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The last time I was in the Grayson area, I was trying to get to Rhododendron Gap from Elk Garden in a relative hurry, and at a narrow point on the trail a couple ponies blocked my path and began licking all the sweat off my arms and legs, I guess for the salt. They have generally not messed with my tent, but I don't know how many times I've woken up because they were grazing nearby at 2 AM.
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Jul 20, 2018 21:19
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single-mode fiber posted:The last time I was in the Grayson area, I was trying to get to Rhododendron Gap from Elk Garden in a relative hurry, and at a narrow point on the trail a couple ponies blocked my path and began licking all the sweat off my arms and legs, I guess for the salt. They have generally not messed with my tent, but I don't know how many times I've woken up because they were grazing nearby at 2 AM. Exact same thing happened to me on the way back to back to Elk Garden, one of ponies started using my legs as a salt lick, which was kind of adorable until I'd walk away a few steps and it would follow me and resume my tongue bath. Also I was a bit worried about sleeping, because I just had a bivy, and I'd wake up in the wee hours of the morning with a heavy clomping and deep ripping & crunching noises. I was freaked a pony or bull would trample me since I don't have a nice big tent occupying the area, just a body bag with me in it
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Jul 21, 2018 05:19
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I found this the other day. It has a ton of trails for Anza Borrego Desert State Park I never knew about so I know what my winter will be like.
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Jul 21, 2018 05:48
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Just a reminder that even though they are cute, the Grayson ponies are totally wild and you should be careful and cautious at the very least Instagram video of a 2017 thru hike-hopeful almost getting kicked in the nuts Yup, definitely wild. This video is mine, we passed through Grayson a few weeks ahead of the above hiker. He later caught up in PA, and then we heard that he got off the trail shortly thereafter because his idea of taking some rest days for shin splints was "only doing 15 miles, cause that's like nothing" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8b_Y5ZvZp8 Happiness Commando fucked around with this message at 14:30 on Jul 21, 2018 |
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Jul 21, 2018 14:18
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Happiness Commando posted:Just a reminder that even though they are cute, the Grayson ponies are totally wild and you should be careful and cautious at the very least Rule #1 - never stand behind a horse. But if you approach them from the front and are very gentle you can absolutely gently pet them on the nose and the mane. Some of them will happily eat grass out of your hand if you have your wits about you and treat them very gently and not confrontationally. They aren't really wild ponies. Each one is rounded up for veterinary care every year, so most are pretty well used to people. Every so often, the excess population is auctioned off to maintain a sustainable herd, and they're just left to their own devices otherwise. Again, don't stand behind a horse, don't try to ride then, and most of all just don't antagonize the poor things and you'll be fine. It's not like they're a native species in some untouched wilderness. The land has been ranched and denuded, and what we see is the recovery from that clear cutting and overranching. LNT and all, but there's no harm in petting the ponies.
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Jul 21, 2018 19:50
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Has anyone ever done much hiking in the Olympic National park, specifically in the southeastern part? We're doing a 56 mile loop through six ridge and up to Anderson Pass. I'm very excited about it.
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Jul 22, 2018 21:26
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Bi-la kaifa posted:Has anyone ever done much hiking in the Olympic National park, specifically in the southeastern part? We're doing a 56 mile loop through six ridge and up to Anderson Pass. I'm very excited about it. That'll be a great trip. I think there's been a ton of volunteer work on Six Ridge since the last time I hiked it.
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Jul 22, 2018 23:45
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Bi-la kaifa posted:Has anyone ever done much hiking in the Olympic National park, specifically in the southeastern part? We're doing a 56 mile loop through six ridge and up to Anderson Pass. I'm very excited about it. That will be great. I know a dude who did a trip through there just a few weeks ago and he said the trail conditions were rough at points (especially on six ridge) but the photos were incredible. Sounds like a ton of fun!
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Jul 24, 2018 21:53
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Did my first hike at Wild Basin today. It's absolutely amazing and I can't wait to do more stuff there.   
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Jul 25, 2018 22:12
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I have the MSR Trail Mini Cookpot which I use with a pocket rocket stove. I love the thing so far, except for when you forget to un-nest the lexan bowl and accidentally put it on the stove: https://imgur.com/a/2ryEuRi
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Jul 26, 2018 01:49
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fknlo posted:Did my first hike at Wild Basin today. It's absolutely amazing and I can't wait to do more stuff there. My favorite place!
