Any other hikers, backpackers, campers out there?

[One_Putt_Blunder]

OPB...oh wow, always enjoy this thread and just catching up (been too busy) - sorry about your foot. I backtracked the posts and you said it "just gave out" - so you didn't slip/fall?

I did exactly 0 real hiking miles in 2018 due to a fall in January. Not something exciting like falling while hiking a tough trail or something - slipped on wet steps after shoveling snow...so silly.

 

 

Good luck to you...and keep us posted. Hopefully 2019 will be better for both of us...

 

Thank you and I hope you start feeling better too.

 

Going back over the timeline, I rolled it really good at mile 18 of Passage one on the AZ Trail. I made it the final mile that day with no real problems. Hiked another 45 miles over the next few weekends with no issues until it became sore the week after passage 4. I had tapped it with KT tape to start passage 5, but 2.3 miles in I bent down to re tie my right shoe(good foot) and that forward flexion on the left peroneus tendon must have been enough to tear a swollen/weakened tendon.

 

Surgery went well. The doc did advise me that there was actually a significant 4cm full tear of the tendon vs what we initially thought was a small tear.

 

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Since I won't be hiking again in 2018, I closed out the year with 250 recorded hiking miles and 55,000 feet of elevation gain. Think i hiked another 10-20 that weren't recorded and a couple thousand more aeg. Was about half my goal on both I would have been close to 500/90,000 had i not hurt the ankle.

Longest hike was 19.1 miles with just about 4200 feet aeg.

 

Average hike was 8.3 miles and 1800 feet aeg

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Wifey picked me up a Patagonia nanopuff down jacket for Christmas. Pretty impressed with the jacket. Light and compresses down into its own pocket. Perfect those backpacks that start around 3k feet and end up over 8k. Super warm for its size and weight.

 

Parents got me some outdoor research convertible pants which will be very useful once I resume azt especially this time of year where it's in the 30s or low 40s in am but 60s in afternoon.

[1puttTUT]

Wifey picked me up a Patagonia nanopuff down jacket for Christmas. Pretty impressed with the jacket. Light and compresses down into its own pocket. Perfect those backpacks that start around 3k feet and end up over 8k. Super warm for its size and weight.

 

Parents got me some outdoor research convertible pants which will be very useful once I resume azt especially this time of year where it's in the 30s or low 40s in am but 60s in afternoon.

 

I bought myself and my wife one for Christmas. Remarkably warm for how thin and light they are.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Since I wont be hiking until late spring early summer, looking at picking up something like this for the truck. Still plan on doing some camping including a little road tour of SW Colorado during the summer to take on the Alpine loop and Imogene Pass in the truck, and if the ankle is up to it tackle a 14'er or two. This plus an air bed in the bed seems like it would be a much cozier way to truck camp than using my backpacking set up. Also just ordered a Pelican 30qt cooler too.

[bubbagump]

Going to be stepping our hiking game up, come summer as weve been assigned to Ethiopia for 2 years. Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, Simien Mountains etc all on the to do list now. Going to be a bit different from the Blue Ridge Mountains and our normal tracks...

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Going to be stepping our hiking game up, come summer as weve been assigned to Ethiopia for 2 years. Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, Simien Mountains etc all on the to do list now. Going to be a bit different from the Blue Ridge Mountains and our normal tracks...

Wow that's quite a move. Kili is definitely a bucket list trek.

[bubbagump]

Going to be stepping our hiking game up, come summer as weve been assigned to Ethiopia for 2 years. Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, Simien Mountains etc all on the to do list now. Going to be a bit different from the Blue Ridge Mountains and our normal tracks...

Wow that's quite a move. Kili is definitely a bucket list trek.

 

Well, youll have a home base at least now lol holla if its in the next two years! Good to see the ankle is on the mend!

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Cooler is a friggin beast, but bear resistant without needing to padlock it. Also picked up the dry goods basket and ice pack for it. Thing will definitely be seeing some heavy use once the ankle heals up and start doing some trail angel camping weekends out on the AZT in March while my ankle is healing up.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Stitches came out Tuesday, and took my first steps in almost a month. Ankle still looks awful though. Read post op report quite a bit more damage than I thought. Ligaments ruptured 2 inch tendon tear another

tendon detached.

