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Bushy Hartman
12-04-2016, 22:27
Just read about one person using Blogger to do their trail journal. Has anyone found other site they prefer over TJ or WB? Why?

Greenlight
12-04-2016, 22:38
Bushy,

No.

When I thru, I'll be posting my entries on trailjournals and my personal website. Well, my wife or one of my kids will be doing it for me, that is. It has been my experience that people who look for trail journals to follow look here and at TJ, overwhelmingly.

And I've got the controls set up on my website, so that when an authorized user posts, it automatically posts to Facebook, and my FB friends and family members can read my posts from right there.

I've never used Blogger as a platform, so I don't know what factors your friend weighed before deciding to use it.

Traillium
12-05-2016, 01:46
I used WordPress in my smartphone. I quite liked the discipline required and the outcome of thoughtfulness that resulted I writing my blog every night. Even after long days I looked forward to taking up to a couple of hours to write. Often I'd fall asleep and wake up partly through the night to finish.

Traillium
12-05-2016, 01:48
BTW, http://brucetraillium.wordpress.com

45 days theuhiking the Bruce Trail in Ontario, together with Kookork. A wonderful experience, even though it's short by AT comparisons.

Slo-go'en
12-05-2016, 10:42
Trailjournals is the best from a random readers perspective as it's real easy to browse. But it's not smart phone friendly and a real pain to update from the trail that way. Their still using a 1990's web page set up and it's designed for use by a PC with full sized monitor.

Postholler is easy to update from the trail via email, but browsing the site isn't easy. The same with wordpress blogs, you have to already know who you want to follow so these sites are better if you just want friends and family to follow you.

Nobody seems to use the WB journal feature, other then by mistake when they first come on the site.

Fireplug
12-05-2016, 10:53
Word press is awesome. I used it several times

Uriah
12-05-2016, 11:29
You don't need a website to write a journal, but if you're interested in others reading it (kith, kin, next of kin, strangers, etc), TrailJournals may be your best bet. If you don't care about strangers reading it, any old host site will do. I've read and continue to read various trail-related accounts on WordPress, Blogger, TrailJournals, PostHoler, and various personal websites, and they each have their strengths and weaknesses. (I don't use Facebook, but I'm sure it's got its advantages too.) As far as I can tell TrailJournals only allows a single picture per journal entry, while the blogging type of hosts and personal websites aren't limited in this regard. Keep in mind that "readers" tend to love pictures and videos.

Search around and see what others have done and whether you like their layouts and whatnot. I can provides examples, if need be. There are so few adept writers out there, which is somewhat expected I suppose, since it's not exactly easy hauling a backpack all day and then writing about it, but there are also some absolute gems out there. Of course few people read at length anymore, since it requires a level of dedication, patience and understanding most of us seem to neglect in this fast-paced life.

Another Kevin
12-05-2016, 13:20
I tend to use Blogger for writing about my short trips, since I tend to explore things in some depth. My story about visiting the site of a family member's disappearance (https://dftscript.blogspot.com/2014/11/2014-11-02-north-dome-pilgrimage-or.html), or a log entry about bagging a couple of peaks in the Catskills (http://dftscript.blogspot.com/2014/06/balsam-lake-mountain-and-graham.html) that digressed into the history of the ruins at one summit, are typical of how many threads I wind up trying to tie together when I do a trip report.

For one longer trip that I did, I found trailjournals.com to be useful for linking a collection of daily reports into a more coherent narrative (http://trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=473920). That's harder (not impossible, but inconvenient) to do with Blogger.

Since the photos wind up in multiple places, I typically host them on Flickr, and embed them on either Trailjournals or Blogger. One advantage to Flickr is that images can be served up at full quality, and I can also get them automatically at a number of sizes. Picasa/Google Images reduces resolution. In any case, huge panoramas (http://kbk.is-a-geek.net/attachments/20120702/giantledge.html) get hosted on my personal site, so that I can make them pannable and zoomable. Maps (https://kbk.is-a-geek.net/catskills/test3.html?la=42.0387&lo=-74.3950&z=14) also come off my personal site, since I haven't found any workable way to host them elsewhere.

I guess the summary is that there isn't a 'best' site - every site does some things well, others poorly.

handlebar
12-05-2016, 14:05
Trailjournals is the best from a random readers perspective as it's real easy to browse. But it's not smart phone friendly and a real pain to update from the trail that way. Their still using a 1990's web page set up and it's designed for use by a PC with full sized monitor. ...