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Jul 26, 2018 04:51
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Anyone familiar with the Sawtooths and have recommendations on a 3 day 2 night trip? I doubt they get that busy in general but something that wasn't a standard popular hike would be preferred
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Jul 26, 2018 23:08
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Levitate posted:Anyone familiar with the Sawtooths and have recommendations on a 3 day 2 night trip? Depending on your hiking style, the Toxaway to Alice Lake loop could be 3 day 2 night and it's absolutely amazing! I hiked the PCT and this hike took my breath away. It's amazingly beautiful and you can practically drive to it! https://rootsrated.com/boise-id/backpacking-camping/toxaway-to-alice-lake-loop
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Jul 27, 2018 00:51
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Tigren posted:Depending on your hiking style, the Toxaway to Alice Lake loop could be 3 day 2 night and it's absolutely amazing! I hiked the PCT and this hike took my breath away. It's amazingly beautiful and you can practically drive to it! Yeah was looking at something around Alice Lake, thanks. Despite having grown up in Idaho doing a lot of camping and backpacking, I've never been to the Sawtooths
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Jul 27, 2018 00:59
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Oh my god, look at that face  I think I found my next hiking trip.
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Jul 27, 2018 14:58
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I'm gonna be road tripping from California to New Mexico soon and am going to detour through Utah to hit some national parks along the way. Probably at least Zion, Bryce and Arches, maybe a few others if we have time (Canyonlands, north rim Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon area, Capitol Reef and Grand Staircase are some other spots we're considering). Is there a lot (or any) free, undeveloped camping in these areas (like just pick a spot wherever on the side of a dirt road -- I do this in Los Padres NF south of Big Sur a lot), or should I plan on having to stay mostly at actual campsites and motels?
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Jul 29, 2018 02:15
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There's tons of places to just post up on that area. I went from CA to NY and only spent one night in hostel when I stopped in SLC. Edit: I found this site to be a handy resource: https://www.campendium.com DaNerd fucked around with this message at 02:28 on Jul 29, 2018 |
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Jul 29, 2018 02:25
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Splinter posted:I'm gonna be road tripping from California to New Mexico soon and am going to detour through Utah to hit some national parks along the way. Probably at least Zion, Bryce and Arches, maybe a few others if we have time (Canyonlands, north rim Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon area, Capitol Reef and Grand Staircase are some other spots we're considering). Is there a lot (or any) free, undeveloped camping in these areas (like just pick a spot wherever on the side of a dirt road -- I do this in Los Padres NF south of Big Sur a lot), or should I plan on having to stay mostly at actual campsites and motels? If I you're going to be out near Arches, definitely spend a day or two in Moab and visit Canyonlands and Dead Horse Point. Canyonlands is great to experience as a drive with the audio tour from the visitors center. I stayed at Moab Valley RV resort in a cabin, and that place was great--65$ a night for a nice cabin with AC and a nice pool/hottub. Moab is just such a cool town, I can't recommend it highly enough! Also be sure to hit up Mesa Verde on your way down to New Mexico, it's an hourish or two from Moab (Arches). That's the home of the Peubloan (modern day Hopi) Cliff Dwellers, and there's just so much to see out there. I think you can pretty much do whatever you want on BLM land, shouldn't be an issue to camp there. National Forests are generally free to dispersed camp as well. North Rim of the Grand Canyon it's also a great idea, I think it gets about 10% of the visitors as the South Rim. If you can get up to Southwestern Colorado, that's also an incredible place--especially out near Durango. Pagosa has hot springs tapped and pooled near the river that runs through town, the Durango - Silverton railroad is awesome, and the Old Hundred Gold Mine tour near Silverton is well worth a trip out there. If you've got time or a 4x4 vehicle, Animus Forks Ghost town near Silverton is absolutely worth a day's excursion.
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Jul 30, 2018 00:19
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Anyone have any tips for Mammoth Cave? Have potentially 2 days to spend there.
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Jul 30, 2018 02:45
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Bottom Liner posted:Anyone have any tips for Mammoth Cave? Have potentially 2 days to spend there. That's funny, I just spent three days down there! Paradise Point has the best food (especially breakfast) down that way... Otherwise the food isn't much to speak of. The four hour grand avenue tour was excellent, as well as the two hour historic tour. I would've liked to do the lantern tour, but it was an booked up. Make sure you buy your tour tickets as far in advance as possible, they sell out fast. The self self Discovery tour followd the same route as the last part of the historic tour, you can probably skip that. If you're going in about a month here, look out for the river Styx tour, it's been years since they offered that one and it's only going to be open for a month. If you're going through Louisville, make sure to stop and go a couple distillery tours along the bourbon trail on your way to/from. Have fun! There are some trails along the surface, such as the entrance to the river Styx spring and ferry, and sand cave that are also worth doing. Otherwise the top side isn't that interesting around there. I thought about renting a bike or something, but Mammoth Cave had the worst air quality rating of any national park because all of the coal fired power plants down there.
