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The Leonids Return

Heads up night owls! Killer meteor shower on Monday night!

   Meteors over Capitol Reef. The small streaks are shooting stars; the red streak is Mars.  pic: Howe

Start napping now, so you can stay awake on Monday night, when this old, well-used Earth is getting ready to hurtle at 147,000 miles per hour through the thickest section of tail debris left by comet Tempel-Tuttle. The collision could generate one of the best meteor showers in recent history - or maybe even a disaster of blockbuster proportions, kind of a lead-up to 2012 or whatever Nostradumus catastrophe is currently fashionable for cable TV 'history' channels.

But it'll probably just be a great sky show. And even if it does presage the end of the world by explosion, invasion, or alien viruses showering from the heavens, wouldn't you rather watch it all from atop some scenic ridgetop, wrapped in a blanket with your honey and a few bottles, instead of chewing your nails on the couch and listening to talking newsheads screech about stock market implications of the apocalypse?

Yes! Obviously! So here's your field-trip assignment campers: Read Full Story...

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Wednesday, November 11, 2009 in: Survival, Skills & tips, Wierd/funny
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Lunchbox's Disaster Roundup

The beloved star of our in-book feature "The Predicament," Lunchbox the Cadaver Sniffing Dog, brings you a round-up of this week's outdoor predicaments, disasters, and near-misses

[Ed. note: This is the first post from Lunchbox—impressive for an animal without opposable thumbs, so be kind.]

Lunchbox here—you may remember me from "The Predicament" in BACKPACKER's magazine. I'm pretty cute, in an ugly-dog sort of way, but you don't want to meet me out on the trail. They call me out when things go wrong and everyone suspects the worse. But there's a lot you can do to avoid that: Let's take a look at this week's predicaments to sniff out what we can learn. Read Full Story...

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Friday, October 23, 2009 in: Skills, Weird and Funny, Survival, Lunchbox Disaster Roundup
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Trail Chef: Quinoa-Mushroom Soup

This heartwarming soup goes hand-in-hand with fall foliage hikes and cooler camping

Our usual Trail Chef is on break this week—normally bad news for you, since my version of "backcountry cooking" consists of throwing a couple bouillon cubes in a bag of beef jerky with some hot water and calling it a day. Luckily, when she heard about my plan to share my recipe for Slacker Stew, she came to the rescue with BACKPACKER contributor Nicole Spiridakis's Quinoa-Mushroom Soup.

This soup combines everyone's favorite South American wonder grain with that most flavorful of fungi. It's perfect for the cool fall camping we all can expect this weekend and beyond. Check it:
Read Full Story...

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Thursday, October 22, 2009 in: Trail Chef, Skills
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Grand Canyon Summer

The Big Ditch had its share of rescues and deaths this season

As of press time, at least six actual hiker/backpackers had died in the canyon. Here's a brief recap of the more interesting incidents. Common themes  were solo travel, and/or lack of advance preparation - such as obtaining current information, carrying enough water, leaving a route itinerary, or getting a required permit. I hope these brief sketches will help others avoid similar mayhem, but I'm buried with magazine work right now, so visit the Grand Canyon National Park's Hike Smart page for specific tips.


April 30th: Three young men, Mark Merril (16), Joey Merrill (22), and Saif Savaya (16),  jumped into the spring-swollen Colorado River at Boat Beach near Phantom Ranch, where the main corridor trails cross on the Silver Bridge at River Mile 88, and attempted to swim across the swift current that runs through Granite Gorge. The trio were visiting the park in a 30-person Baptist church group on their annual Grand Canyon hiking retreat. All three were swept into Bright Angel Rapids, a swiftwater section that runs beneath the Bridge. Mark Merrill's body was found a mile downstream on May 1st. The other two weren't located until May 15th, below Boucher Rapids, over ten miles downriver from where they jumped in. Read Full Story...

