San Diego Trail Tramps is a men's hiking group located in the San Diego area with over 400 members, and dedicated to monthly hikes in San Diego County. There are currently no membership fees. We meet at 9 a.m. the third Sunday of each month in Hillcrest, and, after receiving last minute directions and updates, we carpool to the day's hike location. (Riders are asked to contribute to the driver to help cover the cost of gas and parking fees, if any.) Each guy is responsible for his own appropriate clothing for the weather, day pack or fanny pac with lunch, snacks, sports drinks/water, sunscreen, etc. An average of 10-20 guys usually show up for the hike.
If you're new to the hiking scene in San Diego County, here's some helpful info. on gear, clothing, etc. :
REI, A-16 Wilderness (in Mission Valley), Big 5 Sporting Goods, or Sports Chalet all have plenty of hiking, backpacking and camping gear for sale and some gear for rent. Purchasing a copy of Jerry Schad's book, "Afoot and Afield in San Diego County" is highly recommended. It's about $15 at Bookstar, in the maps section, and many other bookstores (as well as the above 4 sporting goods stores) also carry it. It's loaded with great photos, maps and lots of info. (Most of our hikes are listed in it.) His book tells you what kind of terrain to expect and what foot gear to wear as well as other gear to bring. (Most of the hikes we go on can be done in sports shoes, but on some hikes, you'll need hiking boots where the trail is rocky.)
For more on hiking, backpacking, and mountain climbing, check out the websites listed below, loaded with info, photos, etc. :
1. http://hike.mountainzone.com
2. http://www.backpacker.com
3. http://www.sandiego-online.com/forums/outdoors/index.stm
4. Hiking, Biking, Paddling, Snow: http://www.trails.com/explore
5. Mountain Climbing/Peak Bagging: http://www.peakbagging.com
6. Topography Maps: http://topozone.com
7. Trail Tramps member Jim Ruboyianes' Hike Photos: http://www.trailguys.com/TrailHiker
8. Sierra Club Lower Peaks Committee: http://angeles.sierraclub.org/lpc
9. County Highpointers Association. Information on finding and hiking the US county high points. http://www.cohp.org
10. Adventure 16 Footprints (Contains helpful tips, where-to-go articles and gear reviews for backpacking, mountaineering, climbing, adventure travel, hiking and camping.) http://www.adventure16.com/footprints.html
11. Climber (An online community devoted to encouraging climbing by sustaining the internet presence of mountaineering clubs and by fostering electronic communication among mountaineers.) http://www.climber.org
12. SummitPost Mountaineering, climbing, Hiking...Here you'll find climbing info on a growing selection of mountains. Excellent links page, loaded with connections to some great climbing and hiking websites. http://www.summitpost.org
13. Adventures International Mountain Guides (Offer a wide range of travel opportunities from hut to hut treks into some of the world’s most spectacular and remote regions, wildlife safaris, jungle and rainforest exploration, to extreme climbing expeditions, private guiding and high altitude mountaineering!) http://ExploreYourPlanet.com
14. Laguna Mountain Volunteer Association (Fantastic list of Mt. Laguna hiking trails, maps and hike descriptions!) http://www.lmva.org
15. Environmental News Network What's goin on, on our planet?! http://www.enn.com/index.html
16. Chris Wray Publications And Photography has a great new book out, "The Historic Backcountry", which is a geographic guide to the historic places of the San Diego County Mountains and the Colorado Desert. Chris is one of our core hiking members and has extensive experience hiking the desert areas of San Diego County. Check out his expertise at: http://www.chriswraypublications.com
17. Gay Outdoors is an extensive website, covering such topics as Adventure Sports, Camping/Hiking, Naturist Sports, Recreation Sports, and yes, Water Sports. Check them out at: http://www.gayoutdoors.org
18. Perfect Pace is a new gay club dedicated to the outdoor sports of hiking, backpacking, and camping. Based in San Diego, the club serves both men and women for the Southern California area, with most members residing in Los Angeles and San Diego. Perfect Pace primarily focuses on overnight backpack trips in South and Central California and the Southwest, but also hosts many day-hikes, extreme power hikes, and car camps.
19. Leave No Trace, Center for Outdoor Ethics is a wonderful website covering the principles of respect for using the great outdoors. Principles covered in detail include: Plan Ahead and Prepare, Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces, Dispose of Waste Properly, Leave What You Find, Minimize Campfire Impacts, Respect Wildlife, and Be Considerate of Other Visitors.
20.California Desert dot Gov is a great beginning point for more links to desert destinations and activities. The site is loaded with info. and tips on recreational activities in the California Desert Preserves and Wilderness areas.
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Come join us on the trail. Let's go!
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