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Jul 30, 2018 12:34
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OSU_Matthew posted:
Oh my goodness I must do this trip. How long of a weekend? Just 2 days?
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Jul 31, 2018 17:30
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Levitate posted:Anyone familiar with the Sawtooths and have recommendations on a 3 day 2 night trip? They are real popular, might even have trouble finding a campsite. I never went to the Sawtooths much, I think the White Cloud mountains (across the highway from the Sawtooths) or the Boulders (down the road to the south) would be better choices. They are very much not standard and are just as pretty
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Aug 1, 2018 01:58
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I would be extremely surprised if that were the case, assuming we weren't camping at a regular campground or just a few miles down the trail. I'm used to the Sierra's around here and I'd expect they get more visitors than the Sawtooths and I've never not been able to find a place to camp in the backcountry That said, I"ll investigate the White Clouds as well If the Bighorn Crags weren't a 6-7 hour drive from Boise I"d go there but that's a lot of travel to and from
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Aug 1, 2018 17:36
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I had been hoping to do a lot more backpacking and camping this summer, but it looks like my work has other plans. I'm looking for suggestions on National Parks/Forests (United States) to take a trip to this winter. Probably late December or January. I'm not looking for snowy trips, and ideally little chance of precipitation. We're not hardcore backpackers or anything, and even car/dispersed camping is fine with me. The main things I want are seclusion (not crowded tourist areas) and some cool sights like waterfalls/canyons/vistas to hike to (either as day hikes from a base camp, or on an easy-ish backpacking route). We're comfortable with moderate elevation and 10-15 mile day hikes (and could probably do more), but our backpacking trips so far have been pretty easy things--mainly just to get away from crowded campgrounds and people. Any suggestions where I should start looking? Arches and Big Bend seem like possibilities, but I haven't done much research beyond that (and I've never been to either). Some that I had expected to be dry in winter are not (e.g. Zion, which apparently gets lots of precipitation in the winter).
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Aug 2, 2018 03:26
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incogneato posted:I had been hoping to do a lot more backpacking and camping this summer, but it looks like my work has other plans. I'm looking for suggestions on National Parks/Forests (United States) to take a trip to this winter. Probably late December or January. Probably not exactly what you're looking for, but Hawaii would be nice then. The state parks on Kauai have a multi day backpacking trip that's going to be the most secluded option I think. Mt. Haleakala on Maui is truly amazing and you can spend a few days backpacking down in the crater.
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Aug 2, 2018 03:43
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Mt. Haleakala is also a great place to see a bunch of ill-prepared tourists wearing hotel blankets and towels if you go to the peak for a sunrise
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Aug 2, 2018 20:38
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Hawaii isn't a bad idea, although it wasn't what I had been imagining (not necessarily a bad thing). We actually went to Kauai 7ish years ago, but we didn't do much hiking. We were less experienced with hiking back then, and more focused on a typical lazy beach vacation. I never really looked into backpacking or camping there.
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Aug 2, 2018 21:12
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Levitate posted:I would be extremely surprised if that were the case, assuming we weren't camping at a regular campground or just a few miles down the trail. I'm used to the Sierra's around here and I'd expect they get more visitors than the Sawtooths and I've never not been able to find a place to camp in the backcountry I suppose it depends on the route you take. I know Alice to Toxaway was real popular. The White Clouds are great, and if you can get a good shot of Castle Peak it'll be totally worth it. I think those long drives are totally worth it. I used to drive sometimes four hours one way for one day of hiking. I'm planning on doing a few days of hiking up the East Fork of the Salmon River later this year, it's about as remote as it gets
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Aug 3, 2018 02:41
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If I wasn’t already going San Francisco to Boise another day of travel wouldn’t be as bad. Also would be more inclined to it if my wife didn’t hate long car rides to get to trailheads
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Aug 3, 2018 03:35
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I have a 4 night trip in the Yosemite high country in a week and a half, starting to think about a Plan B if the fires don't get better. Any advice for multi-night backpacking trips within say 4 hours of the Bay Area where I wouldn't need a permit way in advance? We were planning on 10-15 miles/day. We thought about some of the lost coast trail but a friend coming from the Midwest wants to see some mountains.
