General ? about elevation gains/hiking….

[Titaneq]

Leaving for CO next week Thursday and can’t really concentrate on anything haha, ready to go! We’ve got a couple of plans of attack and areas we think we can access without totally getting our butt kicked. However a few areas that were considering trying to get to are more aggressive as far as the amount of gain in elevation over say a few miles. I know there’s a ton of variables but wondering what the general thoughts are on what is considered “a lot” or “too much”? I’m 49 yrs old in decent shape w three 23 yr olds in better shape haha.

 

[D_wit22]

Any sort of training or are you going in cold turkey?

 

[Titaneq]

Any sort of training or are you going in cold turkey?

We’ve been rucking w our packs at 50#, normal running, hiking some, etc….my wife and I actually flew out a month ago and hiked in to some of the areas (keep in mind we never really left the hiking trail so wasn’t going through blowdowns and thick stuff). We’re definitely not in Elite condition, there will be tons of guys out there in way better shape but we’re not going in without at least trying to be prepared and we’re in decent shape.
One of the hiking trails that would take us up to an area we think would be worthwhile is like 3.2 miles on the trail (go in and hunt from there in different directions) and 2300’ of gain which seems like an ass kicker to me but don’t have a lot to go off of for perspective.

 

[D_wit22]

2300’ in 3.2 miles….i can tell you the only direction you will be going is up! but it’s doable especially if you just pace yourself. Best part of that would be killing one and the pack out all being down hill

 

[Titaneq]

2300’ in 3.2 miles….i can tell you the only direction you will be going is up! but it’s doable especially if you just pace yourself. Best part of that would be killing one and the pack out all being down hill

Ha! I hear ya on the direction being up. Decent chance we can get a local w horses to take the trail in to our general area to get the meat out. Will still have to pack it to the trail and we could easily be a mile or two from the trail so it’ll be work if we get lucky but having horses to cut the work in half would be huge and is part of the reason why we’re considering being a touch more aggressive. Just don’t want to completely trash the legs for 2mor 3 days from one crazy hike.

 

[D_wit22]

Dumb question, but do you live somewhere that you could simulate that hike and see how you feel?

 

[WashCycle]

1K gain per mile would be steeper than the majority of Colorado hiking trails. For reference the Manitou Incline is 2K of gain in 1 mile...all on steps. That is a challenge for a lot of people. I don't really track my hunting routes but I would feel 1200-1400ft per mile would more than plenty enough to kick your ass if you're looking to go up 2-3K ft from your starting point. I would guess I probably aim for 800-1000ft of gain per mile when walking off trail or working a route up over a ridge. Also going down loaded up with meat is worse/harder than going up with that same weight...keep that in mind.

 

[justinspicher]

It is what it is. No matter what you do, if you ain’t doing it in the mountains, the mountains dont really care about your workout.

I’d suggest taking it easy on your way up/down and enjoy being out there. Maybe chew on some gum while your hiking.

Best of luck on your hunt.

 

[Elkhuntinfool78]

All I can offer is most of my elk hunting is 2 to 4 miles from the truck and typically see elevation gains from 1500ft to 2600ft so I'd say you are at the upper end of the elevation gain for that distance but I think it's totally doable especially if you have the option to have horses pack it out from the trail.

Best bet is to see how you all are feeling once you get in there, if you're physically whipped just hiking each day hunting then it might not be a good idea to think about packing one out.

 

[Titaneq]

Dumb question, but do you live somewhere that you could simulate that hike and see how you feel?

Not really. Southern MI is awfully flat. One of the main reasons I took the wife out and hiked in this area was to get a feel for where I was at training wise as well as the general layout of the area. Was very worthwhile. Lots of good responses here so far though so I appreciate all the insight! Trail head is around 8 and where we are looking at is around 10,200 fwiw

 

[Packer9037]

It is what it is. No matter what you do, if you ain’t doing it in the mountains, the mountains dont really care about your workout.

I’d suggest taking it easy on your way up/down and enjoy being out there. Maybe chew on some gum while your hiking.

Best of luck on your hunt.

Lots of truth here. Us Flatlanders can train and train but it just makes the hikes suck a little less haha. Figure on average you'll hike about 1 MPH going up something like that, slower if there's blowdown. Definitely a doable hike but maybe give yourself a day of shorter hikes getting acclimated if you're worried about it kicking your butts day one.

Also, agreed on the gum. Cuts down on cotton mouth so much.

 

[wyohayes]

What exactly are we talking about? Are you hiking up there with camp on your backs? Daypacks and hiking for a few hours in the dark? Spiked in between?

My opinion would be based on what you are doing. I guess what I'm really trying to get at, is are you expected to do the 3+ mile hike with 2k+ of elevation and then go hunt after that and then walk back to camp/truck 3+ miles and 2k+ elevation down? I personally don't believe that to be a recipe for a successful, or enjoyable, hunt. Can you do it? Sure, probably, but that isn't really the question I think we are after.

Personally, if i found a good spot somewhere like that and it held animals (deer or elk), I'd just spike so I had the energy to chase animals without thinking about the pack out, food, my legs, pack weight, etc.

