Some call this extreme with all the focus on the obvious perils one could expect in such an environment. With the correct gear, careful planning and some old fashion common sense; you can limit your risk and elevate you enjoyment making for an excellent back country adventure.

The down side to this type of trekking is the amount of gear one must have to survive only a few days in below freezing weather. Packing 50lbs of gear across snow covered mountains has its own challenges… physical, mental and technical. I’m talking a few days in the back country not an expedition. Regardless, you need to be both physically, mentally and technically fit.

The rewards for such efforts are grand. You see the mountains firsthand in a way that most people see only in postcards. Keep in mind that winter storms can roll in quick dropping several feet of snow covering you and you’re trail along with any tracks leading in.

If you’re not packing the right gear you’re in for a rough time. Being experienced in cold weather survival, mountaineering as well as having the skills to navigate without the aid of trail markers or GPS is essential.  A positive mental attitude is always required. When in a jam, people tend to panic and make poor decisions that can cost dearly. There’s no one out here to save your ass.

Take the time to learn and practice the skills needed to venture into the back country. Know your personal limitations. There will always be someone that hikes further and higher than you, it’s irrelevant. The mountains have a way of luring you in deeper and deeper. Maybe it’s hopes of more awe-inspiring vistas or maybe it’s an instinctive desire to explore the unknown. Regardless, venturing beyond your personal limits not only puts your safety or very possibly your life at risk, but the safety of the potential rescuers.

If its rescue you need, don’t expect it anytime soon. Even if you did the correct thing and filed a detailed plan of your trek along with your wilderness permit, rescuers would have a hell of a time trying to locate anyone this time of year in time to bring you out safe and unharmed. The mountains are not forgiving to those that show no respect.

Selecting the best gear can be an expense that you may cut corners on. Don’t do it. Be wise with your selection of gear. You don’t necessarily need the latest and greatest but you do need quality and you need to be both mentally prepared in how to use it as well as experienced.

Practice – Practice – Practice. If this means setting up camp in your backyard and freaking out the neighbors, do it. Take less adventurous overnight trips to test your outdoor gear. You need to know how everything works, how it assembles and disassembles in the pitch of dark.

Once in the back country and you find yourself in a jam – it’s all you. Wind howling, temperatures dropping, fingers numb from the cold and the night sky overhead. Keep calm and think straight. Once you have your situation under control, relax and enjoy the adventure. That’s why you’re out there, right?

For all its harshness, the desert is a land of surprising variety and complexity. Joshua Tree has some of the most interesting geologic displays found in California’s deserts and ranks on my list of favorite spots to hike.

Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness. All other travel is mere dust and hotels and baggage and chatter. ~ John Muir

Most people are on the world, not in it—have no conscious sympathy or relationship to anything about them—undiffused, separate, and rigidly alone like marbles of polished stone, touching but separate. ~John Muir

How to Avoid a Bear Attack.

It Could happen….When hiking the back country it ‘s easy to become distracted by the surrounding vistas, tracking your location or the blisters from the last 15 miles. Its these distractions  compounded with the fact that most people are not “in-tune” with the wilderness environment they are in.

Many hikers and campers alike don’t know the difference between animal trails or foot trails. They don’t know if they are walking upwind or down, North or South. Point being…hikers don’t always pay attention to their surrounding environment. If they did, many back country accidents would be avoided. Certainly dangerous bear encounters and especially attacks can be avoided. Admittedly, bear attacks are very rare.

Having seen a number of bears on and off the trail, I never encountered one that had any interest other than getting as far away as it could. Each encounter was awesome experience as it should be.

Making some noise along the trail is usually enough to announce ones presence and avoid walking up on an unsuspecting bear. The last thing you want is to startle a bear into thinking it needs to defend itself. Mother bears with cubs can be fearless. If her cubs whine or cry’s and you’re lucky enough to witness this, she’s likely to blame you and come talk to you about it.

