Just got this e-mail this morning from a veteran hiker/backpacker named Scott Huffman. It was so interesting I’m compelled to share: Tom, I just saw your blog (via Susan Mernit). I noticed that there is no mention (yet) of “lite”…
Finding gear on the Web
Decisions, decisions
by tmangan • February 7, 2005 • 0 Comments
Settling on a piece of gear is an untrivial decision. Dozens of manufacturers of shoes, tents, clothing, sleeping bags, backpacks, etc. sell a mind-numbing array of stuff. In the grand scheme of things it’s pretty cool to know that the…
Finding gear on the Web
Where I get this stuff
by tmangan • February 7, 2005 • 1 Comment
Now that I’ve listed my gear, I may as well tell where I found it. Just about everything worth having is available online, but it helps to see stuff in the store. Anything requiring an exact fit — shoes and…
My Gear list
All my goodies
by tmangan • February 7, 2005 • 4 Comments
This is a supreme act of geekery — A list of all my hiking gear: Packs Dana Designs Tattoosh 1500 You don’t need to know much about Dana, except that he builds comfy backpacks. This one is designed for people…
Mount Diablo
A Diablo day
by tmangan • January 30, 2005 • 3 Comments
The highest hill in these parts is Mount Diablo, which rises 3,849 feet above sea level amid the hills, flats and suburbs of Contra Costa County. Dominates the East Bay landscape. It can take all day to hike up there…
Uvas Canyon County Park
Among waterfalls at Uvas Canyon County Park
by tmangan • January 16, 2005 • 3 Comments
Mike and Cathy’s hiking club has a tradition of taking waterfall hikes after New Year’s. I went along on their first of the season Saturday at Uvas Canyon County Park in Morgan Hill, south of San Jose. The park is…
Mangan's memoirs
Where wetness abides
by tmangan • January 8, 2005 • 0 Comments
Rain? I got your rain. Here’s the view out my office window. It’s been like this most of the week, and it’s supposed to stay this way all weekend. Swell. We do have an interesting weather map, though: As you…
Montebello Ridge Trail
New year, new hike.
by tmangan • January 1, 2005 • 0 Comments
First thing I did on New Year’s morning was look outside to see how bad the weather was. It’s been crappy for a solid week, and I was feeling so cooped-up that I’d have gone out in a monsoon, just…
Sunol Regional Wilderness
Mud, fog, hills: A day in the Sunol Wilderness
by tmangan • December 13, 2004 • 0 Comments
OK, I admit the side trip through the creek was a bad idea. I was just about done with a 12-mile trek through previously unhiked (by me) sections of Sunol Wilderness Regional Park. The day had two distinguishing features: fog…