Category: Packrafting
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The 2015 Bob Marshall Wilderness Open report
Photo by Sam Haraldson. The 2015 Open, from the Owl Creek TH at Holland Lake to the Swift Reservoir TH, set a record for attendance with 16 starters. Under sunny and warm skies on Saturday morning the various hikers fanned out into five different drainages above Upper Holland Lake, taking diverse routes down to the…
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Bob Open gear talk
For the most part, the gear I used to cross the Bob this year worked well. This is the sixth trip in as many years I’ve done through similar terrain around this time of year, so if I haven’t yet found a good system yet I’m just not paying attention. The same basic complement of…
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My 2015 Bob Open
Preparation comes before success, and a few weeks before the Bob Open I knew that I wouldn’t have the legs to really push things. I’ve had other priorities this spring, and like everywhere else there are no honest shortcuts in the wilderness. Last year complications put me behind schedule and strongly suggested an early exit,…
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Packing for the 2015 Bob Open
The weather forecast is good, even a little excessively warm. The rivers aren’t high. The snow will be minimal. Attendance at the start promises to be the highest ever, possibly by a lot. The Bob Open should be a good time. I’m taking a more relaxed approach this year, with a bit of extra time…
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Spring postholing, in style
In the Crown of the Continent ecosystem, if you wait for the snow to melt before hiking you will be waiting a long time. Better to deploy some of the following tips, get out early, and enjoy the solitude and occasional excessive challenge which come with postholing through spring snow. The first, or Sun Tzu,…
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Snow and scat
Yesterday I did one of my favorite hikin’ and packraftin’ loops in Glacier National Park. In spite of thus-far unfulfilled intentions to ski it, I’ve never been in there this early. I had snowshoes on my pack as well as the usual rafting gear, which made for good training weight, but the ‘shoes went unused.…
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Just ramblin’
The last two times I’ve driven west out of Augusta, the sky has looked like this. Saturday was supposed to be fairly warm, but instead it rained, snowed a tiny bit, and howled east at 30 mph all day long. The ground looked well into spring, with no snow and the first hints of green…
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The ‘mid I’ve been looking for
Disclaimer: Seek Outside gave me the shelter discussed below for free in exchange for feedback. [12/2016 update: the BT2 is now the Silvertip, with modest but significant revisions which make it more friendly to taller folks, and more likely to pitch with one long trekking pole.] It’s illustrative to think back to the first “cottage”…
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Two good gloves
I dislike gloves, and having warm hands I’m often able to get away without them, but that’s not always the case. Skiing, cycling, and hunting are all examples of activities where cold exposure is increased and the demands for dexterity heightened. The following are two examples of gloves which provide maximum weather protection with minimal…
Bedrock & Paradox 
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