Most who encounter bears do so in national parks. We typically see the ones that have developed the same taste for junk food as ourselves. They can be found casing camp sites, parking lots or dumps… anywhere a bear can find a quick urban meal. It’s these bears that become more accustom to humans and our garbage.  These bears show less fear and become more assertive in their attempts to find food. This makes them more dangerous to both themselves and people.

Bears tagged as a problem risk being tranquilized and relocated. Sadly, the same bears can also be marked for destruction. The National Park Service has little choice considering that we the Tourist, Hikers, Campers and all around outdoors men fail to follow a few simple rules. Store your food in bear lockers or other NPS approved means. Don’t leave food or any items in your vehicle that has a scent.

(For those of you that purposely feed the bears, don’t. This act reinforces an unnatural behavior that will ultimately kill the bear. If a bear is not foraging or hunting for its food then it’s been conditioned by humans to think that handouts and garbage are a better option.)

A bears  sense of smell is 7 times greater than that of a bloodhound and can easily smell an empty food wrapper left in you’re vehicle.  A hungry determined bear will sniff out the would be treat and proceed to open your vehicle similar to how you would open a can of soup. Bears are ingenuous creatures and will find away to part you from your food.

Before you head out to the mountains, clean out your car of anything that a bear may interpret as food.  Keep all food items in a cooler or bear canister that can easily be removed from your car and stowed in your hotel room or bear storage locker. Use a bear canister when on the trail.

For those of you who venture beyond the parking lot and have a few concerns on how to handle your self in bear territory, here’s a humorous video that offers a few good tips.

CCA will serve its mission through inspirational stories, adventure grants, a mobile camp, and personal visits to patients by survivors.

CCA was founded in 2001 by two-time terminal cancer survivor and elite mountaineer, Sean Swarner and his brother Seth, CCA is headquartered in Boulder, Colorado.

CCA History: Originally founded in 2001 by Sean and his brother Seth, The CancerClimber Association had its sights set on funding cancer research. After contemplation and the realization that it takes many many years for donated money to actually support research, CancerClimber decided that it wanted to help people touched by cancer now, not years down the road.

We then focused on hope and giving people the tools needed to overcome cancer with the right attitude and to come out on the other side with a more positive outlook on life.

Hope and inspiration is key to the association’s groundwork and foundation. As we continue raising money for the mobile camp, we also have in mind cancer
survivor grants.

Deemed by some…The “Scariest Hiking Trail” into Spain’s El Chorro Gorge.

This 1000 ft. high concrete walkway…El Caminito del Rey or “The King’s little pathway” was constructed in 1901-1905 as an access route for a new dam and hydro electric complex latter completed in 1921.

The access route allowed men and materials to traverse the gorge halfway up the almost vertical rock face. (What a way to get to work). The pathway took its name when the dam was officially opened in 1921 by King Alfonso XIII of Spain.

The pathway has been in disrepair for decades and has been closed to the public. Sections are damaged or missing altogether. Rocks above have made their mark like falling missiles punching holes through the brick and concrete pathway below.

Local authorities do what they can to deter would be climbers as a few deaths have occurred on this dilapidated walkway. Police often keep an eye on the trail leading up to the pathway and have actually destroyed sections trying to persuade people not to venture any closer and help prevent  further injuries or deaths.

Despite the threat of fines or the risk of a deadly plummet to the rocks below, some still tempt fate.

The surrounding area of El Chorro is located in the south of Spain and renowned by many, especially climbers for its aw-inspiring scenery and climbs.

Multi-pitch bolted walls, limestone slabs and flowstone all within walking distance of the town and without risking fines from the local authorities.

El Caminito del Rey may be re-opened to the public if and when the finances are raised. The full cost of the restoration remains unknown, although a previous assessment was thought to be around 6.6 million euro’s. It’s speculated that the Kings little pathway could reopen in 2014.

Every year thousands travel to Mt. Whitney with their hearts set on attaining the 14,494 ft. summit, the highest point in the in the lower 48.

