Feral Hiker

Blogging hiatus - broken arm

2009-06-20T15:13:00.000-07:00

Not that I've been regular about posting but I will be doing so much less for a while. I broke my left humerus near the elbow. I wish I could write a hiking- related posting on how I broke my arm but I tripped over an irregularity on my driveway and fell at home.

Public campgrounds

2009-05-25T16:03:00.000-07:00

I do day hikes, not backpacking. When I hike, even locally, I like to car camp near my hiking area. I enjoy the camping and often hike the next day also or until I need to return home. When I go to areas further away, such as Yellowstone NP or Utah, I much rather camp than stay in a motel most of the time and it is much cheaper. I've seen a lot of public campgrounds, mostly in the Western U.S., built and maintained by the Park Service, Forest Service, and BLM. Campgrounds, built or reconstructed in the last 25 years, often seem to be to be designed by people who have never camped in that they are not designed in ways most campers want. I'm thinking about privacy, ability to park close to campsite, room to park, shade, and arrangement of tables, fire pits, etc. I do realize that the responsible agency never has enough money, must compromise among multiple requirements, such as resource conservation and safety, and often needs to consider tent campers, large RV users, and pickup campers. Obviously differing requirements make it difficult to come up with campgrounds that please everyone especially budget offices and conservation needs. Still, I see some campgrounds that I wonder what the agency was thinking when the campground was designed. I also see recently constructed campgrounds that have few users even when surrounding ones are full.

For me, one of the greatest irritations is lack of privacy and any barrier between sites. Of course some areas simply don't have natural barriers, the area has scant vegetation and is mostly flat. On the other hand, in many FS campgrounds, much of the underbrush and trees are removed. I know that larger RVs need more room to maneuver forcing brush removal. And unsafe trees need to be removed lest they land on someones campsite and cause injuries and lawsuits. Still, I really wish the agency would attempt to retain trees and understory when possible and utilize natural barriers, such as rocks, to separate campsites. There is a FS campground in north Idaho that was rebuilt a few years ago. This area is heavily used on summer weekends and I would expect to see the newer campground more heavily used with its updated toilets, etc. However, the campground was virtually clearcut, no shade, no privacy among sites, and no sound deadening from the nearby highway. Whenever I've gone by, the campground has been nearly empty.

Another annoying issue is placing campsites and particularly parking too close together. I understand the desire to have a compact campground retaining as much natural habitat as possible. Also, most people want to be close to facilities and compactness is cheaper than building more toilets and water and garbage stations. Still, if sites and parking are too close, most people won't use the site or campground if they have a choice. Many campground have tent camping sections with the parking being a parking lot and campsites off a short trail some feet away. I don't see these sites used a lot. Yes, people are lazy but if you aren't backpacking, you probably don't want to carry all your gear that far from your car. Then there is also the issue of food, stoves, and food waste. Nearly everyone who has camped in areas frequented by bears will want to place the food, cooking equipment, and garbage in the car, making for a lot of trips. Also most people like to be able to see their car in a public campground.

Double campsites are common in some campgrounds. I know a lot of campers travel in small groups and like double sites but making the whole campground into double sites? I stayed at a BLM campground in Wyoming configured as all double sites. The campground was about 1/3 full but the only sites occupied by 2 vehicles were fairly obviously being used by the RV and vehicle, not 2 campers. The parking area for most of the sites was simply too small for a large RV and towed vehicle or towing vehicle. The parking areas were also too narrow to easily fit most camper's vehicles and allow easy access.

There are other issues such as permanent fire pits which are situated wrong for common wind directions, parking spaces which are too short for no obvious reason, and tent pads which are uneven or noticeably slanted. Often I wonder, was anyone thinking about how these sites will be used or just following a checkoff list? I don't mean to be overly critical, I use public campgrounds and often like them and certainly prefer them to all the private campgrounds I've seen. Still, a little bit more thought would have helped.

Expanding wildlife ranges

2009-05-03T17:01:00.000-07:00

Since I've been hiking, some wildlife species have expanded their ranges; more have retracted or become far less common throughout their range. I wish all range expansion was of native animals to the region but some non-native North American animals have been introduced for hunting.

The most publicized example is the reintroduction of wolves to the Yellowstone area and Idaho. I've seen Yellowstone wolves while hiking several times and heard wolves and seen tracks in the Lolo Pass area of Idaho. I'm pleased with the spread of wolves in the west although I'm aware that not everyone is so pleased especially local ranchers. I graduated with a degree in biology from Idaho State University in Pocatello and remember persistent rumors of wolves in the Yellowstone area when I was there 35 years ago. In one case I heard directly from the participants who were biology graduate students. They had gone cross-country skiing in Yellowstone and saw what they thought was a wolf. In the same area they found tracks in snow larger than coyote tracks. Of course other animals than a wild wolf could have made these tracks. A pet wolf or dog or escaped wolf/dog/coyote mix could have made these tracks. And, the tracks may have been enlarged by melting and/or made by a very large coyote. It is certain that even if wolves did move through the area after local extirpation, they did not establish a permanent breeding population before reintroduction. Still it is pleasant to think some wolves may have added their genes to the packs without human intervention.

Speaking of Yellowstone Park, mountain goats can now often be seen in the northeast area on and around Mt. Barronette. Mountain goats were introduced to the Absaroka and Gallatin mountains in the past, they are not native to the Yellowstone area. I hope they do not cause the same problems as the introduced mountain goats have caused in the Olympic Mountains, particularly destruction of alpine vegetation.

On my recent trip to the Methow area, I saw turkeys along the road a few times. These are also non-native animals, introduced for hunting. I'm not aware of any problems yet from turkey introductions but I know non-native introductions of other species have caused serious problems including extinction of native populations.

Growing up in north Idaho, I do not remember seeing Stellar's blue jays in local rural areas. Sometime in the 1980s Stellar's blue jays expanded into the small towns and rural areas. I know Stellar's blue jays were in north Idaho before then, the Lewis and Clark expedition clearly describes them. Did they expand their range into areas near people or did they move back into areas they had previously lived in but were pushed out?

Spring Methow-area trip

2009-04-25T14:53:00.000-07:00

I recently made a trip to the Methow area to hike and camp and get out of my house. It is a bit early for most trails, I went up the Twisp River road to War Creek but could not drive to the trail head because of snow. I did walk for a couple of hours along the Twisp River trail that parallels the road. It wasn't very exciting but was enjoyable. I liked the many mule's ears blooming along the trail and visible even from the road.

I decided to shift to the Chewuch River road thinking I would find less snow there and more access to trail heads. I drove to the end of the road where a new foot/horse bridge gives access to the trails that used to be at the thirty mile trailhead. I had hiked these trails a few times before the Thirty Mile fire and this was the first time I had gone to the end of the road. I only walked a short ways, the destruction caused by the Thirty Mile fire and the lack of any greenery yet this year made the area very depressing especially as contrasted with what I remember from before. Not to be too self-absorbed, but just didn't want to be there remembering the lives lost and the destruction due to human negligence.

I was lucky enough to see a pair of common mergansers in the Chewuch River near where I camped. I wish I had a telephoto lens for my camera but at least I can tell what I took a picture of, a better outcome than many of my pictures.

I did limited hiking on this trip but I really enjoyed getting out of my house and into the backcountry. Even though the weather was very nice, I saw few people along either river and no other hikers.

How to P*ss in the Woods - for women

2009-04-11T17:19:00.000-07:00

Use a Feminine Urinary Device (Director), an FUD. These devices allow a woman to urinate standing up, without needing to pull pants or underwear down, and to easily direct urine into a container. When hiking, I don't need to take off my pack, I simply undo the waist strap, unzip my pants, and place the FUD under my underwear and urinate. I carry my FUD in a pouch on my belt so it is easy to reach and handy. I've used an FUD for 7 to 8 years now and started as soon as I became aware of them. Had I known of them earlier, I'm sure I would tried one sooner. I'm surprised that many women don't know about FUDs; part of my motivation for this entry is an article in Washington Trails, the Washington Trails Association magazine discussing problems women have urinating in the backcountry.

The advantages of using a FUD are plentiful. My older knees do not like to squat especially after a long hike and definitely not with a pack on. Not squatting and not pulling my pants down means I am much less likely to be bitten by mosquitoes or to run into thorns or devil's club (ouch!) on my butt. Urinating this way is also a lot more discreet, something I prefer on crowded trails. Also, I've been squatted down a few times and then discovered I'm uncomfortably close to a large animal, both moose and bison. This has created some anxiety on my part especially if I can't move quickly. An FUD is also great for using with a bottle inside a tent, using in dirty outhouses, when on small boats, and other situations.

There are now many different FUDs available. My favorite and the type I've used the most is the Freshette by Sanifem, although I don't have the most recent unit the overall design is very similar. These are available from Campmor and REI and the Sanifem website also gives more information. Some FUDs are disposable and may be a good way to decide if you with to use that style or an FUD at all, see the P-Mate available at Amazon.com. There are various sizes and shapes for FUDs although all consist of a funnel and tube. The smallest I've seen is the Travelmate which does not seem to be available right now. It and some of the other small units may take considerable practice to use reliably. Others, like the Freshette and SheWee, an inexpensive 1 piece unit, can be used more easily. Some, like the Lady-J are meant to be used with a bottle or urinal, not as a stand-alone device.

There are a few common sense precautions to take when using a FUD. First, practice at home and note how to position the funnel and aim the tube. With 2 piece devices, like the Freshette, if the tube isn't pulled down fully, urine may collect in the funnel and not go through the tube, possibly making a mess. You may also find it necessary to lean forward to fully empty the funnel and tube at the end. And, of course, don't piss into the wind!

You will also need to keep the device clean. Urine should be sterile as it exits the urethra but will quickly pick up bacteria. Using clean water to rinse the FUD should be enough for a few days but having some anti-bacterial wipes handy is a good idea. Wipes can easily be kept in the pouch with the FUD. After a few days use, a good cleaning with warm water and soap is a good idea.

Recent backcountry news

2009-03-28T16:41:00.000-07:00

A federal judge granted an injunction against the new regulations allowing concealed carry of loaded weapons in National Parks (story). The NRA has already filed to remove the injunction. I discussed this previously and I hope the injunction stands and that ready to use weapons continue to be forbidden in Parks. I am in favor of the gun restriction primarily for resource protection. Poaching of Park animals occurs despite the laws against killing them; I know some people will continue to bring loaded weapons into Parks and I see the restrictive gun rule as some protection.

I'm very much in favor of wild wolves living in backcountry areas of Washington state. Like many, I was happy to hear Canadian wolves had colonized areas of the Methow River area. Now it appears that at least one of the wolves was killed by locals. I know anti-wolf sentiment is strong among some people but I hope not the majority of people in the US.

More positively for wolf recovery, the Pt. Defiance Zoo is expanding its captive breeding program for red wolves. This should allow more animals to re-introduce into native habitat in the southeastern US.

A bill sponsored by several members of the Washington Congressional delegation proposes to expand the wilderness area of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness area and designate two rivers as 'wild and scenic'. The Alpine Lakes is an extremely popular area for backcountry recreation and since it is close to the Seattle Metropolitan area, is heavily used. Expanding the Wilderness area will hopefully protect more of this very scenic area from overuse and development.

TR - Lower Big Quilcene

2009-03-26T18:07:00.000-07:00

I finally got out on my first hike of the season on the Lower Big Quilcene trail on the Olympic Peninsula. I don't hike much in the Olympics, it isn't as convenient to where I live as the Cascades and the ferry fees to get there are enough to make me look for other areas. It is too bad, there are a lot of nice trails both in Olympic National Park and the surrounding National Forest to explore.

The trail was quite nice, mild elevation gain, wide trail with light snow. We didn't go far or long, about 4 hours total with a lunch stop, because not all of my group were in shape for a long hike nor were all of us well shod for a muddy, slippery trail. The area was nicely forested with mature second growth trees and attractive. I would have liked to see the Big Quilcene River more, we could hear it but rarely saw it. I forgot my camera so no pictures. We didn't see anyone else on the trail but could see tracks from previous hikers, snowshoes, and skis. At the Forest Service office I grabbed a photo copied trail guide and was surprised to see that this trail was open to all users, including motor bikes. I would think this trail would be too wet for motor bikes at least in spring and winter. I'm glad we didn't meet any.

Most accessed posts

2009-03-07T16:47:00.000-08:00

By far my most accessed blog post was this one http://feralhiker.blogspot.com/2006/12/performance-garments-and-cotton-kills.html and most people came to it by searching for "cotton kills". I don't know what people think about it, no one has commented or sent me email. So many people have gone to this post that I've re-read it a few times to be sure I didn't write anything I wanted to change or that was dangerous. I wrote the post because I was tired of the sound bite mentality of just telling people that "cotton kills". I realize that it can be a shortcut to thinking reasonably about what to wear in the backcountry just as the "10 essentials" is a shortcut to deciding what gear to take. I continue to believe that people need to think about what to wear or take to the backcountry and be aware of the advantages and disadvantages.

The other popular post is the one I wrote about poisonous snakes (http://feralhiker.blogspot.com/2007/04/poisonous-snakes.html). I wrote that one primarily because I don't encounter poisonous snakes very often, they are exciting and unusual to me. I really hope that people looking for information about snakes in the western U.S. continue to more informative sites.

Several of my Yellowstone National Park posts are accessed fairly frequently especially those in which I mention specific trails. I hope I'm informative and interesting about these trails, but I'm not writing a trail guide and there are much better resources on the web than my blog.

Outdoor reading - accidents and mortality

2009-02-08T18:20:00.000-08:00

I enjoy reading books and magazine and web articles about backcountry accidents and death, and I hope that I gain insight about how to avoid becoming a backcountry statistic from them. For instance, I read the blog Hiker Hell and the NPS Morning Report regularly, I've read the 3 books entitled Death in {Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, Yosemite} (not all by the same authors), and I've read several books about wildlife attacks both in North America and elsewhere. While some of this interest is probably common morbid fascination, there are other reasons. Clearly I'm not alone in my interest in the more morbid aspects of backcountry, otherwise such books would not be publishable.

Books on animal attacks are interesting both from a perspective of avoiding or surviving such attacks and because I'm interested in animal behavior. My education is as a biologist and even though I haven't worked in biology for 25 years, I still maintain my interest. I'm most inclined to read books on bear and large cats, and I can rationalize my interest as avoiding such attacks although this breaks down for tigers or African lions.

Death in Yellowstone has historic interest as well as sociological and legal interest as it offers a brief view of how the NPS has evolved attitudes toward visitor safety. It also offers some history on the NPS's changing views on animal and resource preservation as opposed to visitor accessibility and generally allowed behavior in parks. Now few parks allow hunting, tree cutting, or mineral collection but this was not always true. The book also warns me and others about behavior that I wouldn't necessarily consider foolish. I've talked to parents of small children who told me that the book caused them to control their children much more carefully than normally, the hot pools are attractive to children who are too young to understand the dangers. And while I am aware of rock and animal dangers from caves and rock overhangs, I wouldn't otherwise have thought about noxious gases (Chapter 5).

Both Death in the Grand Canyon and Death in Yosemite are more explicitly concerned with how to avoid serious injury and death as is the blog Hiker Hell. These state mistakes hikers make and situations to avoid to reduce risk. I may not follow all of their suggestions, I continue to hike alone, but they provide common sense information about what to avoid and what to do. The NPS Morning Report rarely provides me with information I can use about parks but reads like a litany of human folly. The deaths are usually due to suicide, vehicle accidents, and drowning flavored with drug and alcohol abuse. I'm not immune to these but they are often not backcountry related and are more standard "civilized" risks.

Outdoor reading - survival

2009-01-31T18:33:00.000-08:00

During the summer I buy books on outdoor topics, during the winter I read them. Since I'm not getting out this winter and don't have other topics in mind, I will discuss some topics on backcountry books.

I've been reading more books and articles on survival topics this last year than usual. Possibly the well reported incidents locally (PNW) have piqued my interest or perhaps my increasing age and declining health have made me more aware of my personal risks. Not that I expect to be in a survival situation, I hope to avoid such situations, but I am aware that even in everyday activities I may find myself in a precarious situation.

Most of the books have been about an individual's personal survival stories, interesting but not highly applicable to situations I expect to encounter. I can learn some things from these books, such as to carry appropriate equipment and don't fly in small planes over mountains, but the day to day struggle isn't likely to be similar to what I would encounter. Other books, such as those by Tom Brown, are more specialized than I would usually need and require more time and practice than I'm willing to spend.

One book I read recently is Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales, the subtitle is "Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why". To oversimplify, the premise of the book is psychological factors most strongly influence ability to survive life-threatening situations. I hasten to add that he doesn't imply having a positive attitude is the only thing needed or that one needs a positive attitude, just an appropriate turn of mind. I won't elaborate, I think this is a good book to read both for the survival knowledge and as interesting reading. The majority of the book consists of annotated survival stories, both of those who survived and who didn't, with a final chapter with some advice to increase ones chances of survival. Gonzales includes stories from from non-outdoor disasters, such as the September 11, 2001 planes and other plane crashes and how people coped without emergency gear.

I've blogged before about trying to develop a balanced approach to carrying emergency items with me when hiking. I tend to be the type to take 'everything' and that isn't working when hiking, my pack weighs too much, see http://feralhiker.blogspot.com/2008/02/reducing-my-daypack-load.html. I carry lots of equipment in my car and often multiple backup options, like 3 flashlights plus extra batteries. It only took a couple of situations, such as being stuck for a couple of hours on Snoqualmie Pass, with no idea of how long the wait would be and unable to go either direction, before I decided that I would carry lots of stuff including food and blankets in my car but that isn't an option for hiking.

Anyway, I am rethinking what is most useful for me to carry when hiking. I haven't taken my cell phone much of the time since cell coverage in the northern Cascades and many backcountry locations is poor. However, coverage is getting better and even if I can't complete a call, my phone might be trackable by GPS through the cell phone company. I'm also putting together a small emergency kit for my waist pack and making sure I carry a compass, emergency food, and a light vinyl poncho always.

Other trail users - motorized users

2009-01-07T17:32:00.000-08:00

As a hiker I don't like motorized use of backcountry trails or roads set aside for snow recreation use. Over the years I've been hiking, I have observed enough bad behavior by riders of trails bikes, ATVs, and snowmobiles to ensure I don't like such uses of trails. Motorized use tends to be noisy and polluting, lead to increased environmental degradation, and users may be inconsiderate to the point of vandalism and other illegal behavior. On one occasion, I heard noise coming up behind me that I initially thought was Whidbey Island jet jockeys flying up canyons north of Lake Wenatchee, something I've seen several times. No, it was 3 dirt bikes coming up the trail. Many off-road machines are 2-stroke engines which are inefficient and unnecessarily pollute the air. I've seen riders pull down fences and signs, both on public and private lands. Also, I've seen riders use closed trails and ride across previously unmarked land, destroying vegetation. Many arid hills show erosion patterns due to multiple bike or ATV trails going up.

Of course motorized use doesn't have to be so obnoxious. Quieter 4-stroke engines and mufflers are available. Riders who obey laws and ride on hard surfaces don't necessarily cause excessive erosion. Of course most motorized use is more damaging than hiking, but I've seen enough alpine meadows trampled by hikers to know that other users also cause environmental damage and I've commented recently on horse and mountain bike issues. I've had pleasant conversations with people on dirt bikes, snowmobiles, and ATVs many times. I have also seen riders help non-riders when lost, stuck, or mildly injured. Of course this is expected behavior but points out that not all riders are obnoxious jerks.

I also know that riding may be fun. For a couple of years around 1970, I used a trail bike to get into Forest Service lands. Mostly I used the bike to allow myself to get closer to the area I wanted to hike than I could with a car rather than actually ride on a trail, my skills weren't up to real trail riding but I remember enjoying riding along Forest Service roads. On my recent trips to Utah, I've wanted to take an ATV on some of the motorized trails, I can't hike that far anymore and I would like to get further into the non-road areas. I've used a snowmobile a couple of times on logging roads, it was great.

