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Chard posted:CA is not loving around with fires this year, the no-flame-of-any-kind ban is real. Here's the seasonal fire restrictions for the Arcata Field Office region including Lost Coast as of June 2021. These are typical stage 2 fire restrictions - generally stage 3 is closure of the entire forest. If an area isn't safe enough for a canister stove, it probably isn't safe enough for any campers at all. The King Range may have a further limitation, but it isn't clearly posted online. For example there is an advisory indicating increased fire restrictions as of July 11, 2021, whereas the roads and trails report of July 21, 2021 merely indicates that campfires are not permitted outside campgrounds. I'd invite anyone camping to always contact the appropriate Ranger station for more information. https://www.blm.gov/press-release/blm-announces-seasonal-fire-restrictions-public-lands-managed-arcata-field-office-0 https://www.recreation.gov/permits/72192 https://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/docs/2021-07/KRNCA_Roads%20and%20Trails%20Report_%20July%202021%20%28003%29.pdf Kaal fucked around with this message at 19:10 on Aug 12, 2021 |
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Aug 12, 2021 17:37
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Nitrousoxide posted:Tortillas seemingly never go bad in my experience despite no refrigeration as long as you keep them ziplocked. Basically only bread product that is useful for backpacking. The dark rye bread we eat here in Finland lasts a week easily and dries before it goes moldy, but idk how much of a thing it's in the states
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Aug 12, 2021 17:40
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Rye bread is common here in the US but I'd be super reluctant to think it had any similarity other than name to what you're describing. Whenever I get it it just seems like different tasting wheat bread and lasts about as long.
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Aug 12, 2021 18:49
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Probably a dense pumpernickel of some sort, which you can also still get here.
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Aug 12, 2021 19:09
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George H.W. oval office posted:Cheese & tortilla, peanut butter & tortilla, packaged tuna & tortilla. Nutty Buddy, trail mix, pop tarts, fresh fruit like apples or oranges will last a bit. Some people on the AT would go the whole thing doing cold only meals and it seemed like it would be miserable. My partner and I thru hiked on bars and other snacks, not even cold soaking. Most people looked at us like we were crazy or disgusting. It worked for us 
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Aug 12, 2021 19:10
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Ras Het posted:The dark rye bread we eat here in Finland lasts a week easily and dries before it goes moldy, but idk how much of a thing it's in the states There are bread options for sure but my clumsy rear end will always crush them while backpacking, tortillas for life
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Aug 12, 2021 19:13
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xzzy posted:Rye bread is common here in the US but I'd be super reluctant to think it had any similarity other than name to what you're describing. It's usually a much darker rye (or pumpernickel as mentioned) that you'll find in a small loaf wrapped in paper on a top shelf of the bread aisle.
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Aug 12, 2021 19:24
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Greatest Living Man posted:You saw the high tide warning, right? Yeah I'm going this weekend, so Aug 14-16, which have low tides below 3ft. The 16th has a fairly tight window for me to get through the final impassable zone, but I was going to give the ranger station a call anyways to ask about the very first zone about 2 miles, since it's unclear to me if there's a detour or not.
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Aug 12, 2021 19:55
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Trade Joe’s has these shelf stable indian curries in a bag that are pretty decent. like 3 bucks for 350 calories of veggie tikka masala. Picked up a few for my first solo overnight on Slide Mountain tomorrow.
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Aug 13, 2021 17:06
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Head Bee Guy posted:Trade Joe’s has these shelf stable indian curries in a bag that are pretty decent. like 3 bucks for 350 calories of veggie tikka masala. Picked up a few for my first solo overnight on Slide Mountain tomorrow. that's a good idea, those are excellent.
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Aug 13, 2021 17:26
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The yellow tadka dal bags rule.
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Aug 13, 2021 18:53
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Is anyone dealing with these weird insect bites in the NOVA area? There are news stories about widespread mystery bites that are suspected to be related to the cicada brood that hatched. Apparently mites that eat cicada eggs also bite humans and there are millions of these invisible parasites being blown around by the hot dry winds we have right now. I have at least 12-15 bites on me right now, they all itch worse than a mosquito bite, almost like having poison ivy, but with these ~mm red dots that cause swelling and acne like infections. My friends are complaining about the same thing and even showering and washing clothes right when getting back from the woods doesn't seem to stop them. The local pharmacy was out of hydrocortisone cream even though every other skin product was fully stocked.
