Bob (son) and Dave (father) plan hiking and backpacking trips together. Unscripted dialogue. Frequent off-topic excursions of added value. Lots of talk about books. Lots of talk about gear. Lots of talk about family. Language is usually PG-13, but content may sometimes wander toward adult themes of…
Dad and I talk about the next trip. Then we take the next trip, bringing Jack and Joe along with us. For any single ladies in the world, Joe offers his unique value proposition and leaves his phone number at the end.
Moving forward with our next backpacking trip. Spent this episode discussing the options for an inexpensive vehicle that could double as a hard-shelled camper. We discuss the downsides of camping in truck toppers and panel vans–mainly the potential creepiness factor, thanks to a couple of infamous psychopaths who have used the same for kidnapping people … Continue reading »
Once we get our motorcycles to Lake McBride, we end up talking about hiking, backpacking, and camping–specifically about retrofitting a truck or a van into a motel on wheels for our future trips to national parks.
We’ll be doing a few motorcycle adventures over the coming months. This is our first episode along those lines. We start talking about it near the end.
Finally making this lost episode public… This one is for true fans of the show, those who deserve to hear it. Please comment if you’d like to hear us do more podcasts, because we are considering how best to use our time in 2015 and beyond. Any feedback will help. Note: This episode was recorded … Continue reading »
Part 5 of 5 of our Big Bend Nation Park trip. This will be our final podcast episode for a while, as we decide on where we’d like to backpack next.
Part 4 of 5
Part 3 of 5 in Big Bend National Park
Part 2 of 5 in Big Bend National Park.
Dad and I podcast live from Big Bend National Park. The first half is from our campsite the Tuesday evening we arrive. The second half is Wednesday during a lunch break while hiking Window trail. Partial Transcript: Bob: Okay, we’re live. Ward’s Adventure Travel Research and Trip Journal, and guess where we’re at…Big Bend National … Continue reading »
Before, after, or while listening to this episode, check on the pictures related to this post… Also, thanks to those who by my books! Pic 1: Picture of me trying on hat in the store next to the Mexican brown bear and the two friendly, smiling sales clerks. I’m clearly uncomfortable standing so close to … Continue reading »
In this episode, dad and I discuss ideas for packing. What to take. What can be left behind. How this trip is different from the SNP trip. Desert hiking with a base camp site will allow us more flexibility to have comforts readily at hand. Things we will want in the desert but didn’t have … Continue reading »
First half of show is completely off-topic. We’ll be in Big Bend National Park soon, and we aren’t really stressing out about the planning, which is good. Compared to planning the A.T. trip, this one is much more relaxed. Since we have a campsite reserved, we’ll just go down and hike whatever hike we want. … Continue reading »
Here are some maps we used during the episode… Chisos Basin Satellite Map by Google Campground Site Numbers(White-numbered campsites may be reserved. Black-numbered are first come, first served.) Chisos Basin Campground Reservations Website Below Campsites Are Available for Reservation as of 31-Dec-2014(see black numbered sites above for first come, first served)
During this podcast episode, dad and I discuss Big Bend National Park primitive campsites for backpackers, as well as the Chisos Basin campground. The campground seems like a sensible option for backpackers, and dad and I plan to reserve a site to use as a base camp during our visit. On any given night, we … Continue reading »
We discuss a 2 day, 1 night backpacking hike called the South Rim Loop in Big Bend National Park. The trailhead is just south of Chisos Mountain Lodge. Day 1 is a 5.25 miles ascent along Laguna Meadow Trail to a campsite along the Southwest Rim. Day 2 is an 8.6 mile descent back to … Continue reading »
Great news! If you thought our episodes have been running long, this one will only use up 57 minutes of your life! Since you’ll never get those minutes back, I’d like to assure you they won’t be totally wasted. This is an important episode of Ward’s Adventure Travel Research and Trip Journal. As the title … Continue reading »
Dad treats listeners to one of his favorite old cowboy songs (about 35 minutes into the show). The song is called Shifting Whispering Sands. In addition to the music, we continue our discussion of Big Bend National Park, and successfully move our trip planning forward. I used the following links in preparation for this episode: … Continue reading »
A surprise visit from Laura improves the quality of our podcast! She talks about her travels, including hiking to Machu Picchu. She enlightens me and dad on the logistics of that trip–how she got there, who she traveled with, and why to both. Intense mountain elevations, she got put on oxygen about 14,900 feet, loved … Continue reading »
We research U.S. national parks below latitude 35 ° N in hopes of finding somewhere awesome to hike and backpack in January or February. (Listener feedback with other options would be great! We’re looking for backpacking destinations that stay above freezing.) During this episode, we find Big Bend National Park, which sounds very promising. It’s … Continue reading »
We make important decisions about the future of this podcast. Why we decide to stick with backpacking adventures for now.
