Everyone except Bob thought it impossible. But I was there with him on the summit of White Mountain in California. Congratulations 4WheelBob!
Check Tom Mangan’s Two-Heel Drive blog for details.
rainbows best in the Yukon
I’ve only been there twice. But on those trips I’ve seen the best rainbows of my life.
(Is there any scientific support for this “crackpot at the end of the rainbow” theory of mine?)
Tombstones, Yukon
recommended survival gear – 2 oz. AeroVestâ„¢
Larry Smith of AeroVestâ„¢ asked me to test their ultralight, air inflated survival vest.
It works exactly as advertised. I highly recommend this product. And it’s very inexpensive at $15.
I tested it in the Tombstone mountains in the Yukon, not far from the Arctic Circle, inflating the vest in the evening and then sleeping in it all night. (This is me the following morning.)
As you can see, I survived.
AeroVest Survival Vest
The 2 oz. AeroVestâ„¢ is compact, lightweight and inexpensive insurance against emergencies. It packs up smaller than a deck of cards yet inflates into a full sized emergency vest that shields you from wind and rain. The silver lining refects radiated heat back to you while the 18 air pokets insulate you from the cold. …
* 18 air pockets help keep heat in, cold out.
* Your 98.6 degree breath provides instant warmth
* Bright Yellow/Orange exterior for increased visibility in an emergency
* AeroVestâ„¢ comes in a single size that can fit teens and adults up to XL (men’s 46 jacket)
It’s not necessarily something you need to add to your basic hiking kit — but the AeroVest would be ideal for a hiker to keep in the trunk of a vehicle, in a boat or at the cabin. Any place in fact where hypothermia is a risk.
hike trip report – Tombstone Range, Yukon
by BestHike editor Rick McCharles
I first heard of the Tombstone Mountains in 1999 from contributor Kelly Mock. It remained in my mind a magical, mythical hiking destination until this summer.
There are a number of ways to hike Tombstone. The best is to chopper in, hike out. At $20 / minute of flight time, we each paid over $200 for the flight.
Bad weather prevented us from landing where trip leader Dave Hayley intended, a high Cirque.
That turned out to be fortunate as the off-trail bushwhacking was much more difficult and slow than we expected. We quickly grew to hate Arctic Willow and Alder. In fact, we were forced to wild camp our second night well short of our intended destination, Talus Lake.
This was a bit of a hiking honeymoon for Dana and Bill who had been married just a few weeks earlier.
To get back on schedule, we bypassed Talus and continued to the Divide Lake campground
Dave Hayley was shocked to see new tent pads and toilets. In 5 previous trips to Tombstone he had never seen even a single other hiker.
The secret is out. It became a Territorial Park in 2004. Tombstone is now on the radar of northern hikers.
The crux of our hike was this Pass.
Bill carried an ice axe for our group as we expected the Pass to require some step cutting. But for some reason — there was very little snow on the Pass this August.
Hayley found the loose scree at the top of the Pass to be more dangerous and difficult than his past snow ascents.
Grizzly Lake campground is just as lovely as Talus and Divide.
After 5 days, 4 nights, our happy band of survivors walked out to Dempster Highway in about 6 hours. This is the closest access to the road for those who do not come in by helicopter.
Thanks to organizer Dave Hayley. This is his favourite place in the world. And one of mine too.
View over 125 photos from this trip on flickr.
Tombstone Park – Yukon government
hiking in Alaska … disappointing
Obviously there is great hiking in Alaska. The State has two-thirds of the Nation’s parkland.
Why did I have so much trouble finding great hiking?
I bought Hiking Alaska, 2nd: A Guide to Alaska’s Greatest Hiking Adventures by Dean Littlepage. (The second Falcon guide I purchased this year if you are keeping track.)
Littlepage provides a good overview — 100 hikes sorted in a convenient “trip finder”. He even list hikes for those without vehicles. (Thanks Dean.)
But we still had trouble finding the “best hikes in Alaska”.
Problems:
Fortunately we had our own vehicle. Unfortunately we had no mountain bikes (which would have been convenient for getting back to the car from the finishing trailhead).
The weather is always a worry in Alaska, especially coastal Alaska.
There are many wonderful things to do in Alaska. My feeling is that hiking is not highest priority for most visitors. We found the Yukon much more hiker-friendly, by comparison.
