[pct-l] Snow Hiking with a sled!

[ned at mountaineducation.org]

Snow Travel: Pull a Sled, Instead!

 

Summer hikers, who are confined to the use of backpacks, don't realize that
in the winter, when everything is covered in smooth snow, they can put all
their stuff in a sled or pulk and tow it behind them! I've been using one
for 32 years..

 

Certainly this is nothing new. Snow-bound adventurers and polar explorers
have been using them for a few centuries. So, from a practical perspective,
what's so great about the idea?

 

Pros:

- You're not high-centered because of your pack: better balance and less
face-plants in snow.
- Less fatigue when maneuvering over consolidated snow.
- You can carry more gear and luxuries! 
- Your legs do all the work, so it's less hard on the back.
- You don't feel its weight behind you (if the snow is consolidated*). 
- Packing is nothing, just throw everything in the sled!
- Emergency medical evacuation tool.
- Emergency shelter.
- Dog bed!

 

Cons:

- More fatigue when pulling through fresh, soft powder snow.
- On downhills, it pushes you, so you are the going-forward brakes!
- Wide turns only, like a long truck, so it's not good in the trees.
- It slides both ways, even backwards (unless you have reverse braking).
- On steep, snowy traverses, some tend to roll or swing sideways a bit.
- May not fit in your car.

 

What is a sled?

There are many different designs, but most end up as a rigid, slippery,
enclosed container or open bed pulled by rope or rigid poles attached to
your hips. Mountain Education, Inc. has been using those made by Patrick
Smith (formerly of Mountainsmith) and his company called Kifaru.
<https://store.kifaru.net/sleds-c8.aspx>
https://store.kifaru.net/sleds-c8.aspx

 

These utilize a rigid-pole design of pulling (instead of a loose rope) that
we like better because when we stop on the downhill, the sled doesn't run us
over! They are shallow, rectangular, fiberglass sleds that have "tracers" or
skegs underneath to keep it tracking right behind you. They come in
different lengths and some can be converted to carrying an enclosed child
seat, too!

 

What does it allow you to do?

I can bring more luxuries, food, and gear that make trips into the
backcountry more comfortable, warm, and fun without strain or fatigue! They
are ideal for short, basecamp styled trips, but I have taken our 7-foot
rescue sled down the full length of the John Muir Trail in the High Sierra,
over all its steep passes and across all those creeks, for four weeks
carrying heavy and bulky camera and climbing gear without a problem.

 

You can bring cots, huge tents with wood stoves, chairs, BBQs, wood for the
fire (yes, you can build a fire on snow!), extra boots, blankets, and
pillows, solar array, family/group gear, and all that heavy, bulky stuff you
could never while backpacking. Basically, it is your pickup truck on snow!

 

Interested?

If this sounds interesting and something you'd like to see in action, join
us on one of our Snow Basics Courses near Lake Tahoe on the Pacific Crest
Trail and find out that snow camping is the way to go!
<http://mountaineducation.org/> http://mountaineducation.org/

Again, lots of photos can be seen on our Facebook page, too!

 

*more on this incredibly important detail in another installment.

C 2016 Mountain Education, Inc.

 

 

Ned Tibbits, Director

Mountain Education, Inc.

ned at mountaineducation.org <mailto:ned at mountaineducation.org>