 

[Bogie_Nights]

Any hikers on this forum in the LA/OC area? I'm thinking of starting this hobby up.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Any hikers on this forum in the LA/OC area? I'm thinking of starting this hobby up.

Hope you do, incredibly awesome way to get away from the day to day grind and enjoy some solitude plus the exercise component of it.

 

If you are on FB look for local hiking groups, good to follow along to get good ideas/info on trails or hiking partners. Also apps like Alltrails a good source of info and GPS maps.

Looks like no shortage of trails in the area, Even more if you head out towards Mt Baldy etc. Few tips good fitting shoes and good socks are worth every penny, when looking at a trail 1000 feet gained in a mile is considered very steep looking at an average grade around 20*. Sometimes easily fooled if you see a trail that is say 800 feet of gain in 3 miles but if all 800 feet come in .75 of a mile it is a steep section.

 

[gambit]

Cooler is a friggin beast, but bear resistant without needing to padlock it. Also picked up the dry goods basket and ice pack for it. Thing will definitely be seeing some heavy use once the ankle heals up and start doing some trail angel camping weekends out on the AZT in March while my ankle is healing up.

 

I’ve heard good things about those. Let us know how you like it. One can never have too many coolers. I have an Rtic hard and soft cooler and they’re both fantastic.

 

Stitches came out Tuesday, and took my first steps in almost a month. Ankle still looks awful though. Read post op report quite a bit more damage than I thought. Ligaments ruptured 2 inch tendon tear another

tendon detached.

 

 

Holy crap. Get well soon brother.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Cooler is a friggin beast, but bear resistant without needing to padlock it. Also picked up the dry goods basket and ice pack for it. Thing will definitely be seeing some heavy use once the ankle heals up and start doing some trail angel camping weekends out on the AZT in March while my ankle is healing up.

 

I’ve heard good things about those. Let us know how you like it. One can never have too many coolers. I have an Rtic hard and soft cooler and they’re both fantastic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pretty impressed with how stout it is. Big selling point to me is Grizzly certified without being padlocked. A lot of others are certified but have to be locked. It does take some getting used to being so big then opening it up to see the interior space much smaller than it appears on the outside. I also picked up a dry goods rack and 5lb ice pack thing for it. Once you put those two in there is not a ton of room. I'll have to play around with packing and regular ice usage. I think it will be enough for 1-2 people for a short weekend type outing or if I roll solo it would be enough for 4-5 days

Obviously not really able to use it at the moment with the ankle first planned trip is begging of March so we'll see how it goes.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Was able to get out and do a bit of offroading last weekend. Felt really nice just to get out of the house for a change.

 

 

 

 

 

[Bogie_Nights]

The Tacoma is awesome, but a little too rich for my blood.

 

I'm looking to buy a used RZR 1000 for off-roading, and hauling it around on my hikes (once I start that up). We used to do the desert quite a bit, but I can no longer keep up with my kids on an ATV (they're on dirtbikes) and I didn't want to learn to ride a bike in my mid 40s.

 

My dream is to have a two way hobby--hiking and off-roading (intermediate, nothing too heavy). So many of the trails at the spots I frequent are closed to vehicles, dirtbikes, ATVs, and SxS now, but they're open to hiking and mountain biking...

[One_Putt_Blunder]

I love my Taco, picked it up for the sole purpose that it could get me into the backcountry for my AZT adventure. Pricey, but they hold their value incredibly well. Had not had a car for 2 years and never owned something fully loaded so I splurged a bit on myself.

[1puttTUT]

Was able to get out and do a bit of offroading last weekend. Felt really nice just to get out of the house for a change.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sedona?

[One_Putt_Blunder]

 

 

Sedona?

 

Yup Broken Arrow Trail, pretty fun time did not beat up the truck too bad and a little bit of everything up/downhill sandy red dirt, slick rock.

 

 

 

 

Also some news on the ankle doc cleared me yesterday to come out of the boot and go back into my heavy duty ankle brace. Finally feel like progress is starting to happen. Still a long way to go I walk slower and more tender in the brace than the boot right now.

[1puttTUT]

 

 

Sedona?

