
Pro Tips AK Backcountry
ParkChat

RT @DryTortugasFilm: @LakeClarkNPS A5) My knife, which is handmade and from #Hawaii https://t.co/vAsGmJseoW #MadeinUSA #Handmade #KoaWood…

RT @LakeClarkNPS: Q6: Alders, willows, bogs, glaciers, scree…What’s the gnarliest, most epic terrain you’ve experienced while backpacking i…

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A5: Haven’t done much backcountry yet with our kids, but hubby does quite a bit. He’d probably say water filter and tent. #ParkChat

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A5) Well, of course food, water filer, clothing, shelter. Luxury....pillow and coffee. #parkchat

replying to @DryTortugasFilm @DryTortugasFilm @LakeClarkNPS That's not a knife! #parkchat 😀


A6: At Lake Clark, you can find various types of epic terrain…Scree slopes, muddy bogs, tussocks, tundra, dense brush, fast and cold glacial waterways, exposed coastlines, glaciers, wet mudflats. It’s good to fly over your planned route before you land. #ParkChat


A6) Actually, #hiking on semi-melted snow fields in @GlacierNPS was pretty gnarly. Wet, compacted, icy and yet still snowy, though occasionally muddy. #parkchat.


replying to @59NationalParks @59NationalParks @LakeClarkNPS do you have a sextant too? #parkchat

RT @LakeClarkNPS: A6: At Lake Clark, you can find various types of epic terrain…Scree slopes, muddy bogs, tussocks, tundra, dense brush, f…

RT @LakeClarkNPS: A6: At Lake Clark, you can find various types of epic terrain…Scree slopes, muddy bogs, tussocks, tundra, dense brush, f…

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS Yep, I still have a backup printed map, but printed = backup at this point. It's an emergency measure. Digital maps + gps are a much better solution. Also always have extra power with me...because it's 2019. #parkchat

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS @AlaskaNPS A3 My better half and by better half I mean the most directionally gifted of the two of us 😉 #ParkChat


replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A6. Got to be the lava field in @Volcanoes_NPS when I got turned around at night, there are cracks deeper than I'd like to think about that are well hidden and the Lava is quite jagged in some places. #Parkchat

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS I just use a ziplock and put these stickers on them #parkchat


replying to @Wild_Tribute @Wild_Tribute @LakeClarkNPS Do not leave home without it it! (Seriously, otherwise you are sleeping on your balled up, smelly jacket) #parkchat

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS One of the gnarliest places we ever hiked was @LakeClarkNPS Really. I was ready to cry on the way back from this hike. The terrain was so physically challenging. #ParkChat


RT @LakeClarkNPS: Q6: Alders, willows, bogs, glaciers, scree…What’s the gnarliest, most epic terrain you’ve experienced while backpacking i…

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A2. Our mode of choice is often the stroller. Here was a little ambitious stroller-hiking with our then 1.5-year-old @FredSpotNPS #ParkChat


replying to @ParksandPoints @ParksandPoints @GlacierNPS That’s a lot of people! Logan Pass? #ParkChat

replying to @BruceRTL @BruceRTL @LakeClarkNPS @AlaskaNPS Yes. I'd never call her a bitch. 😁 #parkchat

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS #parkchat A6 Mud! We didn't do our homework before hitting the Mary Mtn trail @YellowstoneNPS in early June. Ugh. We only got about 1.5 miles in and had to go back! Springs and runoff made for deep mud. 🙄 #liveandlearn


replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A6) It has to be the unforgiving granite of the Sierra-Nevada Mountains, it'll eat away at your boots, tear you up when you fall and makes setting up a tent nearly impossible. #ParkChat

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS Steep climbs, rock fall zones, ice and snow during the summer at high altitude, water crossings. Fun stuff #parkchat

RT @LoriFabTravels: @59NationalParks @LakeClarkNPS @Wild_Tribute Hi all! Fort Lauderdale, FL here! Contemplating an Alaskan cruise or road…

A6 Time for one of my recurring answers - the Devil's Path! In the beloved Catskills, clambering over boulders and shimmying up rock faces #parkchat

Q7: How do you treat your drinking water in the backcountry? Alaska’s fresh waters are cold and clear but they’re not immune from various microscopic parasites, especially in areas where animals frequent.#ParkChat


RT @Parkasaur: @LakeClarkNPS A2. Our mode of choice is often the stroller. Here was a little ambitious stroller-hiking with our then 1.5-y…

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS @AlaskaNPS A3. No doubt - Mrs. Parkasaurus is our best hiking partner - like on this hike in @DenaliNPS #ParkChat


replying to @billbrokob
@billbrokob @LakeClarkNPS Evidently you spend your time aroundthose TRAINED bears
... 😉 #parkchat

replying to @DryTortugasFilm @DryTortugasFilm @Stars252525 @LakeClarkNPS @Volcanoes_NPS Meh, paper maps are useful only with useful topo features. GPS still works in Hawaii Volcanoes, even if there's no cell coverage...just saying. A topo at Dry Tortugas, for instance, is utterly useless. #parkchat

replying to @Wild_Tribute @Wild_Tribute @GlacierNPS Yep! (They had just reopened the trail after a grizzly bear and cub sighting...spoiler alert...the bears were still there...! Trail was then again closed but with us on the other side by Hidden Lake) #parkchat


replying to @this_is_karley @this_is_karley Great answer, couldn’t be more true #ParkChat

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A4. I can't remember a time when I couldn't read maps. Use them still, with a compass, if needed. Tech is fun, though. I learned to use GPS at work, learned how it made my mapping more accurate. I believe everyone should learn maps before GPS. #parkchat

RT @LakeClarkNPS: Q7: How do you treat your drinking water in the backcountry? Alaska’s fresh waters are cold and clear but they’re not imm…

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A6: Definitely the granite and rock of Rocky NPS. It lives up to its name for sure #ParkChat

replying to @tthrash
@tthrash @LakeClarkNPS How did you know? #ParkChat And a
Bygrave Position-Line Slide Rule

replying to @naturetechfam @naturetechfam @LakeClarkNPS Nah...after a couple of days they cannot smell my food #parkchat #FebreezeBears

replying to @Parkasaur @Parkasaur @LakeClarkNPS @AlaskaNPS @DenaliNPS You're a lucky man! #parkchat

A7: Assume parasites could be present in all H20. Boiling? Bring enough fuel 2 boil for up to 2 min. Filtering? Filters may not work well in freezing temps. To prevent clogging, avoid silty glacial H20 or let the silt settle in a bottle & then filter from the top.#ParkChat


A7 In the past, I have used Katadin pump filters. They are time-consuming, though. #parkchat

RT @LakeClarkNPS: Q7: How do you treat your drinking water in the backcountry? Alaska’s fresh waters are cold and clear but they’re not imm…

replying to @LakeClarkNPS @LakeClarkNPS A7: I use my Sawyer mini for purification. Hasn’t failed me yet. #ParkChat