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Those things always tickle me, but they also get me feeling some sort of way. Like, clearly, some of them are jokes (“I didn’t even get to touch lava” my favorite of that sort) but others are just a brief glimpse into the psyches of some broken people. How miserable and jaded do you have to be to visit some of these sites and just say “it’s just some dumb fuckin rocks”?
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Jul 18, 2023 21:10
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WoodrowSkillson posted:being from Michigan isle royale getting "no cell service and bad wifi" rules as does "all the attractions are rocks" at Pictured Rocks national Lakeshore and "not much to do" at the Sleeping Bear Dunes national lakeshore I worked at Kings Canyon NP in Grant Grove last year and I had a visitor tell me we had "the worst cell service of any park [he'd] been to" to which I could only respond with 
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Jul 18, 2023 21:25
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How are you supposed to livepost to your Grams and your Toks without cell service, huh genious?
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Jul 18, 2023 21:42
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btw if you get the chance everyone should go to isle royale. you can take a seaplane there which whips rear end, and while there are no real mountains there are also no bears or deer ticks. its gorgeous and cool as gently caress to stand on the greenstone ridge and see Lake Superior in the distance both to your northwest and southeast.
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Jul 18, 2023 22:06
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“Just boil some water at home” is very funny.
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Jul 19, 2023 00:37
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I'm planning a camping trip to the Pacific NW for the last week of September. Haven't settled on the details, but I'd like to visit one of the National Parks in the region (Crater Lake, North Cascades, Rainer or Olympia). However the time window of the trip will fall after the campgrounds stop taking reservations and are open on a first-come-first-serve basis. My question is how much trouble will I have just finding an open camp? I estimate that I'll be reaching the park between 1 and 3 Pacific Time.
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Jul 19, 2023 03:09
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Well they stop taking reservations because the crowds have died down, so you'll probably be fine. I don't have any specific experience with that area but around me the off season means lots of availability. I did get a couple nights at Newhalem (near north cascades) just after reservations started and the campground was 90% empty on a Wednesday. It did get more busy on Friday though, not sure if it was to capacity though. That was in late May.
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Jul 19, 2023 03:26
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xzzy posted:Well they stop taking reservations because the crowds have died down, so you'll probably be fine. I don't have any specific experience with that area but around me the off season means lots of availability. I figured that was the logic for no longer requiring them. I wanted to check to see if this was something that gets gamed. One of my favorite state parks to visit does have a rather lively  "off season" , so I want to avoid running into trouble.
SirPhoebos fucked around with this message at 03:36 on Jul 19, 2023 |
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Jul 19, 2023 03:33
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Like xzzy indicated, midweek will always be better for campsite hunting. If you can aim to show up on a Tuesday or Wednesday, your odds will be better. Keep in mind that Crater Lake is quite a ways south in Oregon. Umpqua NF is down there, and Willamette NF and Bend areas aren't super far, so it's not completely empty. But it's definitely a decent drive from many attractions people like to visit in Oregon. Also southern Oregon is annually fire these days. But what isn't any more.
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Jul 19, 2023 03:52
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Most of the campgrounds in North Cascades and Rainier close soon after the reservation period ends. Good weather may keep them open longer with limited services but obviously it's hard to know that in advance. That and road closures are the real issue with visiting those parks in late September. It's less of a concern at Olympic because the campgrounds are at lower elevations and are generally open year-round. A good alternative option is to camp in a national forest just outside the park boundary. The national forest campgrounds are open until they get snowed in and are rarely full outside of holiday weekends.
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Jul 19, 2023 20:21
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There are many more NFS campgrounds than NPS. I would screw around on Google Maps taking a look around the periphery of the parks for campgrounds that look good and then look them up on rec.gov
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Jul 20, 2023 06:26
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I was warned that backpacking in Lofoten, Norway is tough because "its so steep". I was prepared for steep but I was not prepared for class 3 and 4 scrambles, scary exposure, and ridiculous route finding and bushwhacking on the single flat mile over a 3 day trip. My quads have never hurt so bad but that was the best trip and the most amazing scenery I've ever seen. Totally recommend. Also no bears (or any animals really) or ticks was a great bonus. Edit: also it's really hard to sleep in a tent when the sun is up for 24 hours all day every day marsisol fucked around with this message at 20:42 on Jul 21, 2023 |
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Jul 21, 2023 20:38
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SirPhoebos posted:I'm planning a camping trip to the Pacific NW for the last week of September. Haven't settled on the details, but I'd like to visit one of the National Parks in the region (Crater Lake, North Cascades, Rainer or Olympia). However the time window of the trip will fall after the campgrounds stop taking reservations and are open on a first-come-first-serve basis. My question is how much trouble will I have just finding an open camp? I estimate that I'll be reaching the park between 1 and 3 Pacific Time. i just spent a week on the west side of the olympics. i've backpacked solo my entire adult life. i'll give my full recommendation to spend time there; i've only had a couple of moments of genuine, continued, vocal exasperation at how magnificent a place is. hiking among the old growth found there was one of them. if you go, i'll pay attention to this thread and PM you what appears to be a very poorly known place that is a genuine treasure. e: if you're looking at fall, the river valleys of the olympics are still hikable then. they're all quite long and beautiful, very easy hiking. at the end you'll get elevation change, but only after 10-20 miles. it's quite rainy, of course, but man will it be alive JAY ZERO SUM GAME fucked around with this message at 22:56 on Jul 22, 2023 |
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Jul 22, 2023 22:50
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me, hiking through a forest with some trees nearly 1000 years old so thick i can't see the next old tree 40 feet in front of me, yelling "oh holy poo poo" when i'm face to face with yet another ancient tree beast, standing on top of ground that is full of hundreds, maybe thousands (???) of years of dead things
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Jul 22, 2023 22:53
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In my hunt for old growth in NA, Washington seemed like it had the most amount of uncut woodland. Or at least above average. Is that perception accurate in any way? I'm trying to visit one grove every summer because I really feel like they're going to be dying off over the next 10-20 years.
