Crazy winter hiking dream

[Anonymous]

Not sure why this has popped into my noggin, but it won't exit. Ever since i read Kristin Gate's article, i kept thinking, "wonder what it would be like to hike that route in (mid-late) winter…" I know, it's completely crazy, especially for someone with my lack of severe cold experience. If i went out there (especially solo) right now with my level of fitness, gear, and know how, i would probably be hiking to my transition from this world to another (well, at least i would die happy).

Come mid February, i will have some vacation time saved up (not quite enough, but oh f'ing well, i feel i'm getting burned out in this job anyway).

Ok, my biggest weakness currently is a severe lack of navigational skills. When i try to use my left brain to find my way, well i can't find my way out of a paper bag–no seriously, it's really bad. However, i've had plenty of experiences wherein i tuned into the more right brain, and feeling-intuitive side and found my way just fine. (that's hard to explain, you just kind of let go of preconceptions and feel which is the best way).

However, since my ability to tune into that isn't always up to par, i really should learn some serious navigational skills before i even think about attempting something like this. Some awesome gps navigational device as backup, would probably help a lot.

Ok, other issues. It snows less in the Brooks range than a lot of other places in AK, and i'm wondering whether cross country skis or snow shoes would be better. Hopefully i would be able to find a route without a whole lot of elevation gain/loss differential, so i would be leaning towards skis.

To gun or not to gun? My wife has a Ruger LR 10/22. Hunting to supplement food might be a good idea, but seems like an awfully weak gun to bring for things like Caribou or the like, and certainly won't protect me well from Grizzlies if need be, but they should be mostly hibernating then anyways (one would hope, but then again there are those hungry, hungry wolfies) ?

Light, freaking Light man–so much darkness there then, what maybe 3 to 4 hrs of daylight in mid Feb.? I have a rechargeable Petzl head lamp, that has a lithium ion battery, which also has a compartment for other batteries, which out of necessity would have to be lithium as well. Could bring a high quality hand crank generator, and some extra backup lithium batteries?

I have all kinds of ideas about clothing systems, and food. Petroleum jelly on most of the skin, especially exposed parts of the face? VBL clothes a must. Shelter lined with reflective material. What shelter though? A tunnel tent of some kind or a pyramid like tent? Ok, Sumo training? Seriously, build up some endurance and strength, while packing on some extra fat weight?

Ok, so the coldest places i've yet been, don't compare. Quebec City end of December, beginning of January (Helen, if you're reading, Bonjour), and skiing in the White Mountain of NH in winter time. In other words, pretty warm compared to living out in the wilderness for a couple months in the Brooks range in latish/mid winter.

Anybody else with great navigational skills want to come along? ;) (roll eyes now) You may be right, i may be crazy, but it just may be a lunatic you're looking for…

[Andy F]

Sounds like my kind of trip!

I'm not a great skier, but asking if skis or snowshoes would be better indicates that you likely haven't used skis. :) They're faster, but only if your route and experience allow you to use them.

Can you read a topo map, as in orient it directionally and correlate the contours with real life terrain? Navigation isn't hard if you can read a map. The secret to navigation is to always know where on the map you are.

If you hunt to supplement your food, you'll have to seriously cut into your backpacking time.

How cold are we talking about?

I wouldn't say that VBL clothes are a must as long as you have a breathable shell and use fleece or wool as your insulation. The colder it is, the easier it is to stay dry. For exposed skin, I'd use a balaclava, neoprene face scarf, and a coyote fur ruff on the hood of my cotton canvas parka or anorak. Why cotton? It works well for the natives. Also, WPB fabrics ice up at some point in extreme cold, blocking the pores, and are no longer breathable. That's likely not true of non-membrane softshell fabrics though.

[Anonymous]

Hi Andy,

I've never snow shoed before, but i have cross country skied and regular skied, but i don't have a lot of experience in either.

What i was saying, was that i don't know what the route would be like as far as elevation gain/loss differentials.

If it's relatively flat, i would bring the CC skis. Doing a lot of uphill in CC skis suck though. If it's more up and down, probably the snow shoes.

I need to contact Kristin Gates and ask her some questions about the route she took.

How's your navigation skills? ;)

Wikipedia says that at one of the weather stations that the average low in winter is -20 degrees at that weather station in the Brooks Range at elevation roughly 2100 or so feet. Course, being far northern AK and in the mountains, it could get much colder than that, like -40 or -50.

Yeah, i definitely wouldn't bring any traditional WPB stuff. You're probably right, VBL clothes wouldn't be completely necessary, but it would let me pack my down stuff without having to worry as much about it. Besides, these are so light, would be good to bring as a backup anyways.

But i agree with you about breathability. I have some ideas about active wear that i will write up in a bit.

[Franco Darioli]

Hunting to supplement food might be a good idea
Or maybe not..The time you spend hunting, dressing your catch and cooking it will negate the advantage of having the extra food source
Anyway don't forget to leave some scraps for wolves,wolverines and lynx, they will appreciate that.

