10 Gift Ideas for the Avid Hiker

From survival gear to fun keepsakes to unique hiking accessories, you are sure to find the perfect gift for that outdoorsy person on your gift list with these 10 Gift Ideas for the Avid Hiker...

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One of my highlights and biggest personal accomplishments of this past year has been my discovery of hiking and the passion that I have since developed for it. It has not only become a great way for me to reconnect with nature and to be more active, but it has also quickly become a shared passion between my teenage son and I. 

We pick a trail, do a little research ahead of time to see which parts of the trail will definitely be on our agenda, and then head out for a day of exploring and taking in the breathtaking beauty that our home state of West Virginia has to offer.

Now that I have a few hikes under my belt, I think I have a a decent grasp on what that avid hiker on your holiday gift list might want under the tree Christmas morning. ;) From survival gear to fun keepsakes to unique hiking accessories, there is something for the hiker of every level on this list of 10 Gift Ideas for the Avid Hiker...

Hiking the Endless Wall Trail

Hugging the rim of the New River Gorge for about 2 miles, the Endless Wall Trail in West Virginia provides hikers with breathtaking vistas by way of its many rocky overlooks and steep cliffs...

My son & I's latest hiking adventures brought us to to the New River Gorge area of West Virginia. Hiking the Endless Wall Trail was actually my son's idea as he first heard about it when he went white water rafting on the New River with his dad earlier this fall. He came home from his weekend of zip lining and rafting all excited about the hiking trails he had also been told about in the area. We finally made the drive down on a beautiful Sunday morning a couple of weeks ago once his high school cross country season had officially ended.

The Endless Wall Trail is about 2 1/2 miles long total if you do the entire loop. But some hikers opt to make it into a moderate in and out 2 mile hike from the Fern Creek or Nutall Trailhead parking lots to the Diamond Point Overlook and back. This is what my son and I opted to do even though we went off the main marked trail a handful of times making our total hike closer to the 3 mile mark. 

Hiking the Maryland Heights Trail

The Maryland Heights Trail, a 4 mile hike just off from the Appalachian Trail, is a challenging hike with rewarding views of Harpers Ferry and the Potomac & Shenandoah Rivers...

Since my son & I's visit to Harpers Ferry last fall, we have been talking about hiking the Maryland Heights trail that takes you across the Potomac River and up rocky & steep paths to Overlook Cliff in Maryland. 

Harpers Ferry in West Virginia is to not only mere minutes from the Maryland and Virginia borders, but it also happens to be at almost the halfway point of the Appalachian Trail that spans 14 states between Maine and Georgia.

We are about a 3 1/2 hour drive from Harpers Ferry, so my son & I decided to drive in the day before our hike and stay overnight at a local bed & breakfast on the hillside just above Lower Town. The photo below was taken on the deck of the B&B right before my son & I left on our trek. 

Our destination? The cliff you see above and just to the right of my head...