Book Review: Dutch Oven - Cast-Iron Cooking Over an Open Fire by Carsten Bothe

I love cooking over the campfire. I've adapted so many household recipes that I've seriously considered writing my own book. I don't usually use my Dutch oven, but I have one. Sadly, it looked like this previous to this review (not too bad, really, but it needed some love):

Obviously, I didn't have a clue as to how to take care of it. I was treating it like a household skillet. It takes more than cold water and a small wipe down with oil every once in a blue moon to take care of something that you use over the open fire (and burn things in constantly). I have had such a sad experience with my Dutch oven that I've punished it by sentencing it to near solitary confinement in the darkness of the back of the cabinet. (It is kept company by my unused Foreman grill.) I would occasionally take it camping and burn biscuits and applesauce-gingerbread cake. I've successfully baked biscuits (from a can) maybe once.

Thank You October, Hello November

We hope that everyone had a wonderfully spooky Halloween. You should all be well on your way to hiking off all those extra sugary calories that have been consumed by the mouthfuls the past couple of days. Of course if you aren't then we completely understand. We had a good Halloween as always, complete with some pumpkin carvings and the girls getting dressed up to get some loot. Kiddo went this year as a Panda Bear and the Joders went as a Kitty Cat. Next year will be a different story as Dinah will be here and will be almost a year old. I wonder what we will dress her as? I guess we will find out next year.

With everything going on we haven't really had time to post or have time to do things to post about. Regardless though we are still getting traffic to the blog and that in a large way is due to you our fellow bloggers who link out to us. That's right, once again it's time that we show our bloggers some love and say thank you for all that you do. So without further ado, we'd like to thank the following for the traffic they generate for us:

- The Adventures of Tom and Atticus
- Outdoot Blogger Network
- Diary of a Day Hiker
- Trail Sherpa
- Live Free and Hike New Hampshire
- Hiking in the Smokys
- Meanderthals
- Two Heel Drive
- GPS Track Log
- Mamabug's Nature Photos
- Owl Jones
- High on LeConte
- My Life Outdoors
- Mountain Ultralight
- Hiking the Trail
- Section Hiker
- Backpacking North
- Brian's Backpacking Blog
- Husky Hiker
- Hiking Fiasco
- Hiking Finland
- Blue Roads to Hiking Trails
- Marking My Territory
- Metro to Mountain
- Fat Man of the Mountains
- Our Appalachia
- Take A Hike GPS
- The Adventures of Jobiwan
- Family Wilds
- Your Outdoor Family

Again thank you all for doing what you do, getting outside and sharing it with the rest of us. Here's to a fabulous November, and be sure to stay warm.

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin

Book Review: Following Atticus by Tom Ryan

Robin and I have been very fortunate in our outdoor blogging exploits. We've won some sweet gear, been on some wonderful hikes, seen some awe inspiring places, and above all else, have met some really great people along the the way. One person in particular that we have had the pleasure of getting acquainted with and knowing more and more is Tom Ryan and his four-legged companion, Atticus M. Finch. For our Tennessee fans and readers, as well as any of our fans and readers, if you've been living under a rock or somehow missed our postings on Facebook and Twitter about Tom and Atticus, then let us take the opportunity to tell you why you should get and read their book, "Following Atticus".

Tom Ryan is a master wordsmith. An ex-newspaper man from Newburyport, Mass. Tom has an uncanny knack for writing in a way that makes you feel as if you were there with him in his recently published book "Following Atticus." Considering that I can only dream to be half the writer Tom is, I can't begin to convey how wonderful this book is. I think Tom's words speak for themselves. But let me warn you, this is not just a book about a dog. It's not just a book about adventure. The mystery is never rectified. But you will be left with a heart-warming sensation - a newly acquired approach to the way you view life - and probably even the lives of the pets you love.

To be quite honest, for me to try and describe the book wouldn't do it much justice. It really does speak for itself and you'll just have to read it to see. However, I guarantee once you have read it, you'll be glad you did, for it will fill you with so much joy and inspiration.

