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The Cleaner
11-30-2010, 18:18
For all those thru hikers to be, many of who are chomping at the bit to be first out of the gate,I don't see much about snowshoe weight:eek:This year many were greeted in the Smokies,even in mid April to over 3-4 feet of leftover snow which did melt in late April and then it snowed a little more.I did a couple of section hikes and heard the tales and saw ripped pants& bruised and cut shins.Some went around and were to "do the Smokies later".Being a longtime resident of this area you never know what to plan for in April&May,it could be a mild winter with warm temps when you start at Springer then all Hell breaks loose just after you send your cold weather gear home.The calendar may say spring and you're on top of old Smoky freezin' you a$$ off.I'm not saying this to poke fun at you ,I'm just trying to give you some useful info.I met several thrus who said that they were not prepared for artic conditions and this was one of the reasons they had to quit early..Be prepared find out what to expect before you leave home...Good luck to all...may see some of you next year:sun
Turtle Feet
11-30-2010, 18:29
Based on my start date, I should be hitting the Smokies about April 1. While I'll have adequate gear for low temps, and a few inches of snow, I have no intention of shelping my snowshoes with me for 3 weeks, in hopes of eventually needing them.
If there is so much snow that I can't hike, then I get off the trail until I can. No weight for snowshoes needed.
TF
The Cleaner
11-30-2010, 18:41
Based on my start date, I should be hitting the Smokies about April 1. While I'll have adequate gear for low temps, and a few inches of snow, I have no intention of shelping my snowshoes with me for 3 weeks, in hopes of eventually needing them.
If there is so much snow that I can't hike, then I get off the trail until I can. No weight for snowshoes needed.
TF
I was just kidding about actually packing snowshoes,I'm just saying you should contact a local outfitter or other source to get a "heads up" on how the winter has been prior to leaving...:welcome
I'm starting in Feb because I like the cold and the snow. Was there 3 to 4 feet of snow everywhere or were there just 4' snow drifts?
Turtle Feet
11-30-2010, 19:06
I was just kidding about actually packing snowshoes,I'm just saying you should contact a local outfitter or other source to get a "heads up" on how the winter has been prior to leaving...:welcome
Duly noted. ;)
mweinstone
11-30-2010, 19:07
lets do the math:
snowstorm must be unpredicted
severe enough to strand a hiker longer than his food allows
hiker must be unable to construct rudementry escaspe shoes
hiker must not have filled out a permit to be in the smokeys
resque teams during such an event must not be randomly patroling
hiker must not posses any rudementry signaling skills or devises
hiker must be alone and without adequit exsperience to do so in said environs
hiker must panic and keep moveing until lost off trail
the sensor technologies employed in an all out search and resque must be inadiquit
snowshoes aint helpin this guy one bit. just kindeling for the extra hour of life.
any one of these set in place redundant systems will save most lives.
The Cleaner
11-30-2010, 19:08
I'm starting in Feb because I like the cold and the snow. Was there 3 to 4 feet of snow everywhere or were there just 4' snow drifts?
I think the "offical" depth at Mt. LeConte was 52" around April 1st...I also got this info from thru hikers I met:eek:
mweinstone
11-30-2010, 19:17
watch the forcast
carry extra food
learn rudementry survival skills
obay permit rules
support your local search and resque squads
get a whistle
dont panic, keep moveing when lost. or get off trail.
support all resque efforts when asked
dont carry snowshoes rather than heeding the above.
be confident in the system we use to hike safe.
The Cleaner
11-30-2010, 19:22
On my section hikes I kept asking hikers who had been through the Smokies was there really all that much snow? And the answer was yes.:eek: Several hikers said that hiking in all that mess really beat them down.A few said they could only make single digit mile days and others took extended stays in Gatlinburg which is a tourist trap not a hiker town.I did find out that there is one hiker friendly hotel though...
mweinstone
11-30-2010, 19:31
their is a hiker , i cant remember his name due to the planetary memory wipe thread, but he hiked quoting snowfall charts witch he both memorized and carryied all thru the smokets. i belive his initials were ms but also i feel pain when i try to overide the memory block they put in me to recount his name exactly. the government really keeps a tight lid on old matthewski. i know stuff if i told you id have to make you die laughing. they relize im an imbaressment . it all stems from one time i overheard the launch codes for the moon bases rockets and they cant be changed and anyone with a coathanger and a paperclip can launch them with the codes. their controlled from the railing on clingmans dome. you tap just right, i forget, and you put the clip in a crack and it launches against minnesota. i have no idea why thats the target for a moon full of boom but it is. i think theirs one single person in that place who also knows the codes for the mars rockets. witch shoot washington if the enemy want to. like if say,...they just wanna.
Sierra Echo
11-30-2010, 19:32
Is snowshoeing hard? It looks like fun!
The Cleaner
11-30-2010, 19:42
Is snowshoeing hard? It looks like fun!