So far, here is our list of the best hikes in Alaska. If you can add to the list — hikes or hiking areas as good or better — leave a comment below.
• Chilkoot Trail Yukon / Alaska
• Chena Dome Trail (and Angel Rocks)
• Kesugi Ridge Trail Denali (McKinley)
• McGonagall Pass Denali (McKinley)
• Gates of the Arctic
(Feel free to include major treks requiring fly-in access, time and money.)
Patagonia or Yukon?
Where are these photos from?
Patagonia in South America?
Or the Yukon in Canada?
While hiking in the Tombstone range of the Ogilvie Mountains in the Yukon I was struck at how similar were those mountains to Paine and Fitz Roy in Patagonia.
In fact, I came to call Tombstone the “Patagonia of the North”.
The first photo is Yukon, the second Patagonia.
climbing White Mountain with 4WheelBob
Rick McCharles, besthike editor
Tomorrow morning Tom Mangan and I head out to rendezvous with wheelchair hiker 4WheelBob …
Read the details on Tom’s Two-Heel Drive blog (which is far better written than this one).
4WheelBob thinks he can wheel himself to the summit of White Mountain in the Eastern Sierra near Big Pine, CA. I’m going to tag along and document the experience here when we get back.
… We’ll be car camping at the Grandview Campground near the Ancient Bristlecone Pine forest till Wednesday morning, when we head up to the approach to White Mountain. Bob has a pass to park at the Barcroft Lab, six miles — and about 1,800 feet of climb — from the summit. He’s planning on camping on the mountain, summiting and returning on Thursday (he can go much much faster downhill). …
Tom and I are the safety support team. Though this is the easiest high mountain climb in the USA, it’s not easy. The odds are against us.
White Mountain – Wikipedia
hiking Alaska takes SKILL
Any idiot can hike in California.
But hiking the far North takes smarts. Route finding skills. Bush whacking skills. Survival skills.
GPS is essential, we feel.
Don’t count on calling in rescue with a satellite phone. They are far from 100% reliable.
If you plan to trek Alaska in future, start your research with Eric Molvar’s book. Published in 1996, it covers river crossings, snowfield travel, and glacier travel and wildlife very well.
Alaska on Foot: Wilderness Techniques for the Far North (Hiking & Climbing)
If we’d only studied this book in advance we’d have never crossed this snow bridge over a raging Alaskan creek above Whittier. Turns out it’s dangerous!
hiking out of Homer, Alaska
click for larger map
Every tourist loves charming Homer on the Kenai Peninsula.
We did not have time to hike Kachemak Bay State Park but I would love to go back one day. A water taxi can get you there quickly.
One of the largest coastal parks in the United States, Kachemak Bay State Park offers glaciers, mountains, islands, lakes, rugged shoreline and beaches, plus over 80 miles of trails, 20 developed campsites and five public use cabins. Bay Excursions transports people to the various trail heads and campsites.
Kachemak Bay State Park water taxi – Hiking and Camping
Portage Pass Trail – Alaska
We enjoyed the short Portage Pass Trail day hike out of Whittier.
Hiking author Dean Littlepage:
… A half-day or overnight hike to Portage Pass, Portage Lake, and an overlook of Portage Glacier.
Portage Pass is a beautiful spot in its own right, and this hike is also the easiest way to get a good view of the face of Portage Glacier since it melted back out of sight of the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center, in 1993.
A moderate hike to an outstanding destination, this trip offers a reward-to-effort ratio that’s right up there with the best Southcentral Alaska has to offer.
Portage Pass is a gap gouged out of the earth long ago by a lobe of Portage Glacier and opened up for hikers by the glacier’s retreat of the last century.
The trail has history too; in the 1890s, when the Alaska Gold Rush brought in the first big influx of non-Natives, steamships docked at the foot of Portage Pass, where Whittier is now, and dropped off prospectors headed for gold strikes near Hope and Sunrise on Turnagain Arm. They hauled their supplies up the steep east face of the glacier with ropes and pulleys, hiked a beaten path across the ice through Portage Pass, and rambled down to Turnagain Arm and the diggings.
Special features: A glacial landscape, alpine scenery, and historic interest.
Recommended for the Portage Trail is Hiking Alaska, 2nd: A Guide to Alaska’s Greatest Hiking Adventures
besthike.com 