I might be biased as I don't have to do hikes like that a lot of places i hunt.

 

[Dougfir]

As long as you hiked at similar elevations over the summer and did fine, you probably respond pretty well to the thinner air. I find that I have to temper what I would normally plan on doing, when I get to higher elevations. Did you camp high on your summer trip? That's another question mark for you. Don't assume that camping at 10,000 ft is going to be easy. I can hike reasonably well at that elevation, but my body pretty much stops being able to sleep somewhere between 8-9000'. Don't let me talk you out of anything, I'd just make sure that I had some alternate plans to fall back on if the elevation is kicking your butt. I mean, it's elk hunting, so you should have plan A, B, C and D anyway... Have fun!

 

[mtnbound]

Not really. Southern MI is awfully flat. One of the main reasons I took the wife out and hiked in this area was to get a feel for where I was at training wise as well as the general layout of the area. Was very worthwhile. Lots of good responses here so far though so I appreciate all the insight! Trail head is around 8 and where we are looking at is around 10,200 fwiw

The elevation change by its self is going to but a strain on your body so I would not hit it hard for a day or two to try and get acclimated. I’m not saying don’t hunt for a few days but it’s not smart to plan to climb to 10K in the first day.

 

[Titaneq]

What exactly are we talking about? Are you hiking up there with camp on your backs? Daypacks and hiking for a few hours in the dark? Spiked in between?

My opinion would be based on what you are doing. I guess what I'm really trying to get at, is are you expected to do the 3+ mile hike with 2k+ of elevation and then go hunt after that and then walk back to camp/truck 3+ miles and 2k+ elevation down? I personally don't believe that to be a recipe for a successful, or enjoyable, hunt. Can you do it? Sure, probably, but that isn't really the question I think we are after.

Personally, if i found a good spot somewhere like that and it held animals (deer or elk), I'd just spike so I had the energy to chase animals without thinking about the pack out, food, my legs, pack weight, etc.

I might be biased as I don't have to do hikes like that a lot of places i hunt.

Would have our camp on our backs and prepared to stay in the area for a few days (or more) if we’re finding animals. Definitely wouldn’t be going up and down the same day.

 

[Titaneq]

As long as you hiked at similar elevations over the summer and did fine, you probably respond pretty well to the thinner air. I find that I have to temper what I would normally plan on doing, when I get to higher elevations. Did you camp high on your summer trip? That's another question mark for you. Don't assume that camping at 10,000 ft is going to be easy. I can hike reasonably well at that elevation, but my body pretty much stops being able to sleep somewhere between 8-9000'. Don't let me talk you out of anything, I'd just make sure that I had some alternate plans to fall back on if the elevation is kicking your butt. I mean, it's elk hunting, so you should have plan A, B, C and D anyway... Have fun!

Wife and I stayed back in for two nights/3 days. We slept at 8500-8700’
Neither of us seem affected by the elevation but we spent a day in town before going up the next day so that may have been why not sure. Been to Colorado many times, only hunting twice, but don’t seem to be too sensitive to the altitude. Will there be a pretty noticeable difference between 8500’ and say 10,000 would you suspect?

 

[Dougfir]

Wife and I stayed back in for two nights/3 days. We slept at 8500-8700’
Neither of us seem affected by the elevation but we spent a day in town before going up the next day so that may have been why not sure. Been to Colorado many times, only hunting twice, but don’t seem to be too sensitive to the altitude. Will there be a pretty noticeable difference between 8500’ and say 10,000 would you suspect?

I'm probably not a good one to answer that. Elevation seems to hit my harder than most, when it comes to sleeping. Generally, it sounds like you respond well to it. Just pay attention to how you're feeling and have a backup plan.

 

[TaperPin]

The trick to getting more elevation gain than you should be able to without burnout or injury is taking a lot of breaks. One year fire fighting in an Oregon wilderness area I watched some out of shape, over weight guys go up some really steep challenging dry creek beds, 10 miles round trip, day after day outlasting guys in much better shape. Fascinating. So one day I had the opportunity to hang back with the crew they were on to chat and pick their brains. They were the first to admit they were out of shape and barely passed the minimum fitness test, but they also knew the trick to surviving was taking breaks regularly if they felt like it or not. Every half hour they stopped for 10 minutes so they were not the first up the hill by a long shot, but they could grind it out at that pace day after day when many of the faster thinner guys were dropping out with sore knees after the first week. I’m still fascinated by it.

 

[TaperPin]

Getting up and back on a 2300’ climb isn’t that hard, but taking an entire bull down it can be hard on the knees. Many wouldn’t hunt a meat bull or cow in country with that much effort required. Everyone should do it at least once.

 

[Speaks]

I'm probably not a good one to answer that. Elevation seems to hit my harder than most, when it comes to sleeping. Generally, it sounds like you respond well to it. Just pay attention to how you're feeling and have a backup plan.

I dont have a problem performing at elevation on day one, but sleeping at elevation is hard and my recovery is next to non-existent. Hiked up 13ers 2 days in a row last summer after sleeping a little over 10k feet and it was rough.... Took me a few days to get my HR right after that. And I was in really good shape.