My copy of Backpacking One Step at a Time (1973) has the following quote "Strangers met on the trail deserve the same consideration - unless they are riding motorbikes in which case the proper response is every manner of hostility short of lynching." My response to this quote has moved from amusement to acceptance to dismay. I don't like motorized trail use, I don't even want to be in the same area that motorized use is occurring but I think that blanket hostility is the wrong approach. I think riders behaving in a considerate, legal, and respectful manner should be treated courteously, as we treat all other users. Yes, motorized use is problematic and uses more resources than non-motorized use. But I drive often and sometimes longs distances to hike, is this not a waste of precious resources? Also, there is some hypocrisy in a group of users who celebrate the joy of helicopter-assisted skiing but object to snowmobiles on a logging road. All recreational users need to consider the cost of their use and work to reduce these costs.

Other trail users - horsemen

2008-12-30T10:46:00.000-08:00

While I am occasionally irritated by mountain bikers, I would much rather share trails with them than with horse and mule riders and to a lessor extent, other stock users. I will use horsemen as a generic term and because my primary objections are to riders as opposed to other stock users.

The most obvious issue with horsemen is the horse manure spread liberally along the trail. While horse manure isn't nearly as objectionable as human or dog crap, few people want to walk in fresh horse crap. I have seen some trails, both in Yellowstone and other areas, literally covered with manure to the point there is no place to walk except in the crap. I find this especially galling since heavy use by horsemen nearly always indicates commercial guided operators. I don't object to commercial guides but I think when such operators degrade or monopolize a public trail, they have an obligation to mitigate their impact, something I don't often see. I was amused to read on a Yellowstone trailhead register a comment that "all horses should wear diapers". I wouldn't go that far but can appreciate the sentiment. On trails with lighter use the horse crap isn't a big deal but I avoid such trails during the summer because of noticeably heavier concentrations of bugs.

Stock use tends to cause greater trail erosion and mud problems than hiking or bike use. Many trails are closed seasonally to stock due to wet conditions; I think more western Washington trails should be closed to stock either seasonally or year around given the wet conditions common here. It is discouraging to be hiking a trail and need to navigate several freshly churned mud bowls. I've also had problems with balance on trails with even light horse usage.

Some horsemen are notably insensitive to other trail and camp users, in other words they are rude. I've been to a number of camp areas clearly marked "No stock in camp" that have unmistakable remains of stock. Horsemen seem to believe hikers can instantaneously vacate the trail when horse and hikers meet. I fully understand that stock have the trail right of way and try to move aside as quickly as I safely can do so. However, that may take a bit of time especially on steep trails or brushy hillsides. I don't move faster when encouraged by peremptory commands or sarcastic comments. A few years ago I was hiking a much used trail when I was overtaken by 2 women cantering by on horseback. At the pace they were going they quickly came up behind hikers who could not hear them until they were close due to a noisy creek. From what I saw when they passed me and the group ahead of me, the 2 women were oblivious to the hikers and continued as if the hikers were not there. They didn't run down any hikers but I got the feeling they might. As I continued out, other hikers commented unhappily on these two.

I certainly don't wish to exclude stock users from all trails. Many horsemen and other stock users are polite and helpful. I am also very aware of the historical, legal, and practical issues that favor horsemen. I certainly prefer horsemen to motorized usage in wilderness or parks. Some wilderness or park areas are simply too large for efficient patrolling or access by most hikers. I've desired for some time to use a pack service to allow me to spend time in a remote area without having to pack on my back all my gear and to allow a longer and more comfortable stay. I also believe, as I mentioned with mountain bikers, that the more users of backcountry and trails there are, the better. I don't know how much horsemen contribute to trail building and maintenance; locally I've read both that they do more than their share and much less than their share.

As mentioned above, I would like commercial operators who use specific trails to take responsibility for such trails or to construct separate horse and hiking trails if feasible. I would like more wet trails closed either seasonally or year around to stock use. Actually in western WA, some trails should be closed to all use seasonally or for a few years until the trails can be rebuilt or recover from heavy use. I would like horsemen to consider the needs of other trails users and obey regulations. And, I would like horsemen to visibly help build and maintain trails. The amount of anger I hear and read from hikers toward horsemen is not good and I hope it can be reduced.

Other trail users - mountain bikers

2008-12-23T12:24:00.000-08:00

The International Mountain Biking Association is trying to open more trails in national parks to mountain biking (http://www.imba.com/news/action_alerts/12_08/12_18_nps.html). There has been some tension between hiking proponents and mountain biking proponents since mountain biking started as anyone who has read USENET's rec.backcountry in recent years is very aware. I don't fully understand the reasons for the conflict although I have had some less than pleasant encounters with mountain bikers. In the park I go to most, Yellowstone, only a few trails are open to biking and these are old roads still occasionally used for service. I would not want bikes on most of the backcountry trails. On the other hand, on my trips to Utah parks and monuments, I've encountered bikers on several trails and had no issues with them. This may be due to the differences in climate and ecology or just what I'm accustomed to seeing.

The issues I have had with mountain bikers have been minor and fairly infrequent. Once I met a couple of bikers on a trail clearly marked as closed to bikers (not in a park). They also left some obvious signs of trail damage - probably part of the reason this trail was closed to biking (and stock use). The other issue is having to quickly step off the trail due to bikers descending without full control. And, as mentioned, biking may cause more trail damage than hikers. Still, excessive hiking also causes trail damage and I've complained in several posts about less than courteous hikers. Also in my recent encounters with bikers they have been almost excessively polite and careful to yield the trail. It may be that the mountain biking community is becoming more sensitized to issues of conflict and willing to police themselves.

I don't want to exclude mountain bikers from all trails, I think expanding the community of trail and other backcountry recreation is a positive thing even though I complain about overcrowded trails. There are trails I don't think bikers should use for various reasons. I hope the biking community also supports trail building and maintenance the way I know the hiking community does.

Guns restrictions loosened in National Parks

2008-12-06T17:45:00.000-08:00

The Bush administration has released regulations allowing carrying of loaded guns inside National Parks (see http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008475500_guns06.html). I blogged why I thought this was a bad idea before (http://feralhiker.blogspot.com/2008/02/carrying-weapons-in-national-parks.html) and I shouldn't belabor the points now. However, I'm disappointed that this step was taken. It seems to me to be a solution in search of a problem. I have yet to see or hear much evidence that there is either a widespread desire or need to carry a loaded weapon in most National Parks. I realize that most comments were in favor of the change; however that does not mean most Park users are in favor of the change. Also Park administrators are highly critical of this change.

Of course there are a lot of conditions around the new regulations, the most stringent is the person must have a concealed weapons permit. Another is that the state(s) in which the park resides must allow concealed weapons. Hopefully, this will reduce the number of loaded guns carried although I suspect many people will not understand the restrictions and carry anyway. For instance, does a Washington State concealed carry permit allow me to carry weapons into Yellowstone Park in Wyoming? The Wyoming page on concealed carry permits suggest it does (http://attorneygeneral.state.wy.us/dci/CWP.html) but don't rely on my interpretation. According to the Seattle times article above, the reverse is not true, someone with a Wyoming permit could not take a weapon into Washington's parks.

See also http://www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2008/12/interior-officials-release-rule-change-allow-national-park-visitors-arm-themselves for an opinion and many comments on the change in gun rules.

Gift guide for hikers

2008-11-11T17:58:00.000-08:00

This year I decided to actually post a gift guide before the major giving season. I want to suggest items that I have experience with, are relatively affordable, and are useful or needed as emergency gear. Rather that suggest specific items, I mostly want to give categories with some rational.

Small waterproof bags for electronics, maps, etc. This is a natural thought now that the PNW's wet season has started. Anyone carrying a GPS, cell phone, camera, or other personal electronics hiking probably wants to put them in a waterproof bag, a dry bag. There are a lot of choices out there from small ipod cases to camera cases which can be used to take pictures in shallow water. Beside electronics, they are useful for first aid kits, lunch, maps, and wet clothing. If you don't know the specific needs of a hiker, a good choice is Aloksak's combo of 3 different sizes of bags.

Stainless steel or coated aluminum water bottle. With the recent concern over BPA in plastics, many more choices of metal water bottles are available. Even if you aren't concerned about BPA or use a hydration bladder, a metal bottle has some advantages. It will usually last longer than a plastic bottle, I have a Sigg aluminum bottle I've used for over 15 years, I don't have any plastic bottles from that era (partly because I've lost a couple). It is battered and dented but still very functional. I sometimes like to take diluted orange or grapefruit juices instead of sports drinks and don't get the plastic taste from this bottle. Also, it can be cleaned with boiling water if I wish.

Seat pad for hiking. This is a somewhat a PNW item, even in the summer it can be difficult to find a dry place to sit and a pad really is nice when hiking in snow - I like to sit down while eating. I prefer my standard foam pad for hiking, I cut it down slightly from the size sold for easier carrying. I tried a nicer, self-inflating pad but it is heavier and a bit more of a bother so I've saved it for camping. Also potentially an emergency item, if caught in a storm overnight, sitting on the pad will reduce heat loss greatly over sitting or lying without insulation on the ground.

Thermometer and compass zipper pull. Yes I know, the compass is too small to really navigate with and the thermometer will only give the temperature within 5 degrees and you may need a magnifying glass to read either. Still, attached to a pack it is light weight, handy, and likely to be used. I've seen too many hikers apparently with no compass or with only a battery powered compass, anything is better than nothing. A better compass would be great if you think the hiker would take it and know how to use it. I like having a ballpark idea of the temperature and it helps me think about appropriate clothing for resting even if I'm hot and sweaty from hiking uphill.

Fire starter. Every hiker, even casual day hikers, should carry some means of starting a fire. A box of wind and waterproof matches in a freezer bag may be adequate but there are a lot of more gift-worthy things out there. A nice wind proof lighter can be bought for less than $20 to $100 and are much more user friendly than a Bic. Also available are various fire strikers, such as the BlastMatch and fire steels. A good addition is to include some type of easily lit tinder, either commercial or homemade, e.g. cotton balls soaked in Vaseline. Campers and backpackers may wish to carry multiple means of starting a fire.

Rest of Utah trip

2008-11-04T12:24:00.000-08:00

I wanted to spend more time hiking in the Capitol Reef and Escalante areas but the weather was perfect- for spread of sagebrush pollen. The pollen eventually overwhelmed my antihistamines and I could barely see. I gave up and headed for the the mountains where I could get away from sagebrush for the night. The next day I headed east for Canyonlands and Arches NPs. My first day in Canyonlands in the Needles district. On the way I stopped at Newspaper Rock and got a couple of decent pictures, above.

The first day I mostly just drove around and did a short hike on the potholes loop. It had not rained recently so the potholes didn't have any water in them but there was one whimsical rock formation I really liked.

The next day I was more ambitious and walked along the Salt Creek 4-wheel drive track starting near Cave Spring. The only vehicles I saw were exiting as I was preparing to enter. The road was nearly flat and easy except for deep sand the vehicles had gone through. I was often able to take alternative routes on harder sand. There was more vegetation here than in other areas of the park I visited.

I wanted to go as far as the petroglyphs area but thick clouds to the west became worrisome and I decided to turn around since I was hiking in a creek bed. I only saw 2 other hikers, I mentioned the clouds to them and they seemed unworried so maybe I was overreacting. However, the pictures and other warnings at various visitor centers made me cautious.

The last night I spent in Utah was in a dispersed camping area near Moab. I liked this view of the sunset from my campsite.

Utah, light October hiking

2008-10-29T18:04:00.000-07:00

On my recent trip to Utah's National Parks and Monuments, I was able to do some light and level hiking, including areas I hadn't hiked before because of heat and crowding.

To the right is a view from the Overlook trail in Zion, looking down at the valley with the main road visible. It is a short but moderately steep hike. The trailhead is at the east end of the tunnel and is very small, easy to miss and often full.

I didn't do any hiking to the Vermilion Castle below, but there is a nice trail to it. It is near Cedar City and isn't even in a park or monument.

I also did some light hiking in Bryce along the Mossy Cave trail, a very easy and popular trail. Some of the views were spectacular. In wetter times, the waterfall and cave would have been more impressive but the rock formations were good of them selves.

I also hiked in Capitol Reef along the Grand Wash trail. Other years rainstorms have threatened and I haven't dared venture down the path. As you can see from the picture at right, the canyon becomes very narrow at times. This trail is easy and nearly flat. You can access the trail either from the highway or the scenic drive.

In the canyon are both petroglyphs and a 'settler's registry' of early settlers. Most of the registry doesn't look much different than modern graffiti and probably contains some modern items. The section below however stood out, it is about 40 feet up a rather smooth wall and has the date of 1911.

The petroglyphs are hard to make out but include a beetle in the center of the picture.

Heading for Utah

2008-10-13T16:52:00.000-07:00

I'm headed for the canyon country of Utah tomorrow for a fairly short trip. It is later in the year than I have gone before and I don't have as much time as I want but this is the only time I can go. I had planned on staying closer to home for this vacation, going to the North Cascade NP and then heading east across northern Washington to Idaho. However, the weather forecast for Utah is sunny and in the 60s and 70s as opposed to northern Washington which has rain and cooler temperatures predicted. Also, gas prices have eased considerably making the trip more affordable. Besides, I have my new camera to try out on different scenery. Maybe I can do parts of the Washington state trip later in October.

Being prepared

2008-10-07T10:41:00.000-07:00

In late August, about half a dozen hikers in the Seattle area had problems that ended in SAR assistance or death. A couple of sources wondered whether the unusually cold and wet August weather partially contributed to these problems. I wonder if the hikers, seeing the fast approach of the PNW's wet season decided to get out and make the most of the relatively warm weather and overreached their abilities and preparation. In the Seattle lowlands, we rarely get extreme weather and it can be hard to really understand that in the local mountains, even at relatively low elevations from 3000 to 4000 feet, weather can be much more severe. We all should know that mountain weather is treacherous but it can be hard to really believe that around Seattle, unlike say Montana where a June snowfall tends to remind you that mountain weather can be extreme. I've found myself underestimating the local mountain weather and nearly coming to grief.

I don't know with any certainty that the hikers were badly prepared or pushing their limits; the fact they got into trouble they could not extract themselves from certainly suggests this but it is possible they simply had very bad luck. I know I've had difficulty in the past deciding how much "just in case" gear to carry; I've packed so much that it became easy to rationalize taking my lumbar pack instead of my daypack thus nullifying the any advantage of the extra gear. I pack for the worst case I expect, not the worst case which could happen which may be far more trying. And how do you find your limits without pushing them occasionally? Certainly I have done some foolish things pushing my capabilities.

I'm grateful that SAR options exist and that cell phones and various emergency locators are available. I don't normally carry either a cell phone or a beacon while hiking; I probably should carry the latter especially as my health becomes worse. I know better than to depend on outside help but I suspect many hikers consciously or subconsciously depend on backup.

Old Yellowstone Trail

2008-09-25T15:26:00.000-07:00

It has been a month since I have added to this blog. I've been too ill to hike or even care much about hiking. In early September I did get to Yellowstone National Park for a week and did some exploring that is worthy of blogging. To the north of the Park, abound Gardiner, I spent time following the Old Yellowstone Stage Trail as it headed toward Livingstone. I'm not talking about the Old Yellowstone Trail automobile road that went cross-continental along the northern states from from Massachusetts to Washington state although that in itself is worth a post but of an Stage Coast road which offered early access to the Mammoth area in Yellowstone.

As you leave YNP at Gardiner, just beyond the Arch, you can head straight north instead of making the sharp to Gardiner proper. Along this gravel road, you are soon back in YNP. The road follows the Yellowstone River north along the west side of the river, the highway goes along the east. In early September there wasn't a lot to see other than dry grass and brush, I would like to go there in the spring sometime. Further north, the road leaves YNP and there is a fishing area. At Corwin Springs, a bridge crosses to the main highway (89). North of the bridge, are mostly ranch areas and roads are not well marked, it is easy to go astray. I took an involunary detour back into the hills, scenic but not what I wanted to do although I did see a wolf during the detour.

At Yankee Jim Canyon, the immediate area becomes Forest Service land. There are a couple of trail heads and various interpretive signs about the trail; I wish I had photographed them, I had not realized how sparse the Internet information is. I spent some time walking along those bits of the older trail still extant and back into the hills a little bit. Below is a small section of the built up trail.
A general view from a trail looking into a canyon.

Looking down the trail from a high point.

Continuing north on the old trail, the canyon opens up and become private ranch land again without public access. Another bridge to Highway 89 is near Carabella or you can continue a bit further until 89 crosses the river. I did not see any more signs of the Old Yellowstone trail beyond the small bits I mentioned above.

I hate bear bells

2008-08-17T17:45:00.000-07:00

I don't really hate bear bells but they are my least favorite means of warning bears that people are approaching. This entry is to discuss some of the noise-making methods I've encountered and some of my thoughts. Sometimes hikers are more enthusiastic about noise-making than I like but I do recognize the importance of warning grizzlies of people and that my threshold for making noise may be different from others and not necessarily optimum.

Beyond old jokes, I'm uncertain how effective bear bells really are, others with much more knowledge than I have expressed this concern, a search on Google shows several relevant hits. Also, the noise from the bells may make it harder to hear bear sounds. But mainly I dislike bear bells because they aren't easy to turn off and so on crowded tails and in parking areas you hear their noise when not needed. Once on Glacier Park's Highline trail, I was followed for nearly 5 miles by a couple with bells. I tried stopping, speeding up, and slowing down but they continued to pace me.

Some people whistle more or less continuously; something I can't do. To me, the volume isn't enough and it sounds like birds. Of course I'm not a bear but I doubt that whistling is very effective.

Recently, Glacier Park has suggested clapping hands in addition to talking loudly or other noise making strategies. That is difficult to do if using hiking poles but otherwise seems easy and flexible.

My usual method is to talk loudly or shout especially when alone and going into a wooded area or other area out of view. I usually shout something like 'coming up the trail' so I don't have to think about what I'm shouting. I've always thought shouting 'hey bear' to be a bad idea; more like you are calling the bear. With shouting, I can stop and listen, it isn't continuous. The only problem is I sometimes run out of wind.

Occasionally I meet people who seem to be quite anxious about bears and make noise in areas that I consider unnecessary. Now again, I'm not an expert and maybe they have a point. It is just on a crowded trail, lots of noise becomes distracting. A couple of years ago, I met a man hiking into the Alpine Lakes region of Washington's central Cascades who was shouting every few minutes 'hey bear' quite loudly. Washington does have a few grizzlies but in the north Cascades not known to go as far south as we were hiking. Also, there probably were 50 people ahead of him on the trail or at the closer lake. While he couldn't have know that, the number of cars at the trailhead should have been a clue. I felt sorry for the couple about 1/4 mile ahead of him listening to him all the way up the trail.

WA hiker recently shot by hunter

2008-08-11T18:57:00.000-07:00

Recently, a Washington state hiker was shot and killed by a bear hunter (link). I've blogged before about hiking during hunting season (here) and my conclusion was that I am basically comfortable most of the time. This recent incident raises my level of concern even though of itself it does not mean hiking has become more dangerous, simply that the dangers are now more to the forefront of my mind. I also want to keep the relative risks in mind, no other non-hunter has been killed in Washington by a hunter in the last 20 years. In those years, many hikers have been killed by falls, hypothermia, and other risks.

Like many hikers, I don't pay strict attention to hunting seasons. Of course I know when popular seasons are open, the number of obvious hunters makes that apparent. On the other hand some seasons, especially bear seasons, are much less obvious to me. If I don't realize it is hunting season, I may not make an effort to wear brightly colored clothing and not bushwhack or graze on huckleberries. I think I will be more careful about what I wear when hiking. Unfortunately my basic rain and wind shell is solid black, not a good color for hiking during bear hunting season. I have an orange vest but still am uncomfortable with the shell, too much black showing above the vest. I'm not sure what I will do, maybe replace the shell. I'm am already looking for some brighter mid weight tops instead of the black I now use. I do know the hiker killed was wearing a bright blue poncho which one would think should be bright enough to distinguish her from a bear.

