Backpacker Magazine – May 2010

Local Hikes: Midwest

See moose, bag a high-desert peak, and sample a quiet long trail. (Click linked trips for GPS waypoints, photos, and more.)

by: Ted Alvarez, Shannon Davis, and Kim Phillips.

Tags:
• Midwest
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• Hiking
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• Camping
|
• Backpacking
|
• Texas
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• Oklahoma
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• Arkansas
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• Minnesota
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• Michigan
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• Wisconsin
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• Adventures
|

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1. Weekend: North Country Trail
This easy 6.4-mile point-to-point runs the length of the Rainbow Lake Wilderness. Camp at Lake Bufo and listen for wolves. 

2. Wildlife: Craig Lake SP
Pack binocs and hit the unnamed (but maintained) seven-mile trail around the lake—a watering hole for loons, bears, and moose.

3. Best week: Superior Hiking Trail
Sample the SHT on a 67-miler from Gooseberry Falls to the Caribou River. This weeklong highlight reel features piney ridgetop views of Lake Superior, cascading rivers, and a string of lakes with primo camping.

4. Favorite falls hike: Richland Creek Wilderness
Pick up Richland Creek Trail near the campground on FR 1205 and hike two miles to the 100-foot-wide, 8-foot-tall Richland Falls. From here, swing north .5 mile to Twin Falls’ dual 20-foot cascades.

5. Best campsite: Ouachita NF
Four miles in on the Little Missouri Trail, a bluff overlooks turquoise pools on the Little Missouri River.

6. Best views: Guadalupe Mountains NP
Summit the region’s highest peak—8,749-foot Guadalupe Peak. The 8.4-mile round-trip hike skirts limestone cliffs and juniper-studded hillsides. On top, get views of salt flats and a chain of neighboring 8,000-footers.

Best basecamp: Big Bend NP
Link the Pinnacles and Boot Canyon Trails for a 4.5-mile hike to backcountry sites near 7,825-foot Emory Peak.

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