The Hiking / Backpacking Thread

[zuluking]

Originally Posted by Dentoman

Been 10 years since I have done it .... great hike, great views and don't remember if being that difficult. One attached ladder to climb up a rock face.

Based on my memory, an Odyssey would be a tough drive. I remember the last bit of the drive being pretty rough and bumpy. There are always low clearance vehicles in the parking lot though. I did it once with a car and it was a bit stressful ... after that, truck only and it was actually fun. Maybe they have made improvements to the road in the past 10 years. Definitely want to head back there with my kids at some point.

Did this hike last week. Spectacular! The granite spires of the Bugaboos are awe-inspiring and dizzying when you can spot the climbers perched on the tops of them. And the road was in decent condition, thankfully.

[Torture]

Has anybody done the Skyline trail by Jasper? Going there next week!

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by Torture

Has anybody done the Skyline trail by Jasper? Going there next week!

Two attempts. One thwarted by forest fires. The second by a massive September snow storm. Skyline is basically my Everest now. Good luck.

[stampsx2]

Anybody have any advice on drinking river water. The crux of my hikes is always how much water i have to bring. A liter of water gets heavy after the fifth Kilometer. Overnight backpacking is out just because of the amount of water i'd have to haul. Ya you drink it along the way but i'm one of those take more, just in case hikers.

Advice? Life straw?

[temple5]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

Anybody have any advice on drinking river water. The crux of my hikes is always how much water i have to bring. A liter of water gets heavy after the fifth Kilometer. Overnight backpacking is out just because of the amount of water i'd have to haul. Ya you drink it along the way but i'm one of those take more, just in case hikers.

Advice? Life straw?

Running water in the mountains? I have never had any issues or ever purified and in the last 5 years I have been on over 50 over-nights

I always take the tablets just in case but have never used them in the mountains. Dont drink from standing or lake water. Waterfall, fast river/stream never had any problem.

Bring some wide mouth bottles so they are easy to fill.

[TheSutterDynasty]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

Which one did you attempt?

Didn't attempt one yet, planning some for September!

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

Anybody have any advice on drinking river water.

Since I have no desire to ever have beaver fever, or another gastro-disorder in the backcountry, I carry one of these for overnighters (I can't imagine hauling water for food/drinking for an overnighter) or super long hikes where I know there's a water source:
https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5035-5...-Filter-System

Quick and easier than pumping.

If you're incredibly anal, such as I am, I carry one of these too:
https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5024-1...Water-Purifier

Overkill? Probably. But it's come in handy during travel, as well as water-boil advisories. And it makes freaking delicious water.

Likely the worst thing you'd have to deal with drinking out of a river (in Canada) is sediment plugging you up for a few days, so a coffee filter or something for particulate would be good, but I'm not one to take chances.

If you're not worried about viruses, the MSR miniworks is good, but I hate pumping for an hour when I get to camp, but wouldn't be horrible for day trips. If you want a filter to do what the UV pen does, the MSR guardian is awesome but pricey.

Lifestraw is a cool idea in a pinch, but you're not filling up a water bottle with it, and most hikes I go on don't have a water source every time I want a sip of water.

[Wormius]

I carry a 3L platypus water pack. Not overly heavy and keeps me saturated enough for really long day hikes. I probably wouldn't resort to drinking water from rivers or creeks until the return journey, if necessary. I think I heard somewhere if the water is cold enough in a river, bacteria can't survive. So maybe bring a thermometer.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

Anybody have any advice on drinking river water. The crux of my hikes is always how much water i have to bring. A liter of water gets heavy after the fifth Kilometer. Overnight backpacking is out just because of the amount of water i'd have to haul. Ya you drink it along the way but i'm one of those take more, just in case hikers.

Advice? Life straw?

Originally Posted by kunkstyle

Since I have no desire to ever have beaver fever, or another gastro-disorder in the backcountry, I carry one of these for overnighters (I can't imagine hauling water for food/drinking for an overnighter) or super long hikes where I know there's a water source:
https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5035-5...-Filter-System

Quick and easier than pumping.

If you're incredibly anal, such as I am, I carry one of these too:
https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5024-1...Water-Purifier

Overkill? Probably. But it's come in handy during travel, as well as water-boil advisories. And it makes freaking delicious water.

Likely the worst thing you'd have to deal with drinking out of a river (in Canada) is sediment plugging you up for a few days, so a coffee filter or something for particulate would be good, but I'm not one to take chances.

If you're not worried about viruses, the MSR miniworks is good, but I hate pumping for an hour when I get to camp, but wouldn't be horrible for day trips. If you want a filter to do what the UV pen does, the MSR guardian is awesome but pricey.

Lifestraw is a cool idea in a pinch, but you're not filling up a water bottle with it, and most hikes I go on don't have a water source every time I want a sip of water.

