Covering more than 40 miles and 18,000 feet of elevation gain, the Infinity Loop on Pico de Orizaba is no small undertaking. But what does it take to plan and navigate a new route like this? Nathan Longhurst, the first person to complete this route along with partner Jason Hardrath, breaks it down for us below. Check out their CalTopo map if you want to follow along!
Blog post by Nathan Longhurst. All photos courtesy of Kevin Essa and Hayden Lynch.
Imagine a deeper way to experience a mountain. A journey not just to its high point, but around its flanks, revealing every angle, winding into every valley and over each ridge. What if you looped up and over the top, circled back around, climbed up and over again, then looped around the other side? This is an Infinity Loop, and it is an amazing way to fully explore a mountain.
Standing 18,491 feet tall, summiting the massive Pico de Orizaba once is impressive in itself. Summiting it twice in under 24 hours? Well, that’s a totally different type of experience.
On March 29, 2023, myself, Nathan Longhurst, along with Jason Hardrath, set out to establish the first Infinity Loop on Pico De Orizaba. This involved climbing up and over the 18,000 foot volcano, traversing halfway around the mountain on its middle flanks back to our starting point, climbing up and over a second time, and then traversing back around the other side. We completed the route in an epic 23 hour push, with 18,000 feet of climbing over 40 miles. It involved glacier travel, off-trail navigation, and significant time at high altitude.
Jason and I started our route planning by collecting GPX files of each section of the route from other climber’s trip reports and friends who had completed the circumnavigation. Using CalTopo, we imported several separate files onto one map, using these as a template to follow during our attempt. We consulted this map to make several key decisions. Which side of the mountain would we climb, and which would we descend? Would we circle back on the “long side” first, or the “short side”? Referencing the slope angle shading and elevation profiles of each portion made for easy comparisons of various sections of the route.
Nathan and Jason’s map of the Infinity Loop on Pico de Orizaba. Dreamed up and pieced together from research, first hand reports, and GPX tracks, this route is the first of its kind on the dormant volcano.
After a hectic blur of airports, long bus rides, and bumpy 4×4 roads, we reached our base camp on Pico de Orizaba’s northern slopes. Home for the next few days was a sturdy, rustic hut with stunning views of the peak, and of the valley far below. Mornings dawned clear and bright, with clouds building throughout the day. By afternoon, thunderheads reared up in billowing, dark masses, with cracks of lightning persisting into the evening. At night, the twinkling lights of villages dotting the Mexican countryside stretched to the horizon, blending seamlessly with the starry sky. It was a dynamic, yet peaceful place.
The weather steadily improved throughout the week, and after a few days of acclimation, we were eager to take off. After a fitful, nervous night of sleep, we finally started up the mountain in the early morning darkness. Our first climb up and over the peak was fairly straightforward. On the upper slopes, we were treated to a spectacular sunrise. A sea of clouds filling the valley below gave the impression that we were floating on an island in the sky. After a few moments of satisfaction on the lofty summit, we descended the dry, loose south face, the volcanic dirt providing a gloriously fast descent. Energy was high, and we felt very optimistic.
Climbing above the clouds on Pico de Orizaba.
Once we started the circumnavigation, the trail became overgrown and sometimes difficult to follow. Fortunately, in each moment of uncertainty, I was able to quickly pull out my phone for reference and get us back on track in seconds. The pleasantly cool morning gave way to a hot, dusty day. We descended lower and lower. As we neared the lowest point of the trail, the sea of clouds rose up and swallowed us, the cool, moist fog providing glorious relief from the hot sun above. We steadily made our way around the peak, occasionally catching glances of the summit towering thousands of feet above us. By evening, we had returned to the hut, where we were treated to a hot meal, clean socks, and a few wonderful minutes off our feet.
Swallowed by clouds on the lower slopes.
Darkness was quickly descending as we began our second climb. Slowly but steadily, we pushed upward through the thinning air. The clouds that had filled the valley had dissipated, and the lights of the villages seemed impossibly far below us. We were in a different world, some alternate reality made only of the crunch of snow underfoot and the irresistible pull of the summit somewhere above in the darkness. Time stretched, seconds morphing into hours. Eventually, inevitably, we stood on the apex once more. Fatigue, darkness, and a frigid wind provided a stark contrast to the warm, sunny morning that now seemed impossibly long ago. We descended quickly, eager for air and warmth.
After our second climb up and over the towering volcano, we had only 8 miles between us and the finish, and 3 hours remaining before our 24-hour goal time. Based on the mostly efficient travel on the other side of the mountain, we were optimistic that we would make our goal. We met up with Alden, our wonderful support man who provided snacks, water, and a warm fire. Spirits high despite fatigue, we sped off into the cool night.
