Re: Trip Report: White Mountain Wilderness - Long

good trip report!  only done Baldy for 12000 footers in NM, so the only
questions I could ask would be if you drank enough water to count for the
elevation changes and what sort of bag/blanket you used at night or if you
just wore the clothes mentioned below to stay warm?  also, if your feet are
cold at night, perhaps using a system so that your feet can be next to each
other like inside of your pack or a stuff sack, think mittens compared to
gloves.  dunno, works for me, but then again I havne't done much with hammocks.
-han

>
> Trip
Report: White Mountain Wilderness, Lincoln National Forest, NM > > OVERVIEW
>
> This national forest, in Southeastern New Mexico, is an alpine island of
> mountains surrounded by the vast desert normally expected in this region.
> There's "real" mountains here, getting as high as 12,000'+ Sierra Blanca
> mountain.  Ruidoso is the nearest major town and the adjoining Ski Apache
> recreation area is the southernmost ski area in the US.  The terrain seems
> very much like that of the lower Rockies with groves of Aspen and Douglas
> firs, mixed with some scrub oak and maples.  The area has many miles of
> trails, but unfortunately, it would be difficult to string together more
> than 25 miles in a contiguous trip.
>
> DESCRIPTION
>
> Coming from the "lowlands" in Austin, TX, I spent a leisurely overnighter at
> the South Fork campground at ~7,500' in order to acclimatize to the
> altitude.  I also took Ginko daily to try to stave off any altitude
> sickness.  I have no way of knowing whether the Ginko specifically worked or
> not, but I definitely didn't have any headaches, nausea or other signs of
> illness.  Now if they could only make a pill that would eliminate the
> feeling that I'm trying to suck air through a straw when hiking uphill at
> 10,000'.....
>
> I took the South Fork trail and then the Peacock trail to get up onto the
> Crest Trail, a 22 mile ridge loop around the basin holding Bonito Lake.  The
> 2.5 miles or so that it took to get from the campground to 10,000' feet on
> the ridge were steep, but incredibly beautiful.  The stream was running, the
> firs smelled great, and the meadows still had clumps of flowers with
> hummingbirds flitting around.  I camped that night a little past the first,
> unnamed but welcome spring on the crest.  My campsite was on the "stage"
> area of a natural amphitheatre.  As the sun set, deer emerged from the woods
> in the seating area of the amphitheatre and began grazing, unconcerned with
> me.  However, the best treat was the show a couple of elk put on, as two
> huge, majestic elk bulls with giant racks bugled at each other from opposite
> sides of the meadow and eventually knocked antlers to settle what I'm
> certain were petty differences over women or territory. :>)  That bugling
> really resonates.  All night.
>
> Early on the second day I passed Ice Spring, near the high point on the trip
> of 11,300', and then another unnamed clear spring near Elk Point.  Since I
> still had plenty of water, I moved on.  The views on the crest were
> wonderful and the trail traversed many "balds", as the East Coast-ers call
> them, in addition to Aspen, Fir, and Oak groves which were just starting to
> show fall colors (well...except the firs). As I was leaving the broad Dog
> Canyon, I was serenaded by four unseen coyotes that appeared to be
> strategically place around the area I just traveled through.
>
> Past Elk Point, I started seeing signs of serious damage from horse travel.
> I've got to admit that I'd love to travel this region on horseback, but I
> simply couldn't deal with contributing further to the environmental impact I
> saw.  In some areas, the trail was eroded 3' deep.  In other areas, the
> trail was worn as wide as a road.  In all cases, the trail was just hard on
> the feet, due to all the churned up loose rock.
>
> As I continued moving around the crest, I became increasingly concerned that
> mapped water sources and "seeps" at potential campsites were dry.  I
> definitely had enough water for travel, but not nearly enough for a dinner
> and breakfast.  So, I continued to move along the trail, counting on the
> next water source.  One mile led to another, and although the surroundings
> couldn't have been more beautiful, the water issue kept pushing me forward.
