Following Redbeard • Superior Hiking Trail - Part 1

[@JayWandersOut]

I'm hiking Pictured Rocks along Lake Superior in northern Michigan next week. I certainly didn't plan on it but after watching this I'm definitely jumping in the lake!!

[@matth1143]

Pictured Rocks is a cool area. The Upper Peninsula in general is largely considered a must-do for hiking here in the upper Midwest. I've been out there a couple times.

[@andybesemer8672]

Hanging in SHUGS back yard !

[@MattShafter]

Yeh, did Shug give you permission to hike the SHT? Sector 7 is not to be trespassed upon.

[@RedBeard0924]

Would have been great to hike and camp with him for sure. I was really hoping to run into him on the trail.

[@tomfranta5495]

Welcome to MN. hope you had a great time. Looking forward to more videos.

[@rachelthomas325]

Very nice. You guys passed me Saturday morning on the trail, I remember because it was rainy and I was impressed at how fast you all were moving! Glad to see you enjoyed the SHT, it's a great trail. I hope to do the AT or PCT sometime in the next year or two :)

[@georget678]

I love that you do t use a water filter. People give me so much grief for not using one. I’ve yet to get sick and try explaining if you are careful where you collect, it’s not an issue.

[@did61two]

Nice one that lake looks more like an inland sea .....thanks for takin me along

[@uptrail7169]

Very good part 1 of the Superior Hiking Trail. We live about 30 miles from Lake Michigan and 90 miles from Lake Superior. Some of the most beautiful areas are along Lake Superior. You picked a good time with less bugs and the rain is normal for this time of the year. The Porcupine Mountains and Pictured Rocks in the U.P. are also great areas that we go backpacking. Bob

[@kflynn1867]

Awesome to see the ZPacks boyz up north in my backyard. Glad you enjoyed the trail- we love it. Lots of rain lately though. I just did that section last weekend. Lots of mud and elevation change.

[@scottchris10sen]

Nice to see ya spending some time on our fantastic trail! It's a gem for sure. Thanks for taking us along. Skol!

[@veaziemi]

Love your videos Red Beard! I'm a MN native, so glad to see you do SHT!

[@TheREALMuad-dib]

Damn, it's good to see the shores of my home waters after being in the Mojave since July. Thanks for this, keep it up bud.

[@chasentrail5775]

Great job, Will! Sorry we missed you guys in Oregon recently. We were hiking the Mt. Adams wilderness area in Washington when you guys were out there. We just posted our video. Take care and see you next time hopefully! -Chase'n Trail

[@KevinOutdoors]

Cool I was just there earlier this year and did this section in the other direction. Neat seeing the vegetation change.

[@derekl2882]

Always cool to see out of state folks and prominent hikers experiencing the SHT. Love your gear, love your vid. Cheers

[@1st508thAirborne]

Good video. I'm in Minnesota and that's a nice area to hike. :-)

[@whyguy3651]

I've been looking for a trail to hike! Glad i saw this, Considering i'm in Minnesota!

[@swatsullivan]

Awesome. Had never heard of this trail. Looking forward to the next video!!

[@johnathonayles1114]

Great seeing a Northern trail get showcased!! You should check out the Lake Superior Provincial Park trail on the Canadian side. It's a lot more rugged with a lot of boulder scrambling. Cheers, John

[@MTAdventures406]

Another great video! Love the new hats!

[@shauptmann06]

My wife and I have made Superior Forest our getaway for our wedding anniversary. It is amazing up there!

[@MatanuskaHIGH]

I hiked the kadunce to temperence river section in 1993 when I was 15. I need to come back and finish it. I have land and a cabin just outside Duluth on island lake

[@MatanuskaHIGH]

also..lake superior doesnt have a tide like the ocean. it might move 6 inches or so but nothing that noticable

[@elfdoctors]

I just did that same hike from 270 Overlook to Pincushion about 10 days ago. You missed some beautiful foliage (and got more rain!). Your AT video series inspired me to buy a Zpacks Duplex which worked well on the trail. I thought he should have mentioned at 270 Overlook that everything to the north of the Pigeon River (which he showed in his video) is Canada while the US is to the south.

[@Bradyvilleboy]

My brother and I enjoyed meeting you guys. I am still lusting after that sage colored wind shirt. Nice video guys.

