Category: North America

Grandmother Mountain: The Blue Ridge’s Bouldering Paradise

The weekend was coming and I was looking for a good place to do some bouldering. After asking around, Grandmother Mountain was the name that came up the most in conversations. As I searched for directions, my climbing shoes winked at me from across the room. It was bound to be a great adventure. Like …

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Virtual Guidebook: A Walk Through the Canadian Rockies

The North American Rocky mountains by begin as far south as mid-New Mexico, but their northernmost point is a full 3,000 miles away, nestled inside an ecosystem that looks absolutely nothing like its southern counterpart. This should serve as no surprise to anyone who is familiar with that great collection of mountains … a family …

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Iztaccíhuatl: The Peak of Mexican Ecstasy & Heartbreak

Standing proudly at 17,160 feet (5,230 m), Iztaccíhuatl boasts the third highest peak in Mexico. Like some of the largest mountains in Mexico, such as Popocatépetl and La Malinche, Iztaccíhuatl is a volcano (now extinct) in the center of the country. It is one of the few remaining mountains in Mexico to have a peak …

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The New Mexico Rocky Mountains

Anytime someone mentions the Rocky Mountains, it is hard to not become immediately inundated with visions of majestic mountain peaks, covered with snow, looming above the world at such heights that it would be inappropriate to compare them to anything but heaven. And yet, there is a stretch of the Southern Rocky Mountains that refuse …

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Mount Mansfield and the Persistence of the Spirit

Vermont is a mountainous state. The mountain that best represents the pinnacle of the Green Mountain State is Mount Mansfield, located in Chittenden and Lamoille counties. Mount Mansfield gets its name from its resemblance to a man, complete with facial features and even an Adam’s apple. Popular among locals and tourists alike, Mount Mansfield offers …

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The Lewis and Clark Expedition Map of the Rocky Mountains

How Master Cartographer William Clark Set Out to Map the Rockies It was 1803 when President Thomas Jefferson and his like-minded band of enlightened souls embarked on a shared journey to the far reaches of the American Republic … a journey that was as spiritual as it was geographical, as bold as it was foolhardy. …

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Cardiovascular Contortion on Old Rag Mountain

Tucked into Shenandoah National Park in Madison County, Virginia, is Old Rag Mountain. With a low peak standing staunchly at 3,284 feet (1,001 m) and a prominence of less than half that, it offers a fun hike for all skill levels, with two routes to the summit. The more strenuous hike – considered by many …

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Scenic Phoenix: Exploring Piestewa Peak

Rising over the palms and the Pueblo Revival and “desert school” building designs of the city of Phoenix, Arizona, are the desert peaks that form the Phoenix Mountains. This winter I got to explore the second highest peak of the Phoenix Mountains, Piestewa, during my Christmas/New Year holiday. Winter is a lovely time for exploring …

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How Lewis & Clark Crossed the Rocky Mountains

It is nothing short of a tragedy to find just how little appreciation is given to the momentous feats of the souls who came before us, upon whose legs and backs our country came into its rightful greatness. The Lewis & Clark expedition of 1804 – 1806 is one such feat. In our world of …

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Mount Elbert: The Highest Peak in the Rocky Mountains

In the deep heart of the Rocky Mountains, just south of the alpine town of Leadville, a mountain known locally as the “Gentle Giant” overlooks snow-capped ranks of lesser peaks and hills. This is where she has lived for about thirty million years, and with any luck, the next thirty million years isn’t going to …

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