> I was happy to see a wet Argentina Spring from a distance, but was extremely
> discouraged to find, once I got closer, that horses had absolutely
> demolished it.  What could have been a sustainable water source for people
> and livestock was simply a well-trampled mud hole.  I kept moving only to
> find two more dry springs.  At that point, I made the decision that spending
> another day on the trail wasn't worth traveling after sunset to try to
> locate the few remaining marked water sources.  With sore feet, a dry mouth,
> and somewhat dampened spirit, I came off the crest and completed my
> originally intended hike, albeit in the dark and a day early.
>
> GEAR SUCCESSES
>
> Reflector/cheap Target pad - I was very pleased with the combination of a
> windshield reflector on top of a wide, cheapo Target brand 3/8" closed cell
> foam pad in my Hennessey Ultralight hammock.  Although my feet continue to
> get cold whenever the temps drop into the 30's, the rest of me stayed fairly
> warm using this pad combo.  In addition, I usually end up sleeping kinda
> warm, kinda wet in the hammock due to (I think) the collision of warm body
> vapor with the cold outer surface of the hammock.  With the Target pad
> *underneath* the reflector, I didn't notice nearly as much moisture.
>
> Mountainsmith Ghost - this was my first trip with the Ghost and I was very
> pleased with it's performance.  It's a good size, at 3,000 cubic inches of
> space; useful for up to a 5 day trip for me.  It has no expansion capacity,
> though.  The pack is light (2lbs 6 oz) and the suspension fits very well
> with it's wide hip belt, multiple adjustment points, and generous shoulder
> straps.  I did notice that the load-lifter straps loosened up over time and
> required periodic tightening.  The panel-loader design of the pack makes
> packing and accessing gear very easy.  The zipper on the panel is a heavy
> duty monster and appears to be weather-proof (I didn't have a chance to find
> out).  This pack is made out of very durable, grid-reinforced fabric and I
> had no concerns about setting it down on rocks or crashing through brush.
> Finally, I liked the internal water bladder pocket and hooded drinking hose
> hole.  It worked great with a 2L tall platy.  My pack weight, including
> fuel, food and water, was around 25 lbs at the start of the trip and I was
> extremely pleased with the fit and carry.  All in all, a good value at
> approx $170.
>
> Starter shirt - someone on the list mentioned that Wal-Mart was selling
> Starter brand shirts which advertised wicking capability.  My wife GAVE AWAY
> my favorite wicking shirt just before my trip ("I didn't know you liked
> thaaaaat shirt....."), so I stopped by Wally World and picked up a long
> sleeve Starter t-shirt for less than $10.  This shirt was worth every cent.
> In the cool shade, it didn't feel cold and clammy on the skin.  In the hot
> sun, my sweat saturated it, but dried very quickly when I stopped and
> dropped pack for a break.  The stink factor after a couple of days wasn't
> too bad and was certainly better than with anything made of capilene.  I
> rate this one as a bargain along the lines of the famous Grease Pot.
>
> Dr Scholl's Odor Destroyer - if you want to keep your feet from killing
> wildlife or hiking partners, use this stuff.
>
> NEED TO IMPROVE
>
> Sleeping clothes - I'm still tweaking the clothes required to sleep
> comfortably in my hammock.  My current wardrobe consists of down booties
> over heavy wool socks, wind pants over medium weight polyester long
> underwear bottoms, fleece shirt over medium weight long underwear top, and a
> watch cap over a light balaclava.  Unbelievably, my lower body is still
> getting cold when the temp drops to a little less than freezing.  Someone
> previously suggested a pair of fleece pants; I'm going to try that next
> time.
>
> GPS - I can typically use a map and compass and find my way around pretty
> well.  However, I've noticed that I'm much more mistake-prone when I'm
> really tired toward the end of the day.  I think a GPS might come in handy
> as a cross-check at times like these.
>
> Mountainsmith Ghost - I can't help but tinker with a good thing. :>)  I'm
> seriously considering replacing the fiberglass rod which forms the pack stay
> with a carbon graphite kite rod to save a few ounces.  In addition, I'd like
> to add a couple of hip belt pockets in order to keep essential stuff easily
> accessible; a nod to the great thing those guys at ULA have done with their
> P-1 and P-2 designs.
>
> DT
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
>
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--
Long Distance Hiker:   www.msu.edu/~benne129