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Aug 13, 2021 23:24
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What in the world
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Aug 13, 2021 23:51
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Yeah the DC thread has been talking about them for a bit. They're called oak mites and they're loving terrible. They'll apparently die off in the winter, which seems way too far away for a host of reasons at this point. I've had a couple of the bites and they stuck around for at least a miserable week. Hydrocortisone helps and is recommended, which is why it's sold out. Try and get some if you can. You could also try out a non-anti bacterial lotion like CeraVe's Healing Ointment, or Tecnu's Calagel.
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Aug 14, 2021 05:29
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drat I was thinking chiggers but that’s way worse somehow.
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Aug 14, 2021 16:37
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Rolo posted:drat I was thinking chiggers but that’s way worse somehow. Yeah they're the worst. The area also offers ticks and some of the worst urban mosquito and midge infestations known to Orkin Man. Truly the capital of our great nation! https://www.washingtonian.com/2021/08/02/mysterious-bug-bite-dc-oak-mite-bite-cicadas-bed-bugs/
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Aug 14, 2021 19:27
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I'm too far north to be affected, but does regular picardin/DEET insect repellent help?
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Aug 14, 2021 20:35
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Those bugs sound awful. I posted about this in the canoe and kayak thread but Math You suggested I post here. Maybe this will be a little more coherent since I am no longer exhausted and full of well deserved beer. I just had the most intense experience I have ever had out in the Boundary Waters in MN this week. We went for a 3 day 2 night trip. My husband, kid and myself. My husband is very experienced, my kid has been to the BWCA 3 times and is an athletic teen, and I would consider myself an experienced novice paddler. We thought about a no portage route, but the only open campsite on the first lake wasn't even in the actual park, so we decided to go two more lakes in to a lake we had been before and had great luck fishing and an amazing sunset view. We saw three canoes coming out and they warned us the first of two portages was muddy. Someone in the parking lot had also advised us of this. It had been last year as well, no big deal. Well, the water is way down this year because of the drought. We paddled our asses off into the clearly muddy bay. I got out and sunk in to just above the knee. Some spots were deeper. It was difficult to find any rocks or logs to gain my footing on in there, and before I knew it, my shoe was stuck. I had to let it go and take the other one off as well to really feel for the spots I could actually stand. Thankfully, we recovered the shoe. But putting back in here seemed like an iffy prospect at best. We camped at the site we liked and it was beautiful. No one was at the other site on this lake either. There is a river off this lake with the good fishing. We tried to get in but the low water level made it too difficult. There were tons of rocks that would have been under water last year that are sticking out now. Back at camp we looked at the map to see what we could do about avoiding the mud. There is a second route back to our entry lake, but it is a river and we were worried about the low water levels making that just as tough. So we decided to make our easy trip more adventurous and paddle three more lakes to an entry point a mile hike from where we parked the car. There are 2 60 rod portages. The last lake is one of the largest in the BWCA but the weather was forecasted to be clear and the paddle is through a fairly sheltered section of the big lake. Husband has been on it a few times before. No problem. We went to bed ready to break camp the next day. Here was our view. You can see where the water usually is on the rocks in the foreground.  We awoke to pouring rain, which was actually kind of nice and it stopped by 8 am. Enter the wind. It was probably 15mph with higher gusts. Luckily, it was coming straight at us so no problem paddling through it on these little lakes. The third lake was worrying but we had time and could wait until day 3 to tackle it, or longer if it was too dangerous. I admit I am not in the best shape right now, so paddling wasn't hard but it tired the f out of me going into that wind. The first 60 rod portage was a challenge, but not undoable. It was hilly and there was a little pond up one of the hills that was beautiful. We got into the second lake and now the wind was at our backs so we just got to enjoy the ride which was great, because at this point I was feeling pretty tired. All 3 campsites were open and we got to the third at about 1:00 PM. We decided not to even try the big lake because of the wind. It gusted and blew constantly until dusk when it finally chilled out and let us fish from the shore. Camp 2:  I woke up at about 5:30 to a stupid fly that sounded like a 747 buzzing around our tent. And wind. It was not as intense as the day before, but we knew we needed to haul rear end ASAP in case it came up worse. We got on the water at 7. The portage was awesome. Flat, beautiful hiking. We put in on the big lake and it was not bad, but you could see once we got out of the bay there was a stretch of real waves before the third section which was sheltered by a nice big island. Thankfully, the wind and