Backcountry Bucket List

After seeing the movie "Bucket List", I decided to start my own backcountry version of places I want to see/hike/paddle. Some of these ideas (unfortunately) require a suspension of expectations as they relate to time and/or money. I thought it would be fun, however, to see what other people consider the end-all-be-all outdoors experiences and I decided to start with my own Top 5 (in no particular order)

- Everest Base Camp. I have no delusions of climbing Mt. Everest, but I would love to make the 17-day round trip journey to base camp.

- See the Northern Lights from Denali NP.

- White Water Rafting through the Grand Canyon.

- AT thru-hike. While a thru-hike is most likely out of the question for me, I hope to complete significant sections of the trail through each state.

- Paddle the Northern Forest Canoe Trail.

Well, those are 5 of my dream outdoors trips. What are yours?

The Sierras of CA have always tantalized me, as being just too far away to drive in a day, so any trip there would need a good four travel days in all, or else two days of truly marathon driving (for my tastes anyway; some people think nothing of 700 mile days). Yet, they have so many grand places tucked into them that I could hike there for years and still not see them all.

The Pasayten Wilderness up near the Canadian border keeps calling to me, too, but it has a similar so-near-yet-so-far quality that has kept me from it until now.

I can easily dispense with the Himalayas or Caucausus or Andes. Living in the western USA offers mountains enough that it is both inexhaustible and equally sublime. No need to fly halfway around the world for that.

Having lived in the Sierra for a number of years and having traveled back from the east coast at least a dozen times,I agree about their endless possibilities. Twice now I've had bad luck that kept me from making it to the Upper Kern River in Funston Meadow, so that remains on my bucket list. I had a trip into the Grand Canyon 2 weeks ago that was on the list and was perhaps the most satisfying and intriguing backpack I've ever done, bar none. Now walking the entire Tonto Trail is added to the list. I've enjoyed backpacks in the Canadian maritimes in the Chic-Choc mts. on the Gaspe' in Quebec, and on Cape Breton in Nova Scotia; they only whetted the appetite to make it to Gros Morne Park in Newfoundland. There are many other hikes I hope to do, but the Upper Kern (with a good friend from San Diego) another much more extensive trip into the GC, and Newfoundland are on the top of my list. Aimless, like you I set my sights well within N. America and thank God for economical cars and Southwest Airlines Get Away fares.

I have quite a few:

1) Thru hike the AT.
2) Backpack Yosemite, North Cascade, Mt. Rainer, Glacier.
3) It would be cool to backpack the Himalayas
4) Backcountry skiing in Colorado
5) Climb Mt. Rainer or related peaks.

Unrelated to backpacking and hiking I would like to go mountain biking in Moab, UT. Go to the ice climbing festival in Ouray, Colorado, also like to just go skiing in Colorado, UT, Montana or Wyoming.

- Chilkoot Trail (Alaska to Canada)
- West Coast Trail Vancouver Island British Columbia
- Anything Yellow Stone in winter (Wyoming)
- Brice Canyon in winter (Utah)
- Orderville Canyon to Narrows (Zion, Utah)
- Kalalau Trail, Hawaii
- Denali National Park, Alaska
- Hike across both big islands of New Zealand (hey if I'm going to dream right?!)