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micahmcguire
Oct 13, 2003, 4:36 AM
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ok, less of a climbing question-more of a hiking question. I am trying to gauge how far the average climber (as we tend to be in pretty decent shape) tends to hike, if he or she should choose to do so. I am asking this because I was talking to an ex-army buddy of mine who was bragging about how he used to have to run up to 5 miles a day, or hike around 10 with a full pack. Not meaning to toot my own horn, but I far exceed this on the average weekend hike. How far do you all generally push yourselves while hiking?
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curt
Oct 13, 2003, 4:39 AM
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Well Alaska is a big state. The folks in Rhode Island are a bit more limited aren't they? Hahahaha.
Curt
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micahmcguire
Oct 13, 2003, 4:40 AM
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hmm, no estimate eh? rats. yeah rhode island is a bit smaller than alaska. gorgeous autumn leaves, I'll give it that. I really dig yall's falltime.
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valeberga
Oct 13, 2003, 5:04 AM
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I usually don't end up backpacking very far, but that's because it's always just an approach to a glacier climb of some sort. Then again gaining 7000 feet ought to count for something. The longest weekend approach I've done with a full backpack was 8 or 9 miles one-way. But I know a skiier/climber who has done 90+ miles three days, on two separate occasions.
Regarding military guys, boot camp serves two purposes: 1) brings people into passable athletic shape, and 2) makes the boys nice and cocky so they're better soldiers. It doesn't matter if what they think is badass, actually is badass. So long as they think they are made of nails.
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micahmcguire
Oct 13, 2003, 5:21 AM
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glaciers? what glaciers do you go to? what do you do on them? I am curious because there are only a few places on this continent that have glacial features. I spend a fair bit of time on the things, and am interested in what you guys have down south (or where you find them). are they just at higher altitudes? do you guys have any that touch the sea? are they predominantly hanging glaciers or what? what major peaks down there must be accessed by traversing a glacier? anyhow, there's a fair number of them up here. They are lots of fun.
Here in AK the hikes that we go on are usually between 20 and 40 miles per day. The more elevation we gain, the less distance we tend to cover (imagine that). Of course things are a fair bit further apart here than in lots of places, and there are less roads.
and yeah, boot camp is for sissies
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kman
Oct 13, 2003, 5:29 AM
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quote:
In reply to: glaciers? what glaciers do you go to? what do you do on them? I am curious because there are only a few places on this continent that have glacial features.
Uh...maybe you did not read the part that says where he's from. NORTHWEST U.S. And there is a shitload of glaciers all over this continent. Not just in Alaska. :roll:
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tanner
Oct 13, 2003, 5:29 AM
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A good day hike would be 20km or so return. But it all depends on terrain. Some back pack trips 10km or 12km would be lots others it would be a joke. I think the longest I've done was this crazy 15 hour 60km mountain bike carry/ride.
My summer job of tree planting had me humping 50lbs off trees up and down a mountain for 10 hours a day across mountains of slash up killer steep heli logged blocks. I guess thats like hiking.
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papounet
Oct 13, 2003, 12:12 PM
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Question 1/ why do you hike ?
For the sights, for the experience (solitary or in group) or for the physical exertion or for ....
Military type of exercise would not be the good comparison to hiking except for the physical exertion.
========sidetracking ===========
Army boot camp or commando training can be really tough not only because of the tests, but because those are performed daily with poor rest.
After 2 months, you don't feel anymore your daily 5k run.
You will remember more the timed "forced march" of 8 k with light kit and weapon in 1 hr or the longer 15k in 2hr.
Most people still suffer through the final 50k with kit and weapon timed event (doing less than 8hr get you "back at midnight leave" ;-).
Mountain trops get in France to pass the Military Alpine Brevet (BAM):
which has far as I remember is : roundtrip up and down the mountain with 14kg backpack, 12-15km in length, 1200-1300meters positive in less than 3hr.
Doing that kind of trainign during summer taught me how to gauge exertion and dehydration: if you can't piss or are pissing dark urine, then you are not taking care of your body well enough.
