The latest, 6th Edition of Portland’s best-selling hiking guidebook, my very own 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of Portland, is now for sale — signed however you like! To pick up your copies of any or all of these, hit up my book sale page. To read more about the English soccer book, check out […]
Burnt Lake and Zigzag Mountain is a little Mount Hood hike that has it all: trees, waterfall, lake, exercise, and a great big view of Mount Hood. I took a couple of out-of-town guests up there on June 24, and we had perfect conditions. It was sunny, warm, a little breeze, no bugs, and we […]
In the latest edition of my book 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Portland, there’s a handy list of hikes near Portland; it tells which characteristics like length, difficulty, waterfalls, best time to go, etc., for each one. That list also exists on a spreadsheet, which you can use to search for hikes with your own […]
I got out towards the end of June for one of the best hikes in the Columbia Gorge, Hamilton Mountain in Beacon Rock State Park. It’s really a hike that has it all: a good workout that isn’t a killer, a beautiful waterfall just a little ways in, a viewpoint on the way up, a […]
Which hiking trails are open or still closed from the Eagle Creek Fire of 2017? I have just updated my Eagle Creek Fire Page with all I could track down. But the biggest news of late has been these developments: The Benson Bridge at Multnomah Falls is now open — but the old highway is […]
There is this magical thing that happens in the Columbia River Gorge every spring. The hillsides green up, the skies clear, the temperatures rise, and wildflowers explode in beautiful abundance. For hikers, this means escaping the city and, in normal years, the rain. (This year, of course, it’s pretty much sunny everywhere.) And if you […]
I was recently in a situation where I was uncomfortable and anxious but knew a way to deal with it. Two, actually — neither of which I was willing to try because I was worried about what people would think. Now, this might make more sense if these were big crazy solutions to big crazy […]
For a few years now, I’ve been working on a guidebook for Americans who love English soccer. The book, which I am calling The Groundhopper’s Guide to Soccer in England, is set to be published this summer. I am finishing up the writing right now, in fact. Meanwhile, I invite you to keep up with […]
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about thoughts. I realize that’s a recipe for spinning uselessly, but I also think it’s a worthwhile endeavor. After all, if thoughts about “reality” create our reality, and therefore our emotions, and all of it together creates our actions, which contribute to reality, and so the cycle continues … […]
The other day I spent several hours ruminating over a resentment story. I had been wronged, my day ruined, and in my head I kept repeating the same story: “Well, she said she would, but she didn’t, and now my day is screwed.” Not far from the surface was another reality, the one that really […]