first hike over 10,000feet looking for a dvice.

“I will be hiking the RaeLakes Loop trail in calafornia in Late June. Starts at around 8000 and peaks at around 11,500 and back. 46 miles and I guess the plan is to do it in 5 days. I am a smokey mountain hiker. Will my Pepsi can stove work? Do I need long johns or will just convertable pants be ok? would it be cool to take some Oxygen for a boost?
thanks Ya'all....”

“9 miles a day in terrain like that?

you better stop smoking for this one”

“Havent smoked in years but am still a bit nervous about being in shape for it. But I do not know how I can train other than keep hiking here at 1500 -2000 feet.

I am seriously thinking of taking a small O2 tank I might enjoy the High ....”

“The O2 tank will weigh too much.

Try blood-doping.

Take a liter of blood from yourself a couple weeks before the trip. The morning before the climb, inject the blood back into your body.

Viola! Extra red blood cells!!!”

“spoken like a true witch-doctor

;)”

“Spend a night or two as high as you can, as close to the trip as possible, preferrabley the nights before. More than likely no problems. Unless you know you have altitude problems, don't worry about it. I live at 1,100 feet, hiked the Winds over 11K, but took a few days getting to that elevation, no problems.”

“yep Shawns got the plan, get there a day or two early and just hang out, nothing strenuous, but do it at elevation to let your body adjust.

other than that, just exercise all you can prior to the trip.

have fun and take lots of pics.”

“Go slow.”

“Spend a night or two as high as you can,


Shawn
10:15:04 PM
05/23/04
ignore this user




did no one else see this...your in college right....listen to phish?....lmao..”

“Pepsi stove will work fine.
Even in late June it can be nippy after dark at 10k.
Cedar Grove (roads end) is only about 5K so sleeping at the trailhead isn't going to help much. Are you traveling clockwise or CCW through the loop? If your headed towards Paradise Valley the first day...it won't be too tough.

Webshots Photos”

“Just get in shape by jogging. The elevation shouldn't be a problem, Just get in shape the best you can before going (jogging, etc,) and drink lots of water along the trail. Definately want to take a pair of long johns - it gets cool in the Sierra Nevada mtns at night even in late June. It also gets warm during the day, so be prepared with a t-shirt, short pants, sunglasses, and plenty of sunscreen.

Have fun, Rae Lakes is a great loop trip!”

“Lots of cardio exercise to prepare for hiking at altitude. Sleeping at altitude (over 8000 ft if you can find it) the night or two before the trip is always good advice.

I understand there is some up and down on the Rae Lakes Loop, so you will be covering a lot of hard miles in 5 days. However, it is rated one of the most scenic loop hikes in the country.”

“More photos..I'd go with what the others say..spend as much time as high as you can..since you don't smoke..oh well, that's another subject, isn't it??..LOL..here's some more photos..
King's Canyon”

“I had my first trip out West 2 weeks ago. My previous experience is also in the Smokies. The trip wasn't backpacking, but we did a short dayhike. We went from about 500' at 6:30 to 10,000 by about 2 pm. Neither of us had any AS, but we did have lots of shortness of breath. Based on that experience I'd say let your first day be very short mileage. I could have probably done about 4 miles on that day and that's about it. I was up at 4, so by the time I hit the trail I'd had about a 10 hr day already.

Have fun.”

“Under 12,000 I would be very surprised if you had any problems.

You probably will experience some shortness of breath on steep bits, but as stated above just slow down a bit. Walk a couple of minutes, rest 30 seconds. Face down hill for those 30 seconds and deliberately slow your breathing. Deep slow breaths.”

“Baloney....it could very well happen at 8 or 9,000 feet. If possible get some R&R for 1-2 days at high elevation. Once you start hiking, take it easy, don't be in a hurry.

You might be in great shape but that AS can still whack ya. Last July my son (who's a beast) and I had some AS at 9000 feet climbing Long's Peak.”

“i dont remember the name but i took some kind of medicine prior to the trip, then i stayed a couple days at high elevation. i had no problems at all. got stronger every day. by the 4th day i was ready to rumble.....

enjoy!”

“I was thinking about hiking this summer in Colorado and asked my dr. what I needed to do to get ready cause I have asthma..and he said what Shawn said. Stay at one level till I get use to the air there...then move.”

“Good one Rox1, ask your doctor is the smart first step.”

“BMB, ditch the O2 bottle. You were kidding, right? Get on a treeadmill at the gym, crank it up to its maximum angle, put your hiking boots on, put your backpack on with some weight in it, and walk at a brisk pace. As you are able to, put more weight in the pack, and walk faster. That way, you'll get the aerobic training, you'll get muscle training in the muscles used in walking uphill, your feet will get used to the boots and vice versa, and your shoulders will get a workout and be strengthened for carrying the pack. If you want to go all out on training, get a mouthpiece that restricts your breathing, to simulate the altitude. The harder you work out, the easier the trip will be.

The Rae lakes area is beautiful. I thought it was a "stove only" place. Does your pepsi stove burn sticks, like a sierra zip stove? Thats considered a campfire, I think. You picked a great place to go.”

“Alternative to the treadmill is any set of stairs, one floor will do.

Hike up and down with a backpack on. Alternate flights between one step at a time and two steps at a time. Two steps is work, one step is your rest period.

Use any set of steps you come across during the day (no backpack) one flight one step, next flight two steps.
Be honest with the two at a time going down. Working the thigh muscle not destroying your knee.
If two hurts go back to one, or go 1/2 flight at two and the rest one.”

“Idaho Bob - pepsi can stoves burn alcohol and would not be considered a campfire by any rational person”

“Spend at least the night before at a high elevation, drink lots of water - you need more at higher elevations, aspirin can help, move along at a slow and steady pace the first couple days, bring layers - rain gear and fleece plus your warm weather clothes.”

“Is there a pill to help you get use to the change in the air quality?”

“Yes there is, but like most drugs there may be side effects.

Check with your doctor, find out what the side effects are, how likely you are to get them, how to recognize early warnings, and what to do if they occur.

Somewhere up on a mountain is not the place to find out about the side effect, even worse is that your body has relied on the medication to offset the altitude and suddenly stopping may cause far worse AMS than if you had not taken it to start with.

Really should not be looking at Meds unless you are going to Denali or Aconcagua in the 20,000 ft range where the weather dictates when you can go up. Then you may not have the time you need for aclimitization and the meds are worth the risk.

10,000ft in Colorado, just go down. A 500ft drop is normally enough for recovery.”

“Unless you have a medical condition screw the pills.
Get in better shape and be sure to acclimate as best you can.

It's such a better plan in so many ways.”

“best you can do is be fit and give your self a day or two acclimate, either by taking it easy on the trail or sitting at the trailhead for a day. Make some allowances when considering your pace and climbing ability.

Acute altitude sickness is pretty rare at that altitude, but does happen. Like someone above said, going down usually solves the emergency.”

“Also know that you will have to carry a bear cannister on this trip. So add at least 2 more pounds to your pack weight :)”