Have no problem whatever using Trailjournals and my iPhone to document several years' worth of hiking adventures starting in 2010. (Previously, I used a Pocketmail, but that required someone who receives and email and posts it for me.) Much of the time I do not have cell phone or internet connectivity, so I keep the phone off unless I'm using an app like Guthooks. Even then, I still keep the phone in airplane mode to conserve battery. I use the notepad feature to write my journal starting with the date, destination location, and daily miles. Then I write the day's journal entry. When I'm at a location where I think there might be service, or when I'm in town on a nero/zero I'll take airplane mode off and cut-and-paste from the notes into the Trailjournals web page browser. No problem using the "1990 web page setup". Easy as can be.

goldielocks
12-05-2016, 15:15
Search around and see what others have done and whether you like their layouts and whatnot. I can provides examples, if need be. There are so few adept writers out there, which is somewhat expected I suppose, since it's not exactly easy hauling a backpack all day and then writing about it, but there are also some absolute gems out there. Of course few people read at length anymore, since it requires a level of dedication, patience and understanding most of us seem to neglect in this fast-paced life.

What examples you got?
I'm curious to know what options are out there in the way of documenting my thru.

Slo-go'en
12-05-2016, 15:49
[QUOTE=handlebar;2109531 When I'm at a location where I think there might be service, or when I'm in town on a nero/zero I'll take airplane mode off and cut-and-paste from the notes into the Trailjournals web page browser. No problem using the "1990 web page setup". Easy as can be.[/QUOTE]

I do the same, but you have to expand and pan around to get to the various buttons you need to tap on. Not the easiest thing to do with cold fingers on a 3.5" screen.

Uriah
12-05-2016, 16:38
What examples you got?
I'm curious to know what options are out there in the way of documenting my thru.

Three great AT journals are Then the Hail Came (http://www.skwc.com/exile/Hail-nf.html) (hosted on an old personal website of his), A Limp in the Woods (http://alimpinthewoods.blogspot.com/) (hosted on blogger.com), and Clever Girl’s (http://trailkit.blogspot.com/) (also on blogger), though not necessarily due to layout; these three each make the humdrum exciting or interesting. Other examples of great writing and/or layout: Break a Leg’s 2005 AT hike (http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=2627) (TrailJournals), Gonzo’s 1983 AT hike (http://www.2000milehike.com/) (personal website...perhaps the most beautiful layout of any).

Postholer’s site may be great for posting (and that’s its true purpose), but the end product is pretty bland, all said.

I think if I were to put together a journal for keeps, it would be on WordPress or Blogger, though it’s not always remotely easy to do. (Remotely, as in posting updates away from a real computer.) If I were to journal strictly for updating friends or family, it would be via social media or TrailJournals.

The Appalachian Trials website (now known as 'The Trek') has a ton of trail blogs/journals listed as well, for other ideas of layout.

Bushy Hartman
12-05-2016, 17:11
Wow! Thank you all for the great input it is much appreciated!

map man
12-05-2016, 20:12
At trailjournals you will have a readership of others outside your circle of family and friends. This can be a double-edged sword. On the plus side, you may get a lot of encouragement in the comments section at TJ from people you don't even know and maybe even make some new friends. You can even meet people on the trail who have a lot of extra goodwill towards you because they have been following you on TJ.

On the minus side, woe to anyone who violates trail etiquette (accidentally or on purpose) and writes about it in a TJ entry. I have seen cases where within hours of the entry appearing, people start threads here at WB (or communicate this elsewhere on the net) alerting people to the transgression, a lot of vitriol ensues, and before you know it a raft of WBers (and others) are leaving sometimes rude comments at the comments section of the TJ blog. It can get ugly.

As a reader I have to say, though, that I love TrailJournals.com. Once I retire and have time for longer hikes I plan to keep paper journals while hiking and then post them to TJ after the hike is over.

Christoph
12-05-2016, 20:33
I used YouTube. Uploaded my edited videos and on the discussion tab wrote my daily journal. I wouldn't recommend this and I surely won't do it again. Uploading videos took forever (it does even at home so I didn't think that one out too well). Might do a journal type thing with a few pics next trip and save the videos until I get home.

Skyline
12-05-2016, 20:54
If I was to post a hiking journal, I'd use TJ. But a couple friends I know who have, used Blogspot and swore by it. As a reader I like the "look" of it, but I wish it would list entries oldest first and not most recent first. So you can read in chronological order. As it is, it's like walking backwards.

oddalot
01-10-2017, 04:55
I like Tumblr a lot. You can blog, add pictures, and use YouTube to upload video links all for free. (I think there is a way to add dates to each post as well).

Gung Holiness
01-11-2017, 22:33
I just finished reading your blog through completely for the second time today. The first time was about six months ago. It was a very good read. Your photos complement the story and tell another on their own. You're an inspiration to me and my planned Bruce Trail Thru Hike in May. I'll be retiring from the military here in New Brunswick at the end of April when I hit 60. I'm originally from Brampton and grew up hiking and camping the Bruce, never been south of Burlington on it though. I joined this site today thanks to you.

I'll be hitting you up later over these next few months as I plan and prepare,

cheers
Neil

Traillium
01-12-2017, 00:13
Thanks, Neil! I'm willing to answer any questions you have. I'd love to join you on the trail somewhere — and to help you along the way.