I wish there were simple answers, I doubt there are. I wish hunters would not hunt on and around popular hiking trails but they also want access to the backcountry and need to find ways in. Of course I wish all hunters were certain of their target before shooting but experience suggests that isn't likely to occur. Most hunters may be very responsible but it only takes a small percentage of careless hunters for tragedies to occur. Looking at the population as a whole, there is always a percentage of people who are careless or reckless. Hunter safety courses help but do not eliminate the percentage of reckless individuals.

I'm not going to stop hiking during hunting seasons. I will weigh the risks and take appropriate safety measures.

Digital Camera - what I bought

2008-08-04T18:13:00.000-07:00

In my earlier post here I discussed buying a Canon PowerShot SX100 IS. After doing some more research I decided to get the Canon A720 IS, see a review here. I wanted the higher zoom on the SX100 but I also wanted the optical viewfinder. The last 2 weekends I have played with my new camera while hiking and so far I'm quite happy with it. Both weekends have been sunny in the open and I'm glad I opted for the optical viewfinder, even at the brightest the LCD screen washed out for me. The camera is lightweight and easy to use for a beginner but has lots of more advanced features I can grow into.

I'm still learning to use the macro for closeups but the rather orange Indian Paintbrush and the Alpine Cinquefoil came out fairly well.

I also liked the mushroom and spruce grouse hen below.

Downloads of the few pictures I've taken have been quick and painless. The editing software which comes with the camera isn't great but it is enough for basic functions and I can get more advanced editing software if I wish. Landscape pictures have been okay, not outstanding so I have more learning to do there. I do know I will continue to use this camera, unlike my previous digital camera which collected dust.

Deception Creek, Alpine Lakes Wilderness

2008-07-28T19:27:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I hiked along the Deception Creek trail. Unlike many of the trails into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness area it is relatively lightly traveled, probably because there are no lakes within easy day hiking distance. I was only able to hike in about 2.5 miles because the bridge across Sawyer Creek was down.

While I was at the bridge, 2 men were working on rebuilding it. Extensive trail work, removing downed trees and building up wet areas, had been done this year on the first 2 miles of trail. By next year, this should be a very nice trail indeed if windstorms and floods do not remove the improvements.

This is a good summer hike through old-growth forest but not usually wet. I saw lots of bunch berries in bloom.

I liked this bridge over Deception Creek about 1/2 mile from the trailhead.

And the view from the bridge:

Besides myself and the 2 men working on the bridge, I saw only 1 set of backpackers who camped just before the downed bridge. There were a few mosquitoes but not many and few flies. The weather was dry with alternating sun and clouds and cool enough that hiking was very pleasant. I'm looking forward to hiking this trail again once the Sawyer Creek bridge is repaired.

Digital camera for hiking

2008-07-13T16:45:00.000-07:00

I want a new digital camera to take pictures when I'm hiking. I have an older digital camera but I take such poor pictures with it I've given up and went back to my 35mm with a zoom lens. With it, I can take pictures which satisfy me. I haven't bought a new digital mainly because I haven't been able to decide on a balance of features, mainly zoom, and size and price. I don't want to spent money on another camera I won't use because I can't get a decent picture. However, I look at hiking photos posted on blogs such as 2 Heel Drive and Walks with Moss, and I am envious of their pictures and the ability to post immediately rather than when I get my film developed.

I think I've found a camera with a blend of features I want, the Cannon PowerShot SX100 IS. It has a 10x optical zoom, uses AA batteries, is reasonably compact, and is in my price range. It is bigger than I would like but about the size of my current digital and 35mm cameras. It won't be as weather resistant as some cameras but I do intend to protect it to a reasonable degree. I also like the Panasonic Lumix TZ5 but not the proprietary battery. I wish it had an optical viewfinder but none of the cameras I've seen in this price and zoom range have one.

Any other suggestions? I want zoom, compact, and easy to use. Standard batteries and memory cards are a plus. I would like rugged but don't need waterproof. I also should state I am not a serious photographer, I don't hike to take photos, I take photos to remind me of my hike.

Yellowstone National Park - hiker friendly?

2008-07-07T17:49:00.000-07:00

I love hiking in Yellowstone National Park, I hike there every year, but I have noticed that YNP seems less hiker friendly than other Parks I hike in such as Glacier, Grand Teton, or Canyonlands. YNP isn't hiker unfriendly but the park administration seems to be less hiker friendly than other similar parks.

The most noticeable difference is that the YNP map does not show hiking trails. I know that YNP is a large park and showing the trails on the park map is not adequate for hiking. However, other parks do show major trails on park maps and the GTR Recreational Map for YNP and Teton shows the trails for both parks. Having the trails shown on the park map can be useful for general planning. I've hiked in Glacier Park less than one quarter of the amount I've hiked in YNP and met more rangers on trails in Glacier who were politely interested in my hike and what animals I had seen. Trailheads in YNP are not always well marked and may have little information about conditions. Also, trail maintenance for at least some trails is poor, bridges fail and are not replaced, trail markers are not replaced or put back up. When I've asked about trails at in YNP, I have sometimes gotten out of date information or been steered toward boardwalks instead of the backcountry. On the positive side, recently I've seen more new trail markers and fallen logs are removed each spring.

I don't wish to be critical of YNP's administration. I know the park has a limited budget and a lot of drains on that budget. The park administration must try to balance conflicting requirement, wildlife and natural resource management against human safety and human desire to see the marvels of YNP and its wildlife. Yet Glacier Park has similar safety issues and manages to appear more hiker friendly. Most visitors do not hike any distance away from the main roads but stay on boardwalks if any walking is done; maybe that is why less resources are given to hikers.

I not alone in feeling YNP is less hiker friendly than other parks, I've heard other hikers also express the sentiment. I wonder if YNP's administration is aware of this perception and if it is deliberate?

Various YNP water falls

2008-06-30T18:17:00.000-07:00

I went to Yellowstone Park in early June as I have for several years now. This time however I met some friends who had not been to YNP before so I tried to show them the major tourist attractions. Besides thermal features, they like water falls so I made a point of going to some of the many falls within YNP. Of course the first set I showed them were the upper and lower falls of the Yellowstone - the pictures you see associated with the grand canyon of the Yellowstone. We walked along the edge on both sides to each fall.

When we were there it snowed and much of the eastern portion of the park was closed or difficult to reach and we had limited time. I tried to pick waterfalls that were dramatic and reasonably easy to access. We saw Undine, Tower, and Gibbon Falls in the snow. We hiked to Fairy Falls and Osprey Falls, which I mentioned in my last post. The Virginia Cascades road was closed but I showed them the Firehole River falls. I would have liked to go to the southwestern corner and hike into Bechler and Cave Falls but we didn't have time.

Thinking about YNP, I realized there were several falls which we could drive to but did not go to for various reasons. Also I know of several good hikes to falls we didn't get to either. Still we saw at least one waterfall a day which is good enough. I never seem to have enough time in Yellowstone to do all I want to do.

Osprey Falls - YNP

2008-06-20T18:34:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a trip to Yellowstone Park and my most notable hike was to Osprey Falls. I've been to the falls before but this was the first time in the spring when the water levels are higher. I enjoyed the hike and the falls are magnificent. This hike, starting at the trailhead near Rustic Falls on the main loop road, is about 9 miles long with an elevation gain of about 800 feet. Nearly all the elevation change is during the last mile of the hike, you descend steeply into the gorge of the Gardiner River along the Sheepeater cliff. You cannot see the falls until you are there although you can hear them a long ways up. The descending trail is a bit steep and gravelly, a good place to use hiking poles. The first part of the trail is along an old road which now allows bicycle traffic and is quite easy and open. As we hiked back along the road, we had views of the Gallatin range which were nearly snow covered and shining in the the sun. We didn't see many animals at all except for a colony or marmots on the way into the gorge. I have seen grizzly, elk, and coyotes in the area before.

If you want a longer or more strenuous hike, you can hike to the summit of Bunsen Peak and down the other side and pick up the Osprey Falls trail near the junction of the road and the Bunsen Peak trail. Or you can hike from the other end of the bicycle road which rejoins the main road nearer Mammoth.

I don't yet have a picture of the falls or the mountains but both were dramatic. We met several hikers along the trail, this isn't a hike you will usually have to yourself.

Utah trip - little hiking

2008-06-06T17:31:00.000-07:00

I returned recently from a trip to Utah, primarily Canyonlands and Capitol Reef areas with some time in the Escalante-Grand Staircase area. I didn't do as much hiking as I had planned due to weather and other factors.

The first 4 days of my trip were too hot, in the high 90s in the afternoon. Being from Seattle, this was far too warm for me this early in the year. I did so some hiking before noon, but was too hot and disinclined to do much of anything after noon. I ended up heading into local mountain regions just to cool down. I managed some rim hikes in Canyonland, Island in the Sky. I stopped and hiked in Butler Wash to the overlook of Indian ruins and explored the wash a bit but quickly became too warm to enjoy the hike. I had the same problem initially in Capitol Reef and decided to wait until the following day and go up into into the mountains separating Torrey from Boulder. However, I ate something which badly disagreed with me and spent the night vomiting. I was better the next day but unable to eat and did not feel like hiking at all. It was also much cooler, it started to snow before I left the mountains. I spent a bit more time in Capitol Reef and walked a bit but not much.

I tried some hikes the next day in Escalante-GrandStaircase monument. Very attractive area and the weather was reasonable, not too cold and not raining. However my skills at navigating in canyon areas are poor and I kept losing the trail (or where others had gone) and getting to dead ends. Frustrated, I finally gave up and found a campsite in the nearby National Forest. The next day I planned to hike in Bryce but when I got there it was snowing with very poor visibility. I decided to go on and try to get out of the bad weather and basically leave Utah and start home.

I enjoyed my trip but really wished the weather had been a bit less extreme and I hadn't gotten ill. It was a long drive for very little hiking.

Trail head vandalism

2008-06-01T11:34:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a camping and hiking trip to Utah, I will say more about that later. However, I was struck by the amount of vandalism I saw at various trailheads. This isn't confined to Utah, I've seen it in Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming also and easily believe it occurs elsewhere. What amazes me is the sheer pointlessness of most of it.

Many trailhead toilets are vandalized in some manner, often with bullet holes through the door. Why shoot a toilet door? Don't you use the toilet? Another common bit was to take the toilet paper and remove it from the roll to throw on the floor. Again, why? I could understand taking the toilet paper but not just using it to make a mess. And once I found a toilet where some idiot had crapped on the floor. I'm fairly sure it was human and I would think it would be more difficult to crap on the floor than in the toilet.

Signs, maps, and brochures at trailheads were also subject to vandalism. Signs might be shot, pulled down and torn up or scribbled over. Brochures were torn up and scattered around. Wooden markers or small metal signs on trees, such as along the Pacific Crest Trail, get removed. I don't know how they get removed, some probably by natural forces but others go missing in the middle of good weather. I've talked to Forest Service crew and Park rangers who think hikers steal the signs for souvenirs or other reasons.

Of course except for the trail signs past the trailhead, all of the above could be done by non-hikers, people just driving to the trailhead for other reasons. In some places I've seen garbage that was unlikely to have come from hikers strewn about the area. I am amazed that people are so stupid not to realize this behavior will cost them, for cleanup costs and repair costs and possibly by limiting access.

Campsite thefts

2008-05-13T18:28:00.000-07:00

I've been lucky, I have not lost any valuable gear while camping. I try not to leave valuables in unattended campsites but unless I want to spend all of my time guarding my gear, I do have to leave items either at trailheads or campsites. I've blogged about trailhead vehicle thefts before here but at a campsite, gear is often not even in a locked vehicle. Tents, tarps, and other gear may be out in the open in a campsite with no one around. Sometime other campers are in the area but having people around does not necessarily ensure nothing will be taken. I doubt that used camping gear is very enticing to most thieves but some gear is expensive and can be resold.

I don't know how often items are taken from campsites, I hear anecdotes, read news reports, and see Internet postings about thefts. Most reports of theft involve electronic gear, cash, or items like bicycles although some are of more mundane camping items such as chairs or stoves. I try to reduce my risk of theft by not leaving any desirable items at my campsite but sometimes that isn't very possible. I can avoid the worst areas, there are some local areas where several thefts have been reported for years. Campgrounds with Camp Hosts may or may not reduce thefts. Some of the Camp Hosts are so rarely present in the campground I doubt they deter anyone. Anyway, I really prefer to camp in small and primitive campsites.

I wonder if more thefts occur near urban areas, popular National or State Parks, or near freeways. My feeling is that the more remote an area, the less risk of theft. This would make sense in that someone planning to steal would not go to an area with few people to steal from. Of course there are also fewer potential witnesses. I don't usually worry much about losing gear because most of my gear is old and reasonably inexpensive. I would dislike having to replace gear very much and be highly inconvenienced if I lost items during a longer trip but I can't fret about it and still enjoy my trips.

Wild Sky Wilderness

2008-05-04T12:52:00.000-07:00

The Wild Sky Wilderness bill has passed Congress and needs Presidential approval before becoming a reality. I'm very pleased, this area is very near to me and I have hiked and camped there for years. The area is north of Highway 2 on the west side of the Cascade Mountains and consists of much of the Skykomish River drainage. There are many good environmental reasons to protect this area, more selfishly as a hiker, I appreciate the preservation of another section of wilderness near the Puget Sound Metropolitan area. Lots of people in the area use wilderness and backcountry areas to the point that some places have to be rationed. Wild Sky offers another protected area, not that people didn't use it before, but wilderness status may make the area more desirable. Wild Sky partially abuts the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness area to the east and north, making a larger contiguous block. Also, the area needs protection, it has been logged and development is occurring to edges of the boundaries.

Unfortunately, access into Wild Sky is limited because of the storms of 2006. The Index-Galena road was badly washed out (not for the first time) and rebuilding the road will require some some re-routing. I hope the change in status will hurry the road building and trail repair and possibly lead to some new access points. Obviously, too much access is adverse to the Wilderness status but careful use, rationed if necessary, will lead to even more support for natural areas and good hiking conditions.

Mountain weather

2008-04-28T18:11:00.000-07:00

Weather conditions are very changeable in the mountains. This isn't unusual, most of the places I've lived have the saying "if you don't like the current weather, wait 10 minutes". Of course I've lived most of my life in valleys near mountains and lakes or the ocean. In the Puget Sound region, the weather is unpredictable and changeable but the temperature rarely changes that rapidly in the lowlands. Locals therefore are often hard to convince that mountain weather is that much different.

One real danger of mountain weather conditions is the change in temperature that may accompany changes in weather. In the drier mountain areas, a 60 degree F variation during a 24 hour period isn't unusual if the weather is clear. I've met several people from both cold and warmer climates that have been caught unaware and unprepared for such temperature changes. Even more dangerous is a 30 degree drop in temperature combined with wind and precipitation, a set of conditions I've seen several times occur within 2 hours time. Of course I've seen weather go the other way also, from wet and cold to warm and sunny and I've shed layers and wished I didn't dress so warmly. And then it might change back to the cold and wet again.

I remember one hike in Yellowstone NP that started off raining, then the sun came out and died me out. Then the rain started, then sun, then rain, then sun. Three cycles of wet and dry in one 5 hour hike. At least the temperature didn't fall greatly that day. Another hike the temperature was moderate until I got up on the ridge line in the wind. There the perceived temperature was a lot lower. I met a couple on the ridge who were not prepared for the temperature and who were lost. I was glad I was able to direct back to the trail and off the ridge line. As I came down, I noticed the temperature was rapidly dropping even lower. This way in June and it snowed several inches in YNP that night and the next day. Most of the Park was closed, you could only drive to Mammoth and if you were in the Park but someplace else, you could not leave.

Falling rocks

2008-04-19T14:03:00.000-07:00

For some reason lately I've been thinking about hiking and rocks coming down hillsides and over cliffs. Maybe it is because of the recent Outside Magazine article ( Dropped, in January 2008) of a NOLS climber killed by a rock pushed by another hiker. Maybe it is because I'm planning upcoming vacations to Utah canyon country and Yellowstone and both are areas where hikers have been killed or injured by rocks started by other people.

I've not been hit by any rocks although I've seen a lot started downhill, sometimes accidentally and sometimes purposefully, by others. I had one closer than I would like encounter on a local trail which switchbacked up a mountain. Some horsemen who had recently passed me started a head-sized rock coming down which was quite frightening as I tried to guess which way it would bounce, and what other rocks it would start, and stay out of the way. I've also accidentally started individual rocks or small slides a few times. When I do, I yell down to warn others but it can be hard to dodge multiple rocks especially on an irregular hillside.

All too often, I see people throwing or pushing (trundling) rocks deliberately off of cliffs without any attempt to ensure no one is below. It is fairly common at Yellowstone NP in the Canyon area and people have been killed by rocks deliberately tossed. I sometimes tell rock trundlers there are people below and sometimes I'm ignored. Trundling can be fun, I've done it myself but lately I'm more and more aware that it is hard to know whether people are below or not. I think that trundling is another activity responsible backcountry users should avoid.

Books on outdoor perils

2008-04-06T12:56:00.000-07:00

I like reading books detailing backcountry dangers including descriptions or lists of serious outcome. I started years ago when reading The Night of the Grizzlies and have continued reading books about bear and other animal attacks. Recently I read Off the Wall, Death in Yosemite and I've read the other "Death in National Park" books. Some of the reading caters to morbid curiosity and is sensationalist, other books attempt to discern what went wrong and help others avoid similar situations, and others are simply narrative. I tend to prefer the latter category, simply telling a good story and without attempts to place blame. On the other hand, books such as Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance is a good start toward being safer in bear country. While I don't think you can learn backcountry safety solely from a book, it is a starting point.

I enjoy these books especially off season while I'm too comfortable to get out in the wet NW mountains. They offer good safety information and entertainment and also inspiration, both to get out and do something and ideas on where I might want to explore and what to do or look for. I think about what I might do in similar circumstances and imagine being places I've never been and are unlikely to ever see such as the books about climbing or trekking in Asia. Some books are fascinating because of insights (or speculation) into the psychology of the individuals who did or did not survive. Some books were written when different social constructs were current and reading them reminds me that some current attitudes were not accepted even 40 years ago. I'm thinking of The Night of the Grizzlies in particular, the "girl ranger" in Glacier NP who was in charge at Granite Park chalet because all the male rangers where fighting fires. At that time women were not allowed to fight fires. Other books show other historical attitudes such as much less concern about individual safety. I'm not referring to reckless behavior, just a greater acceptance of life's hazards.

Some of my favorites are Death in Yellowstone, Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance, Into the Wild, and South: the Endurance Expedition. If reader have any suggestions along this line, I would love to read them.

Feeling unsafe on trails and weapons

2008-03-23T11:42:00.000-07:00

Normally when hiking, I am not too concerned about danger to myself. When I am concerned it is mostly about natural hazards, lightening, falls, hypothermia, and occasionally animals. Other than people hiking above me causing rock falls, I rarely worry about dangers from people. Of course I am aware of trailhead car break-ins, many trailheads have warning signs and I've seen the results. But having items stolen while I am absent is different from feeling personally threatened. I also know of people assaulted or murdered on trails but these are relatively rare occurrences although I remember them much more vividly than other reports of violence. And of course I think about drug operations in some areas and the fact I don't want to meet anyone so engaged when hiking.

I've often encountered people with guns along trails who were probably not hunting. In some areas it seems almost routine that many hikers carry pistols or even a rifle or shotgun attached to a pack. If asked (not that I usually ask someone in these circumstances) they usually say they are carrying the gun for protection against animals, especially rattlesnakes, or people. Most of the time these people do not alarm me even though one time I met a lone man on the trail who, when he saw me, rather ostentatiously put his hand on his pistol. Maybe because he seemed more alarmed by me than aggressive I was more amused than otherwise.

