In Defense of Out and Back Hiking

Posted on January 28, 2012 by jfugett

I was contemplating my propensity to prefer loop hikes to out-and-backs.  Loop trails, of course, provide you the opportunity to see different terrain throughout your hike, giving the impression that you are always making forward progress.  But in the end you will be in the same place, that is, wherever you left your car.

I Saw this Scenery Twice on This Trip

I think the felt need to never backtrack a trail reveals a deficit in my appreciation for why I am outdoors in the first place.  Although the feeling may be natural (we will never be able to hike and see everything we would like to and loop hikes give us the opportunity to see more), I have a nagging suspicion the real reason is more related to the consumerism that is eroding our culture and our souls in today’s society.  Today our lives are not about enjoying what we have, at least not for the life of the product, it’s about getting and moving on.  I am trying to fight this in my life.  I try to ask myself if I really need that new gadget, or does the one I have work fine, or would a used one meet my needs just as adequately, or could I really do without it all together.  But this seems to be a very hard ethic to live by.  In fact I am bad at it.  My hobbies and pastimes become an excuse to spend money and gather more things.  I hate to admit it, but sometimes I have to ask myself if my hobbies aren’t more about the thrill of spending and consuming, than about the essence of the activity itself.  Our societies seem built on the need to continue spending at all costs.  It has become almost a patriotic duty to consume more and more in order to keep the world’s economies humming along.  I for one think this is a futile goal. Like the universe, there is a point at which expansion is no longer sustainable and the system begins to collapse back on itself.  I think the only real solution is to establish equilibrium and realize there are limits to everything including prosperity.

But I think this consumer mindset is most sad when it invades our enjoyment of nature.

I am glad I got two looks at Rainbow Creek

My time in nature should not always be about conquering.  That desire is exciting and I wouldn’t want to extinguish it completely.  For me there will always be new adventures, I will not be able to do it all, at whatever breakneck speed I travel, or how deep my pockets get.  But that’s not the point.  If all I think about when experiencing the outdoors is getting to the next hill, the next vista, or the next trail, I am completely missing the point and instead of coming home rejuvenated and rested, I may just come home jazzed about the next trip, or the piece of gear I realized I “needed” while in the woods.  The experience should be spiritual, putting our own activities and existence in an eternal perspective, but instead it becomes an exercise in a self-centered, ego-centric narrowing of perspective.  It becomes like everything else we do, all about ourselves.

Out-and-backs, whether we like it or not, are the norm not the exception.  I for one want to embrace them and realize that my walks in the woods are no less diminished by seeing the same terrain twice and actually expand my understanding of my environment and offer the opportunity to absorb nature rather than conquer it.  I want to know my paths in all their permutations and to absorb all they have to offer me mentally and spiritually.  So here’s to traveling in more straight lines.  When I get back, guess what, my car is in the same place it would have been anyway, but I may be quite different than I was.

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Why Not Bike in Winter?

Posted on January 23, 2012 by jfugett

I love to commute by bike.  In Alaska the only sure-bet season for easy commuting is late spring to early fall.  That is, after winter breakup, when ice and snow are mostly gone and before the first real snow begins falling by early to mid October.  Though that is a fairly slim biking season, a quick survey of the number of bikes on Anchorage roads attests that it is pretty much the schedule people stick to.  There are those more adventurous and dedicated cyclists who ride their bikes throughout most or all of the rest of the year.  You have to be pretty motivated to do so however, for several reasons, all of them pretty obvious.

The first and clear winner in the “reasons not to ride” sweepstakes is the sometimes bitter cold weather, followed closely by the frequent inclimate conditions that can dump ice and snow on you making for a pretty sluggish, uncomfortable slog to work.  Although temperatures in Anchorage can get down well below zero and frequently do in mid December to late January, it is a little embarrassing to admit that our temps might keep me off the streets when I compare what we have to contend with to the severe extremes of Fairbanks winter cycling weather.  Josh Spice, reports on his frigid trips to work on his Fat Tire bike on his blog “Life and its Adventures.”  Still though, you have to be ready for a jarring slap in the face from biting wind chills when cycling in winter and it can be hard to convince yourself this is a good idea when a perfectly operable car is sitting pre-heated in your garage, ready to provide a quick jaunt to work in climate controlled bliss.