[@docaaron2127]

great video, glad to see you southern boys enjoying my favorite trail. I'm looking for a new light weight pack fir next season and yours is at the top of the list.

[@Hindukushsailing]

Always an informative video!! Enjoyed watching.

[@davesimons7896]

Grand Marais is a beautiful place.

[@JakeF1st]

I love the SHT !

[@lisaf158]

I binge watched your other few series, it will tough to watch this in installments! :-)

[@wfredw]

Wow I thought this trail was going to be flat, leisure little stroll by the lake. Those stairs would have been my undoing. I have a much better understanding of the SHT.

[@SticksBlog]

Great video! Man, I know I have said it before, but I really wish I could have made it on this hike... One day I gotta get out with you guys... Love the new logo. Can't wait to get another hat, and maybe a shirt too... :) (Would love poly version in black!) I like Matt's blue pack... the color looks bluer than the wallet I got in blue, which looked more purple. Maybe it's the lighting? I like the fold over top flap on Joe's pack too. Looks snazzy and just clean... Especially with the logo there on top too. Agree with you on taking it slow at the beginning... although I have never done a super long hike. I recently went out on the first trip I have been on in a while and pounded out a little over 21 miles the first day... Especially a few weeks after back surgery, I kinda regretted that... lol. Man that's a big lake! I have an older Pat Cap 1 silk weight shirt. I like it, but it's a bit heavier than my Cap 2 shirt. Patagonia is notorious for changing up fit and materials though... still love all of their clothing though! I also have a MH Wicked Lite T which is very light. It has held up well, even under my pack. Wow, Devils Kettle Falls looks awesome! Supposedly there are some places in Savage Gulf where the streams disappear into the underground too... When I was there things were dried up pretty good though... I haven't done any hiking along the beach, or camping, but I would love to do so one day! Not exactly the same, but there were some nice campsites along the rivers on the Foothills Trail that I wanted to stop at... That looked like an exciting section along the lake though! Great place for a swim! That looked like a great beer... and burger! Yum.... :) Looking forward to video #2. As usual, thanks for taking the time to post these. Always enjoy them.

[@RedBeard0924]

Wish you could have made it too, next time! The blue material on Matts pack is a new material we are testing out. However we will be selling a brand new blue hybrid cuben very soon on our website and it is nearly identical in color, honestly it is now my favorite color that we sell next to the black hybrid cuben. The trail was great for sure! Just wish it hadn't rained as much as it did. That sucked!

[@matth1143]

Hey Will. Glad to see you folks doing the SHT. This is for lack of a better way of putting it my "home long distance trail". I live in the Twin Cities and usually through hike this once every 2-3 years. Not too many years ago it got a number of awards including I believe Backpacker mag's best shelters and best signage. Bteween the views and chances at spotting megafauna, it's my favorite midwest trail. Though I'm probably biased given that I live here. Hike on!

[@forloveofthegain]

Great video Will! Maybe you can answer a question that's been bugging me. How do you pack your cuben shelter while you're backpacking? Do you stuff it, roll it, or fold it?

[@RedBeard0924]

I fold it up and then roll it. Essentially I fold it in half lengthwise, then fold it width wise from right to left and then again left to right, then I roll it up and it fits perfectly in the stuff sack. Hope that makes sense. We will be doing a video soon showing the best way to pack the tent up.

[@mountaincat8]

I notice some changes to your packs...I can't wait to find out what they are!!!

[@RedBeard0924]

Joe's pack is a new frameless pack he has been working on for those desiring and even lighter pack but more capabilities then our normal Zero pack. Matt was testing a new material. All of our new hats and fleece hoody will be making an appearance on our website soon. Along with our redesigned sleeping bags and rain clothing.

[@sinfonianbarelytone9191]

Awesome hike. Now I know why Matt didn't immediately return some of our multiple emails. That lake hike looked a lot like the 50 miler our scouts took last year along the Pacific Ocean, beach hiking most of the way.

[@matth1143]

Lake Superior looks like this for a pretty good chunk of its length, though there are some developed areas along it. Living on the lake is actually cheaper in spot than living on some of the smaller lakes in the state, so no surprise there are area where houses dot the shore. But there are a lot of areas that are like this.

[@citizen1435]

Great video! The burger made me hungry!