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Thursday, October 15, 2009 in: Survival, Skills & tips
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Smarten up

A smarmy checklist of 8 steps that would prevent most searches, rescues and deaths in the woods

Hey campers, I've been reviewing the summer's more interesting and/or instructional rescue incidents and basically yawning over 95% of them. Not to minimize the pain, suffering and pathos of the several dozen unfortunates who died or were injured by falls, heat stroke, hypothermia, or kayaking accidents this summer, but the vast majority of mayhem was caused by what park rangers call 'vacation brain', and what outdoor writers call 'the naturalist's trance.'

Basically, you're in the glorious outdoors, ecstatic to get away from urban or career hell, and you relax, watching the clouds, listening to bird calls, rippling water, and wind blowing through the pines. And then suddenly it's dusk, you're not sure where you are, the temperature's dropping, and it's started to rain. All of a sudden nature's not so fun.

This does not just occur to urban refugees btw; The modern ski-town crop of lycra-sheathed hardbodies has had their share of 'training mishaps' this summer, setting off on hammer trail runs without map, compass or awareness, and scrambling peaks in ultralight, ultra-clueless style.

Since survival is all about avoiding survival scenarios, not perservering through them, it's fairly easy to stay out of trouble (most of the time) using a few simple measures. This is not rocket science: Read Full Story...

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Tuesday, October 06, 2009 in: Survival, Skills & tips
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The Guiding Life: Part III

Thoughts on leading a dozen guests through big, bad wilderness

Yo Campers. I've returned from guiding and am back in magazine mode (i.e. stuffed in a closet, pounding keyboard). But here's a a quick recap of my last foray through Zion and Bryce before I dive into assignment catch-up lest the editor's spank me.

Leading a 12-person group was awesome, and demanding, even with a solid assistant guide and a full compliment of upstanding, understanding hikers. For one, with any large group there will be differences in athleticism, pace, temperament and desire. Some people want to hammer. Some want to contemplate. Some are curious about geology and natural history, while others just want to ogle pink rock and blue skies. More people equals more variation in said parameters, but  you've got to keep everyone reasonably together, happy, interested, involved, and last but definitely not least, safe.

This can be a balancing act, and it requires reading each person subtly, especially when high temperatures and sun suddenly make a straightforward hike rather trying, as they did in Bryce. Taken as a whole, the week reminded me forcefully that leading groups is all about fun, but it's no simple walk in the park. Read Full Story...

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Wednesday, September 30, 2009 in: Survival, Skills & tips
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Tent Packing: Stuff, Roll, Or Fold?

Tackling the age-old question

At the end of every outdoor adventure, you're confronted with an inscrutable dilemma: Do you stuff, roll, or fold your tent into its stuffsack? Poll your fellow hikers and you'll see everyone has a technique and a reason for why theirs is the best. Challenge them, and you might get a tent pole in the eye.

An informal poll of the BACKPACKER office confirms we're 87.5 percent pro-stuffing. But a lot of our reasoning is unscientific (outside of one staffer who claims to divide his choice—70 percent stuff, 25 percent roll, and 5 percent fold—depending on the tent). One staffer admits, "I stuff (even though I’ve been told it’s better to roll)."

Ryan Dionne of Explore It! went to the source, asking tent manufacturers from every major brand both what they recommend and what they do themselves. Most recommend rolling, noting that the tents come from a factory pre-rolled, and that rolling can save space in your pack. When it comes to their personal life, though, even tent manufacturers get lazy and just stuff it: Read Full Story...

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Tuesday, August 25, 2009 in: Skills
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Ultraheavy Backpacking

Forget ultralight—ultraheavy backpacking enables you to take, well, everything into the backcountry.

At BACKPACKER, we're generally big advocates of going as light as you can go while on the trail (check out August's "Ultralight Done Right" to learn how). But while espousing the virtues of cutting down pack weight without minimizing safety or comfort too much, we wonder what we might be missing out on.

