Best adventure travel guides according to redditors

I was asked to post this custom map here. I made it for an upcoming trip to death valley.

It's pretty straight forward to import .GPX files into google my maps. To get the GPX files, I worked from a series of waypoints, which I converted using GPS Visualizer. From here, I export to .KMZ and use one of a variety of iPhone apps to access the map without cell service. I use map plus today, but have been recomended GAIA GPS and have been giving that a shot.


I found most of my routes from trails.com as well as Southern California BackCountry Adventures which is terrific, albeit out of print :(

AMA about the process, the particular map, etc. If you have any suggestions for routes, hit me up!

Before hiking in 2016, I read Thru Hiking Will Break Your Heart and Hiker Trash both of which I thought presented accurate descriptions for what it's really like to hike the PCT. Not the most thrilling reads, but worth it if you're considering doing the PCT.

He has a book as well that I've read through most of. The paperback doesn't seem to be available anymore (too bad. he signed my copy when I ordered), but you can still get an e-reader here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Live-Your-Life-TeapotOne-ereader-ebook/dp/B075RXDD9K

A big second for Adventure Motorcycling Handbook. I'd also recommend California Coastal Byways, California Desert Byways, and California Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails if you're going to be in Cali—or the equivalent for the states you'll be in if they exist.

I highly recommend joining ADVRider, they have lots of useful info.

Finally, get a book on ultralight camping, many of the principals are useful for motocamping as well.

I recommend getting:

New trails guide

Older Trails guide

As /u/UnbridledHedonism said hungry valley is ok. Lots of motorcycles. I prefer Rohwer Trail off Boquet Canyon in Santa Clarita and Drink water off San Franquito Canyon in Sant Clarita. Big Bear has Cleghorn and John Bull which are fun. All of the trails are very challenging technically and require high clearance.

If you want real beauty head north on 395, Last Chance Canyon in Mojave, Lorel Lake in Mammoth, and Kavanaugh Ridge outside of Lee Vinning.

Nothing on the west side my friend.

This sounded interesting so I did a quick internet search.

Keep me updated on your progress, I may look in to doing it too.

Found this book on amazon

"Along the King's Road: A Guide to Touring the California Missions by Bicycle"

https://www.amazon.com/Along-Kings-Road-California-Missions/dp/1495421414

And these sites

Super tour El Camino Real 2015

https://sites.google.com/site/supertour2015/

Touring the California Missions by Bicycle

http://californiamissionride.blogspot.com/

This one maybe?

Off the Tourist Trail: 1,000 Unexpected Travel Alternatives

Fun fact, I received the book 927 days of summer this week, from Amazon. Haven't started it yet, but I loved their first book. Title might be inspired from the book you mentioned.

Car travel does cost a lot more, but I personally love the security in comes with. I also love to get in very remote areas... I can't wait to get lost in Pantagonia! :)

Make an effort to get to know the people in your class, find people that have the same interests as you in the backcountry. Get their emails or whatever before the class is over so you can ski with them!

Do the reading and the homework they want you to, participate when they ask questions - normal classroom stuff. Make sure you're wearing warm and comfortable clothes when you're outdoors so you can focus on what they're teaching rather than staying warm.

Then, just supplement the material they provide. Get some books like Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain and Snow Sense, go through some youtube channels [1] [2], there's even an avalanche podcast (Slide) now.

This is the kind of thing where you have to do a little research. Try your local public library or bookstore and find travel memoirs written by people who have done similar trips.

A little search on Amazon turns up a few books:

http://www.amazon.com/Road-Trip-Americas-Hidden-Heart/dp/1936688395/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1420817147&sr=8-10&keywords=road+trip+america

http://www.amazon.com/Kindness-Strangers-Penniless-Across-America-ebook/dp/B004183KI6/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1420817147&sr=8-16&keywords=road+trip+america

http://www.amazon.com/The-Wander-Year-Couples-Journey-ebook/dp/B005BW2X52/ref=pd_sim_kstore_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0WGWYBC61D6WF9Y482X5

Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:


amazon.co.uk

amazon.ca

amazon.com.au

amazon.in

amazon.com.mx

amazon.de

amazon.it

amazon.es

amazon.com.br

Beep bloop. I'm a bot to convert Amazon ebook links to local Amazon sites.
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If you haven’t already, these 4x4 books are pretty handy to have. I have the one for trails north of I-70 and the one for trails south of I-70(and Moab).

Edit: also the COTREX app as another user mentioned, you can save areas for offline when you inevitably lose service.

I'd read some trailjournals.com or similar to get an idea of what its going to be like hiking the AT. The more boring of a trailjournal, the better cause if you can get through a boring journal, you have a chance of having the mental fortitude to stick through a thru hike.

If this was the PCT, I'd recommend https://www.amazon.com/Hikertrash-Life-Pacific-Crest-Trail/dp/0692341382 as it's a good day to day journaling of life on the trail.


I would read whiteblaze.net forums and /r/AppalachianTrail. I'd pay attention to peoples lighterpack.com posts asking for shakedowns of their gear list and learn from them before you start buying equipment.


