Va. The release represented two new shifts in our popular hiking video programming.

The first shift could be immediately noticeable. The format is new as we attempt to make Compass Points TV more personable. The previous format had a narrator explain how to see specific trails, parks, mountains and other locations, but now, I want you to feel as if you’re on the hike with Compass Points TV while also bringing you the information you need to see the hike on your own.

The second shift has to do with broadcasting. The original seven episodes appeared every Thursday night during the spring, but now, Compass Points Media will publish Compass Points TV as the videos are published. Honestly, while I enjoyed producing the first seven episodes, the practice of hauling a camera on every hike sapped some of the joy out of hiking.

When you’re concentrating on video composition, you tend to miss the wilderness experience, know what I mean?

After I finished the first seven episodes, I determined to get back to what made hiking enjoyable in the first place — experiencing the fresh air of the woods, chasing vistas, searching for wildlife and so on. Having a video camera on every hike takes that away. I found that I love the mapping, photography and (naturally) the writing parts of this job more, which is what I always loved.

Compass Points TV will still be a strong part of the Compass Points Media programming, but production will be more periodic, once a month or so. And you will be able to download each episode on the Backcountry Radio feed.

One thing that won’t change — Compass Points TV will continue to help you “find your direction.”

Lower Whiteoak Falls, Va., splits in two streams. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

The Smokies may have their blue haze and Acadia its ancient, rocky coast. But Shenandoah National Park in northern Virginia has its reputation, too – lazy vistas, black bears, a lengthy stretch of the Appalachian Trail, all a mere 90 minutes from Washington, D.C.

What makes Shenandoah wild, however, is its bountiful trails to waterfalls. And no finer day hike to Shenandoah’s waterfalls exist than the 7.6-mile loop into Cedar Run and Whiteoak Canyon.

Watch Compass Points TV, then jump over to Trail Blazes to purchase the audio hiking guide, only available from Compass Points Media.

Talkin' about Maine on Backcountry Radio this week. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

Yeah, New Hampshire and Vermont deserve their accolades for epic backpacking opportunities, but Maine? Oh yeah, Maine ranks up there too. This week on Backcountry Radio, we welcome Chris Cavallari, author of PartTimeVagabond.com and a Maine resident, and he’s going to share insider knowledge about the best hiking, paddling and cycling to be done in his backyard.

We also provide tips on how to best enjoy a long-distance beach hike, and the featured hike of the week takes you to Huntington Beach State Park along the South Carolina coast, one of the best bird watching parks in the United States.

You can subscribe to Backcountry Radio via iTunes.

Tune in and turn it up!

Backcountry Radio – July 22, 2010

Hiking the beach at Assateague Island National Seashore. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

Americans often associate “hiking” with dramatic landscapes — soaring mountain ranges, gaping canyons, beautifully desolate desert — but beaches should not be overlooked.

Hiking a remote beach requires a different sort of mental preparation because you will walk for miles and see little variation from the coastline and ocean waves. Beaches, however, teem with wildlife like pelicans or dolphins, offer opportunities to truly escape the crowds, and here in the east provide the most dramatic sun rises.

Here are three places you can day hike or backpack for a perfect beach day:

• Assateague Island National Seashore. The National Park Service dubs this barrier island in southeastern Maryland “life on the edge” since it does represent one of the furthest reaches of the continent. Assateague’s 48,000 acres are home to an outstanding star scape at night and an abundance of wildlife such as horseshoe crabs, endangered piping plovers and its famous wild horses. A 25-mile shuttle hike into neighboring Chincoteague Island in Virginia takes you to a remote campsite and away from the tourists, most of them staying to the northern end of the island.
• Cape Hatteras National Seashore. You’ll have Carolina on the mind when you visit North Carolina’s laid back Cape Hatteras, a stretch of islands 80 miles long and 35 miles out to sea, the first national seashore established in the United States. Strong breezes attract windsurfers while an abundance of fish have plenty of people tossing in their lines for a shot at a bite. Hike the Bodie Island Dike Trail for 4.5 miles through forests and marshes, witnessing where saltwater meets freshwater and gaping at the 156-foot tall black-and-white striped Bodie Island Lighthouse.
• Huntington Beach State Park. Huntington Beach, just south of Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, was the subject of a DAY TRIPPER, and it’s worth noting here because the place is ranked among the top birding locations in the entire United States. Gulls, pelicans, egrets, herons and sandpipers all make their home at Huntington. Check out this 6.2-mile hike that includes marshes, forests and a beach where loggerhead turtles make their nests.

An egret poses in Huntington Beach State Park, S.C. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

Ten minutes was all it took. I saw more wildlife in Huntington Beach State Park along the coast of South Carolina during my first 10 minutes than I had in any other state park any where else.

Elegant white egrets, shaggy blue herons, crabs the size of silver dollars, an abundance of oysters, snapping shrimp and even an alligator floating like a lazy log in the freshwater marsh — a hiker couldn’t ask for a more exciting introduction to a state park.

Huntington Beach State Park is tucked away along the Grand Strand Coast and feels a continent away from its over-developed and brightly lit neighbor to the north, Myrtle Beach. Access to the state park is $5, but the fee grants you access to one of the best bird locations in the United States and a leisurely stroll for 6.2 miles through pine forests, marshland and sweet Carolina beach.

