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A thread for backpackers
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Dan S
·Early july, I coach/ guide a few youths for a 10-day trekking somewhere in europe. This year has been a bit weird, but tge french pyrenees and a bunch of good humoured 17yo’s have made it into another memorable trip. And we got to see the tour de france pass by. Not much photos though…
That looks like a blast! It's really fun to introduce people to this lifelong activity.
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Dan S
·The day hiking took us to Argentière... I can now better feel the limits of Neo, with his 9 1/2 years of age and mainly his arthritis...
He enjoys it much but it has to be limited in length and with pauses. So we agreed everybod should enjoy the break.
It's wonderful to have that kind of access to those gorgeous mountains ... and beer!. I'm glad you are still taking Neo.
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Dan S
·Well, a bit of an adventure this past weekend. I had planned a three-night trip in the Mt. Zirkel Wilderness in northern Colorado but we ran into an unexpected situation and had to change plans.
We are having a heat wave this summer, and Zelda was struggling at the beginning of the hike, but as we got higher, it cooled off, and we took a snack break at Rainbow Lake.
After another few miles (and a short hailstorm), we hiked into Slide Lake and set up camp.
As the sun set, I saw the first sign of trouble.
The next morning, I saw some ash on my pack, which had been lying outside the tent,
Continuing up to the Continental Divide, we passed some ponds, and approached the Divide via a trail that passed through typical Zirkel rolling terrain with lots of exposed granite above timberline.
Passing over the Continental Divide to the west side, I smelled smoke and the air quality became very poor. At this point, I turned on my satellite communicator and sent my wife a message to tell her about the conditions. She contacted the local ranger station and found that a forest fire had started the same morning as I started my hike. It is called the Morgan Creek Fire. However, they said it was small and probably did not present a problem beyond air quality, so I decided to continue.
We hiked on and eventually arrived at our planned campsite at another alpine lake. Things were looking worse and worse, so I contacted my wife again. She said that the fire had grown, and was headed slowly in my direction. She contacted the Forest Service again, and they said that the area was going to be officially closed that evening, and they recommended that I return to the East side of the Divide, if possible. It had been a long day and I had already set up my campsite, but after giving it some thought, I decided to pack up and backtrack and cut my trip short.
Zelda was tired, but she was a trooper as always, as we slogged back up to the Divide and headed back north.
The conditions were more appealing on the East side, which made me feel better about my decision.
This was a long day, and farther than I like to hike. But in the end, we found a nice campsite by a pond at timberline, and hiked out safely the next day.
Very disappointing trip, since I had planned to spend an extra night and visit one of my favorite parts of this wilderness. Unfortunately, the fires are really bad this year, and starting much earlier than usual. I'm afraid this may be the new normal. At the time I'm writing this, the Morgan Creek Fire is about 4,000 acres in size and still growing. Since they don't generally fight fires in wilderness areas, some of my favorite part of this wilderness may burn.
We are having a heat wave this summer, and Zelda was struggling at the beginning of the hike, but as we got higher, it cooled off, and we took a snack break at Rainbow Lake.
After another few miles (and a short hailstorm), we hiked into Slide Lake and set up camp.
As the sun set, I saw the first sign of trouble.
The next morning, I saw some ash on my pack, which had been lying outside the tent,
Continuing up to the Continental Divide, we passed some ponds, and approached the Divide via a trail that passed through typical Zirkel rolling terrain with lots of exposed granite above timberline.
Passing over the Continental Divide to the west side, I smelled smoke and the air quality became very poor. At this point, I turned on my satellite communicator and sent my wife a message to tell her about the conditions. She contacted the local ranger station and found that a forest fire had started the same morning as I started my hike. It is called the Morgan Creek Fire. However, they said it was small and probably did not present a problem beyond air quality, so I decided to continue.
We hiked on and eventually arrived at our planned campsite at another alpine lake. Things were looking worse and worse, so I contacted my wife again. She said that the fire had grown, and was headed slowly in my direction. She contacted the Forest Service again, and they said that the area was going to be officially closed that evening, and they recommended that I return to the East side of the Divide, if possible. It had been a long day and I had already set up my campsite, but after giving it some thought, I decided to pack up and backtrack and cut my trip short.
Zelda was tired, but she was a trooper as always, as we slogged back up to the Divide and headed back north.
The conditions were more appealing on the East side, which made me feel better about my decision.
This was a long day, and farther than I like to hike. But in the end, we found a nice campsite by a pond at timberline, and hiked out safely the next day.
Very disappointing trip, since I had planned to spend an extra night and visit one of my favorite parts of this wilderness. Unfortunately, the fires are really bad this year, and starting much earlier than usual. I'm afraid this may be the new normal. At the time I'm writing this, the Morgan Creek Fire is about 4,000 acres in size and still growing. Since they don't generally fight fires in wilderness areas, some of my favorite part of this wilderness may burn.
Edited:
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LesXL
·Despite the shorten trip, it did look as you enjoy each other company and the wilderness looks stunning!!' I must say, maybe a bit bias, that Zelda is stunning!! Such a good travel companion!
Today day hike took us to Tour. We first took the cabin lift, then a ski lift to go up to 2100m height. We walk to a refuge by the Swiss border then back down.
It was just enough for Neo and he enjoyed the picnic break, and the walk.
A few years ago, from the same spot we went to the refuge Albert, around 2700m I believe, which is beautiful and with an amazing view. Unfortunately, Neo is no longer able to do it without being too much on his back with his arthritis.
He is still quite mobile, we just need to find the good balance for him to enjoy a full week of long hikes. He does sleep well once back at the tent, and at night 😀
Now some pictures 😀
Today day hike took us to Tour. We first took the cabin lift, then a ski lift to go up to 2100m height. We walk to a refuge by the Swiss border then back down.
It was just enough for Neo and he enjoyed the picnic break, and the walk.
A few years ago, from the same spot we went to the refuge Albert, around 2700m I believe, which is beautiful and with an amazing view. Unfortunately, Neo is no longer able to do it without being too much on his back with his arthritis.
He is still quite mobile, we just need to find the good balance for him to enjoy a full week of long hikes. He does sleep well once back at the tent, and at night 😀
Now some pictures 😀
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Dan S
·Today day hike took us to Tour. We first took the cabin lift, then a ski lift to go up to 2100m height. We walk to a refuge by the Swiss border then back down.
Amazing that you were allowed to take Neo on that chairlift. I can't imagine that would be allowed in the US, people are so concerned with liability. In the last photo, it looks like he is pretty interested in the cows. 😀
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LesXL
·Amazing that you were allowed to take Neo on that chairlift. I can't imagine that would be allowed in the US, people are so concerned with liability. In the last photo, it looks like he is pretty interested in the cows. 😀
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Waltesefalcon
·@Dan S you're in my old backyard. As a kid I lived in the San Luis Valley just north of the Great Sand Dunes in Crestone, and further up north of Salida in Bueno Vista. I've spent a lot time around the area you've been backpacking through and your photos bring back a lot of memories.
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Dan S
·@Dan S you're in my old backyard. As a kid I lived in the San Luis Valley just north of the Great Sand Dunes in Crestone, and further up north of Salida in Bueno Vista. I've spent a lot time around the area you've been backpacking through and your photos bring back a lot of memories.
You might have seen I posted some photos of a trip I did last year out of Crestone into the Sangre de Cristos. That is just an incredible area.
It must have been interesting living in such a small isolated town, Crestone. Buena Vista seems more substantial, at least these days, and Salida is definitely not flying under the radar anymore. I think that a lot of people moved to that area during COVID.
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Waltesefalcon
·You might have seen I posted some photos of a trip I did last year out of Crestone into the Sangre de Cristos. That is just an incredible area.
It must have been interesting living in such a small isolated town, Crestone. Buena Vista seems more substantial, at least these days, and Salida is definitely not flying under the radar anymore. I think that a lot of people moved to that area during COVID.
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Walrus
·Damn what a pressure cooker of day. I was getting hit from all sides. Really needed to decompress hit at trail and sprinted. Need to away from civilization. Hit a new trail and sprinted a mile. Wanted to make sure I’d Need to use caution upon my return as it was unfamiliar territory. Got little too deep no civilization in any direction. Then noticed a pretty mushroom just hanging out quite peacefully.
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Walrus
·Remember, all mushrooms are edible! It’s just that some are only edible once! 😉
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LesXL
·Tuesday was a rainy day, so we couldn't really go up the mountain with Neo. So we adventured ourselves to a little walk to the neighbouring town of Les Houches, which is a great starting site for mountain bikers.
We did crossed some nice little streams and by the end of the day, the sky cleared up for a couple of hours, to light the mountains on our backyard 😀
We did crossed some nice little streams and by the end of the day, the sky cleared up for a couple of hours, to light the mountains on our backyard 😀
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Dan S
·Some photos from four recent days in the South San Juan Wilderness area of Colorado.
The hike started with a crossing of the Conejos River. Zelda was not a fan. This is her "please don't make me do that again" look. Unfortunately, we'll need to get back to the car somehow.
The Notch Trail climbed steeply for several miles.
Reached the high plateau under gloomy skies with some rain and intermittent thunderstorms.
Made camp near a creek in nice weather.
The next day we headed out across miles of high tundra. Fortunately the skies were clear, since these cairns can be really hard to follow if the visibility isn't great. Though I've been here many times, it's still easy to lose my way.
I have no idea what motivated people to build these massive twin cairns, but it is one of my favorite landmarks.
We saw dozens of elk.
Picturesque section of the Continental Divide Trail.
Chama Lake is accessed by crossing a bit of talus.
We took a look at Chama Lake, and then hiked back up to camp above it.
Campsite in some cool boulders overlooking Chama Lake.
Zelda hunting for critters around camp.
Crossing the talus on the way out of the Chama Lake valley. This type of terrain is obviously hard on bare paws, but she's always a trooper.
Returning to the Continental Divide, I decided to take a short-cut across this rise at about 12.5k feet.
The climb yielded some amazing views, including this one of Trail Lake.
At this time of year, we usually have large fields of snow to cross in this area, but snow was in short supply this year.
Taking a break in the shade.
On an off-trail section, we were surprised to find this piece of gear just sitting in a clearing. A remote weather station apparently.
Returning to Alverjones Lake, I looked for this distinctive rock with a built-in water dish. It's my favorite campsite here.
This is Zelda's "dinner is over, I'm ready to go into the tent" look.
Lots of wildlife near this campsite. Coyotes and elk kept us up all night, and then this marmot was just toying with Zelda all morning.
A large party set up these massive tents in one of @Canoeist's favorite haunts on Rough Creek. These were actually the only people I saw over my four day trip. Actually, I didn't see any people, but I assume they were in the tents.
Some sections of this trail are extremely wet and not well-traveled.
Descending through Aspens at lower elevations and back to the trailhead after a final river crossing. It's a long drive for me to access this wilderness, but definitely one of my favorites in Colorado, and still flying a bit under the radar.
The hike started with a crossing of the Conejos River. Zelda was not a fan. This is her "please don't make me do that again" look. Unfortunately, we'll need to get back to the car somehow.
The Notch Trail climbed steeply for several miles.
Reached the high plateau under gloomy skies with some rain and intermittent thunderstorms.
Made camp near a creek in nice weather.
The next day we headed out across miles of high tundra. Fortunately the skies were clear, since these cairns can be really hard to follow if the visibility isn't great. Though I've been here many times, it's still easy to lose my way.
I have no idea what motivated people to build these massive twin cairns, but it is one of my favorite landmarks.
We saw dozens of elk.
Picturesque section of the Continental Divide Trail.
Chama Lake is accessed by crossing a bit of talus.
We took a look at Chama Lake, and then hiked back up to camp above it.
Campsite in some cool boulders overlooking Chama Lake.
Zelda hunting for critters around camp.
Crossing the talus on the way out of the Chama Lake valley. This type of terrain is obviously hard on bare paws, but she's always a trooper.
Returning to the Continental Divide, I decided to take a short-cut across this rise at about 12.5k feet.
The climb yielded some amazing views, including this one of Trail Lake.