Unfortunately, I sometimes meet people on the trail carrying weapons who do alarm me such as hunters with poor gun safety or people taking potshots at unknown objects with no regard to what is beyond their target. I also have met people who frighten me who aren't obviously carrying a gun. I'm not always sure why some alarm me and others do not, I presume it is their demeanor especially their reaction to me. At times I've looked over my shoulder a lot, turned back, or left camping areas because of them. I've also on occasion wished for my own gun. In reflection, after I'm home, I acknowledge to myself that if I had a gun it would probably not increase my safety. First I've never been assaulted in the backcountry. Also someone who was going to attack me would probably not give me time to mentally and physically be prepared. Anyway, guns and ammunition are heavy and I'm trying to reduce my load, not increase it.

Hiking and camping comfort food

2008-03-15T17:15:00.000-07:00

I mentioned in the past I have problems eating enough calories for optimal energy when hiking. A long trip of car camping and daily hiking almost always results in weight loss, not always bad but not really good either. I gain the weight back at home and get too tired to hike as much as I would like. When I'm trying to eat 'good' food this is even worse. So I'm going to try to emphasize comforts foods this year since I've lost 15 pounds since last September.

A standby of my hiking and camping diet is dried fruit and nuts, for me apricots and almonds are my favorite but I also enjoy many others. I do not like the peanuts and raisin mixtures, often with candy, that are common trail mixes. However, I can only eat so much dried fruit before unpleasant consequences occur. Nuts are more versatile but I want other items. I eat a lot of my homemade hardtack (recipe) often with individual snack packs of cheese. I like the hardtack with various canned meat or fish products but don't often carry them while hiking, messy and difficult to deal with leftovers. Of course I also like candy bars, usually Halloween size, and Wild Berry Power Bars. In the past, I've tried dried or fresh vegetables while hiking but don't really appreciate them.

For car camping, my breakfast mostly is a bowl of oatmeal or Cream of Wheat cereal, maybe some yoghurt, fresh fruit, and sometimes rolls. I also indulge myself and eat Twinkies or Hostess Cupcakes, the only time I can eat these items. Lunch is usually eaten while hiking and dinner may be similar to lunch or canned foods. The only time I eat canned stew or meat or fish is camping, at home they don't appeal to me. If I'm near a store, I may buy sandwiches for the trail or dinner if the weather isn't too warm. Potato chips, pretzels, and other horrible snack products also get eaten. Obviously I am not very careful about my diet when camping, the amount of vegetables eaten is minimal but I don't camp that much of the year to feel too badly about my eating. I wish though I could find more healthful options that I would actually eat.

Carrying weapons in National Parks

2008-02-29T14:52:00.000-08:00

I haven't wanted to write about the controversy about allowing weapons in National Parks in because it is a highly divisive issue and very politically charged. I also do not see the need for changing the current rule of no loaded or assembled weapons in National Parks (some parks in Alaska may have different rules) and I think allowing weapons could do real damage. I'm not sure I can add much to the discussion that hasn't been said but this is a blog and my chance to air my views. National Parks Traveler has a very good post on this subject.

I do understand the motivations to carry weapons into backcountry areas and to a lesser extent more populated areas. I take a gun when I go camping, I don't when hiking but that is at least partially due to weight considerations. I've never needed the gun but I have felt safer and have had minor trouble on some occasions. It is not a weapon that would be effective against bear or cougar. When I am traveling both inside and outside of Parks, I disassemble my gun inside the park, making it legal to transport inside my vehicle. I am aware that even a concealed carry permit does not give me the right to carry the weapon anywhere, definitely not into most government buildings or an airplane and state laws additionally limit it can be carried.

One commentator suggested that the rule should be discarded because of threats from wild animals. There are a few animals that may threaten people in parks, specifically cougars (mountain lions or pumas), black bears, and grizzly bears. The number of attacks on people by these animals is small but I can understand the desire to have a weapon. However, most fatal attacks by cougars and black bears are surprise attacks leaving little time to defend oneself with a gun. Others, see Herrero's Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance book, have written of the problems with depending on a gun, especially a handgun, against grizzly bears. Other defensive options also exist.

A major possible problem I see is for people carrying weapons to fire on animals they feel are threatening but are not directly attacking. Killing a bear or cougar or rattlesnake as anticipatory defense in a National Park degrades the purpose of the Park and may contribute to the decline of endangered species. Also, these is poaching of game animals around several western parks. Allowing loaded weapons in these parks would make it more difficult to reduce poaching.

Using a waist or lumbar pack

2008-02-17T13:21:00.000-08:00

Recently, waist packs were discussed in the hiking blog sphere. I added a comment but decided to post since this topic continues the theme of needing to reduce my daypack weight which I posted last week.

I bought a small waist pack several years ago mostly as an easier way to carry my small camera and binoculars while walking along a beach or at viewpoints while traveling. It is also a convenient way to stow the camera and (now) monocular in the car, I can hook the waist strap over a seat and always know where they are and that they won't be thrown around after a hard stop. After a bit I added a bottle holder and use it a lot for hikes of approximately 1 hour where I plan to be near others or roads. A few years ago, I had an injury which made wearing a regular pack painful. So I bought a lumbar pack to use temporarily. I don't know the capacity but I can carry a sweater, lunch, camera, and monocular and a few other items although it isn't very comfortable with much weight or bulk. It has 2 side pockets for quart water bottles. I like to use it for 1/2 day hikes in warm weather when I'm not going far into the backcountry and don't expect much weather change.

I'm aware of some cognitive dissonance in my thinking; I load my daypack with emergency and survival items and then don't use it because it is too heavy. Also I've gone longer and to more remote locations than I had planned when using either of the waist packs. I do have some emergency stuff in both waist packs, a short vinyl poncho, matches, a pinch light, a small first aid kit, and a power bar with some extras in the larger lumbar pack. I find myself adding to the lumbar pack more items - I may fill that up with emergency stuff also!

I am rethinking what I need to carry in an emergency and how much weight and bulk I can cope with in a pack. Some of the same trade offs I've made with the waist packs should help me with the the daypack.

Reducing my daypack load

2008-02-10T10:15:00.000-08:00

I carry too much in my daypack, it is too heavy and too full. A couple of times in the last year people have asked me if I'm camping overnight because my daypack is large and full. Besides, I find myself using my lumbar pack more often because the daypack is heavy and awkward. So I've decided I need to trim it down.

A major reason for the amount of stuff I carry is that I hike alone and therefore carry more emergency items than I would if I were hiking with others. I'm not going to remove most of this but I am going to think about what I may really need and if I can reduce the size and weight of these items. Fortunately the real survival items are compact and lightweight, matches, foil space blanket, first aid kit, etc. I do see some redundancy, I carry matches, lighter, and candle, that I might be able to reduce. I'm still thinking about the poncho, I carry that more as emergency shelter than for rain wear since I carry or wear rain pants and jacket. Maybe I should replace it with a lightweight tarp.

Another issue is that I often don't update my pack items from season to season. So in the middle of summer I carry some winter gear and in cold weather may still use my 3 liter water reservoir. I also recently noticed I had squirreled away 3 emergency power bars, forgetting that I had the extras (and see below). It is hard to remove stuff, nearly everything I carry I've used at least once and many of the areas I hike in are very unpredictable. In the mountains, I could experience snow any month of the year and night time temperatures often drop below freezing even in good weather.

In general, I carry more food, water, and clothing than I ever expect to use which is good but somewhat hard on the back. I need to find a way to reduce the amount I carry without cutting my surplus too thin. For instance, I use a 3 liter reservoir because I have run out of water with a 2 liter bag more than once on a day hike in dry conditions. I once forgot my lunch bag in my car, I continued my hike sure that I had an emergency energy bar tucked away, I didn't. Of course going without food on a day hike isn't usually going to cause real problems. That time could have been dangerous; it started snowing and I slipped, fell, and got wet. By the time I made it back to my car, I was getting close to hypothermia and need something to raise my blood sugar, I wasn't thinking well. If I hadn't been able to walk after the fall, I really would have been in danger.

Why carry a multi-tool when hiking?

2008-02-03T11:30:00.000-08:00

My daypack is too heavy and stuffed with too much gear, partly because I usually hike alone and carry extra survival gear. One item I usually carry is a small multi-tool and a friend asked why I carry it and what I would use it for. To him, the multi-tool was an obvious choice to lighten my pack. Considering that question, I've thought about how I have used the multi-tool in the past and what I've seen others use similar tools to do in the backcountry. I'm primarily interested in the pliers; I carry a Swiss army knife with screwdriver and scissors and of course a blade.

I've used pliers several times to repair equipment; stoves, pack stays, and zippers. I haven't recently often needed pliers for repairs, I think my gear is better quality and less fragile than it was years ago. Also, I don't usually take a stove on a day hike. I no longer use an external frame pack and therefore don't have pack stays. I still occasionally use the pliers on my multi-tool to fix zippers or more often unblock them, on packs and jackets.

I've seen and used pliers to remove hooks, thorns, large splinters, and porcupine quills from cloth or flesh. It isn't necessary to be fishing to get tangled in discarded fishing lines and hooks. A fall may result in nasty splinters or thorns and using the small jawed pliers on my multi-tools is a lot easier than trying to pull out the item with fingers, especially if cold or using my non-dominant hand. I've never gotten quills embedded but I have seen dogs do so and pliers are really useful then.

There are a few other things I've used the multi-tool for and probably more that I have forgotten. The pliers make a good pot-lifter. Occasionally I use the screwdriver because it is more robust than my SAK or as a small pry bar. The file can be handy for smoothing sharp edges. I haven't decided for certain yet but may continue to carry the multi-tool because it is small, light, and useful.

Segway use in non-urban areas?

2008-01-27T13:26:00.000-08:00

A post on National Parks Traveler discussed the possible use of Segway personal transporters in National Parks. I've never been to the parks in question (Sequoia and Yosemite) and don't know enough about them to know if Segways could be integrated to reduce traffic or have other benefits. I started thinking about use of Segways in the Yellowstone, the park I'm most familiar with and probably more similar to the CA parks than Mt. Ranier or Olympic. I'm not impressed with the idea, people with mobility problems probably are better off with wheelchairs or scooters. I doubt it would reduce traffic on the roads, just add congestion. On the other hand, the image of a group of Segway riders moving through a bison herd is interesting, although no worse than bicyclists who do ride through the park. I would dislike Segways being able to use the bike trails and boardwalks, the latter are often crowded and don't need vehicles moving faster than a walking pace.

I've only seen a few Segways in use, they aren't common in the Seattle area. I went to the Segway site and noticed they have a couple of models for off pavement use. Initially I thought it would be fun to use one of these, not on real trails of course but exploring out of the way areas using less gas or getting to a trailhead. Also, health problems have limited my ability to hike in the last couple of years. Then I noticed the very limited range of up to 12 miles. This isn't far enough to get me to a trailhead or make a significant difference in gas usage most of the time. I wonder who is the intended consumer for these Segways? Yes, I would rather share trails with Segways rather than extremely loud trail motorcycles or ATVs but I can't see a Segway being particularly useful for off pavement.

Positive hiking encounters

2008-01-12T13:29:00.000-08:00

For some reason, I find it easier to complain about unpleasant or annoying hikers and have blogged about such a few times and will do so again. This time I want to comment on helpful and enjoyable encounters with other hikers.

A few years ago I hiked to a local lookout. On my way down, about 2 miles and 1000 feet below, I discovered my binoculars were missing, probably left at the lookout. After searching my gear, I tried to decide whether I should go back for them and concluded I did not have the energy that day. About that time, a pair of hikers came by and asked what was wrong (I probably looked rather unhappy). I told them I had lost my binoculars and told them they could have the binoculars if they found them. They offered to look and to send them to me so I gave them a business card. A couple of weeks later the binoculars arrived in the mail from these wonderful people. Of course I sent them a thank you note and cash to pay for the shipping.

Other times hikers have offered to share food or water with me. In one case, another hiker thought I had a cold (I have bad pollen allergies) and tried to give me orange juice to help with my cold. After a clumsy fall, medically trained hikers have come over to make sure I didn't need help and was okay. Other hikers have offered to accompany me if I seemed lost or perhaps just looked uncertain. I haven't needed help but I am certain if I did most of the people I meet hiking would go out of their way to assist me.

That chance met strangers are so helpful is not unique to hiking but is not all that common in my experience either. I grew up in a small town and rural areas and there and in my youth it was common to help others even if you did not know them. In cities and in more recent times helping strangers seems much less common and often for good reasons. I'm quite aware of violence against people even on hiking trails and theft. I am happy that most backcountry users are trusting and trustworthy.

Highly individualistic hikers gift guide

2007-12-29T15:32:00.000-08:00

Yes, it is after Christmas but the glut of gift guides for hikers and everyone else caused me to think about gifts given and received related to hiking and how many of the gift guides I see are either too expensive or rather useless for backcounry users. So here is a short and highly individualistic set of suggestions.

Emergency items:
- a foil "space" emergency blanket. I think every backpack and daypack should have one when temperatures may fall below 50 F. I've not used one but I have seen these used by emergency personnel. They are lightweight and small. Some are designed for 2 persons or shaped as a sleeping bag but I think the single blanket is more versatile. I carry a similar item in my car as a part of the first aid supplies. Sturdier and thicker space blankets are also available but are heavier and more bulky.
- a magnesium/steel fire starter kit. I've not used one so this may be less useful than I think but I've tried lighters, waterproof match holders, and waterproof/windproof matches and all have had problems in difficult conditions. There are a number of variants, some small, light, and relatively inexpensive that would be a useful backup.

Lights:
- Led keyring "pinch" lights. I have several of these of various brands and use them for zipper pulls, on my keyring, and as a map light in my car. I prefer the white leds; other colors are good for specialized uses or signaling but if used to see something the white works best for me. I also like those with a constant light switch. I do wish the switches were designed a bit better, few people over 50 can see the switch without reading glasses.
- Led headlamps. These are great and every hiker could use one especially if they ever camp. They substitute for flashlights, reading lights, etc. and allow heads-free use for hiking after dark, preparing food, and many other tasks. I prefer headlamps with only leds with variable output, batteries in the unit, not in a separate box, and a single strap around the head, no over the head strap. The last makes it easier to wear over a cap. Hikers with special needs, like cavers, may have different needs, they probably have already picked out their own headlamp. Most hikers will prefer a smaller and lighter headlamp that uses AA or AAA batteries.

Clothing:
- silk glove liners. I don't know why more people don't use these, I think they are wonderful. They add some warmth when wearing gloves or mittens but are really nice when you need to take the outer glove off for tasks needing dexterity. Most such tasks can be accomplished with the silk liners on and the liners retain heat well for short periods. Silk glove liners are very thin and light weight and do not add bulk, I find that they make it easier for me to put gloves on if my hands are cold or damp.
- buff wraps (www.buffwear.com). These are multi functional tubes of microfiber material that can be used as hats, bandannas, etc., see the website for ways to use them. I don't have much hair and find they are very useful to keep mosquitoes from biting my head, sop up sweat, prevent sunburn, and add a bit of warmth. I have the original buff and usually wear mine in a head-covering "pirate" style. If it is cool or there are mosquitoes, I often wear it to bed. I also like the variety of colors and patterns.

More floods and backcountry damage

2007-12-20T18:27:00.000-08:00

Already this year, Western Washington has sustained serious flood damage. Olympic Park has estimated $18 million dollars of damage, I haven't heard reports from Mt. Rainier or North Cascades although I would expect the latter to have less damage since it was further from the storm center. This damage comes on top of severe damages from flooding and windstorms last year. I expect that spring will bring reports of more damage to the back country and not just parks but National and State Forest lands also.

Western WA is used to both flooding and windstorms, they happen every year from November to March. In the past, people would talk about 100 year floods or 10 year windstorms, meaning that the severity of the flood or windstorm would be expected about every 100 or 10 years respectively. Unfortunately flooding at least is becoming far more common than previously. In some areas, the flooding is almost certainly made worse by human activities such as building on flood plains and excessive clear cutting. Weather patterns are changing due to global warming and Western WA is getting excessive winter rain while areas to the east are in a drought.

Last year, the Park service, the Forest Service, and volunteer groups spent a lot of money and effort rebuilding trails, access roads, and associated amenities. I'm very glad they did and I'm happy to support their efforts with taxes, fees, and donations. But I wonder how long we will continue to spent money and time rebuilding backcountry access which is damaged every few years. Perhaps it is less of a problem than I think, backcountry usage in Washington is far higher than it was 25 years ago. Of course the population is higher also but I believe the proportion of people using backcountry sites is also higher.

Believing what I see

2007-12-13T18:45:00.000-08:00

Probably like most hikers, I've seen things in the backcountry that were not what I initially thought they were. I have seen several 'bears' that resolved into stumps or logs when closer. Also I have seen a couple of logs that turned out to be bears. Woods with a lot of downed trees and often dim light are a good place to see things that aren't really there. I've also seen animals that I couldn't identify, I had too brief a view or they were too far away.

Only one time that I'm aware of have I really fooled myself into seeing something that wasn't there. On a fall day near Halloween with high clouds and a stiff breeze. I was hiking up a canyon when I saw what I thought was a large, dark animal ahead of me. Its head appeared to be moving back and forth feeding on berries on bushes but I couldn't see it clearly, I had forgotten my monocular that hike. I yelled a couple of times and moved a bit closer, the animal paid no attention. I have a policy about black bears, if they don't move when they become aware of me, I leave the area. Another yell with no response and I decided to to turn around, I was feeling distinctly uneasy. By the time I got to the trailhead I had about half convinced myself it was a bear and half aware I didn't know what it was, I even considered Bigfoot.

The next spring I decided to hike the same trail, it was a quiet day and early enough that leaves were still sparse. When I got to the area I had turned around the previous fall, I was looking around thinking of the previous hike. Then, I saw the same thing I saw before. Only this time there was no breeze and I had my monocular. What I had seen was a dark rock framed by brush so it really did look like an upright bear. Without the wind, it didn't appear to be moving and was less lifelike. Had I not hiked the same trail the following spring, I might never have realized what I had seen and probably settled on the idea it was a bear. As the brushes leafed out and then grew, the resemblance went away. Fortunately I have other real bear stories some of them here.

I sometimes talk with people who have seen very unusual things in the backcountry. I don't know what they saw, I wasn't there. But for some of the stories, I think back to how easily I've believed I saw something that wasn't what I believed it was. I don't disbelieve them but I wonder if they saw what they thought they had.

Hiking during hunting season

2007-12-09T11:59:00.000-08:00

Most of my fall hiking is done during open hunting season of some kind, bear opens 1 September in many places and bow season opens about the same time. I usually don't take much notice of hunting season, often I don't know whether it is open season where I'm hiking or not. Still, I do make some changes when the most popular seasons are open. The most obvious change is to wear brightly colored clothing especially in preference to white or brown. I substitute the bright red cap for the white cap. Unfortunately my outer shell and pack are both black, so I wear a bright cap and sometimes attach a bright handkerchief or other item to my pack. I don't usually wear hunter's orange which may be a mistake but then I'm not hunting.

Most hunters who I've met on trails, as opposed to on roads, have been careful and friendly even though my presence probably reduces their chances of finding game. I don't deliberately scare off game but I'm not quiet or stealthy either. It has been years since I've seen hunters on trails practice poor gun safety (according to the hunting safety course I took many years ago). In general, I am happy to share the trails.

I notice hunters more in camp areas and along roads. I've blogged disparagingly before about hunters very slowly driving along roads looking for game and obviously engaging in road hunting. Some popular areas are so crowded that I no longer camp there during rifle deer season, not only are the camp areas full but some hunters have actually hunted within 100 feet of my campsite. Maybe they are careful and I don't need to worry; however they don't inspire confidence being that close. I also don't appreciate hunters sighting in their rifles close by, and I doubt other hunters like those who do so much either. Nothing like warning all the game in the areas that hunting season has started.