The first major climb went well. However, as we crested a small col and began a steep, loose descent down the other side, the trail vanished. I checked the topo map, and compared our location to a GPX track of the trail. We had indeed missed a sudden zigzag in the track. We cut back through the brushy desert, but upon crossing the GPX track several times, there was no trail to be found. As we continued forward, roughly following the GPX track, the trail remained very sporadic. We would occasionally pick up a section, begin following it with sighs of relief, then once again lose it with a wave of frustration. It quickly became apparent that making our 24 hour goal would not be easy.
Darkness descends, bringing with it route finding challenges.
With my phone out, constantly checking the map to find the most efficient lines up and down through the complex maze of gullies and ridges that cut the flanks of the volcano, I led the charge towards the finish line. I was perfectly in my element- moving efficiently through the difficult terrain, constantly making route decisions and corrections despite having very little visibility of the terrain ahead. The clock ticked mercilessly as we neared our destination.
As we crested one particularly painful climb, with less than an hour left, our radio crackled to life. Moments later, a twinkling headlamp appeared on the horizon. It was our fantastic film crew, Hayden and Kevin, waiting on the ridge above the hut. The finish was in sight. A burst of stoke and adrenaline carried us across the final basin, up and over the final climb, and down to the hut for a finishing time of 23 hours and 40 minutes. It was a beautiful moment of gratitude and elation.
Nathan (left) and Jason (right) all smiles on Pico de Orizaba.
Author Nathan Longhurst is a lover of all wild places. Originally from Spokane, Washington, he now travels the West in his big blue van searching for mountains to climb and powder to ski. He believes that the meaning of life is hiding somewhere in the alpine, he just hasn’t quite found it yet…
Want to learn more about the story behind this effort? Check out the Journey to Infinity trailer below! This documentary follows Nathan and Jason through as they work to establish the Pico de Orizaba Infinity Loop. The full documentary drops October 1st on YouTube– use this link to set a reminder so you don’t miss the live premiere!
https://i0.wp.com/blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2.png?fit=2240%2C1260&ssl=112602240Meghanhttps://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngMeghan2023-09-21 08:51:252023-09-21 09:45:20One Way to Fully Experience a Volcano: the Pico de Orizaba Infinity Loop
Are you passionate about CalTopo, and looking for ways to help us improve the app? We are looking for Beta testers on both iOS and Android! This blog post will explain the process, what it means for you, and things to know before signing up.
Why do we need Beta testers?
Despite many hours of internal testing, we simply cannot cover every device and situation possible. Beta testers help us expand the number of devices tested and try out many more use cases that we can possibly do on our own.
Once we feel a release has been tested and reworked internally, we will submit this new app version to the app store (both iOS and Android) for a larger round of testing (that is where you come in, Beta testers!).
We need Beta testers at all subscription levels, as some bugs may be specific to a certain account type, or a certain feature. Being a Beta tester will not change your subscription level, so if you are a free account holder, you will have access to free account features, etc.
What does a Beta Tester Do?
Once you download a Beta version, we want you to do what you do best: use the app! Everyone uses the app a bit differently, and you may catch something that we miss during the internal testing process. Bugs can be very small (a mis-spelling of a word even), or larger (issues with zooming/loading). We want to know about anything you find that looks off.
If you find bugs, glitches or anything unusual, please let us know right away! You can email us at help@caltopo.com. Describing the bug in as much detail as possible, what steps you took in the app to get this behavior, and including screenshots/screencasts if relevant is incredibly helpful. Make sure to include the app version as well. You can find this either in the Testflight app (iOS only) on your phone, or by clicking the three bar menu within the CalTopo app, scrolling to Settings, and the app version will be listed at the bottom of this page. If you experience a crash or bug, you can also select “send diagnostic data” right above the app version. This will directly send us a report from your device.
Is there anything I should know about before signing up?
CalTopo users range from first responders to certified mountain guides, and dedicated backcountry enthusiasts. As some of you rely heavily on having an app that works no matter what, we feel that there are a few things you should be aware of before enrolling as a Beta tester.
The Beta version of the app will replace the current version on your mobile device. While we do perform a lot of internal testing prior to sending the app updates to Beta users, it is possible (and somewhat expected) that you will encounter bugs, and this can happen while you are offline. We typically catch the larger bugs (like maps completely not loading), but it is imperative you know this going in. If you are often going on long trips outside of data/wifi, or absolutely cannot navigate in the terrain you frequent without a working app, Beta testing may not be for you.