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Aug 3, 2018 21:12
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spf3million posted:I have a 4 night trip in the Yosemite high country in a week and a half, starting to think about a Plan B if the fires don't get better. Any advice for multi-night backpacking trips within say 4 hours of the Bay Area where I wouldn't need a permit way in advance? We were planning on 10-15 miles/day. I just did 4 nights in Desolation Wilderness last weekend, Thursday-Monday. I don’t think you’d have a problem getting a permit to one of the more inner areas the first night, and they do save about a third for walk ins. Only a 3 hour drive from Concord to the Echo Lakes trail head. Couldn't smell any of the smoke while we were there, and it was only a little hazy in the distance, not sure if it has gotten any worse or not. We did ~13 miles almost every, originally planning for 10, lots of climbing too, ~2000 feet a day. If you end up going there, you can borrow my map if you don't have one already. FireTora fucked around with this message at 22:35 on Aug 3, 2018 |
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Aug 3, 2018 22:31
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spf3million posted:I have a 4 night trip in the Yosemite high country in a week and a half, starting to think about a Plan B if the fires don't get better. Any advice for multi-night backpacking trips within say 4 hours of the Bay Area where I wouldn't need a permit way in advance? We were planning on 10-15 miles/day. Mountains p hosed right now. This week is much worse than last week, but who knows how it will be a week+ from now. Normally when the Sierra Nevada is somehow hosed and I want to see mountains, I go to the Trinity alps (no quota on wilderness permits so good for last minute). But there are a shitzillion road closures up there due to the apocalypric firenado that wrecked Redding and they will probably remain for the forseeable future. Lassen NP and Shasta are accessible, but smoke looks really bad there. In general, things have been getting worse, but the best bet has generally been further south along the eastern sierra / I395. Bishop Pass / Palisades / Big Pine Creek were all mostly fine last week, just hazy. Lone Pine / Kearsarge pass was fine at least on the Eastern part and in the high country. That being said Bishop pass looks pretty hosed right now, although Lone Pine still looks OK. The permit line at White Mountain station was much longer than usual early in the morning on Friday last week, since a lot of people are making re-arrangements to their trips after getting smoked out further north. In general permits will be much harder than usual to get since everyone is being concentrated in the few not-too-smokey areas on any given day. If the Bishop Pass area is relatively smoke free, permits for Inyo NF Baker and Green lakes area are usually much easier to get (often even the reservable quota doesn't run out for weekends in august, which is rare for any TH). This may be in part because there isn't too much in the way of longer on-trail itineraries out of that TH. But If you are OK with talus slogs and like good views there are some pretty decent class 2 routes you can do starting from there, like Green Lake -> Vagabond/Cloudripper -> Cloudripper east ridge down to 7th lake -> cross over Mt Agassiz SE to W face -> fool around Dusy Basin and hike out of Bishop Pass. Or you could just fool around Green Lake for the first night then hike back onto the bishop pass trail and do any of the many excellent 3 day class 1 itineraries available from there.
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Aug 4, 2018 04:06
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Hello backpacking thread. I'm trying to figure out some things for a couple upcoming overnight trips I'm planning on doing in the Cascades. I've done plenty of camping and hiking in my life, but never overnight backpacking. Basically I'm trying to figure out what I'll need for spending the night at the base of Glacier Peak (6000-7000ft, no I'm not climbing the mountain) and on a 5000ft ridge a bit farther south. Obviously weather is unpredictable, but I'm assuming I'm looking at 40s-50s overnight at this time of year? lancemantis posted:Mt. Haleakala is also a great place to see a bunch of ill-prepared tourists wearing hotel blankets and towels if you go to the peak for a sunrise This is so incredibly true.