This book definitely has it all. It will send you on a roller coaster ride of emotions in just a couple of chapters and back again. The relationship shared by Tom and Atticus, and between the two of them and everyone and everything they encounter together along the way is something not to look lightly upon, for this is the way I believe we should all live our lives.


Seriously, go buy the book. Then go home, put on your pj's, grab a mug of cocoa, and lose yourself in the White Mountains, the bond between man and beast, and the world they share from their eyes. Better yet, hike to a mountain or a forest glen and read it. If you don't fall in love with these two "characters" then maybe I'm missing something. You can order a copy from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or from various other merchants. Also be sure to check out their blog: The Adventures of Tom and Atticus. You can also keep up with the duo on Facebook and Twitter for that matter. If you're still not convinced, check out the trailer for their book below:

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin

P.S. To Tom and Atticus: Thank you guys for sharing your adventures with us. It's always refreshing to see you two facing the impossible and showing us all that it's really not as bad as it seems. In reading the book, I see so many similarities in my life in so many ways that you have described in yours, Tom. It's actually kind of heartwarming. Continue the good work and keep up the good fight you two. We look forward to the next adventure.

Hello October - Thank You Bloggers

October is here and we all know that means time for leaf peeping around these parts. Here the leaves are starting to turn. The Dogwoods have turned their normal dark red and other low lying trees as well. Up high in the mountains, the leaves are turning as well. Another week, and the autumn colors will be in full regalia showing off their grandeur. If you're anything like us, then you are out and about every chance you get hiking, attending festivals, or any other outdoor activity that affords you the opportunity to enjoy the brilliance of Autumn. So if you haven't already, get those plans together to get outdoors and enjoy the show. You can always check here for ideas and events for where to find prime leaf color viewing spots and of course any of the other numerous outdoor blogs out in the web-a-sphere.

Speaking of other outdoor blogs, that brings to the main reason for this post. Being that the first of October has finally made it here, it's time again to say thank you to the many outdoor bloggers with whom we've forged relationships with and in turn send traffic our way via links on their sites. So without further ado, let us thank the following blogs/outdoor websites and their owners for doing what they do best and for being our friends:

• The Outdoor Blogger Network
• GPS Track Log
• High on LeConte
• Diary of a Day Hiker
• Two Heel Drive 
• Hiking the Smokys
• Trail Sherpa
• My Life Outdoors
• Meanderthals
• Live Free and Hike New Hampshire
• Owl Jones
• Mamabug Nature Photos
• Mountain Ultra Light
• Hiking Fiasco
• Hiking Finland
• Backpacking North
• Metro to Mountain
• Fat Man of the Mountains
• Brian's Backpacking Blog
• Cloud Hiking
• Trout MaGee
• Off On Adventure
• Our Appalachia
• The Adventures of Tom and Atticus
• Family Wilds
• Living Life in Rural Tennessee
• Daily Hiker
• Four Season Angler
• Southern Oregon Fishing Reports

Thank you all for linking to us and sending traffic our way. We hope that we have been able to do the same for you all, and keep doing what you are doing. See you all outside.

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin

We Are Members Of Team Trail Sherpa

You know that special announcement I mentioned in the FGR earlier this morning? We were invited by Tim Miner of TrailSherpa.com to become members/contributors to his dream team of outdoor bloggers - Team Trail Sherpa. What is Trail Sherpa you might ask? Think "Facebook" just for outdoor types like you, our fans, and other lovers of the outdoors. It's a place where hikers, campers, backpackers, climbers, etc. can all get together to share ideas, stories, experiences, trails and more. Basically it's just a bunch of like minded people sharing our outdoors with each other.

Now you might be asking what Team Trail Sherpa is all about. Well, Tim Miner had an idea, a dream if you will, to put together a solid team of outdoor bloggers that represent a wide array of outdoor experience from all over. With that, he put together Team Trail Sherpa so that we could provide content to Trail Sherpa members and readers. Not just any old content though, but quality content including trail reports, gear reviews, recipes for the trail, etc. I won't go into anymore detail, you'll just have to drop in, become a member (it's free), and hangout.