waves were going our way. It was scary but we stayed close to shore and made sure to mark where campsites were in case something happened and we needed help. The largest waves were probably 3'. We made it through that section and I was so drat relieved to just be in pain-in-the-rear end waves instead of I-hope-a bigger-one-doesn't-come waves. At this point, we see a kayaker going along. We didn't think much of it at first. Then between wind gusts we hear voices- my kid thinks they hear a cry for help. Or it might be people at the camp. We start to back paddle to see if we can confirm or deny. OK, yes this person is calling for help. The waves at this point were not the big scary ones, but they were a factor and the wind was a factor. The kayaker gets within earshot and it is a teenage girl and she is freaking out. She says she is going to jump in and swim to us! She is lost and has been paddling a long time. Her family is somewhere on the lake and they got separated somehow. She is panicking and over steering herself, fighting the waves when she doesn't have to. I was terrified at this point for us and her. She really wanted to come to the canoe and that would have been disaster for all of us. My husband was so good at getting her to calm down. She calmed down enough to get going with the waves and with us. We promised we would not leave her. We just needed to get in to the next bay where the landing is. We kept going, with her beside us, talking to keep her calm and focused. Luckily now we were next to that big island and the paddling was easier with wind still at our backs. We met a few people just coming on to the lake and warned a family with small kids that the waves were dangerous in the big part of the lake. They decided to turn around and go in to the same lake we started on. Some experienced paddlers agreed to keep an eye out for the lost kid's family and let them know she is on the way in. It was so intense. Her family rolled in about half hour later - kind of mad at her and not concerned enough for me! She did amazing for a kid alone on the water in dangerous conditions. I made sure to tell the kid that I was proud of her and that she did a great job and it was absolutely the right thing to find help and come in instead of staying out looking for her family. We never did really understand how they got separated in the first place. I am sure the gravity of it hit them like a loving train once the relief and adrenaline ran out. I am not posting this to shame anyone, just to get it off my brain. I am still super shaken about all of this, obviously. I am thankful nothing happened, thankful we were there; I hugged the poo poo out of my own teen when the family rolled up to the landing, even though they are in the "god, mom don't hug me" stage. And I can't wait to go back! We did not see another human for almost 48 hours of the trip - not normal for the area but welcome as hell. The sunsets lasted like 2 hours each and stars came out insanely bright both nights. We had cute snake buddies at the first campsite. It was amazing. I might take Math You's advice from the canoe thread and get a satellite communicator for the next trip. It was a good reminder that poo poo can get real out there. Snake buddy:  Portage view: 
HungryMedusa fucked around with this message at 20:50 on Aug 14, 2021 |
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Aug 14, 2021 20:41
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Looks like you had good luck with the smoke too, so that's nice. I had that region on my list of possibilities for the meteor shower this past week and avoided it because the forecast just wasn't that great. But you just showed how forecasts aren't everything.HungryMedusa posted:Camp 2: This view reminds me of spirit island:  Less mountains obviously but still a rad spot.
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Aug 14, 2021 20:51
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Yeah, we had no smoke at all luckily. I fully recommend going; it truly is an amazing place. Spirit Island looks rad. E: My family should go to Canada more in general. I need to see the Canadian Rockies. HungryMedusa fucked around with this message at 21:13 on Aug 14, 2021 |
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Aug 14, 2021 21:10
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hypnophant posted:I'm too far north to be affected, but does regular picardin/DEET insect repellent help? They're supposed to, and I plan to cover myself in bug spray the next time I go into any parks.
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Aug 14, 2021 21:58
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HungryMedusa posted:E: My family should go to Canada more in general. I need to see the Canadian Rockies. We went there in 2019, it's an amazing region. Very crowded though, the postcard spots are swarming with tour buses. Do yourself a favor and lean towards back country stuff around Kananaskis and Mt Robson. Yoho is manageable once you get away from the roads. There's a whole lifetime of backcountry stuff around there, that's just the stuff I as a tourist know about. I'm sure a native has a long list of secret spots to get to.
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Aug 14, 2021 22:12
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Two years I drove 3 hours to a trailhead, sat in the parking lot, chickened out and drove home. Finally managed an overnight hike by myself.   
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Aug 15, 2021 01:58
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Looks like a good hike op.
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Aug 15, 2021 02:04
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Good for you!