Utah, less popular areas

2007-11-25T14:41:00.000-08:00

While in Utah this October, I spent more time exploring less popular area, areas outside National Parks and less traveled areas of Parks. I've mentioned Escalante/Grand Staircase National Monument as an area I want to explore more. Another area I stumbled upon was Cedar Breaks National Monument. Because of its elevation, (over 10,000 feet) there was snow when I was there and I didn't spent a lot of time at the monument but I would like to go back especially if it is warm at lower elevations. There were some trails I would have liked to take.

I found another area by accident, I left the Interstate at Parowan to go to Brian Head. I gave that up due to snow and steep road but turned off at a road to Yankee Meadows. On the was was a very attractive local park with beautiful views and some trails. One particularly beautiful formation is Vermilion Castle, shown below. Several trails led to closer views but I didn't take any this time since the day was late.
I didn't do any exploring in Glen Canyon but I did see trails and roads I would have liked to explore. Again, something for my next trip.

Capitol Reef NP and nearby area

2007-11-17T16:05:00.000-08:00

When I was in Utah in October, I spent some time hiking and exploring in and around Capitol Reef National Park and Escalante, Grand Staircase National Monument. On my previous visit I had basically driven through without spending much time. This is definitely an area I could spend a lot more time exploring, both inside the Park and nearby. Going by the main road, the visitor only sees the very northern tip and misses a lot of country. This is an area I will allot more time to exploring in the future.

I stopped at the pullout where the Escalante River trail crosses highway and walked south along the river until the trail crossed the river in a spot a little too deep for me to feel comfortable especially as storm clouds were still hanging over the mountains. Near the highway was a granary and another hiker said he saw pictographs. I couldn't go looking for them as the trail was on private land.

I took another trail south of Boulder off the Burr Trail road, the Lower Deer Creek trail. Very nice and scenic. I saw one spot where a recent flood had deposited a load of debris not far from where I was hiking. I watched the storm clouds more closely then. Not many other hikers on this trail. Later, looking at a map I realized there are lots of good trails in the area to explore, I wish I had spent more time there.

The next day I went into Capitol Reef and took the usual trails, Cohab Canyon and the trail just off the highway, Hickman Bridge. Both were crowded but interesting and offered some good views of the surrounding area. I didn't take the scenic drive because of continuing storm clouds in the area and the possibility of floods. The warnings by the rangers and at the Visitor center were effective especially after seeing on the previous day the results of a recent flood.

Zion NP hiking

2007-11-05T18:10:00.000-08:00

I only hiked 2 trails in Zion this year. I wanted to avoid crowds and I wanted to go to areas I hadn't been previously. I hiked the Lee Pass Trail, from the Kolob Canyons area and the Hop Valley trail from the Kolob Terrace road. Both trails were easy to follow and well marked.

I hiked about 4 miles into the the Lee Pass trailhead, I went a bit past the first camp area. This was a beautiful trail with lots of varying scenery. I wanted to continue hiking but remembered I had to climb up out of the valley floor on my way out and didn't want to wish I had stopped sooner. Basically the trail leaves the road and descends into the valley along Timber Creek which was dry. On my way down I met 2 hikers going up, sweating and breathing heavily. Once in the valley the trail winds along with the creek for a few miles. I did not see any larger animals but saw tracks probably of bighorn sheep. This trail wasn't crowded but I did met or was passed by several hikers. It was a beautiful day and the warm breeze after about 10am making for a great hike.

The next day (9 October) I went up the Kolob Terrace road and hiked a ways along the Hop valley trail which connects with the Lee Pass although I did not get even close to the the trail connection either time. I would have also liked to see Kolob Arch but wasn't able to go that far in a day. I didn't see anyone else on this trail which was as far as I went flatter than the Lee Pass. Sagebrush and rabbitbrush and probably other types of brush were blooming and quite abundant making my allergies act up. I gave up after about 3 miles because even with antihistamines, I could barely see. I must go back in the spring, there were several other trailheads on the Terrace I wanted to explore.

Canyonlands NP hiking

2007-11-01T06:33:00.000-07:00

The most interesting hike I took on my visit to Utah was in the Needles District of Canyonlands NP, the Chesler Park overlook. I did not do any of the loops, I didn't have a topographic map and wasn't sure how difficult the loops would be so opted to hike in and out. The trail was well marked with good signs at trail junctions and cairns well placed, also enough hikers that if I got lost I could easily find someone to put me back on track. An interesting trail for someone used to mountains and forests. I liked the narrow passage in one spot, barely big enough for a backpack to pass. Weather was great, sunny but not too warm and a nice breeze. I had fewer difficulties than last year following the trail but still ended up circling around the last cairn I saw a few times, even on the way back. I met a couple who were concerned I was hiking alone and who offered to let me tag along. Very nice but they were doing a loop and were faster hikers than I am.

The next day in the Island in the Sky section, I hiked the Neck Spring loop. Weather was turning, with some rain and hail and I didn't meet anyone else. The trail was easy to follow but also had side trails I was concerned about becoming sidelined on. It would have been hard to become too lost but easy at times to lose the main trail. I also didn't like having to walk along the road at the Neck with traffic at the end. I was also concerned about lightning and was glad to finish the trail when I did.

Utah hiking - things that seemed a bit odd

2007-10-26T18:28:00.000-07:00

I had a good vacation in Utah and did a lot of hiking, had good weather, and enjoyed myself a lot. I will write about some hikes later but for now wanted to mention some things which seemed a bit unusual to me.

On the Widforss trail along the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, I saw 2 women pushing/hauling a baby stroller. The trail prohibited bicycles but didn't say hikers only so they may have felt it was okay. The trail was not very good for pushing a wheeled vehicle and they had had to lift it over logs at least 2 times before that. Baby seemed rather fussy about the whole procedure, unlike backpack babies which were all dozing.

I twice saw people take dogs on trails where they were specifically prohibited in National Parks. Both times the dogs were well behaved but still should not have been there. Once a large golden retriever on a leash, the other 2 small dogs carried papoose style in packs. I understand the frustration of having a well behaved dog and not being able to hike because the dog can't be left behind but still the owners should have found alternatives.

I saw lots of IMO less then optimal footwear for rocks and drop offs including thongs and high-heeled, slick soled sandals and cowboy boots. The most unusual however was a women wearing mukluks made of artificial materials on a trail when the weather was tee-shirt warm. She was doing okay but I would think it was very warm in the mukluks.

Lots of people hiking, in some cases for a few miles, in warm weather with only a 12 ounce bottle of water apiece. All the Visitor centers, trail guides, etc. stressed taking lots of water. I would guess these people came without any personal water containers and just bought a single bottle each. I would hate to see the same thing in hot weather.

Another try at Utah canyon hiking.

2007-10-04T18:30:00.000-07:00

I will be heading to Utah to try hiking again starting this Saturday and have 2 weeks to enjoy myself. I'm hoping for nice weather, the weather around Seattle has been unusually wet and cold for this time of year. I plan to start at Arches and go to Zion with many stops between, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Bryce, and any other tempting spots. Hopefully I will do better at hiking than the last time I was there when I found it too hot and route finding difficult. I might branch out to other areas if I feel like doing so.

I'm also hoping to see some nice fall colors in the mountains. On my recent trip to Yellowstone it was a bit early for the best colors. However, I was rewarded while camping the last night, I was near Hebgen Lake, close enough to hear the geese and loons. Near dusk, I heard an elk bugling, the only one I heard this trip. I cautiously ventured out to a clearing hoping for a better view but not luck. I'm aware elk can be dangerous at this time of year, I've seen the videos on the YNP site and I watched an elk tear up a small tree. I didn't see the elk but he began bugling again after I went back to my campsite.

Why so few Yellowstone hikers?

2007-09-29T17:39:00.000-07:00

I have heard and read various groups lamenting that so few visitors to Yellowstone ever get away from the roads and boardwalks. Some discuss ways that more visitors could be motivated to hike. I've begun to wonder though if that is what the Park sevice wants or is good for the Park. Unlike some other Parks, such as Glacier and Grand Teton, the main Yellowstone map does not show hiking trails. The few times I've asked about trails in Yellowstone, the rangers have not seemed to be very informed or up to date. I've also met rangers on the trail more times in Glacier than in Yellowstone, even though I've hiked about 10 times as much in Yellowstone as Glacier. I also note YNP does not maintain many trails well, bridges are not replaced and trail markers lay on the ground on many trails. I wonder if the Yellowstone Park service prefers to not discourage but not really encourage unsupervised hiking. More hikers, especially inexperienced hikers, would have more accidents, get lost (see here), and cause more wildlife incidents. All of these would be expensive and difficult to manage, better that fewer of the nearly 3 million visitors actually explore away from the road, Yellowstone in particular needs to maintain a balance between preserving the environment, protecting animals, and accommodating visitors.

On a personal basis, I know I like the trails that are used less often, some days I don't see another hiker although I don't avoid the more used trails. I like seeing animals and crowds of hikers or horsemen probably reduce chances of seeing rarer animals. Locally, in Mt. Rainer Park, I've hiked trails that were so popular I was rarely out of sight and never our of hearing of other hikers. Other local trails may have a line up waiting to sign in and be badly eroded from overuse. I know that Glacier and Grand Teton manage to accommodate more hikers without too many problems but it may be that the majority of Yellowstone visitors really want to do other things than hike and that may be one means of protecting the Park.

I have no inside knowledge, this is all speculation on my part.

Yellowstone, again.

2007-09-22T14:32:00.000-07:00

I spent last week in Yellowstone Park and the surrounding area, hiking and car camping. I'm having trouble writing about it because I didn't have any interesting encounters with animals and mainly stayed on trails I've been on before. I greatly enjoyed myself and had good weather but I'm not inspired with topics for blogging. I usually go to YNP both in early June and during September. Both times have advantages and potential disadvantages, I suppose discussing them is a good topic.

The main advantage of June is the relative ease of seeing interesting animals. While some may be more apparent in September, I nearly always see more in June. I also see young animals, I've been lucky enough to watch young deer, elk, and pronghorn nurse and cavort. I've heard wolves at the dens and seen coyote pups and young bear cubs of both species (from a distance). I've watched pronghorns chase both coyotes and wolves away from young. I also like the green.

The main advantages of September are generally better, at least drier, weather and the absence of mosquitoes. In June, if the weather is nice, there are mosquitoes as well as ticks. Also, more trails are open since in June some management areas are off limits to hiking and also may be blocked by snow or creeks or rivers too deep to cross. I also enjoy hearing elk bugling and fighting and seeing the aspen turn color. A downside may be fires and smoke.

Wenatchee hikes

2007-09-03T17:06:00.000-07:00

Over the Labor Day holiday I took 2 hikes in the Wenatchee National Forest, north of Lake Wenatchee. Since rain was forecast for the Seattle area, I wanted to go to the drier area east of Steven's Pass. On Saturday, I hiked up Estes Butte to the old lookout site. This trail is short but goes up 2900' in less than 3 miles. I've hiked it before, the last time the trail had just been re-routed to make it less steep but longer. Sunday I hiked to lower Twin Lake from the White River valley, and ate lunch at the old Forest Service cabin, seeing only 1 other group of hikers. Both days I saw mule deer, not yet very wary of people.

I was surprised to see so few hikers on the trails, along the Chiwawa and White River valleys below there were many campers and lots of vehicle traffic. In the Chiwawa, there were lots of off trail bikers noisily infesting the roads and motor trails. I also saw some "hunters" (sneer quotes intended) driving slowly along roads looking for game. The deer archery season and the black bear season is now open and I was careful to wear bright clothing and cap. I don't have an objection to hunting but have little respect for those who think hunting is driving along a road.

Even at the higher elevations, it isn't fall yet, only the mountain ash is beginning to turn. Mostly the sky was clear and deeply blue. Saturday night only got down to about 50 at 3200' elevation. I remember other Labor Day weekends that I experienced frost even along the valley floors. While a couple of years doesn't prove a warming trend, records do indicate the season between frosts is growing longer in the North Cascades. Fortunately most of the annoying bugs were far fewer than 2 weeks ago, I only saw 1 mosquito and no small black flies. Lots of hornet and bumblebees but they didn't bother me except when eating.

I drove home after my hike on Sunday wanting to avoid the crowds coming home on Labor Day. The Monroe Evergreen State fair was winding up and I knew there would be lots of traffic there. Next weekend I head for Yellowstone National Park, I hope the area gets rain and the thunderstorms let up.

Snowy Creek, Rainy Pass trail

2007-08-26T09:47:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I decided to try the newly constructed Rainy Pass trail on Nason Ridge. I started up from the Snowy Creek trailhead and about a mile in, turned right on the Rainy Pass trail. A new post, presumably for the trail sign, was at the junction. Unfortunately, the Rainy Pass trail was very steep and being mostly unused and probably still being constructed, was slippery and hard to hike. I don't think I went a half a mile before I gave up as dangerous and not much fun. The pine needles and moss made keeping my footing difficult on the steep slopes. I am surprised that the trail was so steep, I'm used to constructed trails, as opposed to scrambles created by fishermen or animals, to be less steep.

I continued along the Snowy Pass trail and ate lunch at the meadow about 3 miles in. Surprised that no one was camped there, it is a great place to backpack to with plenty of room to camp and fresh water. I continued toward Rock Mountain until about the treeline when I decided to turn around. Back at the meadow I spotted a mountain goat on the cliff and spent about 10 minutes watching it and having a snack. Many people have mentioned seeing the goats along Nason ridge trails, I had not previously seen any there in several trips to various points along the ridge, even Alpine Lookout which is well known as a goat hangout. I also heard some large animal, probably a deer, crash through the woods as I re-entered the forest. I saw only 2 other groups on the trail, surprising for an August weekend.

I had an odd experience driving to the trailhead. I was driving on Highway 2 a few miles east of Steven's Pass when I wanted to make a left turn to the Smithbrook access Forest Service road. Highway 2 in this area is a 4 lane, divided highway but is not limited access. The left turn is legal and marked with signs. As I approached it, I moved to the left lane, slowed down, and signaled well before the turnoff. A driver was coming up fast in the left lane and did not like me turning, he pulled to the side and started gesturing at me as I turned. I don't know why he felt that way, the right lane was completely clear and all he had to do was move right. I didn't stay to find out.

WA Cascade Grizzlies, part 2

2007-08-17T18:10:00.000-07:00

In my previous post, I talked about how I felt about having grizzlies in the WA Cascade mountains where I hike and camp. While I like it, other backcountry users have expressed fears and reservations. I can respect their feelings but do feel that many are due to people's lack of knowledge of or familiarity with grizzlies.

Some people are fearful of the bears, for themselves, their children, and their pets or livestock. This fear isn't irrational, grizzlies do kill and severely injure people and may attack livestock and pets. However the likelihood of a grizzly attack in areas of such low density is quite low and people can do things to reduce even that danger. A favorite book is Stephen Herrero's Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance in which he discusses the ways to reduce the risk. I've discussed some of the things I do when hiking or camping, being alert and making noise hiking and keeping a clean camp are ways I reduce my risk. Herrero goes much further and talks about living and working in areas of high bear frequency and surviving an attack. Also, Wikepedia's list of fatal bear attacks lists more black bear than grizzly. Also of course lightening, hypothermia, falls, drowning, getting lost, and combinations of these kill backcountry users every year.

Others worry about restrictions on backcountry use, closed trails, camp areas, etc. Certainly in Yellowstone NP some areas are closed to entry for specific periods, mainly spring, and sometimes when grizzlies spend time in an area. It is possible that some parts of the Cascades could have periodic closures or even become off limits. I hope not permanently but could accept seasonal closures or area closures because of grizzly activity. I doubt this would be much of a problem unless grizzlies started frequenting popular areas or authorities got overzealous. Of course I would be disappointed if I got to a trail or campsite and learned it was closed, but I'm used to closures because of fire, salvage logging, or washouts. I've learned to have alternative routes or sites and to check ahead of time for accessibility.

Washington Cascade Grizzlies

2007-08-09T18:52:00.000-07:00

Grizzly bears in the North Cascades of WA state have been in the news lately, both the monthly magazine of the Washington Trail Association and Conservation Northwest have had articles about grizzly recovery. Because I do a lot of hiking and camping in the north Cascades, I am very interested in this subject. That there are grizzlies in the north Cascades is not new to me, I've known for years a few grizzlies wandered through if not lived full time there. A couple of acquaintances have thought they had seen grizzlies at different times and gave a description more credible than a 'big brown bear'.

I'm not disturbed by the presense of grizzlies in my prime hiking and camping areas. I hike and camp every year in Yellowstone and/or Glacier NPs where grizzly concentrations are much higher. Also, I grew up and learned to hike and camp in far northern Idaho and am comfortable with the possibility of encountering one. I don't take the same precautions locally as I do in Yellowstone or Glacier, I don't make lots of noise when hiking or carry my bear spray. I probably would do so if I were in an area with a known grizzly 'frequenting the area' (NP speak for a bear has been seen in area).

Having local grizzlies encourages me to keep a very clean camp, something I should do anyway to minimize visits by black bear and other animals. Skunks are not fun to have in your campsite and provide good motivation to keep it clean. Knowing there might be a grizzly causes me to be more alert while hiking in several ways, to look for bear sign and to be aware of what is around me. Because of this, I notice things, including animals, I might not otherwise be aware of. I think having grizzlies in the local mountains is a good thing.

Recent hikes

2007-08-05T09:42:00.000-07:00

I have done a few local trails recently and enjoyed mild weather. A couple of weeks ago I hiked to Heather Lake in the Wenatchee National Forest, not the closer Heather Lake on Mt. Pilchuk. I was a bit surprised at how few hikers were there on a weekend, 1 pair spent the night there and I met 2 groups coming down. This is a popular and heavily used trail, perhaps the rainy weather caused people to stay home. It didn't rain while I was on the trail and the cooler day was nice for hiking. Very scenic at the lake with patches of snow on the surrounding hills.

Last week I hiked up Tunnel Creek, near Steven's Pass, to the Pacific Crest trail and then south to Trap Lake. Many hikers going up but most probably went north as I only met 1 hiker after I left Hope Lake. This was an extremely clear and nice day, cool enough to enjoy hiking and not many bugs. I saw patches of snow at the passes but none on the trail. Tunnel Creek is one of my favorite ways to access the PCT, a moderately steep 1.5 mile trail connects at Hope Lake and passes other beautiful alpine lakes.

Summer hiking

2007-07-27T18:15:00.000-07:00

I don't really like to hike during the mid-summer, it tends to be too hot, too buggy, and sometimes too crowded for me to enjoy. My favorite times are spring and fall, before or after bug season, and in cooler weather. Fall hiking may have lots of other trail users, hunters, but also bright colors and good access, less snow and mud. Spring hiking has the problems of snow obscuring trails and dangerous or impossible stream crossings.

I still hike in the summer, although I try to find areas less popular and shaded thus cooler. In the Pacific NW, cooler weather is usually easy to find on the west side of the Cascades or at higher elevations. Mosquitoes may be annoying but are not as obnoxious as in Arctic areas and black flies are usually only mildly annoying. However, one summer after a particularly wet winter, black flies were a real nuisance here. I occasionally see people using netting hats but I don't really feel I need one, deet and normal clothing is adequate unless bugs are really bad.

Hiking is popular in the area, on some trails I almost never get to a place where I can't see or hear other hikers. I've also seen hikers line up to sign trail registers. Yet other trails are rarely used; possibly because they aren't featured in popular trail guides. I wish I could switch my work schedule at times so I had weekdays free and could avoid the crowds.

Of course summer hiking has its particular rewards, beyond the rewards of hiking anytime. Because of mild weather, I don't need to carry or wear a lot of clothing resulting in a lighter pack. Some meadows are bright with summer flowers against green grasses. Lakes and streams can be a joy to play in, rather than a risk of hypothermia. Soon huckleberries will be ripe and I'll hike slowly, picking and eating as I go.