Whitney Portal is by far the most popular entry route to Mt. Whitney. Built in 1904, it’s this trail that myself and a group of friends have said we will hike in the summer of 2010.

This is an adventure I’m looking forward to. 21 miles round trip. 7 hour average time one way with a 6136 ft elevation gain for a summit of almost 15,000 ft. Wow!

As a reminder from a previous post…The inspiration for this extreme hike volunteered me as the Team Leader. No show of hands – No vote – No opinion pole – In fact, it was uttered as she was eating a handful of M&M’s casually walking past my desk.  Anyway…It helped  spark this post and hopefully a means of getting all involved to commit to a challenge that thousands have made before us.

For this reason alone, there is no way that we cant do the same. After all, if Hulda Crooks also known as “Grandma Whitney” could summit Mt. Whitney for her first time at age 65 and then 22 more times after that, then whats keeping us from summiting Mt.Whitney at least once?

Admittedly, Hulda Crooks generation was that of strong and hard working people that helped lay the ground work for much of what we take for granted today. Keep in mind that most all roads and trails in the National Park System were built by hand during her early years.

People today can be overwhelmed by there seemingly busy lifestyle and easily dismiss the better choice or decision for convenience, regardless of what that may be. Sometimes we need to stop and remember the people we came from for inspiration of what it is we can do, and simply hike the trail that they laid.

Hulda also climbed 97 other peaks between the ages of 65 and 91, including Mount Fuji.  When she died, at the age of 101 in Loma Linda, California, she held the record for being the oldest person to climb Mount Whitney and the oldest person to climb Mount Fuji. She also hiked the complete 212-mile high Sierras John Muir Trail.

Ansel Adams, Winter Sunrise, The Sierra Nevada

Having hiked and climbed much of my life, I didn’t realize that any of my adventures would be considered extreme. I didn’t pay much attention to that aspect. Venturing deep into the back country was something I enjoyed doing. The more adventurous the better.

I’m not talking a Mt. Everest expedition, although that would be the ultimate adventure in my book. In case you don’t have the 50K or so for an Everest expedition, how about a weekend trek into your local mountains?

My favorite time of year is winter. The Sierra Nevada mountains make for a great destination any time of the year but  winters are special.

It’s almost a magical experience to be deep in the midst of snow covered forest trekking through miles of fresh snow to eventually gain sight of the distant snow covered peaks of the neighboring mountains.  Once free of the forest and atop the mountain, you start looking for the alpine lakes. These are the frozen gems hidden behind nearby slopes. You may catch a glimpse of sun light sparkling off the distant frozen water falls and visually map the rivers or streams leading to or from these lakes to help reveal their location.

As with any magical experience the dark side is not far behind. Now that you’re on the summit, the weather can be severe and change with little warning. When the clouds appear, you’re in them. Visibility can be a few yards at best. Hail storms and lightning all pose a safety risk. The winds can whip around ice crystals pelting exposed skin. Sections of your return route can ice over complicating what other wise would be a safe retreat. With out the proper gear and training to safely back track to a lower and more hospitable elevation , you could be at serious risk.

This is my idea of fun and adventure. I enjoy treks of all kinds but this would be about as extreme as I would get on an extended weekend.

Recently a co-worker approached me with an idea to summit Mt. Whitney, having no first hand knowledge of the mountain other than it being the second highest in the United States, I’m thinking to my self…she’s not sure of what she’s suggesting.

The more we talked, the more I knew she was serious. We researched it and determined that we in fact could do an extreme summer hike.

A summer hike would help insure that the higher elevations would be passable and being our first hike together, the Mule trail seemed our best and safest route up.

The plan is for a group of friends to safely summit 14,496 ft. Mt Whitney in approximately 15 hours time. The 22 mile trek will be scheduled for next summer with a start time no later than 3AM.

