Exploring the Grand Canyon is an outdoor adventure sure to create a level of bonding and healing for any family open to nature’s wonders.

There are three reasons it’s so effective. (And it’s OK if you don’t have the physical conditioning to do it, or if you have small kids – I have some answers for you.)

Share The Moment

First, the Grand Canyon is an incredibly special place. Carved by water and blowing wind over millions of years, it’s literally a 4000 foot deep chasm winding through a vast plateau.

A wild river thunders through the canyon’s base. Desert flowers, wildlife, waterfalls, springs, rapids, and horizon-busting vistas will astound even the most cynical of brothers, sisters and spouses.

After spending 3 or 4 days exploring the Canyon’s depths, it’s impossible to view the Canyon from its rim and not be overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with gratitude for being alive in that moment. Overwhelmed by sharing that moment with every family member …

A Natural Rush

Second, small family groups living in the wilderness is how human beings evolved over the past 70,000 years. It feels right.

Freed from the work-a-day world with its superficial distractions, your family can talk and listen and interact in natural and stimulating environments. It just may be possible to open new and healthy dialogues. What is crushed by the rush of every day civilization, just may be nurtured by the rush of the Colorado River ….

Team Family

Third, hiking the Grand Canyon is an achievement. Your family, like any team, is happier when they win and is less happy when defeated. Even the most basic trek into the Canyon is an achievement . It isn’t easy. It’s challenging.

And once your family tastes this sweet “victory”, it may create a hunger for more family achievements, more family victories ….

Not In Shape?

If you aren’t physically fit enough to take on Grand Canyon hike then I’ve got some solutions.

First, you may be in shape enough to hike without a pack. If you are, then there are mule services to carry your gear down and back up, so you don’t have to do it. The mules are also a great solution for families with young children.

Another solution is to book the trip several months out and then start training. Start training as a family activity.  And if neither of those solutions will work, then another option is to do a Grand Canyon rafting trip with day hikes from the bottom.

If your family is going through a rough patch, consider a Grand Canyon adventure. Or any outdoor activity. It may be the natural healing tonic your family craves.

(Would love to hear from anyone with a healing family adventure.)

Now Go Outdoors!

Hiking News Headlines

• Before you hike one of Colorado’s Fourteeners, they’re are a few things you should know. Depending on the time of year and your skill level, tackling one of the 55 mountains at or above 14,000 feet above sea level ….

• Screening footage from his uncompleted documentary, The Vanishing Hemlock: A Race Against Time, David Huff sounds an alarm to save southern Hemlock forests from the woolly adelgid ….

• This years’ National Public Lands Day is Saturday, September 27th, 2008. The annual program of the National Enviromental Education Foundation is the nation’s largest hands-on volunteer effort to improve and enhance the public lands ….

• For hiking all of Pennsylvania’s 18 State Forest Hiking Trails, totaling 798 miles, William S. Geiger of Lehigh County, and John Potter of Lycoming County, PA are the 2008 recipients of the State Forest Trails Award ….

Now Go Outdoors!

Hiking News Headlines

• You have until October 20th, 2008 to comment on the U.S. Forest Service’s proposal to restore public hiking access through Silver Pick Basin to the Rock of Ages Saddle near Telluride, Colorado. Comments may be submitted to Norwood Ranger District, Attention: Kathy Peckham, 1150 Forest St., Norwood, CO 81423 ….

• Sunday, September 21 2008, Middle Valley Farms in Mendham Township, New Jersey will host the first Family Farm Festival. It’s a green-themed benefit designed to raise funds for the Schiff Nature Preserve in Mendham and for other local charities. Open to the public year-round, the preserve boasts eight miles of trails for hiking and biking, horseback riding, and a nature center housing rehabilitated animals ….

• The Washington Trails Association recently debuted a Web site upgrade to make your hiking research easier. The WTA also has a new comprehensive Hiking Guide. Additional info is available at The Survive And Thrive Boomer Guide ….

Now Go Outdoors!

Thinking about hiking as a healthy hobby? Start here …

Hiking is not for everyone but those that enjoy it are generally relatively fit as this recreation can be very strenuous depending on your route and how long you are out for.

Certainly, some hikes are that easy. And they should be. Not every hike has to be a three-day outing in the peaks of Colorado. Not every journey involves navigating through forests, across rivers and over mountain passes. Sometimes you just want some fresh air and a little exercise.