PNW trails and storm damage

2007-07-15T09:25:00.000-07:00

I've been hiking the local trails since April this year, mostly in the Cascade Mountains near Highway 2. I have seen a lot of trail and road damage from last winter's windstorm and flooding. Several trailheads are inaccessible because the access roads washed out. After a couple of detours, I found that Washington Trails Association's website had a more up-to-date list of status than the Forest Service sites (storm damage). I've been surprised and pleased at how quickly the Forest Service has done the simpler kinds of road and trail maintenance. Of course other groups also do trail maintenance, notably the Washington Trails Association, the Student Conservation Association, and the Mountaineers, and are working hard to repair trails. I feel guilty because I don't volunteer for trail maintenance work although I do donate money. I have several reasons, at this point the most relevant being my health.

Many trails are inaccessible and the roads won't be repaired soon. Some of the roads have washed out before, I remember at least once before the Index-Galena road washed out and was inaccessible for years. Some roads should be abandoned but many serve popular areas and probably should and will be re-opened. I hope when the most damaged roads are rebuilt they are rerouted to minimize future chances of washout.

I don't have a real point here except that damage occurred and groups are working to repair the damage. Various governmental fees and taxes as well as non-governmental organizations provide the financial means. My Forest Pass fee (actually I get the Interagency Annual Pass, formerly called the Golden Eagle) seems reasonable given the amount of money required. And there are many users of the forests besides hikers, some of whom pay fees and some do not so I think it is reasonable for general tax revenue to be spent on maintenance.

More Yellowstone trails

2007-07-01T09:09:00.000-07:00

It is more than time to finish up my Yellowstone hiking. I hiked briefly on a few more trails and took an all day hike along Cache Creek.

Cache Creek is my favorite Yellowstone hike, I hike it at least once on every trip. I like the open vista west along the Lamar River valley with herds of bison visible both near and far. It is also the best place to see wolves, I've seen them 3 times along this trail but not this year. For several years, wolves had a den on the north side of the road near the hiker trailhead and I often heard the wolves when hiking. I did see coyotes, pronghorn, elk, and of course bison. Two coyotes appeared to be looking for pronghorn young, they were hunting cooperatively. I hiked past the junction to the Thunderer and down to Cache Creek but did not feel like crossing the creek. A nice hike with few other hikers on this trail. The picture above is Soda Butte creek near the trailhead looking toward Baronette Peak.

Trout Lake, near Pebble Creek campground is a short but steep hike to a lake with lots of trout. It is popular because it is a short hike, many fish, and also because otters can often be seen, at least that is what I've been told, I've never seen them. Fishing doesn't open on the lake until June 15th but I saw 2 groups of people fishing when I was there. A bit frustrating because the crowds of fishermen cause game to avoid the area. This year I didn't see anything but trout and ducks at the lake.

Daly Creek in the extreme NW corner of Yellowstone is also a nice hike. Three years ago I saw a lone black wolf about 1/2 mile into the hike and could hear wolves at a den across highway 191. This year I didn't see or hear any wolves or other wildlife besides elk. I went up to the first campsite and the only other hikers were 2 volunteers hiking on their day off. I did see some bear and wolf or coyote scat that was not recent. This picture is looking toward the Gallatin Mountains.

Yellowstone River/Specimen Ridge trail

2007-06-22T19:26:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to finish up my series of hikes in Yellowstone this May/June but work has been very demanding. Here is another entry for a favorite trail.

I started at the Yellowstone Picnic area not far from Tower junction on the NE Entrance road. This trail goes up to look over into the Yellowstone canyon between Tower and the bridge but on the north side of the river away from the road. This is a good area for black bear, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, coyotes, and ospreys. The trail goes right along the edge of the canyon affording nice views of the river and colored rocks. I was lucky enough to see 3 bighorn ewes resting along the trail, one lying down in the shade of a tree. As you can see, they weren't too upset by my presense. I also saw some pronghorn at a distance.

I stopped near the trail junction for the Specimen Ridge trail and took this view of the river looking upstream toward the Canyon, not visible here. I continued past the trail junction on the Specimen Ridge trail to another trail which heads down into the canyon. While the trail isn't visible from this picture, it goes through the trees and past the white thermal area in the lower left. I ate lunch not far from this spot and then I went a short way down into the canyon but decided I had hiked enough for a warm sunny day and went back up and back to Yellowstone Picnic area. Only 2 other sets of hikers on this trail today and I only met 1 group. Surprising for such a nice day. Much of this trail is fairly level and easy but the beginning and end are somewhat steep.

Fawn Pass Trail, YNP

2007-06-08T19:23:00.000-07:00

Another trail report from Yellowstone Park.

On May 30th, I drove to the set of trailheads at the end of Swan Lake Flats, just before heading down into Mammoth. Several trails branch from this site on both sides of the road. I was surprised there were only a few cars in the parking area, usually this is nearly full by the time I got there, about 9 am. Maybe because the weather was spitting snow intermittently fewer people were hiking. I hiked across the flats until I came to the trail junction and then turned south to go on the Fawn Pass trail. So far the trail was relatively flat and completely open. Now I went through patches of trees and climbed harder. I found climbing exhausting, I'm not in great shape and not used to the altitude. Most of my hiking is done between 2 and 6 thousand feet and I was now above 7000 feet. About halfway up the hill before going into the Gardiner River, I saw a cow moose about 100 feet away, facing me. I continued rather warily, she probably had a calf nearby and might be aggressive. Just as I was nearing the top of the hill, I was something moving on the hill to the northwest. I stopped and used my monocular and could see that two bears were moving about on the open hillside. I found a place to watch them for a few minutes and satisfied myself it was a grizzly sow and cub. They were far enough away I wasn't too worried about them, maybe 350 yards distant. In the picture above, the sow can be seen as a small black dot between clumps of trees near the top middle. Obviously I don't have a zoom lens.

The sow was apparently digging roots and the cub was moving around somewhat randomly. After a few minutes, the sow abruptly stood on her haunches looking in my direction, then the cub ran into the nearby trees, soon followed by the sow. I was surprised and my first thought was that a male grizzly was in the area. After thinking about that for a bit, I decided I didn't want to continue on that trail and started down again. After I made my way down the trail a bit, I stopped and looked at the area where I had seen the bears. Soon, 3 hikers came over the crest of the hill which is probably what the grizzly had smelled or heard. At that point I wished I had continued up but decided not to go back. These were the only other hikers I saw during this hike.

I've seen grizzly bears in this area 3 or 4 times previously and I was very aware that I could meet one. I've also seen grizzly tracks many more times. This was for me a nearly perfect way to see a grizzly, at a sufficient distance but close enough I could watch for a while. And I liked most that I was hiking not sitting in my car.

Bighorn Pass trail

2007-06-04T17:10:00.001-07:00

I just got back from Yellowstone NP and finally have some interesting hiking reports. While not my first hikes of the season, previous hikes were fairly mundane.

On Memorial Day I hiked part of the Bighorn Pass trail from the west side. I saw no one during the entire hike, it was almost as if no one had hiked or ridden on it since I left last fall. The weather was variable, windy, cloudy, and snowing lightly when I started and sunny when I finished. I went in past the Fawn Pass cutoff trail, about 4.5 miles total, when I decided I did not want to overdo and went back to the backcountry campsite and ate lunch.

The trail follows the Gallatin river through a broad meadow valley. For the distance I went in there is not much elevation gain, just a few bumps and once up along the hillside to avoid a swampy area. This time of year stock are not allowed on the trail because it is wet although the trail was fairly dry, even the snow didn't seem to add moisture. The hillsides were partially burned but some trees remained. Other hillsides are open meadow giving great visibility to search for wildlife.

I saw elk, mule deer, a coyote, and marmots along the trail, also geese and a hawk, I think a Swanson's. While eating lunch a cow elk came down and spent some time broadside to me, not browsing but not moving away, perhaps she had a calf nearby. When I saw the coyote, I was hoping for wolves but this unmistakable a coyote who was more wary of me than the elk, he moved away quickly once he saw me. No bears, although a large pile of scat close to the beginning made me more alert.

I've taken this trail a couple of times before and while I haven't seen bears or wolves, I have met others who told me about seeing them. Last fall, some horsemen saw 12 wolves in a pack earlier in the day. Another hiker I met a few years ago said friend of hers had seen a sow and 2 grizzly cubs in the distance the day before. I keep hoping to see both, I did see scat and tracks for both bears, not certain of species, and wolves.

Bear books and attacks

2007-05-24T19:57:00.000-07:00

I am heading for Yellowstone National Park to hike and camp this weekend. In preparation for my trip I just finished reading The Mark of the Grizzly by Scott McMillion. The book discusses some recent grizzly attacks and what various people thought they might have wrong to provoke the attack and what they did right or wrong during the attack. Of course some didn't do anything "wrong", they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and surprised a grizzly. Others stated that they didn't know whether the actions taken during the attack made it worse or helped reduce injuries. I enjoyed the book and it made me think about being in grizzly country and hiking alone. I won't stop hiking alone and do carry bear spray and hope not to have close encounters with bears.

I've read several other books on bears and bear attacks, most notably Steven Herrero's Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance. Herrero's book offers specific guidance on avoiding and surviving both black and grizzly bear attacks and is considered the best text on the subject.

This morning I saw a story on a bear mauling in Yellowstone in the Seattle Times. I wish there was more information such as where the man was hiking. I looked in the Morning Report but it was not yet reported there.

I am aware the actual danger from a bear attack in Yellowstone or Glacier Parks or elsewhere in the USA lower 48 states is low, probably much lower than the danger of driving to these locations. Still, it is a lot more exciting to consider the dangers of bears than of driving. And just as I want to avoid a car accident, I want to avoid an attack by a grizzly or any animal.

Essential dayhiking gear

2007-05-20T09:15:00.000-07:00

Recently the hiking blogsphere has had a discussion about essential gear to pack. I've read some of these and noted that where I hike and the physical condidtions I hike in causes me to pack differently than some of the other hiking bloggers, see Winehiker and Two-Heel drive.

I usually wear a ballcap rather than a wide-brimmed hat. Hiking in the mountains and forests, I don't get that much sun and I often get enough breeze to make keeping a hat on difficult. Also, it rains a lot except in summer. A ballcap can be used under a hood to keep the rain out of my eyes.

I don't have a GPS, I want one but doubt I would use it much and haven't needed one. Possibly I'm just not an adventuous hiker. I do carry map and compass and don't always stay on trails but don't hike cross country much.

I have a cell phone but rarely take it hiking with me, I leave it in my car. In the mountains around Seattle cell coverage is spotty at best. Many times there is no cell coverage at the trailhead and except for ridges and mountain tops probably no coverage anywhere along the trail. When hiking in Yellowstone Park I have sometimes taken my cell but didn't find coverage on most trails when I checked. I'm always a bit surprised when I read about hikers or other backcountry users reporting on a cell phone.

I always carry the 10 Essentials. I also carry a grommeted poncho, 50 feet of light line, and several other small items mentioned by winehiker such as a hankerchief and lip balm. I also take a pen and small notepad with me, useful for taking notes and leaving messages. Another items I carry is a small ensolite pad to sit on, very nice in wet conditions.

Blocking the trail

2007-05-12T18:03:00.000-07:00

Most hikers I meet on the trail are friendly and considerate but I've noticed a surprising number sometimes partially block trails when other users are present. One common situation when I'm hiking is to come up to a group who are sitting in the trail with their gear spread around. I end up stepping over and around them and their gear. It isn't a big issue but is mildly annoying if they just sit there with no attempt to move themselves or their stuff out of the trail. Another common situation I see is one hiker attempting to get something out of anothers backpack without removing the backpack. Some when they see another hiker move to the side or off the trail; others continue to stand there blocking. Generally neither of these are more than an inconvenience, I move off the trail but sometimes there isn't any safe area to the side of the trail to go by and I can't get by them. And occasionally I catch up to a group walking more slowly than I am and they don't more over to allow me to pass. There are sometimes good reasons for this, no safe place to move over, near the trailhead, or maybe they have been passed repeatedly. Most annoying are those hikers who continue to walk side by side instead of going to single file to allow another hiker to pass especially when I meet them on the trail and there is no excuse of not seeing me.

Washington Trails Association has a page on Trail Etiquette for all types of trail users. I doubt most hikers or other types of users have seen these guidelines but many seem to me to be simple courtesy. I'm rarely in much of a hurry and don't mind slowing down or stepping aside for others and wish other hikers would do the same.

Trailhead vehicle security

2007-05-06T17:42:00.000-07:00

I been lucky enough to have never lost anything important from my vehicle when parked at a trailhead. I've lost minor items such as a flashlight but nothing that couldn't easily be replaced. I'm careful not to leave tempting items out in plain view but since I often have a pickup full of camping gear that is left at a trailhead while I hike, I can't hide everything. Many trailheads have signs saying to take all valubles with you but that is hard to do when I've traveled a distance to get to a park to hike in. I have a canopy over my pickup bed but it doesn't offer much security, it is easier to break into than a locked car, and doesn't offer a trunk to hide things in. Of course a thief may not consider camping gear valuable, certainly less so than cameras and similar small items.

Occasionally around Seattle at popular trailheads volunteers camp at the trailhead or nearby during the summer and provide some security. And various law enforcement personnel sometimes include trailheads on their patrol. Having someone watching or coming by often probably reduces theft but this isn't very practical for most trails

I don't know how often people use car alarms at trailheads but in the last couple of years I've twice encountered car alarms going off at trailheads. Both were very annoying because it took about half an hour before I hiked out of hearing range and neither time did the owner appear to stop it. The first time a snowplow caused the alarm to go off, I don't know the cause the second time. Somehow I doubt that an alarm is very useful if you can't get to your car in 1/2 hour and or are out of hearing distance.

Meeting hikers on the trail

2007-04-28T19:00:00.000-07:00

I usually enjoy meeting other hikers on trails. Most hikers are considerate, helpful, and friendly. Some are occasionally thoughtless or just irritating but even those hikers may be otherwise pleasant. When hiking in Yellowstone or Glacier Parks, I am especially glad to be informed of any bear activity. Other hikers have told me about animals they saw on the current trail, trail hazards, and particularly good views or neat things they've seen. Hikers have directed me when I was uncertain of the trail and told me about other nice trails in the area. While most encounters are brief and consist of the other party and I simply exchanging greetings, sometimes we talk for a few minutes or hike a bit together along the trail.

Because I usually hike alone I may enjoy talking with other hikers more than most but often groups of 2 or more initiate the conversation. I suspect most hikers like to share information and experiences. Obviously the desire to share is a large part of my motivation for blogging. I don't always want to stop and talk with hikers, some trails are crowded and I wouldn't make any progress if I stopped to talk and feel crowded. I tend to avoid trails I know are popular in summer because meeting someone is more enjoyable if I haven't seen another hiker recently. I also like being quiet (except in grizzly country) while hiking; I see more animals. I don't like constantly hearing others conversations. I also get tired of stepping off the trail repeatedly and being asked "how much farther?". However I do try to give accurate information even if I think they should have a decent map; I've been less prepared than I should be before also.

Poisonous snakes

2007-04-21T13:15:00.000-07:00

Most of the places I hike I don't need to worry about poisonous snakes, I mostly hike in western WA and we don't have any poisonous snakes here. I do hike in other places, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, and eastern WA that do have poisonous snakes. I grew up in Idaho and saw a number of rattlesnakes, none particularly aggressive and not worrisome. When I was in Utah in Fall 2005, I saw a small, pale rattlesnake in Arches NP along a trail. It was moving away from the hikers as fast as it could. Last June in Zion I saw a red and black banded snake near a trail. I could not remember how to distinguish a King snake from a Coral snake and none of the other hikers close by could remember either. I took a picture and later decided it definitely was a King snake. Still, it was a type of snake I had never seen before and interesting.

My closest recent encounter with a poisonous snake was in WA state along the Methow River a few miles upstream from Mazama. One fall afternoon I was hiking back to my pickup along a rocky trail. I was tired and hot, the sun was heating the rocks, and I wasn't paying much attention to the trail. I looked down at one point just in time to avoid stepping on a large snake. It was coiled, poised to strike. I couldn't see its tail and it wasn't rattling. I thought it was a pine or bull snake, they look similar to rattlesnakes and may mimic their behavior. I stepped back anyway and the snake uncoiled and moved back into the rocks. When its tail became visible, it started rattling. I was a lot more aware of where I was walking for the rest of that hike. I shouldn't have been so surprised to see a rattlesnake, I know the Methow Valley has them and and several nearby trails have warning signs. Besides, the area around the trailhead for the trail I was on is called Rattlesnake Camp.

Drinking untreated water

2007-04-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

Until about 20 years ago, I routinely drank untreated water from streams on trails. On many hikes, I would take only a pint water bottle and fill it along the trail as I went. On some hikes that was a problem, I would run out of water before I found more, but I was younger then and better able to withstand dehydration. On hikes in areas without water I would carry water but still enjoyed drinking from clear, fast moving streams. Then I started hearing more recommendations to treat water before drinking it, both official and word of mouth. For the western US where I hike the primary issue was giardiasis and there was emphasis that it could infect clear, fast moving water. So I started bringing water with me or treating it, chemically or boiling it. It was a pain but an acquaintance got giardiasis and was miserable for weeks. I hadn't had any trouble but did not want to chance infection.

In the last couple of years, the USENET group rec.backcountry has had recurring discussions about the safety of water in the backcountry of the western US. Various posters have quoted sources which indicate that giardia are not that common and the risk of drinking water from moving sources is slight. Also that the larger risk of giardiasis is from poor hygiene and contamination by companions. I've thought about this but concluded that the downside of treating my water or carrying extra is slight and I prefer to lower my risks of water-borne illness. On the other hand, if I ran out of water on a hike and got thirsty, I would drink what appeared to be clean water rather than get dehydrated.

A couple of years ago in Yellowstone NP, I met 4 guys backcountry hiking on a warm, very dry afternoon. They initially asked me where the nearest restroom was (probably back where you started the trail). After talking further I found they needed water, it was good they clarified this because I might have directed them to a pit toliet. I could have spared some water but it would not have gone far amoung the 4 of them. Instead I gave them my bottle of iodine water purifier and suggested they read the directions. Since we were standing by a small lake with streams flowing into the lake, there was plenty of available water. I'm not sure how to weigh the risk of drinking untreated water in YNP backcountry with the discomfort and risk of dehydration, clearly it is better to be prepared. Still, I probably would have found a clean-appearing creek and filled my water bottles.

Candle lantern

2007-04-08T14:04:00.000-07:00

I use and really like the LED flashlights and headlamps that have appeared the the last few years. My headlamp (Princeton Tec Aurora) is lightweight, comfortable to wear, and lasts a long time on 3 AAA batteries. I use it for reading, for cooking, and for general camp use. I have a couple of LED flashlights I use when camping, a CMG Infinity, I like the single AA battery, long battery life, and it is small and lightweight. I sometimes take a Princeton Tec Attitude (4 AAA) because it it brighter and casts its beam further. I'm less happy about the 4 AA LED area light I bought, it is large and bulky and doesn't really put out enough light to read by or do very much. I still use it for car camping because I have it and it does put out enough light to find things. I tried another combination area and flashlight and decided it was a good flashlight but not effective as an area light. Maybe there are good small LED area lights out there but I haven't wanted to buy yet another possibly disappointing light. I have considered getting the Indigo lantern (here) for car camping especially longer trips or power outages at home. I like the multiple recharge modes (crank, AC, 12 volt) but I don't really need it. During a 3 day power outage last December, I did very well with what I already have for lights.

I still also use my REI candle lantern. I like the light it gives, which is a bit better than the area light I have. It also warms a small area and helps reduce humidity, nice in cold weather. It is nostalgic, a return to simpler and younger times. It used to be cheaper than a flashlight, about 25 hours for less than 3 dollars of candle. However, since my Infinity gets about 60 hours on 1 AA battery the cost trade off is less obvious. I haven't figured out how many hours I get from my 4 AA area light, but it isn't as inexpensive as the Infinity. The candle lantern is somewhat of a fire hazard, but I have bumped it and knocked it over or down several times and it has always gone out immediately. A couple of times a bit of wax spilled out but mostly not even that. I'm careful with it of course but think the advantages, including the esthetic, outweigh the dangers and cost.