The short days with darkness reigning during both the morning and evening commute also make riding your bike to work less palatable.  It is unnerving to ride your bike in Anchorage traffic in good light.  Everyone thinks the drivers in their city are the least considerate to bikes, and I make that claim for Anchorage.  In the dark, however, the bike to work can be downright terrifying.  Riding in winter often means riding on streets that are narrowed by snow and very slick, both for you and for cars that may be swerving to avoid you.  They shouldn’t have to do this, but most drivers aren’t expecting bikes in winter and may not have had their first cup of coffee yet, or forgot to turn on the CPAP machine last night, making them less than alert to your presence.

Cycling in Spring is Certainly Much Easier.

But these excuses not to ride during the colder months really amount to just that.  There are ways to mitigate all of these problems.  You can ride the sidewalks if they are clear, which thankfully in my area of Anchorage they usually are as they get plowed nearly as quickly as the streets.  You can put studded tires on your bike to mostly eliminate problems with slippery road surfaces.  You can wear appropriate clothing.  You can get yourself up early enough not to feel like you have to rush to work, needing your car.  You can overcome inertia by reminding yourself that riding a bike to and from work is great exercise meaning you may be able to save money on a gym membership, not to mention the time it takes driving to the gym working out, then driving home.  You can remind yourself of the savings associated with less frequent trips to the Shell station.  There is also nothing that says you have to ride your bike every day, and certainly not on the most inclimate days.  Like days when driving your car is a questionable activity.  Also, don’t forget the feeling you get after riding in less than favorable conditions, whether rain in the summer or snow and dark in the winter that makes the effort well worth it.

So, I am about to dust off the saddle, buy the studded tires, and get back to two-wheeling it to work.  The excuses just aren’t working for me anymore, and I can’t wait to get the first ride of the New Year in.  Normally that ride would be sometime late April or May, but this year I am thinking late January.  How many more miles could I put into cycling if I make it a four season affair?  Are you with me?  Come on, let’s do it!

Posted in Anchorage, Bicycle Commuting, Biking, Exercise | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

When Nature is Your Castle

Posted on January 21, 2012 by jfugett

I have been offered a position as Executive Director of a small non-profit company.  The company works with severely mentally ill adults, helping them to recover from their illness, in part through helping them prepare for and find jobs.  It is one of those situations where the position is a promotion that brings with it a major cut in pay.  Money is not my main motivator so I will probably take the job.

In making plans for the subsequent pay-cut I have been thinking about the inevitable downgrade in my living environs.  I will likely move into the condo being vacated by the departing Executive Director.  Since it is turning into something passed between leaders of this company, I have decided to refer to it as “the parsonage.”  The parsonage is about half the size of the townhouse I currently live in.  Although money is not a prime mover for me, my environment is.  I love where I live now.  It is a place I look forward to coming home to every day.  I enjoy sitting on the back deck in the summer and watching nature do its thing in the woods behind the property.  Last year we had bears visit our backyard and my wife even swears she saw a wolverine loping through the woods (Not a chance, but let’s keep that between you and me.  It’s a sensitive topic.).

Recreating this in the new place will be very difficult.  For one thing, “condo” is a fancy name for apartment and we will be ensconced in the middle of a complex.  For another we are going to have to sell most of our familiar comforting furniture and buy things that fit the new place.  We are looking forward to the challenge of re-tooling the nest and just came back from visiting several furniture stores for inspiration, but the new living environment will not be the same.

I have decided that what I get from my current home, I will have to find in the outdoors.  I am an open spaces guy at heart and recreating the appearance of openness and flow in the new place will be very difficult.  Instead, I am going to have to get that feel from the real thing.  For instance, instead of rushing home from my office through the outdoors to my solace providing home, I will go from my office to the solace providing outdoors ending up in my home.  I am looking forward to savoring the bike rides to and from work this coming year.  I think I will spend a lot more time outside during lunch breaks and will be motivated to spend even more time on the trails in the Chugach.  Maybe instead of spreading out on a rug in the living room reading my Nook, I will spend more time lying out on a hill overlooking a creek reading my Nook.

In Alaska there is no way you should ever feel cramped.  You are only cramped when you refuse to remove yourself to the outdoors.  I am looking forward to the challenge of leading the new company forward.  I am not looking forward so much to recreating my indoor living environment, though even that has its joys.  Mostly, I am very much looking forward to allowing the beautiful outdoors of Alaska to bring me peace and solace, naturally.