But once you expand your horizons, what do you do?

Are You In Shape? Well ….

First, get in shape. Take those shorter, more level hikes near your home or someplace a short drive away. Especially if you’ve been sedentary, work up to more rigorous hikes slowly. The single major reason for anyone to not stick with any kind of exercise plan is pain. They try too hard too soon and overdo it. That leads to injury and pain, and they give up.

Take a few short jogs to build up your cardiovascular and pulmonary (heart/circulation and lung) systems. You’ll need plenty of oxygen capacity and a stout heart to complement muscular stamina.

Get some basic gear. Get the right boots by researching online. Make sure they fit with some thick, sturdy socks that wick away moisture.

Buddy-Up

Try to hike with at least one other person unless you are familiar with the area and the terrain isn’t very challenging. GPS and other navigational tools can help, but if you injure yourself or become very ill that may not do you much good.

Stay on clearly marked or visible trails until you know the area or have more experience. Getting lost is one of the most common ways that amateur hikers turn a pleasant two-hour hike into a two-day search-and-rescue effort.

Maps can be helpful if you know how to read them, but these days a GPS is probably more useful for most people. But you need to spend a little time learning how to use it, but try not to rely on these too heavily and always take a map and compass as a back up.

Now Go Outdoors!

People who live in urban environments sometimes seem to forget why they came to a wilderness area to hike: peace and quiet, and great scenery. To enjoy that themselves, and to allow others to, hikers generally adopt a few common sense guidelines.

‘Pack it in, pack it out’ is a long-standing rule among fair-minded hikers. In order to leave the area much as you found it, for the sake of others and your own future enjoyment, you should not leave what you brought. That includes water bottles, trash and other items.

Even fragile toilet paper can take weeks or months to deteriorate. If you use it and it’s recommended to take a roll along, and can’t dispose of it in a container, it should be buried. To pack it out, a simple plastic bag will contain odors until it can be disposed of in a container.

Proper Poop!

On that subject, if you have to urinate in a wilderness area (as opposed to supplied facilities), do so at least 100 meters away from water sources and trails where others walk. Feces should be eliminated into a small hole well off the trail and covered with dirt.

Part of the deep pleasure of hiking is enjoying the peace and quiet. There are plenty of exciting things to do in the city that involve making loud noises. Hiking trails are not made for that purpose. Respect others and keep your voice down and ride motorcycles elsewhere. Happily, with the advent of iPods, loud music is much less frequently a problem these days.

The Locals

Make an effort to find out what the local regulations about camping and fires are. It’s preferable not to start a wood-based or open fire, in any case. They can easily spark and spread, even by accident. Once they do, they’re extremely hard to stop before becoming a major problem.

If you plan to camp, set up in an open area and use a Coleman or other similar stove to cook food. When you’ve finished your stay, don’t leave behind anything that won’t decay within a day.

You should take similar efforts when you fish or do other activities that often accompany hiking. These activities can be enjoyed by large numbers of people almost indefinitely if a little moderation and common sense are applied.

Avoid wildlife to the extent they avoid you. Some even more - bears or mountain lions, for instance. Animals are particularly wary during mating seasons and when rearing young. Otherwise docile creatures can become fiercely protective and aggressive when pressed. Some may have diseases that can be spread to humans. Watching is enough. If you want to touch, go to a petting zoo.

Bears, mountain lions, skunks and others should simply be avoided. Bears are not always the gentle creatures that some nature documentaries depict. They normally avoid humans, but have been known to kill and eat them. Large cats, too, will eat small humans. Though normally shy, they are predators. Don’t be prey.

Exercise common sense and common courtesy and everyone, you first and foremost, can enjoy your hikes now and in the future.

Now Go Outdoors!

Hiking News Headlines

• Two hikers died this past Wednesday (9/10/2008) as a flash flood swept away a family group and their guides. Hiking in a slot canyon in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, they had no warning ….

• Tropical Storm Hanna damaged Nova Scotia hiking trails in the Cape Chignecto Provincial Park. Two wooden bridges, a large one at Refugee Cove and a smaller one at Seal Cove, will have to ….

• Ground was broken for a new 14 mile hiking and mountain biking trail at Lake Howard, Alabama. Entering the Talladega National Forest, and growing a half-mile per day, the trail ….

Now Go Outdoors–Safely!