[pct-l] Winter PCT Attempt Update

[Gail Van Velzer]

Thank you Ned for your wise words.
Gail

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ned Tibbits" <ned at mountaineducation.org>
To: <JohnMuirTrail_Sidebar at yahoogroups.com>
Cc: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2014 7:42 AM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Winter PCT Attempt Update


> Somewhere along the line I had heard a distant rumor that someone was 
> thinking of doing, or at least about to try to do the PCT during the 
> winter months.
>
> As I’m sure Mr. Dittli can attest, the sierra can be a very deadly place 
> to be in the winter while
> -  waiting out deep powder snow storms,
> -  waiting even longer for new snow to settle for avalanche dangers to 
> lower (a bit) before venturing out,
> -  fearing self-triggered avalanches because you think you just have to 
> keep going rather than waiting,
> -  risking serious hypothermia and frostbite from living in cold, wet, 
> winter conditions day after day with exits out being twice to three times 
> as long to accomplish as during the summer,
> -  camping in what you considered in the dark the night before to be a 
> safe avy-free zone only to hear an avalanche slide by you during the 
> night, and
> -  struggling in waist-deep powder, packing down snow to make a trail, and 
> consuming tons of energy, just to go a quarter of a mile in an hour,
>
> I question his prior winter snow experience. Mountain Education is out in 
> the lower-elevation, not-so-steep, Tahoe backcountry from January to June 
> camping and snowshoeing in powder snow. It is a common event to be buried 
> under up to 5 feet of new snow over 3 days. It is part of the lifestyle to 
> recognize that those nights will be spent getting up every hour of so, 
> putting on all your thermals and shells, gloves and hats, just to go 
> outside and dig out the tent so it doesn’t collapse under the weight of 
> the new snow. It must be anticipated and planned for that any progress in 
> powder snow will not be on top of it, but rather through it, an arduous 
> process that consumes tons of energy and uses muscles rarely asked to 
> perform and which will complain and cramp up after no time at all.
>
> Even while ski patrolling during nasty snow storms before the ski area 
> decides to shut down for the event, working and even just moving around in 
> the powder is no fun and only done because we have huts and lodges in 
> which we can immediately dry out and warm up. If you fall (and all of us 
> do in these conditions), it may take a while to get up and stand in bad 
> storms. I hope this guy has a realistic understanding of what it’s going 
> to take to do what he thinks he can do, other than the idealistic 
>  “extreme” snowboarding videos shot during selected low-risk conditions, 
> otherwise not only will the undertaking be futile, but he might just 
> become the wrong kind of statistic....
>
> I understand he is going South-bound. Joy! I was just up on the PCT this 
> past mid-June on the 30 miles south of the Canadian border while the area 
> still had up to 3 feet of consolidated snow everywhere and it was a highly 
> dangerous place to be, perhaps even more dangerous than the central 
> sierra! No kidding. The slopes are steep! The traversing summer trail is 
> often carved into the hillside with steep slopes down right at the edge of 
> the trail bed and lots of trees beneath you to slide into should you fall. 
> Nothing except the ridgelines and creek beds will be “flat” to walk on. 
> Avalanche paths are everywhere, as attested to by the snapped-off swaths 
> of 12-inch trees in numerous slide paths all over the place. The weather 
> is nasty up there with frequent days of just fog, which on snow means 
> “white-out” conditions where you don’t know where to go and which end is 
> up.
>
> There are certain things best left not done. Now, I know that some of our 
> famous early sierra explorers travelled the sierra in the winter, but I’m 
> sure the conditions were not the best, took a lot of wisdom to know what 
> not to do, and took a lot of time, fuel, and effort. I suppose the venture 
> could be done, but with a lot of time spent off-trail waiting for 
> friendlier conditions post-storm, selecting safer moments between storms 
> to accomplish minimal risky trail miles (either direction), and fearing 
> avalanches nearby or self-triggered far from convenient rescue at a ski 
> area.
>
> No thanks. I’ll take springtime, consolidated snow anytime over powder! 
> (Just ask the PCT class of 2013 that was on-trail during the late 
> September storm of last season what it was like to wallow through deep 
> powder in the North Cascades!). It’s a different animal entirely....
>
>
> 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."
>
> From: mailto:JohnMuirTrail_Sidebar at yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2014 2:19 PM
> To: Sidebar
> Subject: [JohnMuirTrail_Sidebar] Winter PCT Attempt Update [feedly]
>
>
>
> Justin Lichter is one of the world's most accomplished hikers, in the top 
> 2 hikers in my opinion (only Andrew Skurka is a peer).
>
> Winter PCT Attempt Update
> http://www.justinlichter.com/winter-pct-attempt-update/
>
> -- via my feedly.com reader
> __._,_.___
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> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Posted by: Roleigh Martin <roleigh at pobox.com>
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