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Jul 23, 2023 02:38
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JAY ZERO SUM GAME posted:me, hiking through a forest with some trees nearly 1000 years old so thick i can't see the next old tree 40 feet in front of me, yelling "oh holy poo poo" when i'm face to face with yet another ancient tree beast, standing on top of ground that is full of hundreds, maybe thousands (???) of years of dead things Any recommendation of a valley in particular?
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Jul 23, 2023 07:42
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went hiking today. Pretty cool trail that follows the edge of a lake.  I was feeling a little under the weather all week but I’m glad I made it out to do something before I go back to work and touch a computer all week.
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Jul 23, 2023 15:17
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I went out with a friend to do another couple of mountains. Mt Shavano and Tabeguache Peak are doable together but also the whole up down up down up down was brutal.      I was hoping after getting up around 2am, hiking all day, then coming home that I'd sleep well. Instead I managed two hours before my body decided I needed to be awake again. Good thing I don't have work today, wouldn't want to slow myself down calibrating a power supply
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Jul 23, 2023 16:00
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Did Tour de l'Argentine in the Vaudoise Alps today. The trail was rated as "medium," which is comical for a trail involving an exposed col crossing and a chain-braced descent, but we survived. And got a few good shots.  
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Jul 23, 2023 17:14
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Natty Ninefingers posted:Any recommendations on of a valley in particular? SirPhoebos posted:I'm planning a camping trip to the Pacific NW for the last week of September. Haven't settled on the details, but I'd like to visit one of the National Parks in the region (Crater Lake, North Cascades, Rainer or Olympia). However the time window of the trip will fall after the campgrounds stop taking reservations and are open on a first-come-first-serve basis. My question is how much trouble will I have just finding an open camp? I estimate that I'll be reaching the park between 1 and 3 Pacific Time. based upon my trip, i'd really recommend the Enchanted Valley, an area roughly 13 miles in on the south fork of the Quinalt River. it's rainier in the fall, so you should see the proper waterfalls everywhere. it's a large open area surrounded by waterfalls, and the hike has lots of bigleaf maple, along with the douglas fir/cedar/hemlock forest I would also strongly recommend hiking along the Queets river, but it requires a fording of the river, which might be higher and faster by the time you're there. it was halfway up my thighs, and i'm 5' 8". should you decide to do so, to the right about 80 yards is the best place to cross, where there is a berm in the middle of the river that makes things more straightforward. poles are a must. If you go this route, there is a weird spot where the trail dips into what was at the time a dry pebbled stream bed, and that is the actual trail. there looks to be a path on the other side, but it leads to bushwacking (though it's not exactly tough there). stick to the map. I also hiked about ten miles of the Hoh river. It was indeed beautiful, and good views of mount olympus. I think i'm in the minority in thinking other places are more spectacular, but i'm also sensitive to crowds so that probably clouds my vision. there were definitely some real "oh wow" moments there. the coast along the ocean is also beautiful, though i spent only a little time there. the tidal pools available at state parks along the strait are far more interesting. Cape Flattery is worth it if you have the time. JAY ZERO SUM GAME fucked around with this message at 18:14 on Jul 23, 2023 |
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Jul 23, 2023 18:12
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the SMELLS out there are just something else. taking a break and boiling up some silver fir tea (steep it ten minutes) is one of those chef's kiss moments
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Jul 23, 2023 18:17
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xzzy posted:In my hunt for old growth in NA, Washington seemed like it had the most amount of uncut woodland. Or at least above average. Is that perception accurate in any way? there are tiny bits of tall, old, growth in colorado and wyoming, but they're more ponderosa pine forests and have a different character altogether. beautiful and enriching, but, it's just different further west. keep in mind, at higher elevations some of those spruce trees you see that are krummholz are likely approaching 1000 years old
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Jul 23, 2023 18:22
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JAY ZERO SUM GAME posted:i've been through old growth in the rockies. this is different. the cedar/hemlock forests of western glacier are close, and beautiful. but, the olympics are, in my personal experience, life-changing. I've just never been anywhere like that. Yeah, in general I'm going for whatever's close but the west coast has some really special stands that I'm prioritizing for bigger trips. I saw some epic old growth in Wisconsin last fall. Not moss covered spruce but special in its own way. I got to see Carmanah back in May and it was stunning. I got some details on the oldest bristlecone in Colorado and it's about two hours away from me so I'm gonna try to find it next month. People try to be secretive about the location but they leak more details than they think. It's 2500 years old so gently caress yeah. I know California has older bristlecones (and the location is a better kept secret) but I ain't complaining.
