Category: snow and ice

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where to hike Summer 2010

Hmm. …

I’m leaning towards the U.S.A.

Possibilities:

→ Sierra High Route, California

→ Continental Divide Trail – Indian Peaks Wilderness to the South San Juan Wilderness, Colorado

→ Lake Tahoe Rim Trail, California

→ Wonderland Trail, Washington

→ Enchantment Traverse, Washington (friends loved this area, hiking it this past summer)

→ Chinese Wall, Montana

→ Maroon Bells Loop, Colorado

Comments?

The toughest option there is the High Route. Route finding. Off-trail. Scrambles. Snow. Bugs. And no protection from the sun.

I’d try to duplicate the trip undertaken by the world’s greatest hiker, Andrew Skurka.

Skurka-Sierra

his trip report – Sierra High Route — July 2008

… Leave a comment if you’ve an opinion on the best hike of these listed. Or any other in the continental USA.

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Aletsch Glacier hike, Switzerland

The Grosser Aletschgletscher, the longest glacier in Europe, has recently been designated a UNESCO world heritage site, in recognition of its importance and uniqueness. And this place is special. The first sight of this awesome phenomenon is something a world apart from those diagrams in geography lessons, because this thing is enormous, ancient and on the move. Not millions of years ago, but now. And right there, from horizon to horizon, not a distant tongue of snow and ice poking over a rock wall.

This hike makes a memorable circuit of the Eggishorn, traversing along the slope above the immense glacier, before looping back to take in Southward-looking vistas of the Monte Rosa range and the Matterhorn. It’s a relatively flat walk too, with not much climbing required at all. …

Swiss Hike – Aletsch Glacier

I like the elevation map posted on that site.

aletsch1

Aletsch

more interesting photos tagged Aletsch

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trekking through snow in Corsica

Can you believe this is Corsica, France?

An island in the Mediterranean.

snow-in-Corsica

It’s from an excellent trip report of a 6 days, 95km trek through Corsica in May.

That’s the Trailblaze blog edited by Johannes Huwe, posted in both German and English.

Though snow has been rare on the island since 1979 (presumably due to climate change) the group had significant problems with snow and melt water in 2009.

Kev Reynolds calls the GR20 high-level route across Corsica one of the toughest 3 treks in Western Europe.

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Telescope Peak, Death Valley, in April

SummitJunkie posted a good trip report and photos from an April 9, 2009 summit of the best hike in Death Valley, California.

… The views were jaw dropping, perhaps some of the best I had seen on any peak I have ever climbed. You can see forever, there is nothing as high as you are for over a hundred miles. Absolutely amazing!!

I had to take my time with the pictures, my hands were freezing. I was also having problems with my camera, when the batteries get too cold they stop working. I had the same issue on Shasta and Whitney so knew the solution was to put the camera and batteries inside my jacket to keep them at operating temperature. So between switching hands and batteries, it took me 15 minutes to take these summit pictures. …

Death Valley Road Trip 4-09 Day 2

My own Telescope hike in early June was so easy, it’s hard to believe I was on the same mountain … only a couple of months later.

photo by SummitJunkie - click for larger
photo by SummitJunkie - click for larger
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hike Kearsarge Pass, Onion Valley, California

The 4.0-mile trail to 11,760-foot Kearsarge Pass switchbacks up a sunny slope towards its namesake mountain pass, providing access to a sparkling High Sierra lake basin, the John Muir Wilderness, and the dramatic backcountry mountain scenery of Kings Canyon National Park—superb destinations for any day hiker.

Begin your hike at the trailhead located at the end of Onion Valley Road (Market Street in town), a 13-mile drive from the town of Independence, California—starting at an elevation of 9,189 feet, you might already feel breathless …

Natural Born Hikers

Here’s the winding road that gets you up to over 9000ft.

trailhead

Quickly you reach that wonderful stoney Sierra landscape. I saw far more fishermen than hikers. Dogs are allowed as far as the Pass.

Sierra-waterfall

Rain threatened.

rain-clouds-over-the-mountain

But it just seemed to not be able to get over the mountains.

Sadly, I never made it to the “Pass” itself at 11,823ft. The snow was still heaped close to the top.

snow-on-the-trail

See all my photos from this half day hike.

Onion Valley was named one of the 10 best hikes in the Eastern Sierra.

But famed local author R. J. Secor pooh-poohed this hike, I read. He disparages it as over popular.

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climbing Island Peak, Nepal

intights from March 2008. Some nice trekking footage. Great music.

Compilation of short video clips and some stills taken on Trek from Lukla to Gokyo, over the Cho-La, to Gorak Shep, Everest base camp, then with an Ascent of Island Peak (Imja Tse). Includes additional photos/footage of Kathmandu and flight to/from Lukla.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. (8min)

The rest of this Aussie travel blog posts are well worth a browse.

