[pct-l] 2016 prep

Tue Nov 24 19:38:37 CST 2015

Hi Ned,

Thanks for the advice and updates. I do have one question, and I'm sorry if
it's a silly one; my only experience hiking in the Sierra was in August of
1998, so I'm out of my element here.

How early can one safely enter the mountains, from an avalanche safety
perspective? I have no idea how to assess this. I don't mind hiking on
snow, in snow, with crampons, etc. but I know nothing about avalanche risk.
I hope to start at the southern terminus shortly before April 1st but will
adjust my plans as necessary to avoid, uhm, death.

Thanks,

-Charles

On Tuesday, November 24, 2015, Ned Tibbits <ned at mountaineducation.org>
wrote:

> For all of you thrilled that we are finally getting a "real winter" and
> just beginning to get a little scared about the anticipated high sierra
> snow levels come May, June, or July, I just want to reassure you that you
> will be snow-hiking on top of it, no matter how deep it is!
>
> We are receiving as I write this lots of new powder snow on Donner Pass!
> The local ski areas are already open and skiers and snowboarders are having
> a great time. Thanksgiving will be awesome this year for winter sports
> enthusiasts!
>
> If you are doing the PCT in 2016 and can monitor the Facebook group, PCT
> class of 2016, Mountain Education is posting daily snow-hiking advice with
> pictures to help you realize exactly what you will be dealing with when you
> hit Cottonwood Pass, a mere 3 or so days north of Kennedy Meadows. Some
> quick advice for those who don't care to follow Facebook:
>
> - you do not need nor want snowshoes!
> - you will need some form of traction aide so you don't slip.
> - if you will be "in the herd," following hikers ahead of you who have
> made a trough in the snow to walk in, Kahtoola Microspikes are sufficient
> to keep you upright and balanced most of the time.
> - if you will either wander out of track or will be ahead of the herd, you
> will want the Kahtoola Hiking Crampons because they hold onto steep
> traverses and to your boot better without rolling off! Big safety concern!
> - plan to make camp at snowline prior to each pass.
> - you can only go 1mph over snow and maintain your balance and safety, so
> factor that in.
> - plan to eat a ton of food, perhaps twice as much as when on dry trail,
> for this snow section to Donner Pass.
>
> Ugg! I'm out of time! I'll post more later.
>
> Any questions?
>
>
>
> 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."
> -----Original Message----- From: Scott Williams
> Sent: Saturday, November 21, 2015 4:25 PM
> To: Brick Robbins
> Cc: PCT
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] 2016 prep
>
> Great advice Chipmunk.  I include "storm hikes" all winter long as part of
> my regular training hike series.  Firstly, because when I'm in my storm get
> up, I stay warm and have a great time in terrible weather, and secondly, to
> introduce others to just what it feels like to hike through serious weather
> and realize they're OK, they didn't melt and had a great time.  Getting
> used to your gear ahead of time and in situations where you can leave trail
> easily to get warm if you do get too wet, is simply invaluable.
>
> One of the best of them was a few years ago when we had 100 mile per hour
> winds on the Bay Area ridges.  For that storm I hiked the highest of the
> ridges in our area, 4,000 foot, Mt. Diablo.  I started in shorts as it was
> a "pineapple express" and didn't seem too cold when I set out, but had to
> actually don my rain pants once the hail began to sting.  Great learning
> for me for the CDT where hail at 13,000 feet also stung like a million bees
> and I needed protection for the hail, not necessarily the cold.  On Bald
> Ridge, the most exposed section, the wind had the force to lift me out of
> the trail and knock me over and I learned to run/hike scrunched over at
> half height to reduce windage.  But in the shelter of dense chaparral on
> that same ridge, with the wind howling in a deafening roar just feet over
> my head, I could have pitched a tent in the light zephyrs that were blowing
> closer to ground.  Amazing.  Shelter would have been easy had I needed it
> by simply choosing a truly sheltered spot.  That's a big lesson and one to
> understand experientially.  Don't pitch just anywhere if you can possibly