If you leave the Beta testing group, and re-download the live version of the app, you will need to re-download layers in the areas that you recreate offline (when you get an update to a new Beta version this is not an issue, as it is an update, not deleting and reinstalling the app). Your maps and saved data will not be deleted as these are stored on the cloud, not just your device.
On iOS through Testflight, the Beta app will expire after 90 days. It is very unusual for us to not push a new app version out for more than 90 days. HOWEVER, if this occurs, your Beta app will expire, and you will need to re-download the production version of the app from the app store. This is rare, but it is unavoidable with Testflight. This does not affect Android users.
You will get emails from Testflight everytime there is a Beta version available. You can unsubscribe from Testflight in the email from Testflight itself or in the Testflight app, but still be a Beta user. Please do not ask us to unsubscribe you as we cannot do this without removing you as a Beta tester.
Testflight will be a secondary app that you install on your iPhone. This will alert you when there is an updated version of the CalTopo App for testing. You can open the Beta version through the Testflight app. Once you do this, there will be a yellow dot next to the CalTopo app on your home screen. This means you are on the Beta version.
If for some reason you are having trouble with the Beta version, you can revert to the live production app version by going into the Apple App Store, and re-downloading the prod app. The yellow dot next to the app on your phone should then disappear, and you can always check the app version in settings.
The CalTopo page in the Apple App store, once you have joined Beta Testing via the link above. Circled: open the CalTopo Page in Testflight for further details. Arrow: override beta to download production app.
The CalTopo page in the Testflight App. Circled: what is new in this version. Arrow: Change your notification settings (stop emails).
For Android users:
Please email us at help@caltopo.com, and let us know the email address that you have associated with your Google Play account, and that you’d like to be a Beta tester. You can still log into CalTopo with your normal log in (even if it is different), but the google play account is what matters here.
Once you are added to the Beta group, you will receive a confirmation email back from us. It will include a link to the Google Play App store, where you can click to join the beta testing. If you ever wish to leave, you can do so from the Caltopo App page in the App Store. If you are having problems with the Beta version of the app, you can leave the Beta testing group, and then delete and re-download the CalTopo from the App store.
You can enable auto updates for the app from this page (upper right hand corner, three dot menu) so that the app will auto update when there is a beta version available.
To join Beta Testing: First, email us at help@caltopo.com, once we reply confirming receipt open the CalTopo page in the Google Play store and scroll down to “Join”.
Once you have joined Beta testing, the CalTopo page in the Google Play store will show this. Scroll down to leave Beta Testing.
Testing Tips:
To start, use the app as much as you can! The more you use it, the more likely you are to encounter something we could have missed.
Try new features! Don’t usually use the measure menu, give it a go?
Play with different layers and overlays.
Plan new routes, and pull up your tried and true daily use maps.
Live track yourself on a route.
Download map layers you don’t have yet, or for a new area.
Create a new map and share it with a friend.
Don’t wait until the last minute. If you are heading into the backcountry play with the app before you go. Make sure things look good.
Add markers and lines in the field.
If you find something:
Double check that you can repeat the issue.
Try to replicate on different maps, a saved map, and unsaved map, a friends map.
Take note of what you were doing that led to the bug.
Send us detailed notes on what you find.
This is just to get you started, but the more ways you interact with the app the better testing process we have.
https://i0.wp.com/blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Copy-of-447A2071.jpg?fit=2000%2C1334&ssl=113342000rmlam12https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngrmlam122023-07-07 11:15:532023-07-07 11:22:15Interested in Beta Testing for CalTopo?
Not only does Sasha Heinen write code for CalTopo, they’re also an avid packrafter. Originally a long distance hiker, Sasha got into packrafting as a way to expand the backcountry terrain available to cover, especially in the Grand Canyon. Here are their favorite CalTopo features for planning the ultimate packrafting adventure- enjoy!
For desert packrafting enthusiasts, catching ephemeral flows – those fleeting moments when water levels and weather align perfectly for an epic adventure – can be the ultimate goal, and the key to executing trips that few get to experience.
The author enjoying one of those special ephemeral flows.
With their lightweight and portable design, packrafts provide an unparalleled level of access to some of the most remote and untouched areas of the backcountry in every landscape, allowing adventurers to explore places and waterways that would otherwise be impossible to reach.
There are a ton of resources out there when it comes to planning trips, including American Whitewater, guidebooks, blog posts, youtube videos, and maps curated by government agencies. CalTopo is the perfect tool to put all the data you can gather in one place as you plan your next packraft adventure.