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Aug 15, 2021 02:36
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I hope you didn't build that stack of rocks.
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Aug 15, 2021 03:13
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huhu posted:Two years I drove 3 hours to a trailhead, sat in the parking lot, chickened out and drove home. Finally managed an overnight hike by myself. one of us one of us Chard fucked around with this message at 06:06 on Aug 15, 2021 |
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Aug 15, 2021 06:02
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my chickening out was hiking 3 hours in then getting spooked by an animal and hiking 3 hours back out at midnight because that was somehow easier/safer than just sleeping in the tent 
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Aug 15, 2021 06:26
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Hiking alone at night is 10x scarier than sleeping in a tent alone in the woods. Talking to yourself or singing songs will help you relax and keep animals away. Earplugs while you sleep helps a bunch if you're nervous and every stick crack feels like a grizzly coming to eat you. I did part of the enchantments at night under a full moon and it was both really awesome because we didn't need headlamps but also a little eerie being the person taking up the rear. Eventually you'll get used to it. I started by car camping alone first then worked up to backpacking. I still don't backpack solo too often but eventually you'll be fine and you just get used to it.
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Aug 15, 2021 09:10
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oh yeah, this was ~14 years ago now. Sometimes still get spooked but that's more because of meth camps in Florida than anything.
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Aug 15, 2021 09:31
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xzzy posted:I hope you didn't build that stack of rocks. I did not lol. Also knew well enough not to post in a photography thread with it.
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Aug 15, 2021 16:16
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xzzy posted:I hope you didn't build that stack of rocks. I think building cairns is a jaywalking-level LNT crime. There. I said it.
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Aug 15, 2021 16:22
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Happiness Commando posted:I think building cairns is a jaywalking-level LNT crime. same, i dont do it, i also can barely care. the act of camping and being on the trails alone is far more damaging to the local ecosystems than stacking some rocks up. neither matters compared to so much other poo poo.
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Aug 15, 2021 16:24
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Why are cairns bad? I see cairns all the time in the desert along trails and boy are they helpful
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Aug 15, 2021 16:28
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WoodrowSkillson posted:same, i dont do it, i also can barely care. the act of camping and being on the trails alone is far more damaging to the local ecosystems than stacking some rocks up. neither matters compared to so much other poo poo. Well we're all subject to the laws of gravity, there's nothing that can be done about trampling a trail. But leaving behind rock stacks is a completely optional defacement that spreads like a cancer. No one needs to be crucified over it, I just think it's dumb and lame.
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Aug 15, 2021 16:36
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George H.W. oval office posted:Why are cairns bad? I see cairns all the time in the desert along trails and boy are they helpful Cairns as trail markers are fine when they're created intentionally by the pathfinders or maintenance crews. Cairns as casually-built "I am here" flags are not fine - they end up spreading like wildfire because folks love copying them and they turn camp sites and scenic points into monuments of past human presence. Building one seems minor, but they very quickly turn into dozens when bored people see them and want to build their own. The ecological impact isn't significant, but they're the equivalent of carving your name into a tree, and they last until someone knocks them down. Kaal fucked around with this message at 17:00 on Aug 15, 2021 |
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Aug 15, 2021 16:57
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George H.W. oval office posted:Why are cairns bad? I see cairns all the time in the desert along trails and boy are they helpful They perfect sense in the desert since they mark the trail, but on trails like the AT they are not used to mark the trails. Actually they are famous for leading people off the trails and plus the environmental concerns (erosion, homes for insects and mammals, etc.) alone are reasons not to build them.
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Aug 15, 2021 17:01
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A couple weeks ago I saw a bunch of cairns on my way to a rock climbing spot that lead the wrong way.
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Aug 15, 2021 17:04
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I was super confused the first time I visited a desert National park (Arches) because they were all over the trails. Sorry trail crews, I knocked some over thinking I was doing good.
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Aug 15, 2021 17:11
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JUST MAKING CHILI posted:I was super confused the first time I visited a desert National park (Arches) because they were all over the trails. Sorry trail crews, I knocked some over thinking I was doing good. Usually the ranger built ones are pretty substantial. Sometimes they'll be big stacks of rocks wrapped in chicken wire. If they're tiny ones with a half dozen rocks it's probably visitor made. But note I've never been to Arches and haven't seen how they do official cairns there.
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Aug 15, 2021 17:33
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