> help it.  Find a sheltered spot.
>
> On another windy snowy hike over the same 7 mile loop of the summit a few
> years ago, with snow melt filling all the seasonal streams and waterfalls,
> I took a good friend out for a test of his gear and to acquaint him with
> hiking in storms.  He was heading for South America and intended on hiking
> sections of the Andes but he had virtually no training in bad weather.  At
> one point we reached a flooded section of trail about 500 feet across, and
> after trying unsuccessfully to make it through the dense chaparral on
> either side, I just struck out across it in my trail runners, which were
> soaked by the rain to begin with and couldn't get any wetter.  This was ice
> cold snow melt and when the water reached my waist, I began to give my
> usual ice water scream because the cold is painful and it's good to scream,
> but I didn't slow down and blasted through to the other side.
>
> My buddy thought I was crazy.  I told him it was going to be very cold, but
> that the difference between the ice water and the ambient air temperature
> when he got out was so great that he would feel instantly hot on the far
> side and to not stop long enough to let himself get cold.  He had to hike
> as fast as he could to stay warm.   After a bit of laughter and name
> calling, he struck out and by mid ford was calling me every filthy name he
> could come up with.  He was pissed and getting scared.   Finally he stopped
> mid crossing and became very panicked, screaming that he couldn't feel his
> feet or move his legs.  I hollered back that he could still move and to
> keep pushing his legs forward and not stop in the cold and sure enough, he
> made it across just fine, though he was still cussing at me.  He couldn't
> believe how warm his feet felt when he left the water and we took off up
> the trail at a blistering pace maintaining the warmth.  Within a few
> minutes he acknowledged that inspite of being wet up to his waist, he was
> basically warm.  Half an hour along and he was laughing at how really
> toasty he was.  He was wet and hiking and OK.  By the end of the hike he
> was really proud of how well he had done.  He had never worked or hiked in
> the rain before.
>
> Importantly, our cores had stayed out of the water and remained dry.  We
> were able to talk about hypothermia and other things that can happen when
> more than your legs and feet get soaked and it's cold outside, but
> basically it make him comfortable with walking in wet shoes.  That's a big
> deal when you first realize that you can be wet and fine on trail.
>
> Enough already!  Needless to say Chipmunk, you're advice to train in
> adverse conditions is a great one and is one of the best ways to instill
> confidence in new hikers if they're willing to try it.  And it's part of my
> winter hikes each year.
>
> Shroomer
>
> On Sat, Nov 21, 2015 at 1:05 PM, Brick Robbins <brick at brickrobbins.com>
> wrote:
>
> As we used to say, remember the Six Ps
>>
>> Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance
>>
>> 2015-11-21 11:54 GMT-08:00 Douglas Tow <douglastow at gmail.com>:
>> > Your 2016 thru hike is about 5 months out.
>> >
>> > In that time, you have a perfect opportunity to find some things out.
>> >
>> > 1.  Wait until a solidly rainy day, put your loaded pack on with your
>> rain
>> > gear, take a 5 mile walk (or just stand out in the rain for an hour), >
>> set
>> > up your shelter, and set up for eating and sleeping.  How'd that work
>> out?
>> > Where did you put your wet clothes and boots?  Did the things you wanted
>> to
>> > stay dry stay dry?  Wish you had an extra pair of dry socks?
>> >
>> > 2.  As you finish task #1 above, now put on your hiking clothes, pack
>> your
>> > pack, and break camp.  Eat breakfast if that is your general plan.
>> Assess.
>> >
>> > 3.  Resupply strategy.  Foods.  Wayfinding.  Charging your devices.  How
>> to
>> > get replacement boots while on trail.  Do your own brainstorming.
>> >
>> > 4.  Hike, and hike some more.  When that's done, hike some more.  Maybe
>> > a
>> > bit more.
>> >
>> > 5.  It really does cost money.
>> >
>> > 6.  If you want to reduce your chances of reaching your goals, >
>> definitely
>> > wing it.
>> >
>> > Chipmunk
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