DIRECTIONS: From Myrtle Beach, travel south on Route 17. The park entrance is to the left three miles south of Murrells Inlet. Entrance fee is $5 for adults, $3.25 for seniors, $3 for children ages 6-15 and free for younger children.

HIKE ON: Park at the lot for the education center and marshland boardwalk. Walk out onto the boardwalk for a birding experience of great opportune. Watch for egrets and blue herons plus the popping sounds of snapping shrimp, which are hunting for small fish, as the boardwalk reached into the spartina grass and watery avenues.

A sail boat rests along the shore of Huntington Beach, S.C. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

Return to the parking lot and find the trail head for the Sandpiper Pond Trail. Follow that for 1.2 miles into a pine forest marked with white blazes. Keep an eye open for a series of observation platforms looking out over the pond, perfect vantage points for spying more birds.

At the end of the Sandpiper Trail you arrive at a parking lot. Follow the boardwalk out of the parking lot through the dunes and finally to the beach. Turn northward and walk the beach for 1.3 miles, looking for eye-catching yellow and burnt orange shells in the sand. At the end of the beach is Murrells Inlet, a pair of jetties through which boats pass full of tourists or fishermen and women.

Turn back onto the beach and stroll down the coast, keeping an eye on the ocean for schools of dolphins and flocks of pelicans while glancing occasionally to the dunes where endangered loggerhead turtles build egg nests. The park service attempts to keep these nests protected, so don’t disturb them.

And if you feel so inclined, take a refreshing dip in the ocean.

After about 2.6 miles of beach walking, arrive at a path that leads to the right to a shower/bathroom house. Follow the road for about 0.6 mile back to the parking lot and your car.

The Green Mountains as seen from Mount Mansfield, Vt. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

Wouldn’t it be something if we could all go there now? Escape to the Vermont mountains and get lost for a while exploring the ravines and peaks?

I’m in a bit of a day dreamin’ mood, but if I wasn’t a day dreamer, I wouldn’t have become a writer.

Today’s PICS takes us to the highest peak in Vermont — Mount Mansfield standing at 4,393 feet. Now, you  could take a road to the summit, but why when you can walk there and enjoy the scenery for hours?

Compass Points Media and Backcountry Radio will be on hiatus next week, but updates will resume Monday, July 19 and a new Backcountry Radio episode will broadcast worldwide Thursday, July 22. We’ll have some new stories to tell you about when we get back.

Don’t forget to purchase your Trail Blazes hiking guide if you find yourself at Ricketts Glen, Catoctin or any other fab hiking spot. And you can check out Compass Points Media on Facebook and Twitter.

See you when we get back! Keep hikin’ on, friends!

Backcountry Radio returns for its third episode. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

This week on Backcountry Radio:

1. State parks from West Virginia to Maine have experienced deep budget cuts as the economy struggles on. What parks are closed and what’s the future of state park funding?
2. Author Jason Stevenson stops by to share his tips on building the perfect backcountry camp fire.
3. The featured hike of the week takes listeners deep into the ghostly heart of Shenandoah National Park, Va.

Backcountry Radio – July 8, 2010

A peanut butter jar can be used as a backpacking trash can. (Compass Points Media / flickr)

A quick tip for this Tuesday.

“Pack out what you pack in” is a principle hikers hear about all the time, but how to do you pack out your trash so it doesn’t leak fluid and odors into the rest of your backpack?

The answer can be found in a favorite food of backpackers – peanut butter.

Take a large, plastic peanut butter jar. Spend weeks eating P&J sandwiches, making peanut butter cookies, dipping your finger in and taking a quick lick. Once the jar is empty, thoroughly wash it out with soap and water.

Bingo! A backpacking trash can.

Take the cleaned out peanut butter jar with you on your next backpacking trip and jam in your trash. You can fit two to three days worth of trash into the jar before it needs to be emptied.

Close the lid tightly, and the jar is better constructed to help prevent nasty fluid or odors from spreading through your backpack compared to Zip Loc bags or trash bags.

I’ve been using mine for five years and will continue to do so for probably another five years.

And hey! How bad can spending time emptying a peanut butter jar be? Not bad at all!

Help us plan a week-long trip to Grand Canyon National Park. (fundenburg / flickr)

Alright, Pointers. We need your help, and your assistance can influence what Compass Points covers.

The Blue-Eyed Wonder and I are attempting to put together a week-long trip to Grand Canyon National Park, our first foray to the Big Ditch in northern Arizona. We have an early October visit scheduled.

Here’s where we need your help. We need suggestions for great day hikes.

Our plan is to car camp on the South Rim and take day hikes in the area to experience as much of the Canyon as we can. We need the following suggestions:

• A moderately easy day hike (4-6 miles) for an introduction.
• The best rim-to-bottom-back-to-rim hike.
• A moderately strenuous day hike in the surrounding Kaibab National Forest.
• The best places to eat, visit and so on.
• What’s essential to a successful Grand Canyon trip/experience?
• What’s the don’t-miss hike?
• What hikes get you away from the crowd?

Send in your suggestions in the comments section below or send an e-mail at davepidgeon@compasspointsmedia.com. Your suggestions could help shape future episodes of Backcountry Radio and Compass Points TV.

Help shape one of your favorite online resources for hiking and the outdoors. Can’t wait to see what you come up with.