Snap-to on every travel path
Packrafting is one of the ultimate multi-sport mediums. CalTopo’s snap-to feature, available for free to all users on the web, is critical for planning all of the segments of a multi-sport trip. For example, when planning a trip to the Middle Fork of the Flathead River in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, or the Bob as we locals affectionately call it, I have to map a hiking section, a paddling section, and a car shuttle.
The Bob isn’t well-mapped in OpenStreet Map (OSM), so the default snap-to line behavior isn’t very helpful in this particular area as you can see below.
Hmm there isn’t much OSM trail or road data for the Bob.
Conveniently, I can switch my snap-to lines target to the USFS-published roads and trails in the upper left, letting me map the 12-mile hike along Lodgepole Creek and see the elevation profile of the hike to the put-in.
Much better! By using the Snap To drop down menu to highlight USFS trail and road data, there are a lot more options in this specific area.
But why stop at just snapping your route to trails and roads? I also want to get a sense of the distance along the river, as well as to have a line that will “pop” when I look at the map. This part is not crucial for this particular trip, but I still like to have it as a reference! I switch the snap-to target to Hydro, and can capture the full 25 miles of river from Schaffer Meadows on down.
The last step in making my overview travel map for the trip is getting the shuttle line on the map. Many people will use Google Maps for this, but I find it really satisfying to see the full loop of a trip on one map, and maybe if I have enough time I’ll get to bike this section instead of driving it! I can use a third snap-to target of Motor Vehicle Use Maps, or MVUM, to draw the shuttle line. Check out my completed map with all the different snap-to sources I used to create it.
Pro tip: Use the snap to menu to change data sources as you draw your line. For example, you can start by snapping a line to a USFS trail and then switch to snapping it to a creek. You don’t have to stick with the same snap-to data source while you draw your route!
Get more local beta with Map Sheets
Knowing where you are along a river & what big features are coming up is crucial as a whitewater paddler, especially in an unfamiliar reach. Most rivers don’t have rapids marked on standard trail or hiking maps. However, in many areas, the land management agency publishes a PDF. Desktop and team subscribers can import theses PDFs into CalTopo, even if the PDF doesn’t come with geospatial referencing by default!
Adding local maps as map sheets is a great way to bring in even more beta, including descriptions of rapids!
You can change the transparency of map sheets just like any other map layer. Make it visible when you need it and hide it when you don’t.
Want to check out these map sheets for yourself? Take a look at my sample CalTopo map with the added USFS river maps.
Track flows with water gauges & recent satellite imagery
When getting on waterways that have tighter windows & less reliable flows like those in the American Southwest, it’s important to be plugged into changing conditions day-over-day, or even hour-over-hour! Pro, desktop, and team subscribers can easily keep tabs on flows across an entire watershed using the Weather Stations overlay – no more hitting refresh on five USGS gauge pages. I often keep an overview map of the gauges in my area pulled up during weather events in the spring and early summer to see how flows change throughout the watershed.
Using the Weather Stations layer to display the water gauges in a large area can be a great way to keep an eye on current flows.
With CalTopo you aren’t restricted to one layer at a time- you can combine data from all kinds of sources as you plan your trip! Here’s a neat example: for a recent trip on the Bruneau-Jarbidge rivers in Idaho, we were able to combine recent Sentinel satellite imagery (available to pro, desktop, and team subscribers) with the Weather Shading and Weather Stations overlays to make an educated guess about how a period of warming would affect the snowpack above the river we were interested in rafting. Check it out below- you can see the flows on the upper Jarbidge gauge at the bottom, combined with Sentinel imagery of the snow lying in wait to the south, and the 24hr temperature high.
So much info all in one place! The Sentinel Weekly layer shows current snow coverage and water gauges display current flows. The coloration comes from the Weather Shading layer and shows the 24-hour high temp for the displayed areas.
Starting out with CalTopo can be intimidating. Even as an experienced adventurer & digital mapper, I’m always learning new ways to use CalTopo’s tools to plan trips.
Whether you’re chasing ephemeral flows or enjoying dam releases, CalTopo can be a powerful tool for planning packrafting adventures.
What are your favorite CalTopo features for planning packrafting trips? Are there any that I missed? Questions? Let us know in the comments below!
https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.png00Meghanhttps://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngMeghan2023-05-08 12:26:502023-05-08 14:50:09The Best CalTopo Features for Packrafting
We were blown away by the creativity, passion and love for adventure and exploration conveyed by everyone who applied for the CalTopo Adventure Grant. After carefully reviewing all applications, we are proud to announce the 2023 CalTopo Adventure Grant recipients:
Priti Wright: The Seattle-based wife-and-husband team Priti and Jeff Wright, aim to establish a difficult new route to the virgin peak of K7 Central (6,858m) in Pakistan’s Karakoram range. The summit of K7 Central is a 250m tall needle of orange granite which has steep walls on all sides.