Could bring a high quality hand crank generator
And how long will it take you to charge your batteries hand cranking your generator ?

Shelter lined with reflective material
I wonder why most winter/expedition shelters don't have that. Maybe it is because it does not really make much difference

Why cotton? It works well for the natives
Yes but natives know not to sweat and that is why they move slowly. Moving slowly means longer time so more food .

[Roger Caffin]

> If i went out there (especially solo) right now with my level of fitness, gear, and
> know how, i would probably be hiking to my transition from this world to another
> (well, at least i would die happy).

No, you would not die happy. If you got into that situation you would be very miserable for a long time. Only at the end would you feel 'happy', but that would be very advanced hypothermia.

Otherwise, +1 on what Franco wrote. And cotton kills under those conditions.

Cheers

[peter vacco]

yes. crazy dream.
is a nobel goal though.

but as put so thoroughly, a strong lack of experience and absolutely necessary skills.
if one wants what the master has, one must do what the master does.
thusly, if one really really wanted to traverse Alaska in mid winter (probably better done on a snow machine), they would take the steps to acquire the skill set first.

trips north are long, hard. expensive ways to do beta testing of gear, skills, technique. ask Alexander McCandles … that's all i'm say'n.

v.

[Bob Gross]

"ask Alexander McCandles "

Another one would be Christopher McCandless.

–B.G.–

[Andy F]

Cotton kills, except when it doesn't. :) In dry cold conditions, it works great as a breathable shell. And, it's more durable than synthetics (most important if you're gathering/processing firewood) and won't get spark holes if you sit around a fire. A cotton anorak or parka (shell) and sometimes pants are a popular choice among those who spend time in -20C to -40C…

http://wintertrekking.com/clothing/outerlayers/

[Hoot Filsinger]

Justin,

Fill your bathtub with cold water and add 10 bags of ice, soak and read about Ernest Shackleton voyage on the Endurance .
This should bring back your senses.

Hoot

[Anonymous]

Well, i was a couple of glasses of wine into it when i wrote that first post. I already came to the realization that i will need some practice before attempting something like that. I plan to do some shorter trips up in NH, upstate NY or the like. Maybe later onto Montana or the like.

[Anonymous]

I also have a history of tackling challenges straight on with little fear or practice (because of lack of opportunity usually). Some might call that stupid ;) An example: I wanted to own and drive a motorcycle because i needed cheap and fuel efficient transportation. Didn't have anyone to help me learn, didn't have a dirt bike growing up like that or what not. Read all i could about it.

Went down to a dealership, and drove the motorcycle from dealership 20 miles through a major city to get to my town and home. Yes, stupid, but i didn't have a lot of options at the time, could barely afford the bike (and it was my only transportation for awhile), let alone an expensive class. Not the first time, nor will be the last that i've been fearless (insert stupid if you like).

But yes, this is more than i can chew, and i know it. So practice it shall be.

[Justin Baker]

There seems to be some confusion about using cotton in arctic conditions. Cotton canvas is only used as an outer layer, as it is very breathable and wind resistant. In really cold conditions you won't get it wet. It also resists the wind better (because it's heavier, want compress your clothing). Cotton as a base layer or insulation layer is just deadly. Just my 0.02 from a little research, I've never actually done serious snow camping before.

I think that trying to rely on hunting for subsistence is a terrible, terrible idea. However, it's not a bad idea to carry a rifle and use it when you come upon animals while you are traveling. The key thing is to hunt while you are moving towards your end goal instead of stopping to do so. Moving cross country in remote territory lets you shoot whenever you see an animal, while if you were on a trail it would be too dangerous until you stopped and ventured off the trail.
If you shoot a caribou, what are you going to do with it? That's a lot of meat and weight.

If you want to do a winter adventure, perhaps you should do it in a place that has more than 4 hours of daylight. I can barely tolerate the 11-12 hours of daylight here in the winter, too much down time, I feel like I am getting less out of it.

[Anonymous]

Hi Justin,

Good points. Re: hunting, yes i agree, best not to go out of one's way to hunt, but if you happen to see an easier opportunity might make some sense.

What would one do with all that meat, that's a good question. In some ways it would be a liability as wolves would become a lot more interested in you than usual, especially if they are very hungry. Also a lot of weight. Also a lot of fuel to cook.

But i imagine if i was to do something like this, i would be pulling a lightweight, UHMWPE plastic pulk, which is where a lot of my food and heavier stuff would go on. Cooking would be problematic. I've heard that plenty of people have survived off eating raw meat in the Arctic and actually fared better that way (were healthier when eating the raw meat vs cooked meat and camp supply foods like flour, etc). You just have to make sure you kill and eat a healthy younger animal, because the more sickly and older ones are more riddled with parasites.

