[pct-l] Are you "Thru-Learning" this year?

[Ned Tibbits]

2015 NoBo PCT thru-hiker-only Snow Advanced Skills Course taught on trail as you go from Cottonwood Pass to Kearsarge Pass, May 3-7, 2015!

I bring this up only because several 2015 PCT thru hikers have already signed up for this course and it appears as though it is going to be popular! It is convenient since it meets you right where you first contact snow in the High Sierra out of Kennedy Meadows. 


If you are a NoBo PCT thru for 2015 and you still need your snow skills, taking this course is an excellent option to attending one of our Snow Basics Courses taught earlier in the winter. Actually, we prefer it to the SBC classes because it teaches you on springtime, consolidated snow instead of winter powder snow and on the steep and high slopes of Forester Pass, your first and steepest pass in the sierra!

Mountain Education started this idea of a NoBo PCT thru-hiker-only advanced snow skills course last year to run as a shorter version of our annual 10-day, Kennedy Meadows to Kearsarge Pass Snow Advanced Course. Current year thru hikers simply join the longer two versions ( the 10-day and a 6-day) of this course at Chicken Spring Lake on the night of May 2nd. Since you guys are already in “trail shape,” you will be strong and ready to learn how to deal with:

    - Snow-Hiking Crampons
    - Snow Balance & Traction
    - Ice Axes or BD Whippets
    - Snow Navigation
    - Snow Camping
    - GPS navigation in the Trees vs. Line-of-Sight above Timberline
    - Avalanche Awareness & Avoidance
    - Safe Route Recognition, Selection, Remembrance, & Adherence 
    - Getting Water without Falling In
    - Ascent & Descent Techniques
    - Self-Arrest Techniques
    - Steep Traverse Techniques
    - Emergency Communications & Rescue
    - Emergency Medical Concerns
    - Exposure, Hypothermia, Hypoglycemia, Snow-Blindness, Dehydration
    - Weather Awareness
    - Snowpack Stability Analysis
    - Creek-Crossing Skills vs. Snow Bridge Assessment & Safety
    - Suncups, Ice, Wind-Crust, Postholing, and Storm Days.

Backpackers can attend, as well, but there are conditions regarding when and where you can start based on your trail-strength and fitness.
    - If you are not in “trail-shape,” take the 10-day course out of Kennedy Meadows to get into shape before we hit the snow at Cottonwood Pass (season dependent).
    - If you are in “trail-shape,” but not a NoBo thru, join us at Horseshoe Meadows trailhead for the 6-day trip with Day-1 going in over Cottonwood to Chicken Spring Lake.

If these dates don’t work for you, we are offering numerous Snow Basics Courses during the Winter and Spring in Tahoe, Oregon, Washington, and SoCal!

Go to www.mountaineducation.org to look at our Snow Skills Course offerings!

If you have any further questions, I’m sure the rest of this great trail community could benefit by your asking as a reply to this group email.




Ned Tibbits, Director
Mountain Education, Inc.
www.mountaineducation.org 
ned at mountaineducation.org 


Mission:
"To minimize wilderness accidents, injury, and illness in order to maximize wilderness enjoyment, safety, and personal growth, all through experiential education and risk awareness training."