 

Yup Broken Arrow Trail, pretty fun time did not beat up the truck too bad and a little bit of everything up/downhill sandy red dirt, slick rock.

 

 

 

 

Also some news on the ankle doc cleared me yesterday to come out of the boot and go back into my heavy duty ankle brace. Finally feel like progress is starting to happen. Still a long way to go I walk slower and more tender in the brace than the boot right now.

 

Sweet! I did some trail last summer up there near that church everyone takes pictures at. We didn't have time to make it very far though due to an oncoming storm.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

 

That was prob Broken Arrow. The Church is on the other side of the hill and it is the only 4x4 trail on that side of Sedona. All the fun stuff is near the end though.

[teejaywhy]

Since I wont be hiking until late spring early summer, looking at picking up something like this for the truck. Still plan on doing some camping including a little road tour of SW Colorado during the summer to take on the Alpine loop and Imogene Pass in the truck, and if the ankle is up to it tackle a 14'er or two. This plus an air bed in the bed seems like it would be a much cozier way to truck camp than using my backpacking set up. Also just ordered a Pelican 30qt cooler too.

 

 

Matt - hope your healing well and back on the trail (and golf course) in due time.

 

Reading this thread is funny.. because the people at the gym where my wife goes are organizing monthly hikes and I've been tagging along. Visited many of the same places you have in the last year... Tom's Thumb, Picacho Peak, Peralta/Lone Tree... etc.

 

But now the gauntlet has been thrown down. Wife tells me last week we have to cancel our accommodations in San Diego Fourth of July week because we are going with a group from the gym up to Colorado for a summit hike of Mt. Elbert. So much for the relaxing beach trip I had planned!!

 

Elbert is the highest in Colorado and second highest in the lower 48 behind Whitney. It is not a technical climb, but a 10+ mile round trip with > 4000' elevation gain it will be a challenge. Highest I've ever been is Humphries at 12 something but that was many years ago.

 

Need to step up my game to get ready for this. A lot more bike riding, hiking and leg work is in the cards. Need to move past the 5-6 milers we've been doing and get comfortable with the 10+ milers. Probably do Four Peaks in ~March, Humphries as a warm up is planned for June.

 

I am also intrigued by the AZT idea. Now you got me thinking... hmm... Maybe ready to join you on a few passages when you get healthy.

 

CAMPING GEAR:

Regarding the "overland" style rooftop tents and the truck bed style you pictured above. I never quite embraced the idea of being tethered to my truck. I guess I'm more of a "base camper," and I would prefer the freedom to drive away and explore and/or make a beer run into town. I have a 3-man Kelty tent with a folding cot that works for me and I can't imagine it takes longer to pitch or strike than a RTT.

 

For sure it is fun to see some of the gear the "overlanders" use. WARNING: Do not visit overlandjournal.com! Don't do it. You have been warned! wait, here is a clickable link:

https://overlandjournal.com/

DONT CLICK IT! haha

 

 

Tom

[One_Putt_Blunder]

 

 

Matt - hope your healing well and back on the trail (and golf course) in due time.

 

Reading this thread is funny.. because the people at the gym where my wife goes are organizing monthly hikes and I've been tagging along. Visited many of the same places you have in the last year... Tom's Thumb, Picacho Peak, Peralta/Lone Tree... etc.

 

But now the gauntlet has been thrown down. Wife tells me last week we have to cancel our accommodations in San Diego Fourth of July week because we are going with a group from the gym up to Colorado for a summit hike of Mt. Elbert. So much for the relaxing beach trip I had planned!!

 

Elbert is the highest in Colorado and second highest in the lower 48 behind Whitney. It is not a technical climb, but a 10+ mile round trip with > 4000' elevation gain it will be a challenge. Highest I've ever been is Humphries at 12 something but that was many years ago.

 

Need to step up my game to get ready for this. A lot more bike riding, hiking and leg work is in the cards. Need to move past the 5-6 milers we've been doing and get comfortable with the 10+ milers. Probably do Four Peaks in ~March, Humphries as a warm up is planned for June.

 

I am also intrigued by the AZT idea. Now you got me thinking... hmm... Maybe ready to join you on a few passages when you get healthy.