Hypothermia

2007-03-31T14:04:00.000-07:00

Several years ago, about this point in spring, I got hypothermic on a hike. I made it out okay but the incident was definitely a wakeup call, things might easily have turned out badly.

I headed to the local west side of the Cascades at a fairly low elevation for an early hike. It was warm and mostly sunny in the lowlands, at the trailhead it was cloudy and spitting some rain. The trail was badly obstructed with blowdowns and to make progress I literally needed to crawl through trees. After about an hour, I decided to give up, it was beginning to snow and hiking wasn't at all fun, just a succession of obstacles. Some amount of time later I made it back to my pickup and was surprised at the difficulty I had in getting my keys out and unlocking the pickup; my hands were very cold and stiff. Why hadn't I noticed and put on gloves? Fortunately the pickup was parked so the windshield faced what sun there was, it was probably 20 degrees warmer inside than out. As I usually do after a hike, I poured a cup of coffee, using the cup to warm my hands, and ate some candy. Shortly thereafter I started feeling very cold and then started to shiver. At that point I started coming out of my half daze and pulled off wet clothing and pulled on a wool sweater and cap, both were in my daypack but I hadn't been cold before. After I warmed up enough to safely drive, I went home, with my heater on full blast. At home I changed into warm, dry clothing, everything I was wearing was wet, including innermost garments, and had some soup. Then I crawled into bed, still feeling cold, and slept for 2 hours when I was finally warm, although still tired.

Before I went hiking again, I thought long and hard about what had happened. I was alone, if I had fallen, easy to do on the wet, tangled wood I crawled through, I might not have made it out. Obviously I couldn't rely on feeling cold or shivering to warn me of approaching hypothermia, I didn't remember feeling cold until after I started to warm up. And the temperature wasn't that cold, probably above 30 F the entire time. The extreme tiredness was also worrisome, luckily I had planned on going home afterward.

The first thing I did was replace my old and battered Goretex shell, it was no longer keeping me dry. At the same time I bought a new shell, I picked up some lightweight rain pants. I also noticed that even though in a daze, I followed my usual hiking practices (SOP). I needed to add some rules to my hiking SOP to hopefully avoid this problem in the future. I wasn't wearing much cotton, mixed polyester/cotton pants, and a tee-shirt but everything else was wool or polyester (see here). However I needed an additional or heavier layer on top. So I started wearing a midweight top over a lightweight top in similar conditions with at least a sweater in my pack. I also made the rule that in cold weather, after going up for a while, when I started down for a stretch, I needed to put on another layer. No thinking if I'm cold, just do it. Also, I need to eat more often, at least every 2 hours and preferably more frequently and drink more often, every few minutes. At least part of my problem was exacerbated by low blood sugar and dehydration, ridiculous given the wetness of the hike.

I've done a lot of hiking in similar conditions since without any problem. I continue to remember this episode and what I learned. I was very lucky that I learned this lesson without serious consequences. In the last few years, I've read about a number of people who weren't so fortunate.

Lightning

2007-03-24T14:28:00.000-07:00

I recently read the book Shattered Air by Bob Madgic, an account of a lightning strike on Half Dome that killed 2 hikers and seriously injured 2 others. The book discusses the injuries, the rescue operation, the recovery of the badly injured hikers, and history of the hikers before the hike. I found the book interesting and thought provoking. After reading the book I want more than ever to explore Yosemite and see Half Dome and the surrounding area. Yosemite is another of a long list of places I want to see and hike.

I also started thinking about lightning dangers when I hike. Most of my hiking is done in Washington State which has a low incidence of lightning strikes, only 2 deaths between 1995 and 2005. Yellowstone park has had some lightning deaths but none recently. Other states I hike in commonly also have relatively few deaths. I'm used to reading that lightning kills more people than bears or cougars in North America but then there are probably more people exposed to lightning than bears or cougars.

I've retreated from storms on exposed ridges or mountains several times. After reading the book and doing some more reading, I doubt I've been as careful as I thought I was. I had little idea lightning could strike from 10 miles away
http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/overview.htm.
I remember several times watching lightning get within 5 or so miles before I left the area and might not shelter even then, just try not to be the highest item in the vicinity. I've actually been more nervous about wind blowing over trees or knocking branches on me. Even more, I've worried about lightning causing forest fires, a very real danger in the northwestern US.

I'm not going to become extra anxious about lightning now although I will think more about safety in the future especially when I get down to Utah locations which are more open. I still enjoy watching lightning storms especially from a sheltered spot but I doubt I will go into any caves or rock shelters during a storm.

Petrified wood in YNP

2007-03-17T08:00:00.000-07:00

Specimen Ridge, looking into the Lamar River towards Mammoth.

While Yellowstone NP is not generally known for its petrified wood and trees it has some nice specimens. There is a tree that is accessible by car but most of the petrified wood requires some hiking to reach. I am most familiar with the wood on Specimen Ridge although I've never made it to the fossil forest part of the trail. The shortest trail to the examples in the pictures in this post starts from an unmarked trailhead between Tower and the Slough Cr. turnout. This is not the marked Specimen Ridge trailheads. The trail is clearly visible from the road going up to the ridge and becomes quite steep it places. After reaching the ridge, look back to fix in your mind how you came up, finding the safe trail down can be difficult among the cliffs. Several petrified trees can be found nearby, both standing stumps and trees laying along the ground.

Another stump along Specimen Ridge.

Another area that has petrified wood is the Gallatin Mountains along the northwest of the Park and various areas in the National Forest. I have found some wood there but nothing dramatic, possibly I don't know where to go. I have hiked up Specimen Creek which like Specimen Ridge is named for the fossils found there but did not go far enough to the fossil areas.

Please remember that it is illegal to remove petrified wood or anything else from Yellowstone Park.

Bones and antlers

2007-03-11T15:59:00.000-07:00

When hiking in Yellowstone Park, I often see animal skeletons and antlers; something I rarely see in other places except along roads where the animals were killed by traffic. I like finding the bones of animals killed by natural events. If I find them early enough, I can sometimes get an idea of what killed them or see the signs of scavaging. Of course if the carcass is too recent I don't hang around lest I meet the grizzly scavenging it.
(Cache Cr. trail near junction with Specimen Ridge)

Other people evidently enjoy finding bones and sometimes arrange them, as in this bison skeleton to the right. Since I hike in YNP every June, I have learned how long bones remain visible there by returning to the same area succeeding years. One set of bison bones I could find for 2 years beyond my original view but most are gone after one year. YNP is dry and cold most of the year, in other places bones don't last as long.
(Mary Mountain trail along Nez Perce Cr.)

Sometimes I find collections of elk and deer antlers or just one side of a set. It is illegal to remove antlers or anything else from the Park. I've noticed that the antlers often disappear before the bones.

(Specimen Ridge trail, Mt. Washburn in distance)

Utah canyon hiking

2007-03-03T17:14:00.000-08:00

Nearly all of my hiking has been done in the northwest US, mountains, forest, and mixed grass and brushlands. Last spring and the previous fall (2005) I finally started to explore canyon hiking in Utah. I stayed to the popular areas, Canyonlands, Zion, Bryce, and Capitol Reef because I was aware I was a novice to this type of hiking and didn't want to exceed my abilities. I am glad I did, I had problems on the trails that I did not have expect.

In many areas I found it difficult to follow the trail, I missed trail markers and couldn't easily follow the sense of the trail. I could easily take a compass reading and look at my map and see the direction to go but that didn't help find a route out of a canyon, I needed to find someplace where I could actually traverse. Mostly on forest trails the route is obvious and if it isn't, because of snow, rocks, etc., I am used to following the lay of the land and and can make sense of the route. I haven't worried about getting lost in the mountainous woods I usually hike for years.

Also, I found it hard to move safely on the slicker rocks and to find safe places to step. I was overly concerned about falling and hurting a leg, partly because it would have stopped my hiking vacation but also because I am aware how long it would take for me to heal. I could lose a whole season of hiking from one bad step. And part of the problem was that I simply wasn't used to moving this way and needed more practice.

Finally, it was too hot and the sun was too direct. In Seattle, 90 degrees F is a hot day. If I do hike in hot weather, I hike in forests, on breezy ridges, and early in the day. Some days it was 90 degrees by 9am and I simply wasn't used to heat and sun.

I got hooked on canyon hiking however; I'm ready to do more and maybe a try bit more adventurous routes. I hope to be able to get to Utah in May this year which will hopefully help with the heat and I have more idea of what my limitations are.

Burned areas

2007-02-23T18:59:00.000-08:00

Forest fires are a natural part of the ecology of many forests. Perhaps because of my age and the constant Smokey the Bear teachings when I was younger, I still react to forest fires as if they were a disaster. Intense fires do change the area to a point that is almost unrecognizable and I know that an intensely burned over area will not be the same in my lifetime. Still my hiking in Yellowstone NP is helping me change my views. I have been hiking in Yellowstone at least once a year since 1994; I had been there several times before the 1988 fires but not on a yearly basis. Watching the regeneration of forested areas from year to year helps me accept better the place of fires. Of course much of the burned forest in Yellowstone is lodgepole pine, a species that needs fire and grows quickly.

Other types of forest do not regenerate from an intense fire as quickly and the fire can be a tragedy. I am thinking specifically of the Thirtymile fire which killed 4 firefighters (http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/wenatchee/fire/thirtymile.html). The Thirtymile fire occurred in the Chewuch valley in northern Washington state on the east side of the Cascade mountains. This was not a natural fire but one started by a person who did not adequately put out a campfire. I did not know any of the firefighters on this fire, but I have known many people who spent their summers or much of their career fighting fires. I had camped and hiked many times from the end of the Chewuch road, after the road reopened after the fire I have been there once. My concerns are trivial compared to those who lost their lives and their families; still I felt a great sadness at the loss and waste. I also know the forest will regenerate and that lightening could have caused a similar fire.

In the years since I have put out several campfires left near roads in forested areas. I was amazed that in the year following the fire, people were still careless about putting out fires in the same area although I've drown fires in several forests in the northwest US. Please, if you are going to have a fire PUT IT OUT fully and carefully. Please look to this website for instructions http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/wenatchee/fire/campfire-out.html.

Home made hardtack

2007-02-17T08:19:00.000-08:00

I found a recipe for home made hardtack several years ago and I make this hardtack every winter for the season's hiking. It is a simple recipe and makes a bland product which I prefer to any commercial hardtack I have tried. I also appreciate knowing the ingredients of what I'm eating. The hardtack keeps very well if kept dry, I have some hardtack that is at least 3 years old and still is tasty. The hardtack does crumble easily though especially in a pack.

Hardtack - makes 4 sheets
Preheat oven to 400 F

2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups white flour
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup milk
1/4 cup molassas (could substitute honey)
1/2 Tablespoon salt

Mix all ingredients well. Divide into 4 equal balls. Roll each ball as thin as possible on a floured surface using a floured rolling pin. Place sheet onto a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake in a 400 F oven for about 10 minutes or until edges brown. Turn gently and continue cooking until edges turn up and center is stiff, about 10 minutes. Cool on cooking rack. After cooling break into smaller pieces and store in airtight container. Cooking times will vary depending on type and color of cooking sheet and number of sheets in oven.

I put the cooled pieces initially into a quart sized freezer bag, a batch like that above will just about fill 1 bag. For hiking I put pieces into smaller plastic bags and have had little problem with it molding or otherwise becoming inedible.

Camping with rodents

2007-02-11T09:02:00.000-08:00

When I hike I usually setup a base camp and day hike from near the camp. As I get older and as I continue hiking during colder weather, the campsite increasingly is a car camp. Sometimes I sleep in the back of my pickup which has a light canopy, sometimes I sleep in my tent. Many times the campsite has an abundance of rodents, either mice, voles, or ground squirrels. Sleeping on the desert in southern Idaho, I've enjoyed watching kangaroo mice jumping around my sleeping bag. Sometimes various rodents get into my tent or pickup with comic results.

Late one fall I setup camp about noon near the Chiwaukum River and ate lunch closely watched by serveral golden-mantled ground squirrels. I thought I had kept all the squirrels out of my tent and left for an afternoon's hike. When I got back, no squirrels were evident and I laid out my sleeping bag in my tent and sat by a fire until it started to rain. After getting ready for bed, I opened my sleeping bag to be surprised by a ground squirrel sleeping on the pillow who had left gifts of pellets and at least 1 flea. I spent several minutues trying to get the squirrel out of the tent which was surprisingly difficult, it was very quick and could hide in places is I couldn't imagine. During this, I ended up getting myself and my gear somewhat wet and getting less and less thrilled about camping. I tried cleaning my bag and pillow of pellets and fleas but couldn't see well and remembered that bubonic plague is endemic in the western USA, although rare. Finally, I gave up and dumped my gear in the back of my pickup and drove home, about 3 hours away. The following day I discovered I had not suceeded in removing the squirrel, gnawed fabric showed it came home with me. Fortunately a neighborhood cat expressed much interest in my pickup and gear, I don't know what happened but I didn't see signs of the ground squirrel again. I did thoroughly clean my sleeping bag, etc. after this.

Another time along the White River (flows into Lake Wenatchee), I was sleeping in the back of my pickup when I started hearing a scratching, scrabbling sound. I was sleepy and it didn't bother me until something crawled across the top of my head. I woke rapidly and was able to see a deermouse inside my pickup bed. Attempts to get the mouse out were not successfull, it could squeeze between pieces of metal that seemed much smaller than the mouse. After several attempts, I just opened the tailgate and went back to sleep. I didn't see more of this mouse and it didn't really disturb my rest. I guess because I was already in possesion of my bed I was less upset by its presence.

I am more careful now about keeping rodents out of my tent or vehicle and if they are about don't setup a camp and keep doors closed. Also because I camp more in bear country, I do not keep food in my tent or near my campsite, except in an enclosed vehicle. Still, I expect more rodent camp encounters.

Winter excuses

2007-02-06T18:38:00.000-08:00

I don't get out to the backcountry much in the winter. I have several excuses but many of them are just rationalizing staying home. Some excuses are good, high avalanche danger or roads that aren't open or safe occur fairly often.

November through February, give or take a couple of weeks in either direction, in the Seattle area is damp, dark, and generally dreary. There is snow in the local mountains but it is often wet and heavy, not good for either x-country skiing or snowshoeing. I don't really enjoy hiking in the rain, especially in temperatures just above freezing in wet snow. And on good days, weekend or holiday days with fresh new snow or sunshine, the accessable areas are full of people early in the day. Several times I've been the first up, breaking a ski trail. Coming down, I'm unable to use my ski tracks because there are so many people using them to walk, ski, snowshoe or sled.

I am disappointed in myself that I haven't been out since the end of November. It isn't that I need different gear but that I need more motivation. I enjoy being out and it is good for me but I don't expect to do any snowshoing or skiing this winter.

Trail food

2007-01-30T18:14:00.000-08:00

I need to find better trail food to eat, food I eat during the hike rather than before or after. I'm in a rut now and find I don't eat enough during the hike. Of course like many adult Americans, losing some weight would be good but I would do better by eating adequately during the hike rather than over-eating after the hike because I'm famished.

I usually eat dried fruit and nuts, candy bars, and Wild Berry Power Bars as snacks. For lunch I eat jerky, snack cheese, crackers or rolls, and an apple. I like this and it is simple but it gets boring and I often don't take in enough calories to maintain energy while hiking. I've tried sandwiches but I have not found any that I like well enough to eat often and that are safe in my pack in warm weather. I have tried a number of other nutrition, granola, and breakfast bars and find I get tired of them quickly. I used to make my own Logan bread and a dense, calorie rich sweet bread but they got old also. Unfortunately, most of the food I eat when I'm not hiking doesn't keep well and would be dangerous to pack in warm weather. About the only ideas I have now are to try to vary the basic items and just eat more or more often.

Handicapped parking for backcountry trails

2007-01-24T17:31:00.000-08:00

Why reserved handicapped parking spots for backcountry trails?

In at least 2 national parks, Yellowstone and Olympic, I have seen handicapped parking spaces reserved at backcountry trailheads. These are not nature trails, boardwalks, or any kind of graded and smoothed trails nor are they at scenic overviews. I don't understand why such spaces are reserved since the trails themselves are not accessable to the handicapped. I wouldn't mind except that parking can be limited at some trailheads and reserving a spot may mean all the other spaces are full and I have no place to park. Not all trailhead parking is done this way and I can't deduce the logic why one site has reserved spaces and another does not.

I realize that Yellowstone NP has at least one handicapped accessable backcountry camping spot and also that some trails are reasonably accessable for some distance from the trailhead. However, the reserved parking spots are not limited to these sites and seem randomly placed to me.

"Dash and Rest" hikers

2007-01-14T09:50:00.000-08:00

I hike fairly slowly but usually with a steady pace and if I need to rest often will slow down my pace. Every so often I encounter a group of hikers who walk quickly but stop often. If I am hiking in the same direction as they are, I repeatedly step off the trail to let them pass and then a few minutes later pass them as they are stopped. Of course there are many reasons other than resting to stop on a trail, to view scenery, take pictures, calls of nature, etc., and I also stop for these reasons. I'm not bothered by a group catching up to me a couple of times but after 6 or more times, I get a bit annoyed. Stepping aside every 10 to 15 minutes while the same group passes me slows me down and breaks my rhythm. I usually find that I get to the "object" of the hike about the same time as the "dash and rest" group.

When I have repeatedly stepped aside for the same group of hikers, I try to find a strategy to avoid having to do so often. Sometimes I can walk a bit faster and take shorter breaks and remain ahead of them. Other times just going a bit slower, taking more breaks works better, I stay behind them. Sometimes the group is so eratic that neither strategy works.

Obviously my annoyance at being repeatedly passed by the same group is my problem. However, I wonder that the group walking faster never seems to think it is odd (or rude) to keep passing the same hiker(s). If they are such strong hikers, why don't they stay ahead? And if they need to rest so often, maybe they are hiking faster than they can sustain.

Other animal encounters

2007-01-07T09:13:00.000-08:00

Bears are of course not the only dangerous animals when hiking. I haven't met a cougar while hiking for many years, certainly I would be anxious if a cougar remained in the same area when I was hiking. Moose are another animal that occasionally charge people and cause injuries. I know I treat moose with respect and as much distance as I can manage when hiking but have still come within 20 feet of one accidently. Elk, especially females with calves and rutting bulls are also dangerous, last fall I retreated back down a trail when a bull seemed to regard me as a rival. I was glad I had retreated as I watched him attack a small tree and I decided to find another trail to hike.

Except for the 2 close grizzly encounters mentioned here, bison have caused me the most concern about my safety. Of course I only hike around bison in Yellowstone National Park, I encounter other animals in a variety of Parks and forests. More than once I have walked far too close to a bison laying down and partly hidden by vegetation. Hearing a 'huff' from a bull bison less than 15 feet away does get my attention. One time I found myself in the middle of a herd of moving bison where I could not see anyplace to move away from them. I moved to an area of dead trees, some standing and some down, in the hope that would deter a charge. I sheltered behind a standing dead tree as the herd went by me. One cow and 2 year old went by about 5 feet away. Another time I looked back along a trail and a herd of bison were coming along the trail rapidly toward me. This trail did not have a good place to get off trail so I started running as fast as I could until I was able to turn off the trail and shelter behind a boulder. When I started, the bison were about 400 feet behind me, at the end about 50 feet.

From my last 3 entries I almost sound as if my hiking were fraught with fearful encounters with animals and that I was always nervous. That certainly isn't true, while an encounter may startle me and cause some brief fear, nearly always the anxiety soon gives way to a sense of priviledge to see such animals in a minimally altered environment. Part of the reason I hike in places such as Yellowstone and Glacier Parks is because of the potentially dangerous animals; the awareness of danger, not only from animals, makes hiking much different than walking along a nature trail.