In preparation, I started by organizing a check list of minimal gear based on the helpful advise of fellow Hikers, Climbers and Trekkers alike. The list is certainly not as minimal as it could be, but a good start for my needs and can easily be modified for each hiker according to there needs. To Be Continued….

1. Trail Shoes or Light Weight Hiking Boots
2. Pants
3. Synthetic T-Shirt
4. Light Weight Gortex Jacket – Shell Only
5. Light Weight Fleece Jacket
6. Wool Socks With Synthetic Liners – 2 pair
7. Light Weight Gloves – Similar to Arc’teryx Polartec Wind Pro
8. Hat – Beanie
9. Sunglasses
10. Sun Block
11. TP – WetNaps – Mt. Whitney visitors must pack-out their solid human waste. Pack-out kits are distributed with wilderness permits.
12. WAG Bags
13. Food – Energy Bars – Gels
14. Water – 3 liters – Water is available as far as Trail Camp. Carry water to the summit, as there is no dependable source of water after Trail Camp.
15. Oral re-hydration Salts
16. Minimal First Aid Kit With Focus on Blisters and Headaches
17. Water Micro filter – Katadyn Hiker Pro
18. Quality Technical Day Pack – Arc’teryx – Gregory
19. Quality Trekking Poles – Leki
20. Headlamp – Petzl
21. Camera – Extra battery’s.
22. Knife
23. Lighter
24. Whistle
25. Topo Map of Area.

Gregory Whitney Backpack 6285

When shopping around for a new backpack  you will find a multitude of options that will make your head spin. If you have done your homework, you will know what options are worth the extra bucks and avoid those that offer little more than good looks.

When looking for a solid, reliable and comfortable pack… I look for those that are typically larger than whats needed. Packs designed to carry 50+ lb loads tend to be built better than smaller packs and are more comfortable for long treks in the back country.

I’m sure that most people shopping for backpacks have a fairly good idea as to what type and style they want. With all the customer reviews available, you have access to a wealth of information needed to make a sensible purchase. Consider the following perspective as you wont see it mentioned on any spec list.

A well designed backpack can easily cost a few hundred dollars. Backpacks sustain a lot of abuse and this is one piece of gear that needs to be reliable. If you’re hiking through narrow sandstone and granite canyon walls, rocky crags or dense forest trails…you’re pack will suffer. A quality pack will survive your adventures far better. It truly sucks for a pack to fail and you find your self cannibalizing parts of you’re gear to make the needed repair to continue you’re trek.

Do you really need a high end pack, especially one that may be a bit larger than needed? Only if your adventure takes you further into the back country than the parking lot, and then… only if you’re planning your next trek and haven’t returned from the one your on.

Knowing this, I would say you are serious enough to consider a high end backpack. Although if your accustomed to shouldering a load like a mule than you may not see the point.

Here’s how I see it…Higher end packs will typically offer a better internal frame, adjustable waist belt, torso adjustments, stronger zippers, sturdy shoulder straps, 500D cordura / 210dHT double diamond ripstop material, both top and side access and a variety of features based on the specific use of the backpack. I.e. ice ax, crampons, skies, snow shovels etc.

My preference is for a large pack around 6000 cu in for a three day trek. with the features stated above. If I’m going light weight, then this pack stays at home but so does the comfort level.

A larger pack can easily weigh in at 6 lbs, twice as much as a typical weekend pack and will have more space than you may need. The packs compression straps will help secure your gear keeping it from moving around in the pack.

The internal frame, adjustable waist and torso support in the larger backpack allows the weight of your gear to be distributed evenly across your hips and shoulders. A smaller pack that may seem to be more appropriate for the amount of gear being hauled typically lacks these features and as a result, is more uncomfortable as the weight is not evenly distributed and becomes much more noticeable.

It’s important to factor in the type of terrain you hike, the season, you’re fitness level, the amount of gear carried and the specific use of the pack. The end results we are striving for is to feel less like a pack mule and avoid the aches and pains associated with a lesser quality pack. This makes for a more enjoyable trek into the back country.