Although I only dabbled in military endurance events (there are international comps in that), I learn a lot from them.
I plan my trips with in mind the confidence I have in my abilitie that those events tested.
Thus whereas average elevation gain is often quoted at 300m/hr, I plan around 450m/ hr, knowing my personal max is 600m/hr.
I am nowhere close international experts doing La pierra Menta (10.000m positive elevation in less than 10 hours (over 4 days) or "La diagonale du Fou" (125 km/ 7400 m positive on the "La Reunion" island in 18 hr, or the Grand Raid du Mercantour 95 km, 5000 m positive in 12h37 hr)
====end of reminiscence ========
I do not hike as often as I would like (1 time a month, sometime 2) but anything less than 25 k with 6kg pack is small.
I am not afraid of a day dose of 35 k, but would not do this several days in a row without retraining.
PS: no spray intented,
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kimmyt
Oct 13, 2003, 1:07 PM
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Plus, military packs are like ten times heavier than backpacks, even if you're on a long trek. Just think of the weight of all that ammo and weaponry alone, much less food and survival gear.
K.
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vertical_reality
Oct 13, 2003, 1:08 PM
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I'm not an avid hiker, I only go once every two months but on average I hike 6 miles in, camp for the night and then 6 miles back out.
The longest I've ever done was hiking rim-to-rim of the Grand Canyon, 20+ miles over 2 days. That last mile kicked my azz! :lol:
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bumblie
Oct 13, 2003, 1:21 PM
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In reply to: Here in AK the hikes that we go on are usually between 20 and 40 miles per day.
Forty miles. Really? :roll:
Talk is cheap.
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overlord
Oct 13, 2003, 1:22 PM
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that depends on the hike. for a little one (like during week days) i go for about 6km with 400m+ elevation, but if i really feel like walking and have some friends with me, 20km are not a problem.
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saderinger
Oct 13, 2003, 1:32 PM
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40 miles eh? so that means that you can hike 5 miles an hour (which is a very fast pace for a hike with a pack most people average 2 to 3 depending on terrain) for eight hours strait wow you are a better hiker than me good job you should try to do some kind of eco challenge or something!
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mother_sheep
Oct 13, 2003, 1:39 PM
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It depends on who I'm with and how pressed for time I am. I love to hike and do so often. On average w/my boys we hike 3.5-4 miles. With Torrey (my sheep dog thing) she can only make it about 3 miles. By myself or with my stronger friends I'd say I hike anywhere from 7-14 miles in one sitting and gain a range from 2k' -4k' in elevation. So I guess the average for me is that there is no average.
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capn_morgan
Oct 13, 2003, 1:48 PM
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If I am hiking for the sake of hiking i usally move along at a good clip...cover some ground. An average day is about 20 miles. most of my hiking has been in the green mtns of VT where the trails arent exactly manicured or flat...they dont know what switchbacks are either. longest day to date was 27 miles with 20lb pack...and that was getting up at 9am(i hiked in at 3am the night before). I usally hike in tennis shoes and carry about 25 lbs for a weeklong trip. ( thats in the summer of course) Did a 15 miles snowshoe walk in the daks last winter. But that was starting and ending in the dark.
btw..40 miles wouldnt be unreasonalbe if you werent climbing over big mtns and had 18 hrs or so of daylight.