How does this show title apply to adventure travel? Blame dad!
In this podcast episode, dad and I discuss what type of adventure we should try next. Winter is coming, so we’re thinking of snowy endeavors. If you have any ideas or suggestions, we’d be happy to consider them. You can post in the comments at EpicFieldNotes.com/027…
Dad and I discuss our completed backpacking trip to Shenandoah National Park.
025E (Part 5 of 5)
025D (Part 4 of 5)
025C (Part 3 of 5)
025B (Part 2 of 5)
025A (Part 1 of 5)
Published early because we’re leaving tonight at midnight. Here’s the pre-show research I did… From the PATC book, the number for reservations at Big Meadows Lodge is 800-999-4714 (however, this number is disconnected). So I called the number for federal and national park reservations (877-444-6777)–aka Recreation.gov–and the receptionist told me they only book campsites, and … Continue reading »
Dad got blisters, and I got chafing. Here we throw off all modesty to discuss our personal trail ailments in the name of helping others avoid two very common dangers with backpacking. We will be leaving for Shenandoah National Park in 5 days, so this is our final logistics episode, then next week we will … Continue reading »
Really coming down to the wire on the Appalachian Trail adventure. In this podcast, we make final decisions about several logistical questions, including where to stay, when to depart, how to get to Luray, VA, and more. I discuss my phone call with the desk clerk at Shenandoah National Park headquarters. We also create a … Continue reading »
The first half of this episode, dad and I debate our differences of opinion. The second half is debate free.
The first 30 minutes is a discussion about Fiona Hill from Bob’s novel Sea Turtles.
Visit the link below, then click the “A.T. Shuttle List” link for the PDF file dad and I discussed in this episode. http://www.appalachiantrail.org/hiking/find-a-hike/parking-shuttles-transportation
This episode begins with an overview of my family vacation to Niagara Falls. Next we discuss the Big Agnes Q-Core air mattress I purchased from REI. Then we talk about what training we’ve done–dad has a weight vest with approximately 40 lbs of weight for solo training–and what we plan to do to get in … Continue reading »
This is one of the most entertaining of the lot!
More hiking, overnight camping, and gear testing. One of my favorite types of episodes! We discuss what worked, what didn’t, and what we thoroughly enjoyed. For example, we enjoyed several scenic rest stops (sitting on a railroad bridge over a large creek, lying in the grass on a beautiful breezy mid-morning day at two separate … Continue reading »
Once again, we stand over our maps in the map room and continue developing our trail plan. This is a good episode, with lots of factual details, such as trail huts, camp stores, and mileage in between.
We talk about Giardia and Cryptosporidium, etc., during the first 15 minutes of this podcast. The remaining time we spend talking about the new gear we’ve purchased and gear we still think we need. The previous week we drank water from the cattle pond, and since cattle host all sorts of nasty protozoa, bacteria, and … Continue reading »
I’ll add show notes later…
I’ll probably have this episode transcribed. It’s loaded with factual information. Buy the Appalachian Trail Guide to Shenandoah National Park (with side trails) from the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club.
I might add a detailed description later…
Another outdoor episode! We enjoyed ourselves immensely, tramping six miles (once again) into the back-country, heading west toward two ponds under the sun, our packs fully loaded and Nature’s offering flawless. We are lucky where we walk–true, but a scratch on the surface of the world; to us it is everything. Our whole of it. … Continue reading »
I am simply amazed by this episode! Why? Because I just listened to the entire hour, and no episode so far has seemed to flow by faster. I would never have imagined that random bits and pieces of talk could move along so quickly and so interestingly. There seems to be an inexhaustible supply of … Continue reading »
We broke this episode into two halves. First, we talked about hiking, riding motorcycles, and pitching tarp tents. Then we paused the recording and went outside to test our ideas. When we came back in, we had new insights for the research journal, especially on how not to succeed in building a tarp shelter. This … Continue reading »
In this episode, we spread our AT maps on a table and discuss elevations, contours, trail features, huts, shelters, cabins, distances, fire roads, water sources, and so on. My map is produced by the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC.net). Dad’s map is the A.T. Guide by David “AWOL” Miller (theATguide.com). Both of these guides prove … Continue reading »
Hands down, my favorite podcast episode so far! We loaded our packs with 15 lbs of gear and journeyed out along Hog Barn Road toward West Pond. The weather and temperature were perfect! 46 degrees. Young Jack came along, as well as our two dogs, Woof and Fonz. After about 3 miles, we rested beside … Continue reading »
Dad got a pack! We had a great time inspecting it during this podcast episode. Make: Gregory Model: Baltero 65 Color: Prussian Blue Size: Medium Capacity: 67 Liters (3,966 Cubic Inches) Weight: 5 lbs, 10 oz He explains that he chose the blue only because he knew my pack was grey, and getting them confused … Continue reading »
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