Black Bears and hiking

2006-12-30T08:43:00.000-08:00

I frequently see black bears when hiking both in National Parks, mostly Yellowstone, Glacier, and North Cascades, and in forests. I enjoy seeing the bears and get a thrill of excitement when when I do but usually am not anxious about black bears or alter my hiking plans. I've settled on a rule of thumb, if the bear doesn't move away when it sees me if we are close, I will move away.

A few years ago I was hiking in the Wenatchee National Forest and heard noises ahead of me. Thinking it might be a bear, I called out several times but continued. As I came around a bend, I saw a large, golden (black) bear tearing a log apart just above the trail. I stopped and considered how to detour around but decided against it since I wasn't familiar with the trail. My next thought was to take a picture but my camera was in my pack and watching the bear who was about twice my weight rip the log convinced me I should turn back on the trail. A few minutes later, I heard a large animal coming toward me through the brush, fortunately it was a deer.

More recently I was hiking down into the Black Canyon of the Yellowstone from the Blacktail Deer Plateau and saw 2 bears ahead of me. Because this was grizzly country, I was more careful but got to a position where I could watch them. I was reasonably certain they were black bears but they were also moving across the entire trail and there was no good way to go around. I finally decided to go back and take the Resue Creek trail.

In both of the cases above I'm sure the bears were aware of me, I wasn't that far away and had been making noise. I've wondered what I would do if I were to meet a bear on the way out of a trail. I guess I would just do my best.

Some of my bear encounters have been funny, at least in retrospect. I was coming down Specimen Ridge in YNP one warm sunny day and as I came down a gully, I heard a scrambling just behind me. I looked back and a bear had come down almost to the same point in a different gully. It scrambled away while I stood there with my mouth open and fumbling at my bear spray. I looked down the trail and saw 2 hikers getting up off the ground so I met them and we talked. They had laid down once they saw the bear so it wouldn't see them. Later on the hike I saw the bear again a few times and verified it was a black. I've seen black bears several times around the Yellowstone Picnic area and Specimen Ridge trail but didn't expect to see one up on the treeless ridge.

One fall day I was coming down from the Thunderer in the northeast of YNP when I walked off the trail a few feet to take a picture of something. I almost stumbled over a black bear I presumably startled out of its day bed, I was less than 15 feet away at the closest. I had my camera in hand and took a picture but the picture is blurred, I wasn't still.

The last 2 encounters were amusing but also a reminder that I need to be aware of my surroundings. I could easily have gotten too close to a variety of animals and gotten hurt. I am lucky that the bears were not aggressive.

Grizzly encounters

2006-12-23T08:24:00.000-08:00

I often see bears when hiking both in National Parks and in other areas. Seeing a black bear, of whatever color, is thrilling and enjoyable but seeing a grizzly is much more exciting. I carry pepper spray when hiking in grizzly territory and make noise but I still hike alone and I've seen grizzlies a few times, mostly at a good distance. I've twice encountered grizzlies at less than 100 yards when hiking and while I treasure the memory, at the time I mainly wanted to get to a safe area. Both encounters were during the day, in bright sunshine.

The first close grizzly encounter I had was in Glacier National Park on the Oldman Lake trail. Shortly before, I met a couple of hikers who warned me of the grizzly but said she was not close to the trail and other people were near. I readied my pepper spray and continued. When I saw her and 2 cubs of the year about 100 feet away, she was clearly agitated, moving back and forth and huffing. I rapidly turned around and went back down the trail, looking over my shoulder as I walked, thinking "don't run and don't fall". She didn't charge or follow and I decided not to continue on the trail that day even after I met other hikers who planned to continue. I could have walked with them but was too spooked, spooked enough that when I saw another grizzly much further away, I rapidly left the area.

My next grizzly encounter was in Yellowstone National Park on Swan Lake Flat about 1/2 mile from the trailhead. I had done a loop trail through the hoodoos and over Snowy Pass and was returning to the trailhead near Golden Gate. As I came around a hillside, I saw 2 grizzlies trotting toward me about 70 feet away. I walked toward the nearest climbable tree while watching the grizzlies (female and 2 year old) and getting my pepper spray ready. The bears soon saw me and stopped, then they moved slightly away. I found a better tree and watched them and put new film in my camera. Of course I had taken the last picture on the roll earlier in the hike. I spent about 10 minutes watching and taking pictures before moving on. Obviously I wasn't as frightened this time, probably because the bears were not aggressive. I was amused that I could watch cars on the main road go by at the same time I watched the bears who were not visible from the road.

Yellowstone National Park

2006-12-17T10:48:00.000-08:00

My favorite place to hike, although not my favorite trails, is Yellowstone National Park, at least May through October. I've gone there at least once a year for the past 12 years. Friends have asked what draws me back to the same place so often and I am not sure. Of course Yellowstone is a very special place, it would not have become the first national park if it were not. Still, why do I like it so much? It doesn't have the spectacular mountain views common elsewhere in the western US nor does it have the amazing colors and canyons of the southwest.

I enjoy the thermal features, geysers, hot springs, and pools but they aren't my primary goal. The falls and grand canyon of the Yellowstone are magnificent but I don't view them every year. Yellowstone lake is pretty but I grew up by a mountain lake, it isn't that special to me. Part of the attraction is that Yellowstone is wild and minimally changed but Glacier, and other Parks, are arguably wilder and less changed. Probably the main attraction is the visibility of wildlife. I will see bison and elk, probably will see deer, pronghorn antelope, and coyote and can anticipate seeing bear, wolves, bighorn sheep, moose and a variety of birds and smaller animals. Most of these animals are found elsewhere but they are most visible in Yellowstone. I usually hike in the prairies and meadows when in Yellowstone because the terrain is different than my usual areas of hiking in the Cascade mountain forests. Yellowstone also has more easily accessable trails than I can hike in a week, there is always another trail I want to hike.

Maybe it is everything, the thermal features, the wildlife, the scenery, the variety of habitats, forest, prairie, meadow, and mountain.

Performance garments and 'cotton kills'

2006-12-09T15:27:00.000-08:00

I really like the wicking performance garments for hiking and other outdoor activities. I was quick to adopt the various types of polyester and have several tops and bottoms of various fabrics, thicknesses and lengths. I wear these not only as base layers but also use the heavier tops especially as a sweater. Even in the warmest, driest weather I usually wear a coolmax tanktop under my cotton tee-shirt.

A little searching on the Internet will find many references to 'cotton kills' for outdoor performance clothing. I'm not suggesting that anyone should wear cotton for hiking, but idea that cotton itself is the problem is overly simplistic. When I started hiking, snowshoeing, and x-country skiing in the late 1960s, nearly everyone I knew used 100% cotton waffle-weave long underwear. There really wasn't much else readily available, wool and silk blends were expensive and hard to find and often the wool was too uncomfortable to wear against the skin. Cotton jeans and flannel shirts were also common and parkas were cotton/nylon or all cotton. Hikers, hunters, etc. regularly spent extensive time in the backcountry dressed largely in cotton with some wool and they didn't all die of exposure (hypothermia). I don't know whether the proportion of backcountry users which had problems with hypothermia was greater then or not, I do note that people still succumb even with better clothing. Like many things, people need to be aware of limitations, think, and be prepared for the unexpected. The last couple of times this topic has come up on Usenet's rec.backcountry, others have commented that cotton has its place for outdoor use.

I still use a cotton tee-shirt for most hiking, to protect against abrasion from my pack, against insect bites, sun, and wind. I often use cotton jeans in dry areas. Cotton is tough, wind resistant, cheap, and in low humidity disperses sweat better than many other fabrics. I really do like my wicking underwear and performance fleece and use wool blend or polyester blend pants for wetter, colder hiking. And again, I would not advise anyone to go out into the backcountry with cotton garments, but I don't like the overly broad statement that 'cotton kills', unpreparedness kills.

Favorite gear and gadgets - Fun stuff

2006-12-03T09:57:00.000-08:00

Some items I take hiking with me are more for my enjoyment than because I need them. They are useful but certainly not necessary.

I particularly like my monocular; I carry a 8 x 20 monocular in a case on my belt nearly always when hiking and use it for bird and animal watching and simply to enjoy the scenery. It is useful at times for route finding or to determine whether the dark object ahead of me is a bison, grizzly, or rock. I often use it in Yellowstone National Park to look for the orange route markers or cairns when hiking in open areas. And I have seen grizzly by using it, at least once causing me to change my hiking route. I don't use binoculars because the monocular is less than 1/2 the size and weight of binoculars and because I'm happy with single eye view.

I also enjoy my Casio altimeter/barometer watch. I like having an idea of how much elevation I've gained or lost and it can be helpful in correlating to a position on a map. I also like the barometer history function where it displays graphically the barometric pressure changes over the last 18 hours. If I'm not changing altitude, this gives me a nice clue to upcoming weather. I do wish it weren't so large, I have a small wrist and it is oversized. I sometimes attach it to my pack instead but I like the convenience of it on my wrist.

Favorite gear and gadgets - Functional items

2006-11-27T17:56:00.000-08:00

I don't think of myself as gear-obsessed and even though I work in a high tech field I don't have all the high tech gadgets available. I don't even have a GPS or Ipod. But there is some gear I really appreciate, gear that I didn't have when I started hiking but that I use most of the time now.

I have an older Leki hiking staff that I use for most hikes, it is adjustable and has a removable snowbasket. I had used old ski poles or wood staffs before but the Leki is much nicer. The carbide tip grips better in ice and mud, I change length depending on conditions, and I can attach it to my pack if I don't need it. Besides, I broke and bent the ski poles and the wood staff was heavy and clumsy. Every couple of years I forget the staff and go on my hike anyway, I regret it if there is much downhill or very uneven ground. My knees tell me I need the staff. At some point I may need 2 poles but for now I'm happy with the single staff.

I started using a hydration reservoir a few years ago when I noticed that I was getting headaches on longer, warmer hikes. I don't use it in winter but like it the rest of the year. I only put water in my reservoir and carry a bottle of sports drink separately. I could just use bottles but found I did not drink enough in warm weather when I had to stop hiking to get the bottle and replace it.

I would still hike without either of these items but both make hiking more comfortable and safer. Of course I have updated a lot of gear from when I first started hiking seriously in the late 60's. My daypack with back stays and suspension system is much nicer than the "bag with straps" rucksack I used then. Updates in clothing and otherwear is an entire post. I am fairly slow to update to new items; I have to be convinced there is a real advantage rather than a fad or just a neat toy.

Rain, flooding, and backcountry access

2006-11-20T18:25:00.000-08:00

I think most people in the Puget Sound area right now would say they have had enough rain for now. November in this area is usually wet but this year there has been more than twice the usual November rain fall. This has lead to extensive flooding and washed out roads including closing most of the access to Mt. Rainier National Park and some to Olympic National Park. I suspect access to many of my favorite hiking areas will not be open next spring, some of the roads may not open again and many will take time to be fixed. I also suspect hiking bridges and trails were washed out.

I don't enjoy hiking in the rain very much, I do some because I love to be in the woods and mountains. While many people think rain is common year around in Puget Sound areas, summers are usually dry and in many years, the dry weather extends through October. Also, a 2 hour drive will take me to areas on the east side of the Cascade slopes which are much drier and less used. When I vacation, I go to areas that are drier, Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks and the canyon areas of Utah. If it weren't for jobs, I would love to live near or in the Rocky Mountains.

I usually celebrate Thanksgiving and winter holidays by hiking or snowshoeing, depending on the weather. I'm hoping it cools down enough to cause the precipitation to fall as snow in the mountains soon so I can go snowshoeing. I would rather snowshoe in falling snow than hike in cold rain.

Dogs on hiking trails

2006-11-14T18:24:00.000-08:00

Talking about dogs in the backcountry tends to promote emotional responses. I am going to try to blog about my experiences in the hope that I won't swing to extremes. I don't have a dog now, although I have lived with dogs in the past and like many of my friend's dogs. I do understand why someone would want to take their dog hiking with them. While hiking I'm met many quiet, well mannered dogs. Unfortunately, I have also met many loud, obnoxious dogs and had some unpleasant experiences. Because of my unpleasant experiences, I think all dogs should be on leashes on public trails. I know many people believe their dogs are under control and would not harm a person or animal but unexpected things happen. I do not think a dog is under control when it is out of sight of the owners or when the dog rushes away even when called. Also, when I meet a dog barking or growling, I don't know the the dog is friendly.

On a recent trip, I was eating a snack just off a trail when I heard a dog, close by but not visible, barking loudly. Because of past experiences, I jumped up and faced the barking. The owner soon had the dog on a leash and had the grace to say "sorry". The group left but I overheard the owner talking about an encounter with another hiker in which the hiker loudly and profanely complained about the dog. She didn't understand and thought that something else was going on. Now I wasn't there but wondered if the other hiker maybe just didn't like being disturbed by a loud, possibly agressive animal that wasn't under control.

Two personal stories to illustrate some of my irritations with dogs. On a moderately busy trail, I went about 30 feet off the trail to eat lunch and put moleskin on hot spots on my feet. I had a boot and sock off and my lunch around me when I heard a sound and saw a german shepard running toward me, followed by yelling hikers. I stood up and tried to put my foot in my boot and grab my stuff. The dog took part of my lunch (jerky), knocked over my water bottle, and got muddy pawprints on my sock.

Another time on a trail, I met a family with small children at a bad spot, narrow trail with a steep drop on both sides. I moved off the trail to let the family pass but the parents wanted some information about trail and we talked for a few minutes. Behind me, another group caught up and after a bit of confusion, started back up the trail so the first family could progress. The second group had a cocker spaniel that apparently didn't want to wait. It continued down the trail and when it came to me, put its shoulder against the inside of my knee (I was below the trail). I hadn't been aware of the dog and when it pushed against my leg I nearly fell. Since the slope I was standing on was steep and composed of loose soil and gravel, a fall could have easily caused serious injury.

I don't think I'm being intolerant in saying neither of these dog encounters should have happened. The second situation was an unusual occurance that would be hard to predict. Which is part of my point, because unexpected situations occur and because dogs aren't reasoning individuals and may behave regardless of consequences to others, the dogs should be on leashes.

Trailhead parking - Recreation Passes

2006-11-07T17:14:00.000-08:00

In my area, most trailheads require a Recreation Pass (various titles over the years) to park within 1/2 mile. When this first occurred, I was unhappy. Of course I didn't like a fee for something which had previously been free. Also, my perception was that supporting logging, mining, and grazing cost the Forest Service or BLM more and did more damage than hikers. Now I am less sure what I think. Trails which had not been maintained in years, making them effectively unusable were logged out and repaired. Toliets appeared at some trailheads. Combining the permits into one pass, the Golden Eagle, also helped, less hassle, less cost.

Popular trails around Seattle are heavily used, causing increased trail damage. Because of the wet climate and frequent wind storms, trails need logging out and bridges and culverts need repairs. Someone has to pay the costs and it should, in my opinion, be those who use the trails. There are groups locally who maintain trails, most noteably the Washington Trails Association but they cannot work all the trails even close to Seattle. An annual Northwest Forest Pass costs $30 and if people cannot afford one there are usually other options, such as parking more than 1/2 mile from the trailhead or using trails that do not require a pass or going on the free days.

I've never seen a Bigfoot

2006-11-02T18:02:00.000-08:00

I have never seen a Bigfoot or Sasquatch, nor have I seen large humanoid tracks. I have not witnessed any other Bigfoot phenomena such as unexplained bad odor, heavy items moved without equipment, or heard screams that I couldn't attribute to a known cause. This is rather disappointing since I have spent a lot of time hiking and camping in the Washington state Cascade mountains, an area that has a lot of reported Bigfoot activity. I have seen what appear to be day beds of bear or deer or elk. I have smelled bad odors due to carcasses, scat, or wet plants. I have also seen a variety of wildlife, black bear, cougar, fox, coyote, deer, elk, moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, and many smaller animals.

When I read the sighting reports, either in books or online, I sometimes know the area where the sighting occurred, I've been there many times. I spend many days hiking, many nights on the edge of the backcounty alone. Why don't I see a Bigfoot when so many others see them or come across their tracks? One thing I don't do much of is drive along backcountry roads at night when a lot of sightings occur. Nor am I getting deep into the backcountry but most of the sightings are from roads or camp areas. Perhaps Bigfoot is now more wary of people and there are more people hiking, camping, etc. in this area than there were 20 years ago. Still there are some recent sightings.

I want to see evidence of Bigfoot but I am not sure what my reaction would be. Would I be excited and elated, like I have been after seeing wolves or grizzlys, or would I be frightened and doubtful that I saw what I thought I did? When I found recent grizzly tracks 100 years from my campsite in a National Forest near Yellowstone, I didn't leave but I did become more cautious. Maybe that is how I would react to Bigfoot tracks.

Gear - "you get what you pay for"

2006-10-29T07:02:00.000-08:00

I often see the phrase "you get what you pay for" in discussions of outdoor gear and it annoys me somewhat. It implies that the more you pay, the better the gear, ignoring the issues of suitability for the intended use, niche uses, and that you may be paying extra for things other than quality. For instance, if you buy the most expensive tent, you will probably be buying an expedition, 4 season tent. Very useful if that is what you need, but too heavy and with too little ventilation if your intended use is for mild weather short trips. Boots, jackets, and a number of other hiking items have similar issues, you need to know what you need or have good advice.

Another issue are the very light items for ultralight packing such as titanium cookware which are much more expensive than aluminum or stainless steel. Yes, the light items weigh less and are functional but aren't necessarily better or more functional than other materials. And some ultralight gear must be handled carefully or they will break or tear, not items for a beginner.

Also, sometimes what you are paying for are name brands, fashion, or store policies. For instance REI has a generous return policy and many brick and mortar stores, very nice if you need it, but it does add a bit to prices over an Internet only store with less overhead. And in many cases by buying last year's gear, you can get a considerable discount. The gear isn't less good, just a discontinued color or style, possibly better for your needs than the newer item.

Basically when buying gear, you need to know what you are paying for and what you need. If you don't, you may end up paying a lot more than needed for gear which is not suited for your intended use. Some stores will help you sort out your needs but going to a store and buying the 'best', the most expensive, isn't the way to go.

Trip Report - Twisp Pass trail

2006-10-24T17:52:00.000-07:00

October 21st was a great day to hike the Twisp Pass trail (http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/oka/recreation/rog/twisp.html) . Once up on Lincoln butte, I had great views of the peaks and meadows. The day was clear and bright with fall colors at their peak. I met a few other hikers including 2 backpackers who were headed for Dagger Lake and 2 hunters. I didn't see any game probably because it was hunting season. At the pass, I climbed part way up Lincoln butte for some pictures of Dagger Lake and peaks to the north. This was the last weekend this year before snow started falling in higher elevations.

Losing gear

2006-10-18T17:27:00.000-07:00

I hate it when I lose gear I use. Sometimes it isn't so annoying because I end up replacing the item with something better, like the Yellowstone hiking map I lost and the more up-to-date and detailed map I replaced it with. But sometimes it is hard to find a piece of gear that fits as well as what was lost. I haven't lost anything expensive so far but some things like silk glove liners are hard to find except by mail order, very inconvenient when I'm packing for a trip.

I've been lucky that I rarely reach for an item while hiking or starting a hike and find it isn't there, usually it is when I'm packing for a trip or unpacking I notice the item is missing. This allows me to replace it before I need it except that I don't know when I lost the item and tend to think it slipped down somewhere or I put it in an unusual place. So I spend a lot of time looking for it, sometimes for months, before I end up replacing the item.

I occasionally find items others have lost; my specialty seems to be flashlights. I have found 3 working flashlights on trails or at trailheads. Other people report finding hats or other items. I hope that whoever found the gear I have lost have a use for it or pass it on to others.