[@matth1143]

Are you guys done hiking the trail I assume? Forgot to ask if you did the extended through-hike, to include the BRT and the Kekabic Trail. If people wanted to they could even do a loop hike (adding some road hiking in...bleh).

[@henrys3629]

These vids are so refreshing from all the You Tube trash out there.

[@jonidauphinais2956]

When I was in Mexico I picked up some "Treda" from a farmacia. It an antidiarrheal/antibiotic medication. May want to look into carrying a few tablets in case hiking without a filter backfires (pun intended) on you one day. I do.

[@lovinglifewithdogmanscout200]

Thanks for sharing video. When u were walking shoreline you said the tide was pretty high now, the most the tides change are in the spring and is less than 2 inches. The Great Lakes are considered non tidal..

[@RedBeard0924]

Sweet thanks for the info!

[@bilahn1198]

The water level of the lake has been quite high in recent years.

[@mercuryrain9466]

righteous

[@RyanDormanEXP]

I will says this again your the present day Jon Muir 2.0. question how do you walk through the water in your boots and wet socks? How do you dry everything?

[@kadielynn100]

Come to North Van You will love it.

[@datageek824]

Hey redbeard can you recommend a good set of gear for me as a beginner? Since you work at zpacks can you recommend a model backpack and sleep system. Thx and I love your videos...

[@lindahikes2760]

Enjoyed your video series on the SHT. Looking to do about 20 miles..is there a certain section that you would recommend? Thanks.

[@JakeF1st]

What till the "Drainpipe" thats a steep section

[@adaseth]

A bit of an off topic- how do you stabilise your camera when doing POV/walking shots?

[@RedBeard0924]

ad set I use Sony cameras that have unbelievable stabilizers. I simply hold the camera in my hand while hiking.

[@adaseth]

Care to share which model? From the shadow in the beginning scene it looked quite small.

[@JonBaatz]

Great video! You mentioned the elevation on your watch. What model do you have?

[@RedBeard0924]

I use a Casio Protrek 3000

[@fireyourrocketts]

I have used my Zpacks Arc Haul twice already in two short hikes up mountain, it does not feels very comfortable with loads under 30 pounds; first use I went to Mount Whitney and hiked from Portal to Outpost camp, expended the night then had to come back because got sick; I was carrying 27 pounds; included only 2 liters of water which I did not drink often and probably the reason I got sick; the weight felt worst on the way down. even when they are made to haul 40 pounds the comfort level suffers if the load is over 20 I guess; I have not being able to make it that light including food and water; the second trip was similar also a mountain gaining about 2000 feet; it was not as comfortable to me as others describe; on a 3 trip took my exxos 58 it felt to be carrying better but then the shoulder straps were killing me; also around 27 pounds..trying to dial in is the real problem here with me. Don't know how to make it lightest without leaving behind my comfort stuff.

[@RedBeard0924]

+Rodolfo Rodriguez I frequently carry my arc haul around 30 lbs and it feels great. There is a chance it might not fit you properly but that is rare. Most people that find it uncomfortable haven't dialed it in just right. So make sure and adjust it so the top frame is flush with your shoulders. You can move more of the weight to your hip belt to relieve shoulder pains. Again though if the pack is adjusted properly you shouldn't have any pain when carrying less than 30. Let us know if you have any other questions or concerns.

[@joeybryars2462]

What is that hiking staff that "Samurai Joe" is using?

[@RedBeard0924]

Joseph Bryars Zpacks we recommend 2.5 inches of arc. You could do more or less.

[@joeybryars2462]

"2.5 inches of arc," is that what the hiking staff is called? I'm confused ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@poconos66]

hey Will did you ever do the rest of PCT?

[@RedBeard0924]

poconos66 not yet possibly this summer. Been so busy with work I haven't had a chance yet.

[@einzigkeit7216]

I like your guy's backpack, what are those? Brand name please. :-)

[@RedBeard0924]

Einzigkeit We are Zpacks and those are our backpacks. Check us out at zpacks.com

[@einzigkeit7216]

Thanks so much guys :-) Amazing trails videos, you guys rocks. :-)

[@MrIridebrakeless]

Do I spy a prototype Zpacks pack on Joe?

[@RedBeard0924]

Yes he is working on a new frameless pack. Its gonna be pretty sick.

[@MrIridebrakeless]

Cool! I can't wait to see it!