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World’s Best Glacier Treks

As chosen by My Several Worlds:

… Glacier treks come in a range of exciting opportunities for beginners and experienced climbers. Experienced climbers who are looking for something more challenging than a standard day hike can try an introduction to the sport of ice climbing on the ice walls of a glacier. You can even combine the thrill of a helicopter ride with the opportunity to explore a remote part of the glacier on foot. A helicopter can take you on a scenic flight over the glaciers and surrounding region, and then drop you off for some intensive hiking and climbing. If you’re looking for an unforgettable travel experience, there are few things more rewarding or satisfying than spending a full day on ice.


1. The Franz Josef and Fox Glacier in the Southern Alps of New Zealand

2. Snæfellsjökull Glacier in Iceland

3. The Icefields Parkway in Canada

4. Kennicott, Alaska’s Root Glacier

5. The Swiss Alps, Switzerland The Aletsch Glacier

6. Patagonia, Argentina and Chile The Southern Patagonian Ice Fields

7. Bolivia

8. The Peruvian Andes

9. Nepal and the Indian Himalayas

10. Bhutan.

For photos click through to My Several Worlds – The World’s Best Glacier Trekking Getaways

The Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina is the BEST I’ve visited.

larger original – flickr – Matito

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickmccharles/sets/72157612420033468/">my Perito Moreno photos</a>

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7 trekkers die in the mountains


Himalayas?

Andes?

Nope. The UK.

Icy conditions in the fell country lead to seven trekker deaths on Wales’ Mt. Snowdon and the English Peak and Lake Districts.

Terrible.

I had no idea that winter walking in the United Kingdom was so dangerous.

tents-mt-snowdon

The lesson here? Easy is all about conditions. When the slopes and trails are wet, or muddy, or icy, or the lightning’s flying and the wind’s howling, your easy hike just turned into a big deal. Whenever you go into the woods in winter, never scrimp on safety and travel equipment like poles, crampons, axes, skis, snowshoes, gaiters, goggles, bivy gear and clothing.

You have two choices out there: If you’re ready for the conditions, have fun. If you’re not, turn around. It’s a simple decision, but one that people often have a hard time making. If you let desire pull you onward when you’re not prepared….well, you can learn from the examples above, or learn it on your own. Always do your suffering vicariously.

Hike safe. – Steve Howe

Backpacker – Danger in the British Isles

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Torres del Paine Circuit trek, Chile


Hank Leukart posted a magazine quality essay on one of our top treks in the World, the Paine Circuit.

Adopted by Kiwis in Chilean Patagonia. How to hike the Torres del Paine Circuit on someone else’s family vacation

… The only thing standing between us and views of 270-square-kilometer Glaciar Grey was Paso John Garner, a steep and rocky pass through the Patagonian Andes Mountains. My brother Brian and I looked up nervously at the severe mountain crags and glacial ice surrounding us, and though we hadn’t been able to substantiate the rumors of a lost hiker’s death during a blizzard in the pass three days before, the gossip made us uneasy. We knew that some hikers had turned back, failing to conquer the pass due to dangerous weather. …

glaciar-grey

read the 3-part series article on Without Baggage

Especially if you want to find out why Hank decided to climb on to an iceberg.

hank

related posts – more Without Baggage trip reports

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Mongolia or Baffin Island?

Kraig on The Adventure Blog profiled two upcoming projects:

  • Expedition: Mongolia 2010
  • Expedition: Baffin Babes 2009

    • … former British solider Ripley Davis will set out on a solo, unsupported trek across Mongolia in an effort to raise funds and awareness of the Hope and Homes for Children project, and UNICEF.

    The expedition is slated to get underway next April, with Ripley pulling all of his supplies behind him in a wheeled cart. He anticipates that he’ll be towing more than 100kg (220 pounds) of gear over a 3000km (1865 miles) course between 47º and 50º north latitude. The journey is expected to take roughly 90 days. …

    //www.flickr.com/photos/tiarescott/33324648/sizes/l/">larger original</a> - flickr - tiarescott
    larger original - flickr - tiarescott

    Expedition: Mongolia 2010

    … And for the ladies:

    … 80 day ski expedition through Baffin Island beginning in March. The plan is to ski over 1400km (870 miles) as they survey the impact of climate change on the fragile environments on the island, while visiting three remote Inuit villages along the way.

    The team consists of Vera and Emma Simonsson of Sweden and Ingebjoerg Tollefsen, and Kristin Folsland Olsen of Norway. …

    baffin_babes_kort_fin_lowres

    Baffin Babes 2009