I have done it tonnes, but only in the winter. To be honest it is one of the reasons I love winter back country camping.

I have found that this type of filter works well if you pull from a moving stream/river:

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5007-1...ro-Microfilter

1 minute to fill 1L.

[Brewmaster]

I am a big fan of Sawyer filters. I have the mini, but have heard the squeeze is better due to the higher flow rate. It is essentially a small fiber membrane filter that screws onto the cap of either a bag or any standard pop/water bottle (Aquafina). You then squeeze the water through and it filters out all particles, bacteria, etc. I haven't seen it in any stores but bought a couple off Amazon and have used them quite a bit.

https://sawyer.com/products/type/water-filtration/

[TomLeeMC]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

Anybody have any advice on drinking river water. The crux of my hikes is always how much water i have to bring. A liter of water gets heavy after the fifth Kilometer. Overnight backpacking is out just because of the amount of water i'd have to haul. Ya you drink it along the way but i'm one of those take more, just in case hikers.

Advice? Life straw?

Same as everyone else, I dont wanna get sick on a 3-4 day trek so I use a filtration system. I've used the platypus gravity filter and it works great, but I usually carry the MSR pump with me. Lightweight, super easy to use, you work that arm out pumping and it screws onto any big mouth nalgene bottle.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5001-2...X-Water-Filter

[Wormius]

Does anybody know what the deal is now with national park passes? Is it free entry, or do you need to pay? My annual pass has just expired and wondering if we can just enter the parks now for free or what? I talked to some park rangers I Waterton and they had no idea how the free year is supposed to work.

[worth]

You can buy a discovery pass for the remainder of 2016 which includes free admission for 2017.

You still need to pay to get into the park in 2016.

http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/ar-sr/lpac-ppri/ced-ndp.aspx

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by worth

You can buy a discovery pass for the remainder of 2016 which includes free admission for 2017.

You still need to pay to get into the park in 2016.

http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/ar-sr/lpac-ppri/ced-ndp.aspx

Okay. So basically the "free" year is just a 2-for-1 deal on the annual passes.

[habernac]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Okay. So basically the "free" year is just a 2-for-1 deal on the annual passes.

Yep. Bought mine in June, it expires in 2018.

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Okay. So basically the "free" year is just a 2-for-1 deal on the annual passes.

My understanding... is that in 2017 you just don't need the pass, day or otherwise. I feel like saying that the annual pass for this year gives an "extra year" for free is confusing and misleading IMO.


http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/voyage-travel/admission.aspx

2017 marks the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation and we invite you to celebrate with Parks Canada! Take advantage of free admission to national parks, national historic sites and national marine conservation areas for the entire year.

I took this as being, you don't need to pay to get in, so no need for day pass or annual pass displayed on window. Not that you still need to acquire some sort of "display" to be in the park. But perhaps I am wrong. It seems dumb that you'd still need to acquire a $0.00 entrance thing to put on your windshield IMO.


For the previous post, I generally bring enough water. But my buddy swears by the lifestraw. He says he just brings an empty bladder or nalgene and sucks the water out of it when he needs extra water. That way he doesn't mix anything up. He keeps saying you could probably pee in a bottle and suck it out with no problems. I wouldn't go that far... but he seems convinced for sure.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by Brewmaster

I am a big fan of Sawyer filters. I have the mini, but have heard the squeeze is better due to the higher flow rate. It is essentially a small fiber membrane filter that screws onto the cap of either a bag or any standard pop/water bottle (Aquafina). You then squeeze the water through and it filters out all particles, bacteria, etc. I haven't seen it in any stores but bought a couple off Amazon and have used them quite a bit.

https://sawyer.com/products/type/water-filtration/

I love the Sawyer. I have the mini as well but would buy the regular next time for better flow for the ounce of weight. I just cut it inline in my water bladder and suck through the filter, then I use it as a gravity filer in camp.

I flush every 10L or so in glacial waters and about 20L in better sources.

[Joborule]

Would doing the Larch Valley trail next Sunday (Sept 11) be too early in seeing a good exposure of the autumn colours? Ideally I would like to go later on in the month but do to scheduling conflicts, that date is what works best before it's too late into October.

[Wormius]

There are some areas in K-Country if your primary interest is in the fall colours of the larches. One of the big issues is the number of people that congregate around Larch Valley.

The colours have started changing though, but not near their full dramatic effect yet.

[GGG]

The best Larch hike in Banff is to take the sunshine bus up to the base of the ski hill (about $20) and walk to Healy pass and then out Healy pass. Not much for elevation and in the Larch area for about 12k. Avoid Larch valley unless you are at the trail head by 7am even then it's not worth it.

The hike up you can reach out in front of you and touch people.

Ptarmigan cirque or Chester lake are much better options in K country.

As for timing I would say between the 20th of Sept and 14 of October is the best time.