Hike the State - Meet the Experts

I hope you can join us for what is quickly becoming one of my favorite WTA events, Hike the State. This gathering of hikers offers excitement and inspiration for the upcoming hiking season. We'll have on hand seven experts who will give you some prime trail suggestions from around the state in a fast, fun format. The event is FREE but an RSVP is required.

Need a little more information before you brave downtown Seattle traffic on a Wednesday evening? Let me introduce you to our esteemed hiking experts.

>> Craig Romano

Craig Romano is an outdoors writer, photographer and author of eight books, including Backpacking Washington, Day Hiking North Cascades and Day Hiking Olympic Peninsula. He's called Washington state his home since 1989 and has hiked more than 15,000 miles, from Cape Disappointment to Puffer Butte. Craig will give you a sneak peak of his next project, Day Hiking Eastern Washington (Mountaineers Books, to be published spring 2013 with Rich Landers), as he takes you on a tour of the Blue Mountains in Southeast Washington.

>> Tami Asars

Tami Asars is an outdoors writer and photographer. She serves as a Regional Correspondent for Washington Trails magazine, as writes for online blogs and other trail publications. In September, her latest project, Hiking the Wonderland Trail (Mountaineers Books), will be available in stores. Tami will share with you a version of Mount Rainier's paradise that is a little more off-the-beaten-path.

>> Nathan and Jer Barnes

Looking for some lesser known hikes within 90 minutes of Seattle? The siblings behind Hiking with my Brother will be give you some great suggestions. In 2008, brothers Nathan and Jer, started weekly hikes to explore all the trails in Harvey Manning and Ira Spring’s 55 Hikes around Snoqualmie Pass. Now they venture far beyond Snoqualmie Pass and write for Backpacker Magazine, their blog and other publications.

>> Dawn Erickson

A recently retired trail specialist for the Darrington Ranger District, Dawn has spent many years wandering the trails of the Mountain Loop. Her tour of FR 20 is bound to have some great hike suggestions, along with a little history about what makes this part of Washington so special.

>> Shane Farnor

Experience the beauty of Olympic National Park, with Shane Farnor. As the online advocacy manager for the National Parks Conservation Association, Shane is intimately familiar with Washington's national parks. His seven minute presentation is bound to bring to light a couple of lesser known gems from the ONP.

We round out the Hike the State experts with two of WTA's own staff. Executive Director Karen Daubert will share with you her adventures from Mazama. And last but not least, Washington Trails editor Eli Boschetto will help you discover the wildflowers of the Columbia River Gorge.

The people I have talked with, experts and attendees alike, are very excited about this event. Everyone is looking forward to learning about new hiking destinations and networking with other hikes. We are pretty excited about it here in the WTA office too!

Space is limited, and we had to turn people away last year, so please RSVP today.