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bumblie
Oct 13, 2003, 1:58 PM
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No doubt 40 miles is doable, but Micah implies it's a typical long hike for him. And that 20 miles in on the low end of the scale. :roll:
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valeberga
Oct 13, 2003, 3:36 PM
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In reply to: glaciers? what glaciers do you go to? what do you do on them? I am curious because there are only a few places on this continent that have glacial features. I spend a fair bit of time on the things, and am interested in what you guys have down south (or where you find them). are they just at higher altitudes? do you guys have any that touch the sea? are they predominantly hanging glaciers or what? what major peaks down there must be accessed by traversing a glacier? anyhow, there's a fair number of them up here. They are lots of fun. Here in AK the hikes that we go on are usually between 20 and 40 miles per day. The more elevation we gain, the less distance we tend to cover (imagine that). Of course things are a fair bit further apart here than in lots of places, and there are less roads. and yeah, boot camp is for sissies
We live next to a little glaciated paradise known as the Cascades: Mt. Jefferson, Hood (11G), Adams(12.2G), Rainier(14.4G), Glacier Peak(10.5G), Baker(10.8G), Olympus are the big glaciated peaks. Glaciers start around 7500 in the southern end and 6000 in the northern end. And they are easy to get to! Here's my web site with some descriptions:
http://www.neolectric.com/~justin/
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camhead
Oct 13, 2003, 3:59 PM
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before I got into climbing I did a lot of hiking/backpacking. furthest I went in one day was about 35 miles. It was on flat terrain, and still really whooped me.
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bumblie
Oct 13, 2003, 4:30 PM
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In reply to: before I got into climbing I did a lot of hiking/backpacking. furthest I went in one day was about 35 miles. It was on flat terrain, and still really whooped me.
Obviously, you're not from Alaska. 8) 8) 8)
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climber_bro
Oct 13, 2003, 4:36 PM
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it depends on the terrain, flat land I can go from sun up to sun down at 3.5 mph, super high elevations and lots-o-switch backs make me go a wee bit slower.
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dingus
Oct 13, 2003, 4:36 PM
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Oh my, an "average" 40 mile day hike huh?
They grow em big up there in Alaska! Not the hikes. The fish. Why, I saw this brown bear pull a whopper right out of the river.
I bet that thing weighed 40 pounds. The whopper, not the bear.
DMT
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climbforchrist
Oct 13, 2003, 5:28 PM
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Usually when i go climbing in the Cascades or coast range I usually do about 8 or 10 miles in a day. the most I have ever done in a day was nearly 18 miles. As far as glaciers go. Uh if you are from the Northwest then you know that there are glaciers strectching all the way from Northern Oregon, Washington,BC all the way to south east Alaska. You do not sound like you are from Alaska !!! seems like you would know this. Anyone who rides in a ferry along the Northwest coast knows this, or even flies over it... Either that or you just do not know your geography.
Some of the largest glaciers in North America are in the Coast range.. I belive most of the lowest Glaciers in Washington and Southern BC only come down to about 3,500 to 4,000 feet at there lowest point. Anyways
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bumblie
Oct 13, 2003, 6:00 PM
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T3
So far :wink:
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micahmcguire
Oct 13, 2003, 6:08 PM
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yeah guys, whatever. I suppose if you are limited to an 8 hour jaunt, 40 miles (which incidentally I described as being on the upper-end of the scale) would be a big deal. Just hike 4 miles an hour for ten hours, usually with a couple hours liesure time in there, makes most trips between 12 and 14 hours. The light up here can last damn near 20 hours, so one could theoretically continue in full visibility for the overwhelming majority of the day. Its not hard, and I'm not lying. All one need do is keep hiking despite the feeling in their legs and stomache (which will go away), and stop to puke if needed. I don't suppose you pansies have ever heard of the Crow's Pass trail, the Resurrection Trail, Johnson Pass, the Eklutna Lakeside/Glacier Trail. All of these are between 20 and 40 miles and are doable in one day, and yet the list could go on and on. I don't particularly like tooting my own horn, but I also hate being called a liar. So go ahead and think what you want, it don't affront me none.
and yeah, I could use to brush up on my NW geography. Despite the barrage of insulting answers, I think most of my questions were eventually answered. The only glacier I have seen with my own eyes down there has been on Mt. Ranier, so it was an honest question. Just didn't feel like looking it up, wanted someone enthusiastic to come up with some cool stories or something. Yall really sucked the joy out of that! Go to hell.
thanks valegerba-that was a good website, answered my questions and gave me some cool pics to look at. thanks for not being a dickhead about answering my questions
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