I'd start backpacking to figure out if I enjoy the activity that I'm going to drop my life for.


I'd figure out the opportunity costs of taking 6 months off of life and hiking the AT and asking myself if I think that's worth it.


Then with a couple of months to go till start, I'd really being training for the hike and reading up on specifics I'd want to know, like trail towns. I'd start planning my life to get it in order for being gone for 6 months. But in reality, if you've got the gear and backpacking experience, and your home life in order, you can start the day with zero prep.

Gore pass itself is actually a paved road just south of steamboat. This pic was taken off one of the many turnouts. I wouldn't say any of them are difficult. A stock truck would do just fine and they are all beautiful. The way I find a lot of my routes is with these books. Plenty of info and ratings for all difficulty levels.

Guide to Colorado Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails, 4th Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/1934838268/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_EFNBDbWH0JAWE

The two prerequisites are a mobile income and a spirit of adventure. It really is a next-level move though made possible by remote work arrangements. Basically, if you make dollars and spend pesos, you can live like a king. For more information, check out this quick read called "A Gringo's Guide on Moving to Mexico" - https://www.amazon.com/Gringo-Guide-Moving-Mexico-Everything-ebook/dp/B07VBZ5D98

I'm in CO and not familiar with CA wheeling outside of the Rubicon and the trails there.

I have the CO and UT versions of this:

https://www.amazon.com/Guide-California-Backroads-4-Wheel-Trails/dp/1934838071/

But sometimes it's frustrating because they only have a 3 level rating system: easy, moderate, difficult.

For example in the Moab edition they list Finns & Things as difficult. And they also list Prittchet Canyon as difficult.

But there is a wold of difference in difficulty between those.

In other trail rating systems Finns & things is rated as a 4/10 and Prittchet a 9/10.

So it can be hard finding trails that match your level with only an easy/moderate/difficult rating system.

But the books can be good to give you a general idea of where the trails are and if they are suitable. You can augment with google searches to get a more precise idea of difficulty.

Its in the Backcountry Adventures book I bought, and marked as a trip I plan to do this summer.

https://www.amazon.com/Backcountry-Adventures-California-Peter-Massey/dp/1930193084

Yep, I recommend the book I started with, Snow Sense. it’s less than $10: Snow Sense: A Guide to Evaluating Snow Avalanche Hazard https://www.amazon.com/dp/061549935X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_D4oeAbKNJJ93Q

After that, I suggest an avalanche prevention / education course.

Enjoy!

http://www.amazon.ca/Travel-Hacking-Dave-Brett-ebook/dp/B00CGM8VM4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405945569&sr=8-1&keywords=travel+hacking

We bought this guide which has been really handy. I especially liked having a physical map when out in the rural areas where these trails are.

Hi, the book is finally out! Here's the link: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Female-Guide-Solo-Travel-Discover-ebook/dp/B00U7WYVEW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426736983&sr=8-1&keywords=a+female+guide+to+solo+travel I hope you enjoy it. Lisa

One of my favorite books to give destination ideas:
https://www.amazon.com/Off-Tourist-Trail-Unexpected-Alternatives/dp/B0096DDWTI

https://www.amazon.com/dp/9612839522/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_ep_dp_HNQMzb5J99HQQ

The book Guide to California Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails is a great beginner book. You will want to get a GPS and input the coordinates from their website. It has Anza Borrego, Death Valley, the Mojave Road and tons of others. It organizes by location and difficulty. I have a modestly upgraded FJ cruiser and my brother has a stock Xterra both with 4low and rear lockers with smart driving can do anything but difficult rock crawling.

Once you get good at route finding you must do the Mojave Road it the the quintessential socal overland trip and can be done in a stock Jeep.

https://www.amazon.com/Guide-California-Backroads-4-Wheel-Trails/dp/1934838071/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

Thanks. Around 150$? I am really fascinated with the sport after reading the manga. I eventually got around to read a "real" book about some tragic events taking place at a mountain. Other than that, no. But I am definitely more likely to try than 1-2 years ago.

Seconding Stadtwanderwege that were already mentioned! For a smaller half-day or lazy day trip in Vienna's immediate surroundings, I would recommend Naturpark Föhrenberge including Perchtoldsdorfer Heide (really neat rock formtions and views down on Vienna, unique vegetation). Another good option would be Nationalpark Donauauen (flat, lots of water and birds and open space, also good for swimming). I'd also recommend you to end your trip at a Heuriger, a traditional restaurant run by wine producers, consider starting and ending your trip in Grinzing for that, the South-Western area around Baden is also good for that. Look for any hiking trip recommendation containing the word "Wein" (wine), hehe.

If you want something a bit more involved, like a full-day trip with proper mountains, and maybe a stay in mountain hut, I can also recommend the hiking trips in this book (Amazon link here); it countains trips like this (I can recommend this one by the way). Try translating it through Google Translate and DeepL, the latter sometimes gives better results. If you don't want to buy it just for a day, there's a list of all the tours it contains here, you could then look up the names of recommended areas for hiking trips on either www.bergfex.at, www.outdooractive.com or www.alpenvereinaktiv.com (also available as apps). Also check out the apps Komoot and Mapy.cz, and Osmand for good offline openstreetmaps (which are sometimes more detailed for hiking paths than GMaps).