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Jul 23, 2023 18:39
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JAY ZERO SUM GAME posted:i've been through old growth in the rockies. this is different. the cedar/hemlock forests of western glacier are close, and beautiful. but, the olympics are, in my personal experience, life-changing. I've just never been anywhere like that. Not to be cliche but if you want additional jaw dropping old growth trees that make you say "holy poo poo" out loud continually for hours, get ye to some redwood groves. My top recommendation is Humboldt for those although there are other very good ones.
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Jul 24, 2023 01:21
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Yeah they’re next on the list; that changed after this most recent visit. I have a friend near the Olympics that I need to see more often, but I may drive from Northern California through Oregon to get to him next time to see the redwoods and other things Plenty of time to figure out where to go without people
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Jul 24, 2023 01:29
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Carmanah Valley, yall gotta go: old growth in carmanah valley  stoltman grove  carmanah valley boardwalk no2  carmanah valley trail
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Jul 24, 2023 01:41
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xzzy posted:Carmanah Valley, yall gotta go: Did you see any gnomes on your hike?
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Jul 24, 2023 02:01
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Nitrousoxide posted:Did you see any gnomes on your hike? No, just biting midges. Lulled into false sense of security when I saw no mosquitoes and then my arms started itching.
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Jul 24, 2023 02:38
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Ugh, midges are possibly even worse than mosquitoes in terms of annoyance. Mosquitoes obviously win in terms of actual human misery and death caused.
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Jul 24, 2023 02:41
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How did it escape getting logged ?
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Jul 24, 2023 22:19
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Looks like it was part of the broader trend of 1990s anti-logging activism. People chaining themselves to trees and all that.
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Jul 24, 2023 22:25
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Fitzy Fitz posted:Looks like it was part of the broader trend of 1990s anti-logging activism. People chaining themselves to trees and all that. Which is still happening just 20 miles away around Port Renfrew. There was a big camp setup a couple years ago to block logging trucks from getting into an old growth area over there. Resulted in some mass arrests. Unfortunately they only got a partial victory, the forest still stands but it's still slated for logging, in a "deferred" status.
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Jul 24, 2023 23:34
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xzzy posted:Carmanah valley trail Great lighting on those shots.
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Jul 25, 2023 01:24
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5 days till im on the Sawback Trail in Banff and I am vibrating with excitement and can barely focus on work lol
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Jul 25, 2023 14:04
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Jean-Paul Shartre posted:Did Tour de l'Argentine in the Vaudoise Alps today. The trail was rated as "medium," which is comical for a trail involving an exposed col crossing and a chain-braced descent, but we survived. And got a few good shots. Nice, and I like the pics. "Medium" corresponds to "chemin de randonnée de montagne" or the white/red/white signs so that matches your description. The white/blue/white trails are technical routes and you can't just expect to walk them. https://www.suisse-rando.ch/fr/savoir/signalisation/categories-de-chemins-de-randonnee I did a week climbing in Valais, these photos are of the Grand Mountet hut and climbing the Zinalrothorn.      [ 
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Jul 25, 2023 18:14
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Switzerland is just something else
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Jul 25, 2023 18:18
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It's been incredibly slow at work so I've been filling time by making lists of desert hikes I want to do later this year and there just never is enough time for them all.
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Jul 25, 2023 18:25
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The Aardvark posted:It's been incredibly slow at work so I've been filling time by making lists of desert hikes I want to do later this year and there just never is enough time for them all. If you do one, aim for the October 14 annular eclipse. It goes through the four corners area so there's a ton of options.
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Jul 25, 2023 18:42
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Oh that's neat. I'm ~1.5-2hr from Anza Borrego Desert State Park so my winters are usually wandering out there at least once a month. 70% should be fun to see out there.
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Jul 25, 2023 19:11
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Ya’ll have a good source for replacement aluminum frame pack straps? I have an old Jansport I’d like to revive and ruck around.
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Jul 27, 2023 21:40
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