Backpacker Magazine – April 2008

Trip Finder: Stay-Dry Spring Hikes

Stay dry on spring treks in Minnesota, New Mexico, and more.

by: Tim Shisler

Tags:
• Weekends
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• California
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• Utah
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• New Mexico
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• Adventures
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• Michigan. West Virginia
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• Minnesota
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• Grand Canyon
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• Canyonlands
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• Appalachian Trail
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California | Southwest | East

EAST
Appalachian Trail, WV - 2 Days
You can't ditch your rain jacket (hey, it's spring in the East), but in Harper's Ferry, where it rains less in April (3.3 inches) than during any month all summer, you might not have to unpack it. Follow the AT north for a steep climb to Ed Garvey Shelter, 6.3 miles from town. Set up a tripod at 800-foot-high Weverton Cliffs, a short blue-blazed side hike one mile south of the shelter, for cherry-picker views of the Potomac River. appalachiantrail.org/

Porcupine Mountains Wilderness, MI - 3 Days
April melt may raise the Upper Peninsula's Little Carp River from a lazy trickle into churning whitewater, but you can expect only 2 inches of rain here. Pack gaiters for the 20.2-mile clockwise loop on the Little Carp, Lake Superior, Big Carp, and Correction Line Trails in the heart of the Northwood's "Porkies." exploringthenorth.com/porkiesum/map.html

Superior Hiking Trail, MN - 4 Days
The finest lakeside camping in the Land of 10,000 Lakes is along this section from Castle Danger (40 miles NE of Duluth on MN 617) to Beaver Bay. The 31.4-mile trek skirts 130-foot-high cliffs peppered with killer views on Breadloaf and Christmas Tree ridges. Making good time? Explore Split Rock Lighthouse and Gooseberry falls. shta.org/Trail/TrailMaps/index.php

California | Southwest | East

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