Hiking with Shawn Blog
Welcome to the official Hiking with Shawn Blog, where you can find my trail guides, gear reviews, and more! I try to post a few times a week! Please feel free to share my posts and leave a comment!
Hiking with Shawn Blog: Latest Posts
The latest posts from Hiking with Shawn!
10 Amazing Southern Illinois Frozen Waterfalls Away from Crowds
10 Amazing Southern Illinois Frozen Waterfalls Away from the CrowdsTis the season for Southern Illinois frozen waterfalls. As I’m writing this post, the temperature outside feels like -6 degrees. What does that mean aside from it being dangerously cold? It means water...
How to Start Backpacking: A Guide to Multi-Day Hiking for Beginners
How to Start Backpacking: A Guide to Multi-Day Hiking for BeginnersBackpacking is a great way to fall in love with outdoor recreation. This is especially true if you already enjoy camping and hiking. You’re simply combining the two activities together and enjoying...
55 Cold Weather Hiking Tips to Keep Your Hiking All Winter Long
55 Cold Weather Hiking Tips to Keep Your Hiking All Winter LongAre you intimidated by the thought of cold weather hiking? You shouldn’t be. It’s not as scary as it might seem. In fact, it’s one of the best times to go hiking. There are no ticks and mosquitoes. The...
10 of the Best Illinois State Parks in Southern Illinois
10 of the Best Illinois State Parks in Southern IllinoisSome of the best Illinois State Parks are obviously located in the southern portion of the state. The Shawnee National Forest surrounds Southern Illinois. There are more natural features in southernmost Illinois...
24 Amazing Winter Hiking Benefits to Get You Hiking this Winter
24 Amazing Winter Hiking Benefits to Get You Hiking this WinterAre you aware of all the amazing winter hiking benefits that you can take advantage of? Some people stay inside all winter. They don’t hike because it’s cold and too dangerous. Sure, it can get cold, but...
How to Plan Your Hike: A Guide for Hiking Without Worry
How to Plan Your Hike: A Guide for Hiking Without WorryDo you plan your hike? If not, you should. Planning your hike can help you ensure that you have the best hike possible. It helps you make the right decisions. It helps you stay safe on the trail. It helps you have...
Hiking with Shawn Trail Guides
Free and detailed trail guides for navigating the Shawnee National Forest, State Parks, and Beyond!
Giant City Red Cedar Trail Guide
Giant City Red Cedar Trail GuideGiant City Red Cedar Trail is the longest hiking trail within Giant City State Park. It is commonly used by hikers, backpackers, trail runners, birders, and nature watchers. Getting to Giant City Red Cedar Trail is easy. The trail is...
Giant City Indian Creek Trail Guide
Giant City Indian Creek Trail GuideGiant City Indian Creek Trail is a short but scenic hike that is often overlooked by many people enjoying a visit to Giant City State Park. Like with most things with the word "Indian" in the name, this trail has some Native American...
Giant City Stonefort Trail Guide
Giant City Stonefort Trail GuideGiant City Stonefort Trail gives you a glimpse into a period so long ago that we know very little about its history of it. This short but potentially challenging trail features an ancient rock wall made by the very early-period of...
Giant City Nature Trail Guide
Giant City Nature Trail GuideGiant City Nature Trail is one of the most popular trails in Giant City State Park. The Nature Trail is an easy loop hike appropriate for hikers of all ages and difficulties. There is a lot to see along the Giant City Nature Trail that...
Giant City Trillium Trail Guide
Giant City Trillium Trail GuideGiant City Trillium Trail is a popular trail located near Makanda in Southern Illinois. Trillium Trail is a part of Giant City State Park. The trail is also known as Fern Rocks Nature Preserve. As a designated nature preserve, it is...
Giant City versus Ferne Clyffe: Which State Park is Better?
Giant City versus Ferne Clyffe: Which State Park is Better?Giant City versus Ferne Clyffe – which State Park do you think is better than the other? First, I didn’t make this article to point out what’s wrong with either park. That’s not what I do, and that’s not what...
Hiking with Shawn Gear Reviews
Check out my hiking, biking, and outdoor recreation related gear reviews.
Hiking Gear Tag – 5 of My Favorite Hiking Gear Items
Hiking Gear Tag The Hiking Gear Tag is a tag challenge going around within the hiking, backpacking, bushcraft and outdoor communities on YouTube. I was a recipient not once, not twice but three times of the Hiking Gear Tag challenge. So three channels challenged me to...
Hiking with Shawn Blog Posts
My latest posts about the Shawnee National Forest, state parks, and beyond!
55 Cold Weather Hiking Tips to Keep Your Hiking All Winter Long
55 Cold Weather Hiking Tips to Keep Your Hiking All Winter LongAre you intimidated by the thought of cold weather hiking? You shouldn’t be. It’s not as scary as it might seem. In fact, it’s one of the best times to go hiking. There are no ticks and mosquitoes. The...
10 of the Best Illinois State Parks in Southern Illinois
10 of the Best Illinois State Parks in Southern IllinoisSome of the best Illinois State Parks are obviously located in the southern portion of the state. The Shawnee National Forest surrounds Southern Illinois. There are more natural features in southernmost Illinois...
24 Amazing Winter Hiking Benefits to Get You Hiking this Winter
24 Amazing Winter Hiking Benefits to Get You Hiking this WinterAre you aware of all the amazing winter hiking benefits that you can take advantage of? Some people stay inside all winter. They don’t hike because it’s cold and too dangerous. Sure, it can get cold, but...
How to Plan Your Hike: A Guide for Hiking Without Worry
How to Plan Your Hike: A Guide for Hiking Without WorryDo you plan your hike? If not, you should. Planning your hike can help you ensure that you have the best hike possible. It helps you make the right decisions. It helps you stay safe on the trail. It helps you have...
The Ten Hiking Essentials for Every Hiker
The Ten Hiking Essentials for Every HikerAre you using the ten hiking essentials every time you go for a hike? If you’re not, you should be. These essentials are there to ensure that you have a safe and enjoyable hiking experience. A lot of things can happen on even a...
Hiking for Beginners: An Ultimate Hiking Guide
Hiking for Beginners: An Ultimate Hiking GuideAre you looking for an ultimate guide all about hiking for beginners? Well, you’ve come to the right blog. This guide is all about hiking for beginners. Even if you’re not a beginner, you might find some helpful...
Hiking with Shawn Patreon Posts
Premium blog posts only available to Patreon Members. Learn more at My Patreon Page.
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Write for the Hiking with Shawn Blog
I’m always looking for one-time guest bloggers as well as reoccurring guest bloggers. If you’re interested in writing outdoor-related articles for my blog, then I am interested in you. While I will allow you to have a link to a related websites (outdoor related), I don’t allow affiliate links or posts that are commercial in nature from guest bloggers. If you’re just looking for do-follow links, you should definitely look somewhere else. I’m looking for articles about Shawnee National Forest, southern Illinois state parks, local events related to the outdoors, state outdoor topics, and general hiking/biking/outdoor articles. If you’re interesting in writing for my blog on a one-time or regular basis, please Contact Me Today!
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