When I started Modern Hiker in late 2006, it was a simple side-project and a way for me to share my newfound love and enthusiasm for the Los Angeles area outdoors with others who – like me – didn’t even know hiking was an option in the city.
Since then, the site has grown far beyond what I expected it to be. We formed a small team of crazy-talented writers and expanded our coverage all over the southwest. We’ve clarified complicated outdoor policy stories that were otherwise muddled in clickbait headlines or partisan furor, held an international graffiti artist accountable for vandalizing Joshua Tree National Park, and helped catch what may be one of the single most prolific National Park vandals in recent memory.
Now we’re ready to take the site to the next level – and we need your help.
We also lined up an unbelievable group of friends to help us out with some perks and prizes you can pick up if you contribute to our campaign – from tents and sleeping bags to custom, hand-made ultralight packs, bandanas, wilderness perfumes, gift cards, limited-edition Modern Hiker shirts, stickers, and patches, guided cycling tours of Los Angeles, privately-guided hiking and camping trips, our favorite outdoor films, and even backcountry trips to Zion and Death Valley National Parks!
I can’t stress this enough, though – we cannot do this without you. Please follow our Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook accounts for updates, Q&As, and live events throughout our month-long campaign. Share this with your friends and family – and maybe even get some new people onto the trails with you!
Over the next month we’ll be
- Leading group hikes all over Southern California, conducted by myself and our San Diego expert (and new author of Afoot and Afield in San Diego County!) Scott Turner
- Conducting live Q&A and chat events on social media
- Sharing some of our favorite hikes on the brand new KPCC show 5 Every Week (download the free 5 Every Week app, too!)
- Debuting our new writers from all over the Western U.S.
- Adding new trail info from Washington, Oregon, Hawaii, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Alberta!
- Reviewing brand new gear
- Publishing our experiences on the Annapurna Base Camp trek in Nepal
So please, contribute what you can when you can – and help us continue to inspire more people to get outside, one click at a time.
UPDATE: Wondering where all the money is going or why we chose crowdfunding for this project? Read on, friends!