[Michael if you are reading this the deal is not done.  If it gets done you will be the first to know and I will work out something amicable with you and Sean, we love working with you guys.]

Posted in Healthy Living, Nature, The Environment | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Pack Weight Musings

Posted on January 17, 2012 by jfugett

My old school mindset has its genesis in the 10 years I spent in the Army.  The US government never found a heavy piece of gear they didn’t like and issued most of it to soldiers at one time or another.  My large Alice Rucksack, replete with extra-bulky direction finding antennae topped out at 120+ pounds.  I carried it with a smile (or was it a grimace?).  Doing so proved I was tough and could take it (at least for a few miles).  I was a real soldier.

Even prior to Army days though I saw backpacking not so much as a time to be austere and become one with the wilderness as an opportunity to try out any and all new gadgets and toys in the woods.  For instance I carried a rather heavy net hammock with me for years that I never used.  But I liked the idea of having it just in case the right two trees presented themselves.  I also carried general reading materiel and every owner’s manual that came packaged with every piece of essential backpacking equipment I owned.  You never know when you might need to know how to strip down your stove or water filter while in the field.  Never mind you could practice that while safely at home.  I got a set of MSR stainless steel pots for Christmas one year and loved to bring both of them on every hike thereafter.  They were pretty and carried a lot of sentimental value.  They were nice pots!  I could have thrown in a stainless steel kitchen sink for just slightly more weight allowance.

Up until my dog ate one of the pockets out of it, my Kelty Super Tioga external frame pack was my pack of choice.  I needed every square inch of its caverness depths to haul all of my stuff.  I used to chide my brother who “went internal frame” with a Lowe Alpine of some model, telling him he had actually just bought a duffle bag with a hip belt.  His pack too held a double portion of hernia in excess gear though.  My normal pack weight in those days, when pared down was 55lbs.  I thought I was doing good.

Even so, I came out of the Army with some habits that would have made modern UL hikers proud.  I took ridicule for hiking with an Army poncho as my only shelter and a poncho liner as my only blanket in temperate weather (heck I had used that same combo below freezing while in the 7th Infintry Division, Light.  Our motto, “Fight light, freeze at night.”).  I used chemical heat tabs to cook with and used tablets to purify water.  But even that stuff would be considered heavy by today’s standards.

I have never completely latched on to the heart of the UL scene.  I like comfort and I like the occasional McGuiver tool.  When I hike, even alone, I tend to carry a water filter and a white gas stove.  I do use titanium implements and I try to pare down containers used to carry items.  I scour ultra-light articles and web sites to find ways to gut weight, but I never choose to cut much comfort.  I now carry a Neo-lite air mattress, but before those appeared I lugged around an old rubber Army air mattress that weighed several pounds, but was oh, so comfortable.  Also, a Nook reader is essential packing material, even though it is heavy by UL standards.  I don’t cut stabilizer straps off of my pack and want it to come with padded shoulder straps and a hip belt.  I will also carry “enough” cloths to keep me warm.  The days of carrying at least two full changes of clothes and several pairs of socks and a pair of underwear for at least a change every other day is gone, but I do my best to ensure I will stay warm.

I will keep looking for ways to lighten my load.  I will probably start alternating use of my MSR Hubba tent with a tarp in mosquito-less environs.  I will not however, be drilling holes in my toothbrush handle.  Balance here seems to be the key.  It’s easy to forget that our forebears braved the back country in leather, canvas and cotton with heavy wooden framed packs when they could get them.  I don’t want to go back to those days.  I will continue to search out the lightest most austere items to carry on my backpack trips to continue to fully enjoy the experience.  That means something different for everyone.  For me, among other things, it means a DSLR camera and a small Campmor salt and pepper shaker, with a pack weight sans food and water, of 20 to 25 lbs depending on conditions.  Remember everyone “hike your own hike!”

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Hiking in Cold Weather: What to Wear

Posted on January 14, 2012 by jfugett

If you live in the north and have a lot of experience hiking you already use layers to keep yourself warm and comfortable.  If you do not usually hike in colder weather, or are new to hiking all together, then you need to know about dressing in layers.  You don’t have to dress like the abominable snow man to stay warm during cold weather hiking and camping.  If you are going to be standing around on snow or ice with little activity for extended periods of time, then you will want to layer on thick long underwear and parkas, as well as insulated heavy boots.  While hiking however, your body will warm up nicely and you will find that a heavy single layer or two will not work.