Thanks to elite extreme skier Andrew McLean, now we know. In a recent blog post, he highlights the virtues of a revolutionary new camping concept: Ultra Heavy Backpacking. On a recent ski trip, he packed in 225 pounds of food and gear plus 100 pounds of gas and fuel. Here's McLean on his ethos:

I think I first learned about Ultraheavy camping through Lorne Glick when we brought along frying pans, bacon, cook tents, speakers, triple servings of Costco cheese and all sorts of other stuff on a trip to Mt. Hunter.  From where the plane dropped us off, we hauled all of our gear a grand total of about a mile down the glacier on sleds, set up base camp and left it.

Eating freeze dried food and waking up every time your partner moves in a tiny little two person tent is okay for a day or so, but it takes its toll after a week or more.

Oh, so there's a plane involved, eh? Cheater! Seriously, though, McLean's expeditions rely on the ability to wait out horrendous conditions for a perfect weather window, and if you've gotta wait out a storm, why not do it in extreme, gluttonous comfort? Here are some outstandingly heavy and awesome additions on his food list alone: Read Full Story...

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Thursday, August 20, 2009 in: Skills, Weird and Funny
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The Big Trip

Thoughts on adventure organization from the depths of packing hell

                Trekking the Bagley Icefield, Wrangell-St. Elias, AK

For a feral outdoor writer like myself, big wilderness assignments are the juice of the job, the what-gets-you-off part. Sure, it's rewarding seeing your words and photos in print, but nothing compares to a month in big, brawling wilderness. I bring this up because I'm frantically finishing up biz and packing to leave for a four-week recreational survey of Alaska.

Hey, nice work if you can get it, but the logistics are daunting; stringing together multiple hikes, overnights and five-day trips in rapid-fire style. There's not much leeway for rain, bugs, unexpected swamps or 'gee this is bigger than I thought'. Right now it's less than a week till blast-off, but I've also got the Outdoor Retailer Show to drop by, two feature drafts to submit, and a lot of gear to sort and pack. Amid the chaos of finding my 'old reliable' stuff, reading maps, and prepping kits of various types, I've come up with some tips for fellow hike-a-holics who might be prepping for an annual summer expedition.

[] Keep a master calendar that includes the lead-up to your trip: You can print custom pdf calendars free off the internet. Pencil and count off days, write down airline times, allow for travel and shuttles, record important details like the time and place of a rendezvous, possible route delays, numbers of motels or outfitters.  The visual layout of a calendar helps you accurately budget days and avoid list-induced mistakes. Read Full Story...

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Monday, July 20, 2009 in: Survival, Skills & tips
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Really Lost Hikers and Slow Evacuations

Striking case histories from Australia and the slopes of Mount Terror

          Ruined Castle Overlook, Blue Mountains, Australia

Well, the summer vacation season is well underway and my news feeds are bulging with mostly boring hiker-takes-off-with-zero-preparation-and-gets-lost–overnight stories. But a couple cases stand out.
Climber Spends Four Nights on Mount Terror After Friend Rescued
On July 1^st, four climbers entered the remote, rugged Southern Picket Range in Washington state, set up a camp in Crescent Creek Basin, and spent two days climbing alpine routes on Inspiration, West McMillan Spire, Degenhardt and The Pyramid. On their fourth day  they began the North Ridge of Mount Terror (III-IV, 5.8) a long, committing alpine climb to the Southern Picket’s highest summit.

According to party member Steph Abegg’s first-hand trip report on SummitPost.org, they were about a third of the way up the route, climbing as two rope teams of two each, when the lead climber, Steve Trent, pulled a huge block loose, took a 60-foot fall, and ended up with head injuries, a shattered heel, and a broken femur. Only the fact that they were climbing on twin 8mm ropes saved him, since one of the ropes was cut to the core by rockfall.

The remaining trio managed to get the unconscious Trent to a ledge, bandage his head and splint his leg. The injuries were far too serious for self-evacuation, so the group decided that one rope team should climb on to the false summit of Terror to get a cell signal, while the third, Jason Schilling, who had the most First Aid training, would remain on the face with Trent. Read Full Story...

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Wednesday, July 15, 2009 in: Survival, Skills & tips
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