If you're planning a trip, make sure you are prepared. It's a wild world out there. Give us a call, here at the office--707-986-5400--or drop me an email at derek_carr@ca.blm.gov. Lets talk about your plan and come up with an itinerary. Set goals that aren't too outrageous so that you have time to enjoy your trip! We had a group this past week who planned to hike out the Lost Coast and then back the King Crest--all in four days!
Some of you may be looking at your BLM King Range Map right now and saying ,"Heh, that's not so bad! What's he making the big deal about?" Well. The King Range trails are STEEP!
This is a picture I took, this week, as I was diving down the first of eighty-six switchbacks below Bear Hollow Camp, on the Rattlesnake Ridge Trail. The trail loses more than 2000' of elevation in just over two miles below this point. If I'm planning a trip... I try not to plan to hike up this grade with a pack loaded with food.
If you want to hike the King Range Uplands, either plan to hike up the hill on your last day or plan to set a shuttle--so you can start high and end your trip low. If you need help setting your shuttle, check out http://www.lostcoastshuttle.com/. Sherri is one of the permitted shuttle operators for the Lost Coast--that means we've checked her insurance and she pays the BLM a permit fee which helps to pay for the management of the area. Her service may seem expensive to you--$200 for two people and all their gear from Black Sands to Mattole--but if you haven't driven the roads here you don't know how much wear-and-tear it is on a vehicle. With the cost of gasoline and the time you save not having to drive back and forth--as much as two hours one way--it starts to make more sense.
And. Lastly. About the tides...
This week, one of our seasonal rangers captured some excellent digital "footage" of one of his friends hiking through the Impassable Tide Zone near Shipman Creek. North of Shipman there is a rock that is impassable above about four feet. The ocean has removed a lot of sand from this site in the past few months... even at tides as low as three feet with waves, it is possible to get hit with a wave at this spot. Be warned! Look at the conditions when you arrive and make a smart decision based on what you see--if it isn't safe, don' t continue!
Check out this tide chart. I often tell people to try to travel in the Impassable Zones below 4.5'. That's just a guide. There is NO GUARANTEED SAFE ZONE on this tide chart. The ocean moves sand and gravel on this beach EVERY DAY. Conditions can change from hour to hour. I say "4.5" because below this level it tends to be do-able. If you arrive at 4', though, and the waves are obviously pounding the rock... think twice and realize that YOU are THERE and I am not!
Travel safely!
DC CARR
derek_carr@ca.blm.gov
707-986-5405
If you want to hike the King Range Uplands, either plan to hike up the hill on your last day or plan to set a shuttle--so you can start high and end your trip low. If you need help setting your shuttle, check out http://www.lostcoastshuttle.com/. Sherri is one of the permitted shuttle operators for the Lost Coast--that means we've checked her insurance and she pays the BLM a permit fee which helps to pay for the management of the area. Her service may seem expensive to you--$200 for two people and all their gear from Black Sands to Mattole--but if you haven't driven the roads here you don't know how much wear-and-tear it is on a vehicle. With the cost of gasoline and the time you save not having to drive back and forth--as much as two hours one way--it starts to make more sense.
And. Lastly. About the tides...
This week, one of our seasonal rangers captured some excellent digital "footage" of one of his friends hiking through the Impassable Tide Zone near Shipman Creek. North of Shipman there is a rock that is impassable above about four feet. The ocean has removed a lot of sand from this site in the past few months... even at tides as low as three feet with waves, it is possible to get hit with a wave at this spot. Be warned! Look at the conditions when you arrive and make a smart decision based on what you see--if it isn't safe, don' t continue!
Check out this tide chart. I often tell people to try to travel in the Impassable Zones below 4.5'. That's just a guide. There is NO GUARANTEED SAFE ZONE on this tide chart. The ocean moves sand and gravel on this beach EVERY DAY. Conditions can change from hour to hour. I say "4.5" because below this level it tends to be do-able. If you arrive at 4', though, and the waves are obviously pounding the rock... think twice and realize that YOU are THERE and I am not!
Travel safely!
DC CARR
derek_carr@ca.blm.gov
707-986-5405
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