When I am hiking in cold weather, I wear the following layers: First, a base layer that consists of a thin polyester pull-over.  As temperatures drop I will replace the polyester with a thin Moreno wool long underwear top, and if it is really cold, I wear a medium weight polypropylene long underwear shirt.  Even in very cold weather though, I have regretted choosing the heavier top as I warm up very quickly in it.  I like to have it with me in a pack however, if I am going to be spending time standing around in camp for its extra insulation.  On top of this base layer I wear a fleece full-zip jacket.  Mine zips up high enough to act as a neck gaiter as well.  This layer is the first to come off when I warm up.  If there is no wind or precipitation, I will sometimes wear it as my top layer, as it more readily wicks moisture for quickly cooling down.  Over this I wear a Goretex wind/rain shell.  This combination of layers works well for me in temperatures down to about zero degrees and would work well below zero with moderate exercise.  On a recent hike with temperatures hovering around -10F I had to remove the fleece and unzip the pit-zips of the Goretex, as well as zipping the front zipper halfway down.  This was easily reversed to conserve heat when I stopped for any length of time.

For my legs, in very cold weather, I wear a lightweight pair of Moreno wool long underwear pants, under a pair of medium weight convertible polyester hiking pants.  This usually keeps me comfortable throughout the hike.  The wool keeps my lower-half almost over-heating, resulting in the need to add or remove the fleece or shell to keep from sweating too heavily.  For my extremities I do the following: On my head, I wear a wool ski cap which I often remove to regulate heat.  Most of your body heat is lost through the top of your head, so this is often all you need to do to keep your body heat regulated.  Once I am moving my hands stay pretty warm with only a medium weight pair of fleece gloves.  Your experience here may be quite different as there is great variability in how cold effects different people’s hands and feet.  My wife for example needs a thick set of mittens in temperatures below 15F.  She keeps these on even when expending a good deal of energy, for instance snowshoeing, when I may remove gloves altogether.  I always carry chemical hand and toe warmers to provide extra warmth when needed.  In very cold weather I always start with toe warmers as my boots are not insulated.

If you are going to be standing around in an overnight camp, or at the terminus of your hike while you eat lunch, you may want to carry a down jacket to replace the shell.  If you have been properly adding and removing layers this may not be necessary.  Usually the need for additional layers when you stop, if you are wearing the setup I describe, is related to having begun to sweat too much resulting in rapid cooling when you stop.  Sweating can be regulated in two ways: By removing layers and by slowing down your pace.  It is really critical not to sweat heavily when out in very cold weather.  If you are going to keep from cooling too rapidly, or even becoming hypothermic when you stop, you cannot sweat heavily and wet your clothing layers.  Proper temperature regulation should trump speed to destination.  In very cold weather when backpacking I do carry medium weight polypropylene tops and bottoms and a down jacket for wearing around camp.  Also, a warmer pair of gloves is needed if I am going to be standing around.

Experimentation is the best way to find out what works best for you.  You should do this, to start, on short hiking trips where you are reasonably sure to return the same day (although you should be prepared for an emergency overnight stay).  Carry a daypack even on a short hike, so that you can bring a few alternative pieces of clothing to try as you hike.  This way when you go on longer or overnight hikes you will be prepared to be comfortable no matter how cold it gets, or how much effort you have expended while hiking.

Another consideration whenever temperatures are cold is the effect of wind and precipitation.  In cold weather precipitation comes in the form of sleet or snow.  These can be fended off nicely with a rain shell and pants.  But don’t forget that wind can be an even bigger problem with low temperatures.  Here again a rain/wind shell and pants are critical and should be brought with you whenever you are out in the cold.  Another addition for very cold temperatures is a good synthetic balaclava and for blowing snow a pair of ski goggles.   One other point that should have been stated first:  NEVER layer in cotton clothes!  Cotton absorbs moisture and takes forever to dry.  In cold weather consider cotton “death cloth.”  Never wear it and that includes cotton blue jeans.  Actually, don’t even wear cotton in the summer, but that is another post.

Winter hiking is great, and you certainly don’t have to be uncomfortably cold while participating.  Take a few precautions and dress in layers and you are sure to have a great experience.

Posted in Exercise, Hiking, Nature | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments