What happened to Constant Ascension?

A few of you may have seen this website in it's former incarnation "Constant Ascension," and wonder, why the name change? Well, I'll try to explain.

I thought Constant Ascension was a great name for my hiking blog at first. The name came from one of my old bands' songs:



"Constant Ascension" was our manifesto and our motto, striving for the next level in music as in life. Ascension, like John Coltrane. Reaching higher ground, like Stevie Wonder. So I though it would be a pretty good name for the blog, because in mountain hiking you are always going up (but wait, aren't you going down half the time?) I didn't mind that the title sounded vaguely religious, because mountain hiking and rock and roll are the two closest things I have to religion anyway, and this phrase bridged them conceptually. But I felt the blog kind of outgrew the old name, in a lateral sense, and that it might alienate some those I intended to reach.

The spirit of the writing here so often takes on an irreverent tone (no lack of reverence for the natural surroundings however), with crude humor, tales of partying and references to heavy metal and punk culture. And of course, one of the most unique facets of my reporting in this forum is explaining how to squeeze in hikes while being a touring musician! This whole concept began as a Facebook group called "Heavy Metal Hikes," and I think Constant Ascension strayed a bit too far from the fun and inclusive nature of it's origins. This is about the misfits of society getting out on the trail and having a good time! Not my personal vision quest.
















So now the blog shall be called "Hiking Metal Maniac." No, I would not be so bold as to declare myself a "maniac." I am just a guy who likes to hike. Some people have called me a maniac in the past, but that's their problem. The name comes from the Exciter song "Heavy Metal Maniac."

Anyway, I hope those who read this will continue the journey with me. Now stop reading and go take a hike!