Other members of the team include Rebecca from Calipidder.com, Brian Green of Brian's Backpacking Blog, Tom Mangan from Two Heel Drive, Jeff Hester from SoCalHiker.net, John Roan from MountainUltraLight.com, Derek Loranger from 100peaks.com and of course our Lead Sherpa, Tim Miner of TrailSherpa.com. Be sure to check out these great blogs and look for future posts from the lot of us at Trail Sherpa. Also keep an eye out for new members of the team to be added in the near future and check out our Intro post on Trail Sherpa.

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin

P.S. We hit the 400 "Likes" mark on Facebook. Thank you to our fans for helping us reach that mark. Additionally, thank you to Headsweats and ENO for helping us out with our Celebration Giveaway of 300 "Likes".

Hello September, Thank You

Hello September! We've missed you.

August has been a hot month here in East Tennessee and as a result, it has limited us on what we do outside. Additionally, we've been busy with the whole converting a bathroom into a nursery business and the house buying stuff including all the house work to prepare for the appraisers. All the hard stuff with the nursery is done and there are just the small minor decorative details being worked on. Once that is complete we will do a full reveal of the nursery for our expected new hiker. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks, after all the house work stuff is complete, we will be able to get out for some hiking and festival attending. It is September  and this is a great time of the year for outdoor pursuits. Until that time, we would like to send out many thank yous to our blogger friends like we do every month for without you and as always our readers, our blog wouldn't be the blog it is today.

Giveaway Roundup Friday - August 12, 2011

So the last week and a half has been crazy hectic. If you follow us on Facebook, then you know that we've been neck deep in turning a bathroom into a nursery, and getting the house looking nice before the appraiser comes out. With that being said, we ended up missing last weeks giveaway roundup and for that we sincerely apologize. If you please, don't put us in "Time Out" for it.

Anyway since we missed it last week, we have one for you today that features some pretty sweet giveaways from around the outdoor blog-o-sphere. These items include huge prize packages, to a GPS, a sleeping bag, and more. So with no further delay, let's get straight to the goodies that are up for grabs out there and start the weekend off right.

Our Dream Hike

I used to think, when I first started really getting into the hiking thing, that thru-hiking the AT would be my dream hike. To some extent, it is still a dream to thru-hike it, but it seems to be a hike that I could feasibly attain at some point in my life, at least I'd like to think so anyway. I think what sold me on the idea was listening to Bill Bryson's account in "A Walk in the Woods". Yes I say listen because Robin and I listened to it a few years back during a road trip to New Orleans and back.

Image Courtesy of
http://www.imagesofanthropology.com

Seriously though, I don't think that would suffice for this post as a dream hike because it is certainly attainable, at least if I can ever get our debt reduced to zero and enough money saved to cover six months worth of recurring bills while away on the trail. Anyway, for the purpose of the Outdoor Blog Carnival Post, "What's Your Dream Hike?", ours would have to be a hike up to Machu Picchu in Peru with the Llamas. Of course the Camino de Santiago wouldn't be half bad either, but I don't think I can coax Robin to Europe, but if I walked in the door with a complete itinerary for two and all travel arranged to Cusco, Peru, she'd beat me out of the way to our packs to get them ready and out the door in a matter of hours.

Blogger Love (August Edition)

First of all, let us first say, "Happy August Everyone". With the arrival of August, we have the last two months of summer ahead of us, and hopefully a little bit of cooling down before much longer. Kids will be going back to school in the next week or so for some others still have until Labor Day. Considering it is now August and Christmas is just under 5 months away, we better enjoy what is left of the year before it's gone. :P

Being that it is August, that can only mean one thing, time for some blogger love. That's right, as we do every month, we like to say thanks to all the bloggers that we know and love because they know and love us, and of course because we have a nice little network with each other sending traffic and new readers a like back and forth to each other. We will keep it simple this month. Thanks to all of you for doing what you do, and for being who you are.