 

CAMPING GEAR:

Regarding the "overland" style rooftop tents and the truck bed style you pictured above. I never quite embraced the idea of being tethered to my truck. I guess I'm more of a "base camper," and I would prefer the freedom to drive away and explore and/or make a beer run into town. I have a 3-man Kelty tent with a folding cot that works for me and I can't imagine it takes longer to pitch or strike than a RTT.

 

For sure it is fun to see some of the gear the "overlanders" use. WARNING: Do not visit overlandjournal.com! Don't do it. You have been warned! wait, here is a clickable link:

https://overlandjournal.com/

DONT CLICK IT! haha

 

 

Tom

 

RE Elbert enjoy looks to be one of the least technical 14ers but that is still no easy feet given the altitude. Best advice I can give is do it towards the end of your trip to allow for some acclimatization and start in the dark for the best summit chance. If you have access to a treadmill max out the incline and go to work. One thing I learned with my training program and AZT adventure is heart rate and learning to hike at a pace where my HR is controlled. If I can settle in to that zone I can keep moving all day. MT Ord is a very good training hike as well 14.4 RT with 3900+ AEG and basically a pretty steady climb all the way to the top. https://www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/us/arizona/mount-ord-trail

Once the snow melts Kendrick is a solid one two. Humphreys still the best training for that elevation though.

 

We are gonna make a SW CO run in Aug to run the alpine loop/and imogene pass in the truck, spend a few days camping and exploring. Have a couple trails in mind, but if the ankle is feeling good gonna try and summit Mt Sneffels a class 3 scramble

 

RE: AZT I'd love to have you join me for a passage or 2 some good ones are Gila River to Picketpost. Superstitions to Lake Roosevelt 30 mile overnighter. Roosevelt to 4 peaks, and the ones from Pine to Flag

 

RE: Four Peaks, fun, very fun or completely terrifying if you are afraid of upper class 3 scrambling and near vertical sections.

 

 

I just cant get into the whole overlanding thing nor could I justify dumping 3-4k+ into in a RTT setup etc when a bed tent or ground tent is perfectly fine. I'd rather outfit my truck with 4k worth of suspension so I can go fast on FS roads. Bed tent at $130 is a good in between for me to entice the wife to come along

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Went out to scope out some future camp sites to run support for AZ Trail hikers in the next couple months.

 

Snow in the desert. Sticking around 5600 feet on the north facing slopes. I am even more bummed that I am not still out there. This will probably end up being one of the best water years we have had in a long time. So much rain/snow this fall/winter. The spring northbounders are gonna have a pretty epic year on the trail.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

I picked the wrong winter to get hurt. More snow in the desert. Down to the 2k elevation level here by me

[dmac4g]

Arizona is beautiful. Especially when there is snow on the mountains!

[One_Putt_Blunder]

a few more of snow covered desert

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Went and provided some trail magic for the current class of Northbound AZ trail thru hikers. Overall timed it pretty good and ended up having 15 or so come though and one section hiker. One guy developed shin splints and was able to hitch into town 30 miles away. We picked him up and brought him back to where he stopped and he camped with us for 2 nights and got treatment from on of my friends who is a physical therapist. Overall a very cool experience to meet some interesting folks and share a part of their journey. Word had gotten out on trail that we were there and quite a few of the Sunday folks quick timed it to catch us before we left.

 

Oh and to make up for waking up to 21 degree temps we got treated to this sunset.

The peak in the background is one I have previously climbed and posted pics of. Mt Wrightson.

 

[dmac4g]

With the spread of food you put out, I am surprised you didn't have locals coming by thinking it was a new restaurant! Well done!

[One_Putt_Blunder]

 

 

I’ve heard good things about those. Let us know how you like it. One can never have too many coolers. I have an Rtic hard and soft cooler and they’re both fantastic.

 

 

 

Update on the cooler. The 5lb pelican ice pack was still frozen when I got home and still had about 2/3 of the regular ice I filled it with after 48 hours. Granted it never really topped 60 all weekend and the cooler was being opened and closed all throughout the day I was impressed. Kept the fresh deli snacks I had cold, Candy bars frozen and beer nice and cold. Was suprised how little water I had to drain out compared to the other coolers my friends had. Definitely would buy another especially since the biggest perk for me is bear proof without having to be padlocked.