Hiking/14ers

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Comment by Matt Payne on March 17, 2011 at 12:02am

Steri-pens are great and have another advantage of being very light. Since you're travelling a great distance, you might want to take a look at these resources here: http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/2005_trip_...

Comment by Angie Rudy on March 16, 2011 at 11:01pm

That's great Tim! Thank you! Good to know it'll be useful to get my fishing permit then.  I won't rely on fish but it'll be quick and hopefully, a nice bonus.  In my days of camping I've come to realize that bear are very large racoons (not that I'm discounting mama with her cubs) but prevention is crucial.  Very glad to hear there aren't wolves around here, they can get large and scary.  I've been using filtering devices (iodine, and the platypus), but after my microbiology class actually used the filter pen to see the outcome, I am now convinced (as well as my Micro professor) that they actually are as effective as they say they area and worth the purchase.  I think I will be ok as long as the terrain I encounter isn't Pikes Peak-like every few days.  That'll definitely slow me down.  I very much appreciate your help! My biggest worries (coming from the east coast) is how dry it gets here and the ability to find water.  I enjoy the heat though and I'll keep ya posted on my travels.  I'm definitely going to purchase the solar powered battery pack for my adventures.  Thank yo for your great tips, and I welcome any more tips!  We do these things for fun...in the old days they did them out of necessity.  I can't decide if I was born too early to too late.  Thanks all!!

Comment by Tim Bergsten on March 16, 2011 at 10:20pm

Hey Angie! Great adventure you have planned there. Take a good filtering system for your water - and I know it will add weight, but this is how I think - consider a backup system or take along some iodine tabs, just in case.

You won't have any problems with coyotes - unless they get too noisy at night. There are no wolves in Colorado. Bears are another story. They'll want your food, not you. So bring a length of rope or some way to hang your food out of reach. But I can tell you, in all my nights sleeping in the woods, I've never encountered a bear. If they came by at night, they were very polite and did not wake me, nor, so far as I could tell, did they make an attempt to stand on each other's shoulders to steal my bag of food. Here in town, they visit each night at certain times of year.

Fishing..I have one rule. I always take my fly rod. Bring your fishing stuff. You may encounter some high water in June - runoff will be cooking. But the fishing can still be great. Still, I'd have a backup plan. I've gone hungry a couple of times thinking I'd feed myself with fish.

And I would like to echo Matt's suggestion: It's all in the planning. Do your homework and you'll really increase your chances of a life-altering experience ... in a good way.

Comment by Matt Payne on March 16, 2011 at 8:40pm

I thought my website was in my profile... but no.. http://www.100summits.com

Comment by Matt Payne on March 16, 2011 at 8:38pm

Yeah, well not many people do hikes like this :-) I actually have the TOPO! program on my computer. Maybe if I get bored tonight I'll plot out a route and shoot it to you via .jpg. Let me know. You can contact me via my website.

Comment by Angie Rudy on March 16, 2011 at 8:22pm

Thanks Matt! I'm definitely leaning toward the map route since I'm fairly familiar with map reading and I don't want to ever be dependent on a gps.  I'd have 16 days and from rough google map calculations that would be about 16 miles a day. Food, I can make do with as long as I train and plan well (not fun, but doable), but water I'm not too sure. I'm an East Coaster who never had to think about hiking long trips without some sort of water source coming up, so that's where my concern is, and the altitude. But, from what I'm looking at, if I have huge troubles the road is not that far.  Thanks for the TOPO suggestion, I'm going to start looking into that right now...and planning! Oh, does anyone think there are enough fishing holes to get a fishing permit? That would lighten the food load. My motivation is an angry wedding party if I can't make it in time, but worst case scenario is heading down to the road in I get in real trouble. I really appreciate the input Matt! I thought something would have popped up during my internet searches of thru hikes, but nothing much but the trail from Denver to Durango. I figured, I could tackle my job hunt waiting...or I could tackle my job hunt backpacking. The latter is more fun.

Comment by Matt Payne on March 16, 2011 at 8:01pm

That's quite a backpack Angie! Just to clarify, you want to hike from Colorado Springs all the way to Delta? For starters, you're going to want to get a program called TOPO! for your computer and the Colorado TOPO! maps as well. Otherwise, a good set of Trails Illustrated and/or USGS quads will serve you well I suppose. That's a huge route, so my concern would be food and water. Water can be easy if you plan ahead on your route, food... eh.. may need to make several stops on the way. Long story short - plan your trip ahead of time carefully!

Comment by Angie Rudy on March 16, 2011 at 7:03pm

Does anyone have experience backpacking from the Springs to Delta area?  I've got a wedding to go to and time to kill so I was thinking about hiking it. It seems I would just have to get Pike and Gunnison NF maps.  It would be in June so I think finding water would be my biggest concern.  I'm used to camping in bear country, but not coyotes and wolves (especially since I'm guessing fires would be prohibited in the summer).  Any tips?

Comment by Matt Payne on October 21, 2010 at 4:00pm

Good write-up Rob. I'm not sure I agree or disagree on the proposal, but it is good to see that discussions are happening.

Comment by Rob Lucas on October 21, 2010 at 3:36pm

I'll be at the Manitou Incline meeting tonight. They've put together a good draft but there are a few things I don't agree with. My thoughts are here

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