[pct-l] Ned's snow camp

[Steven Mueller]

Hi all once again,

This weekend I had the pleasure of attending one of Ned and Julies (can't
forget Snowball) Winter snow courses.  What a weekend!!!  To begin with I
was joined by some of the nicest people that are going to be part of the
2011 thru-hiker community;  Liz (my ride up from SB, also a neighbor from 1
1/2 blocks away that I'd never met and a great person even after 18 hours in
the car and 2 days in a tent lol), Neil (no matter when he starts his hike
I'll be following him (man that guy can hike)), Lisa (don't go to Alaska
until AFTER your thru), John "me 2" (always ready to answer a question) and
Barney "to be hope" (if only I could see the landscape through your eyes,
every step is a miracle).


I was a little apprehensive of Ned, he does have his definite opinions in
his online presence, but there are some definite reasons for this.  His
experience level in the mountains and snow are incredible, his PCT thru was
in 72' and since then he's been saving lives both in the real world and
teaching others to save their own.  In person he loves sharing his
experience but listens and learns along with the rest of us.  The best part
of the weekend was sitting around the snow table and sharing stories and
information.


We were also blessed with the presence of his wife Julie, man can that lady
keep the pace up.  She had great stories and always a smile and a helping
hand, Ned and Julie make a heck of a couple.  They also brought along their
pet polar bear, Snowball, take about a slave driver, he let us know when we
weren't moving fast enough in his opinion (remember don't feed the bears).


The first day was the hike in, 4 1/2 miles across frozen lakes, snow covered
hills and lots of stops for questions and information.  For anyone that has
never snow shoed let me tell you it's not a walk in the park, there are
muscles that I didn't even know that I had that are still sore.  We set up
tents and pretty much were in our bags by 6:30.


On Saturday, after a long breakfast, we did the self-arrest in the morning.
Learning to walk along bowls in your snowshoes, in your boots and feel safe,
and then Sliding down the hill, on our stomach, back, head-first, upside
down (I so sucked at that one), you start to see that if the worst case
scenario happens and you do happen to start sliding you don't have to panic.
There were lots of seriously fun moments sliding around.


After lunch we did a hike around the lakes in the area, focusing on
navigating with a map (no compass required (you learn to orient yourself
without one)) (halfmiles are great because of the scale, thanks again
halfmile).  The only thing I'll say about that is don't believe anyone when
you can read a map correctly.  The Desolation Wilderness is so incredibly
beautiful in the middle of winter.

That night we got to experience a winter storm, between 8 in the evening and
8 in the morning on Sunday we had at least 8 inches of wet snow, winds that
were pretty intense throughout the night (they sound like a train coming off
of the mountains and then they are upon you, pretty cool).  It was iffy at
times as to if we were going to stay another day because of the storm, but
during a break we broke camp and about 3 hours later we were at the parking
lot.  The lesson learned was if the weather is bad, you're not sure if you
can make it out without getting cold and wet, then stay put, ride it out and
when you can safely get out do it then, it's not a race. On a more personal
note in the dead of night, on a cold and windy night a tent with a vestibule
is sure handy, lol.


This trip taught me a lot, both about snow, hiking and the people I'll be
hiking with. It made me reevaluate my gear, there is a reason that people
are moving more and more towards ultra light camping.  While I'll never be
ultra light I'm not going to be ultra heavy anymore (I was already 10 lbs
less than my AT thru).



My favorite piece of gear is my Marmot Oracle jacket  it works in the rain,
wind and snow, followed closely by my Feathered Friends down booties, NeoAir
sleeping pad and Marmot Helium Membrane 15 degree bag.  I'll never trade my
Asolo boots for trail runners but more power to those that do.


To sum it up I'd highly recommend Ned's course to any hiker, thru-hikers,
day-hikers, weekend warriors, everyone.  Anytime you can meet up with a
bunch of like-minded outdoor enthusiasts and learn lots of new things then
it's time well spent.


Thanks again Ned and Julie, along with my fellow snow campers,


Hike your own hike and happy trails,


Steven  (Flying Tortoise)