At this time of year, we usually have large fields of snow to cross in this area, but snow was in short supply this year.
Taking a break in the shade.
On an off-trail section, we were surprised to find this piece of gear just sitting in a clearing. A remote weather station apparently.
Returning to Alverjones Lake, I looked for this distinctive rock with a built-in water dish. It's my favorite campsite here.
This is Zelda's "dinner is over, I'm ready to go into the tent" look.
Lots of wildlife near this campsite. Coyotes and elk kept us up all night, and then this marmot was just toying with Zelda all morning.
A large party set up these massive tents in one of @Canoeist's favorite haunts on Rough Creek. These were actually the only people I saw over my four day trip. Actually, I didn't see any people, but I assume they were in the tents.
Some sections of this trail are extremely wet and not well-traveled.
Descending through Aspens at lower elevations and back to the trailhead after a final river crossing. It's a long drive for me to access this wilderness, but definitely one of my favorites in Colorado, and still flying a bit under the radar.
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LesXL
·Some photos from four recent days in the South San Juan Wilderness area of Colorado.
The hike started with a crossing of the Conejos River. Zelda was not a fan. This is her "please don't make me do that again" look. Unfortunately, we'll need to get back to the car somehow.
The Notch Trail climbed steeply for several miles.
Reached the high plateau under gloomy skies with some rain and intermittent thunderstorms.
Made camp near a creek in nice weather.
The next day we headed out across miles of high tundra. Fortunately the skies were clear, since these cairns can be really hard to follow if the visibility isn't great. Though I've been here many times, it's still easy to lose my way.
I have no idea what motivated people to build these massive twin cairns, but it is one of my favorite landmarks.
We saw dozens of elk.
Picturesque section of the Continental Divide Trail.
Chama Lake is accessed by crossing a bit of talus.
We took a look at Chama Lake, and then hiked back up to camp above it.
Campsite in some cool boulders overlooking Chama Lake.
Zelda hunting for critters around camp.
Crossing the talus on the way out of the Chama Lake valley. This type of terrain is obviously hard on bare paws, but she's always a trooper.
Returning to the Continental Divide, I decided to take a short-cut across this rise at about 12.5k feet.
The climb yielded some amazing views, including this one of Trail Lake.
At this time of year, we usually have large fields of snow to cross in this area, but snow was in short supply this year.
Taking a break in the shade.
On an off-trail section, we were surprised to find this piece of gear just sitting in a clearing. A remote weather station apparently.
Returning to Alverjones Lake, I looked for this distinctive rock with a built-in water dish. It's my favorite campsite here.
This is Zelda's "dinner is over, I'm ready to go into the tent" look.
Lots of wildlife near this campsite. Coyotes and elk kept us up all night, and then this marmot was just toying with Zelda all morning.
A large party set up these massive tents in one of @Canoeist's favorite haunts on Rough Creek. These were actually the only people I saw over my four day trip. Actually, I didn't see any people, but I assume they were in the tents.
Some sections of this trail are extremely wet and not well-traveled.
Descending through Aspens at lower elevations and back to the trailhead after a final river crossing. It's a long drive for me to access this wilderness, but definitely one of my favorites in Colorado, and still flying a bit under the radar.
So nice to see and hear wildlife and the silence at night in the mountains.
And Neo is quite jealous of Zelda's jumper! He wouldn't mind one for the cold camping nights 😀
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Dan S
·And Neo is quite jealous of Zelda's jumper! He wouldn't mind one for the cold camping nights 😀
It can be quite cold at night in the mountains as you know, sometimes below freezing even in the summer. And Zelda has a very short coat of fur, so the fleece is necessary. That jacket is actually a hand-me-down IIRC, my dog Piper wore it before her. Here is Piper at age 5.
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Dan S
·Something different. My brother and niece were visiting from out of state, and neither has does any backpacking experience, or even car-camping really. It was challenging for them, but I managed to find a route and destination in the Raggeds Wilderness that was in their comfort zone for an overnight. A few wilderflowers, some nice mountain views, a comfortable established campsite, and hopefully an enjoyable introduction to the activity.
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Walrus
·
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