There's lots of lists and material, but most of it is available in German, shouldn't give you too much of a problem though if you use any of those sources for ideas, and then look up the tracks on abovementioned websites. Don't rely on the indicated train connections, some of the sources are from last year and things might have changed (recommended websites for that: www.oebb.at, www.anachb.at, and as apps ÖBB or Wegfinder, the latter also for the city). Also make sure your phone is fully charged and your equipment is fitting for the planned trip (proper shoes, clothing for rain protection and warmth, emergency medical kit, maybe a small flashlight, tell people where you're headed) and above all, have fun!

Some more sources:

List on environmentally friendly = public transport trips to the "Wiener Hausberge", the "Vienna house mountains" or mountains closely around Vienna. Contains this nice pdf.

Some of the trips already mentioned as list on Komoot.

List of trips reachable by train.

Another book, don't have any experience with this one personally.

Oh and also check out www.viennawurstelstand.com for various general info about Vienna in English. Also contains some hiking trip ideas here and here. www.wien.info is good for general tourist infos.

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Terrain isnt bad at all, couple slightly steep spots, think I only needed to even use 4wd twice. Pretty much any stock 4x4 with decent ground clearance should be fine, you just might have to be careful about your lines.

I didnt even take my gps when I went, get a paper map if you can. The forest service map is better than the delorme for this area. And
this book lists the trail as well, would recommend getting it if you dont have it already.

http://www.amazon.com/Guide-California-Backroads-4-Wheel-Trails/dp/1934838071/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464888447&sr=8-1&keywords=guide+to+california+backroads+%26+4-wheel+drive+trails

> These structures of society have shaped the thinking of members of society to focus on the individual rather than the community.

No, that's a false view from social constructivism. As humans we innately have both considerations for individual and community cooperation. In fact, this was the very topic of Richard Dawkins' The Selfish Gene.

In fact it is your very point that cooperation with the community is vital to the success of humankind that caused the evolution of altruism. Specifically, it was the reproductive success of the individuals with genes to drive notions of community cooperation -- in balance with individual considerations -- that allowed those genes to flourish in comparison to solely individualist genes.

As you suggest, we benefit from each other thanks to a variety of economic factors, including safety in numbers, division of labour, comparative advantage, and solving the Prisoners Dilemma. But we also benefit from individual considerations. You can't simply ignore that. There is a balance, and we have those built into our cognitive functions, and social constructs don't eliminate that.

In fact, you've got it backwards. It's exactly things like using our collective government that solve such problems. Generally speaking, problems you identify are social Prisoner's Dilemmas. Things like environment are solved by creating a centralize enforcement of common best interests. As in the link, there is no means to solve it as individuals. No amount of, "Hey, let's all do it together" can every solve such problems; all it doesn't is increase the ability of individuals to exploit the sacrifices of others. It's called the Free Rider Problem. Once you understand the trap of the Prisoner's Dilemma and it's related problems like the Tragedy of the Commons and the Ultimatum Game, and recognize where they exist throughout societies, you begin to understand why we need to solve them through common enforcement agencies like a democratic government (as in the first link).

While social constructivism doesn't work, this doesn't mean that "thinking about community" doesn't help. We do have innate tendencies to norm toward our in-group (tribal) averages, so if more people seemed to focus on community then indeed that could promote people working in communities. But that doesn't seem related to capitalism or consumerism. Capitalism has nothing to do with individuals, but is purely based on the principle of up-front investment (of time, energy, effort, labour, money, whatever) to earn back more than the cost of the investment. That will always be true because it is an inherent law of the universe; it happens in any socioeconomic structure.

Consumerism also isn't a thing that creates other things, as the title suggests. Consumerism is an output; it's a description, not a prescription. People don't sign up to some consumerist set of beliefs; it merely describes the state in which we have excess capacity compared to what we need. We can now afford unnecessary trinkets, so we focus on our whims. But that is a consequence of standard of living, not of some socioeconomic structure -- except for the ability of that socioeconomic structure to enable the very prosperity the results in consumerist luxury.

The only way to do away with consumerism is to drive down our standard of living so that we only have enough to get by on. And to do that you have to force people to do it against their will. Remember, people today can work a lot less and consume a lot less if they want to. I have a friend who retired at 40 and moved to Costa Rica and lives in a modest house there doing fine, and likely will. She isn't wealthy at all, probably lower middle class before retiring. (Heck, you can read about people doing this in Happier That A Billionaire.) Most people don't though. We work as much because we want the marginal increases we get from it.

I hope you don't think that such a world would be a better place: forcing people against their will to have lower quality of life so that they can't consume luxuries so that they rely on other people more to get by so they think more in terms of community.

I really don't see that people an option people would like. I certainly don't. Rather, I think the better solution is exactly the democratic government approach, with a lot of reform though. Those reforms I would suggest would take far too long here though.