I also heard about 2 hikers "sharing" a pair of snowshoes.1st hiker would hike 20-30feet then take off snowshoes and throw them back to his buddy.Then he would hike ahead 20-30ft and throw them back.Repeat.:eek:
The Cleaner
11-30-2010, 19:56
If anyone wants to send me a PM prior to departing I can update you on local conditions ie. snow depths water availibility anything else of interest:welcome
Turtle Feet
11-30-2010, 20:38
I also heard about 2 hikers "sharing" a pair of snowshoes.1st hiker would hike 20-30feet then take off snowshoes and throw them back to his buddy.Then he would hike ahead 20-30ft and throw them back.Repeat.:eek:
Now THAT'S funny!
tf
lilricky
11-30-2010, 20:47
Made these all the time back in Missouri.
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/discovery/29585-man-vs-wild-making-snow-shoes-video.htm
The Cleaner
11-30-2010, 21:09
Made these all the time back in Missouri.
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/discovery/29585-man-vs-wild-making-snow-shoes-video.htm
What if Bear G. was to hike the AT.He wouldn't do any planning just show up and start hiking making whatever he needed as he goes.You get to a shelter and there is a deer cooking on the fire.He's got the hide for a sleeping bag maybe use the stomach for a water carrier....A true ULer :cool:
I guess one way to get a sense for what the Smokies were like for early starters this year is to look at their journals; here's mine (http://postholer.com/journal/viewJournal.php?&entry_id=13058).
Started into the Smokies from Fontana Dam on March 11th, got to Standing Bear hostel on March 17th, with a Gatlinburg Zero day en route. Did 13.5 miles on the 11th, 14.5 miles on the 12th, then nominally 12.5 miles to Newfound Gap on March 13th, but at that point in time no one was staying on trail from Clingman's Dome to Newfound Gap, every one tried postholing in literally waist deep snow a foot or two farther than the last idiot had tried and then turned and dropped down to posthole instead on the road walk. There were faint snowshoe tracks of someone who had walked on some days earlier, no idea if from a thru-hiker or someone else.
That was the only bypass, however; from Newfound Gap it was a bit dicey getting back to the trail (icy road was closed for a bit so we were stuck in town) after our day off (March 14th), but then with a late start we did 10.4 miles on the 15th, then a tough 12.9 miles on the 16th, and then it was a relatively easy 10.4 miles on the 17th to get to Standing Bear hostel.
The nature of the snow varied a lot, to include changes during the same day; we had very very wet conditions so that everyone was sopping wet, clumps of snow dropping off trees to go down your back. We had icy conditions, so that postholes from previous hikers were somewhat of an obstacle course. We had soft, sloppy snow so that you're lurching about like a drunkard. We definitely did have a whole lot of snow. Part of the difficulty was just not knowing what was coming next; do you opt to stop early with some daylight left to burn when you get to a shelter, or do you opt to push on to the next one, not knowing if conditions going forward would get a lot better, stay about the same, or perhaps get a lot worse? It's not like anyone is heading the other direction to give you any clues.
Navigation wasn't normally too much of a problem given that my little group wasn't literally the first ones through this year, but there were occasional moments of doubt.
I'd also mention that the Smokies weren't the only challenging snow bits; March 5th, for example, we did 14.4 miles from Standing Indian Shelter to Big Spring Shelter, and that was quite a butt-kicker for snow. Cold snow that didn't pack, significant drifts, just a lot of effort to push through. And quite a number of days last year when the snow wasn't necessarily bad the blowdowns slowed hikers down a fair bit.
I'm *not* suggesting that Feb is too early to start; this was a pretty hard winter for the south as I understand it (don't know personally, I live in the Pacific NW), but certainly do-able. For more of a sense for what conditions can be like, poke around a bit and read a few trail journals.
bigcranky
12-01-2010, 15:02
Is snowshoeing hard? It looks like fun!
Snowshoeing is a BLAST. Really a lot of fun. But it's also hard work, especially with a full pack.
Cherokee Bill
12-01-2010, 19:40
watch the forcast
carry extra food
learn rudementry survival skills
obay permit rules
support your local search and resque squads
get a whistle
dont panic, keep moveing when lost. or get off trail.
support all resque efforts when asked
dont carry snowshoes rather than heeding the above.
be confident in the system we use to hike safe.
WRONG & WRONG! All Search & Rescue classes teach you that once you know for sure that you are indeed lost, find a GOOD spot & plant your ass!
A moving target is hard to find. A moving lost-victim, increases the search ares expodentially (sp).
"... find a GOOD spot & plant your ass!"
Like all good advice, I think this is a bit situational; consider the context of this thread being for 2011 AT thru-hikers.
If you're out on a day hike and people know when to expect you back, this makes sense. If you're thru-hiking and no one that you know expects that they will necessarily hear for you over the next several days, there won't be anyone out looking for you. In this case you need to pull out map and compass, stop and just get mental (and any emotional) bearings on track, and move towards something you're confident that you can find.
For example, perhaps you know that if you move north long enough you'll eventually come to a particular road, or some sort of unambiguous (even under snow) boundary. Roads are particularly good if you're looking for more help than just navigational, but your "boundary" could be a stream, powerlines on the map, a particular and unmistakable high point or some other really clear terrain feature, whatever.
I suppose that a thru-hiker could nevertheless just stop and wait, hoping that other thru-hikers will be along --- that you're close enough to the trail that you'll hear others coming. For an early-start thru-hiker, however, there aren't that many folks out there yet, and at a place where you've missed the trail you might find they're a bit fuzzy about their location too!