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Aug 4, 2018 07:17
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BeastOfExmoor posted:Hello backpacking thread. I'm trying to figure out some things for a couple upcoming overnight trips I'm planning on doing in the Cascades. I've done plenty of camping and hiking in my life, but never overnight backpacking. Basically I'm trying to figure out what I'll need for spending the night at the base of Glacier Peak (6000-7000ft, no I'm not climbing the mountain) and on a 5000ft ridge a bit farther south. Obviously weather is unpredictable, but I'm assuming I'm looking at 40s-50s overnight at this time of year? Are you doing the White Pass>Pilot Ridge Loop? I’m doing that in 2 weeks. It’s gorgeous up there. I summited Glacier a couple years ago. We camped just past White Pass and not quite into the Glacier Basin area. It didn’t get too chilly in September but be prepared for the weather. It was foggy, and wet, rained, and then gave us the most gorgeous hot bluebird day for our summit push. Next day it poured again. My normal overnight kit includes a layering system (base layer, mid layer, down puffy, goretex shell) that I can mix and match and will handle any weather the Cascades throw in the summer (actually, winter too). A good beanie is nice in the evening as well as a pair of light gloves. Pants, I bring a pair of polypro long underwear to throw on under my zip-off hiking pants if I need too. Bugs have been bad this year so far, so be prepped for that as well.
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Aug 4, 2018 15:19
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Braincloud posted:Are you doing the White Pass>Pilot Ridge Loop? I’m doing that in 2 weeks. It’s gorgeous up there. Thanks for the advice. No time for any cool loops or anything very extensive I'm afraid. I'm going up to look for birds that typically only occur at high altitudes occur only rarely on the west of the cascade crest. I'll just basically be getting the right habitat and looking around as long as possible, sleep, do it again in the morning and return home. As far as sleeping, is a non-insulated pad generally "safe" for above freezing temps? What about sleeping bag rating?
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Aug 4, 2018 17:56
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BeastOfExmoor posted:Hello backpacking thread. I'm trying to figure out some things for a couple upcoming overnight trips I'm planning on doing in the Cascades. I've done plenty of camping and hiking in my life, but never overnight backpacking. Basically I'm trying to figure out what I'll need for spending the night at the base of Glacier Peak (6000-7000ft, no I'm not climbing the mountain) and on a 5000ft ridge a bit farther south. Obviously weather is unpredictable, but I'm assuming I'm looking at 40s-50s overnight at this time of year? It depends on when you plan to come. August September tend to be fairly predictability warm and dry. The closer you get to October becomes a big gamble as you could still get anything from heat to cold rain or snow. Generally in the cascades right now I would expect 60s-70s during the day and 40-50s at night. I would be prepared for 30s overnight just in case.
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Aug 4, 2018 19:42
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Any water filter recommendations? My Katadyn Hiker Pro cartridge ended up getting too clogged due to age last week and a couple filthy water sources that the check valve blew out. It'll cost the same to buy a new one as it will to get the housing replaced and a new cartridge. I'm leaning towards getting another Hiker Pro right now, but have been thinking about trying out a Sawyer Squeeze, or one of the MSR purifier pumps.
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Aug 4, 2018 22:49
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FireTora posted:Any water filter recommendations? My Katadyn Hiker Pro cartridge ended up getting too clogged due to age last week and a couple filthy water sources that the check valve blew out. It'll cost the same to buy a new one as it will to get the housing replaced and a new cartridge. I'm leaning towards getting another Hiker Pro right now, but have been thinking about trying out a Sawyer Squeeze, or one of the MSR purifier pumps. We (two of us) use the Playtpus gravity filter and really like it, fill and walk away. I've seen a few people fill sawyers and I became annoyed just watching.
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Aug 4, 2018 23:10
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Thanks for the advice. Both Desolation Wilderness and the Trinity Alps are now on my list. I'd much prefer a place with reservable permits as opposed to a walk up just because people are coming in from out of town.
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Aug 5, 2018 00:25
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Dukket posted:We (two of us) use the Playtpus gravity filter and really like it, fill and walk away. I've seen a few people fill sawyers and I became annoyed just watching. Yeah, I was thinking about one of those as well. I'll pretty much always be using it for at least 2 people and was doing 3 last week, and a gravity filter would have been very nice since we were pumping 15-20 liters a day. I like having the hose though for stagnant and marshy water. spf3million posted:Thanks for the advice. Both Desolation Wilderness and the Trinity Alps are now on my list. I'd much prefer a place with reservable permits as opposed to a walk up just because people are coming in from out of town. When does your trip start and how big is your group? There is still a bunch of permits available for Desolation if you browse through the zones. Group size can affect it to though, all the zones have a limit, but a couple of them limit to like 4 people reserving. But you only have to stay in the zone you permitted the first night, you're free to go to any of them after that regardless. This was the route we ended up hiking, ~13 mile days except for the last which was ~5.5. 
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Aug 5, 2018 00:34
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