But i have a lot of ideas about what to bring with food, but basically all of them revolve around mixing something with extra virgin Coconut oil. Coconut oil is one of the easiest to digest fats, which provides some quicker energy but also long term, but still like any fat rich food is super calorically dense.

So my meals would be something like EVCO mixed with Raw meal by Garden of Life, my deserts would be EVCO blended up with dates and figs, or with powdered minimally refined coconut sugar. I would bring some smoked salmon, and also prepared tempeh. But the main food by far would be EVCO with Raw meal. The Raw meal stuff is extremely nutritionally dense, fairly calorically dense, has a nice balance between protein, carbs, fiber, and some healthy fat.

This is all speaking theoretically as this is at least a couple years down the line, i repeat, i'm NOT going to do this come this February.

I might start a thread about intense cold weather clothing.

[Dale Wambaugh]

How about some ramp up trips like long weekends in a snowy northern state with a good trail — after more research, training and practice. It could be trip of a lifetime, but try to insure it's not the last trip of a short life!

And you want something heavier than a .22 unless it's grouse or rabbits.

[David Thomas]

There are hunting seasons for large game in Alaska and you are required to go with a licensed guide (or a first- or second-degree relative). And you must harvest all the useable meat. And the pelt of a fur bearer. Alaskans in the far north usually trap small game rather than shoot it, but that means setting and checking traps.

If inclined to hunt, I'd take the universal gun – a 12-gauge. Shot for hares. Slugs if you attempt caribou or theorize a non-hibernating bear.

You need to be comfortable traveling at -25F and prepared to survive -50F.

I'm not and you aren't the stud muffin Kristin is at cross country travel and she had it 60-70F warmer, limitless light, the option to float downriver, and generous support in her resupplies.

Skis or snowshoes? Dog sled. A proven way to go 1000 miles in 2-3 weeks on a trail(!), with 8-10 resupplies points(!) by highly experienced(!) mushers, who've put about 2,000 miles on each dog that season before starting out. Read some tales about how Iditarod mushers prepared over years and tens of thousands of miles of trail to run an Iditarod and realize that a Brooks Range traverse in Winter is far harder than that. And going without dogs or two snow machines even harder.

[Anonymous]

Hi Dale,

I completely agree, see my third post where I talk up going up to NH, upstate NY, and later some place like Montana.

Unfortunately where I work taking time off is pretty hard to do, so have no idea how I would be able to do all these practice runs and do a longer trip.

[spelt with a t]

Read Luc Mehl's blog. Read his and other first hand experiences of the Brooks Range in winter. Roman Dial, Forrest McCarthy. You are in fantasy land if you think short trips in New England or Montana are comparable.

People do the sort of thing you're talking about, but they do it by living in Alaska and understanding their environment intimately. And by having direct, graduated experience, badass physiology, and knowing exactly how far they can push their limits.

If it's just a fun thing to think about, then sorry for harshing your vibe. But if you're even a little bit serious, I feel compelled to point out this is way, way more hardcore than you seem to be aware.

[Justin McCabe]

I would concur with most everyone on here. Read Luc's blog, or see that Kristin has been thru-hiking for her entire adult life. Also take into account Skurka's level of fitness and acquiring of skills to do his Alaska trek.

I think you're massively underestimating the skills needed. Alaska isn't somewhere you simply fly by the seat of your pants. The locals and the trained have to improvise enough just because Alaska is unpredictable.

All the aforementioned people had the same dream, they just trained hard and smart to see that dream realized.

If you're dream is to walk into the Alaskan tundra with a small chance of coming out healthy or coming out at all, than by all means, don't take the warm up trips others are suggesting and just "go for it".

[Anonymous]

Ok folks, i get the point. Even in my tipsy, wine laden/"inspired" original first post i recognized that i would need a lot more training and skill development.

Some thoughts in relation to what Spelt and Justin M said. Perhaps this might be a good idea? A couple of weeks at Barrow during the coldest part of winter there, try to live and be active outside but close to "civilization" for safety, just to dial in clothing system, etc and to see if i could even handle extreme cold and learn how to be active with sweating very little, etc. Thankfully, i've always been a very quick learner and very adaptable.

Then, if i figure i can handle it, start planning a trip in earnest, and push it closer to Spring time (and at least another year later) where yeah it will be quite cold but not as extreme. But not so late that i would have to be worried about falling into semi frozen streams and rivers, or tons of hungry grizzlies roaming around.

I'm officially done with this thread. Will start a more generalized thread about extreme cold weather clothes, sleeping system, etc.

I know it's apples to oranges, but completing the Camino with a raging, severe jock itch infection the whole time, was in it's own ways pretty challenging–it was very tempting at many times to completely give up (it was pretty painful at some points). I have a very strong will power and mind, and know how overcome matter with mind/Spirit (to some extent). I also know how to warm up the body like some of the Tibetan Monks and Wim Hoff do, just not something i practice because i don't need it where i live and hike so far.

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