Nadine Lehner: Nadine and her climbing partners Isi Llarena and Rebeca Caceres are planning a multisport adventure in the remote Meliquina area of Aysén, Patagonia to attempt an unnamed peak utilizing packrafts and skis for access.
Camille Rohrlich: Camille has planned a new exploratory route through the mountains in her backyard, “The Holy Cross Wilderness High Route” connecting 22 named peaks above 12,000 feet along the way.
Zeeshan Mushtaq: Zeeshan is working to establish a new route through some of the most remote areas of Jammu and Kashmir he is calling “The Kishtwar Himalaya Traverse”. Once this is established he plans to post the route publicly to promote hiking and exploration of this area.
Taylor Radigan: Taylor is planning a new route through Baxter State Park, Maine combining backpacking and biking to create a 150-mile loop of the highlights.
Each recipient will receive a financial award for their trip, a 1-year pro account and the opportunity to attend a virtual training on how to get the most out of the app. After completing their trip, each participant will produce a written trip report with photos and/or videos that we will share on our blog and social media.
We hope you are as excited as we are to check out their trip reports and follow along on their adventures!
https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.png00rmlam12https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngrmlam122023-05-03 06:44:552023-05-25 11:12:30Meet the 2023 CalTopo Adventure Grant recipients!
THE 2023 ADVENTURE GRANT IS CLOSED AND NO LONGER ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS.
It’s back! Once again, CalTopo is excited to offer a number of small grants to motivated individuals and teams undertaking unique and personally challenging outdoor adventures. These grants are aimed at trips involving creative objectives, significant trip planning, and at least some off-trail travel.
From connecting oceans by bike and canoe to summiting and skiing volcanoes in Chile, last year’s CalTopo Adventure Grant recipients undertook some wild adventures and we couldn’t be more proud to have helped support them (in case you missed them, you can check out all their trip reports here). This year we want to hear from you! What potential adventure has captured your imagination? What trip have you been scheming for the upcoming year?
About the Grant
The CalTopo Adventure Grant aims to support trips with an emphasis on adventure and exploration rather than technical difficulty (although technical objectives are still encouraged). Multiple small grants will be awarded to individuals or teams with trip proposals that best meet the grant criteria.
Grant awards will vary by project- last year’s awards ranged from $350 to $1,200. Awards can be used to help cover travel, gear, and other expenses directly related to the trip. Grant recipients will also receive a complimentary 1-year CalTopo pro account plus a virtual training on how to get the most out of the CalTopo platform with the CalTopo training team.
Application Period
The grant application period opens on March 1, 2023 and runs until March 31, 2023. Applications must be submitted via the online application no later than 11:59 pm MST on March 31st.
Grant recipients will be announced in April after the selection committee has reviewed all applications and made their final decisions.
(Right to left) Rain Felkl and team traveling through the Lyngen Alps, Norway; Niki Choo checking out a shed while biking and canoeing from the Pacific to the Arctic Ocean; photo by Miles Knotek of his partner Ben during a traverse of Montague Island, Alaska.
Criteria & Guidelines
Trip proposals will be considered based on exploratory and adventurous nature, complexity of trip planning required, and uniqueness and creativity of the objective. Highlighting how you plan to use CalTopo before and during your trip will help your application stand out. Trips may last one or multiple days. Types of travel may include but are not limited to: backpacking, hiking, mountaineering, long distance trail running, AT skiing/splitboarding, biking, canoeing/kayaking/rafting or alpine climbing. Trip proposals that incorporate more than one mode of travel are encouraged. Commercial or guided trips are ineligible.
All trips must be conducted in an environmentally conscious manner, with care and respect for local communities and wildlife. All trips must be legal and obtain all necessary permits required by local authorities.
Trip must be completed by March 31, 2024.
Each grant applicant and their partners must be at least 18 years of age and complete all liability releases. The applicant and their partners’ overall outdoor experience level must match the proposed objective. Trip proposals can involve amateur or professional athletes who are supported either financially or in-kind, but the support level must be disclosed.
Recipient Responsibilities
Recipients should do their best to practice environmentally low impact and leave no trace ethics, acting as strong mountain stewards.
Within two months of completing the trip, recipients are expected to produce a written trip report that includes photos and/or video for posting on CalTopo’s website and social media. Written reports will ideally be at least 1,000 words in length and summarize the trip from start to finish, including but not limited to: what inspired you to pursue this objective in the first place, trip planning involved (including logistics, route planning and screenshots or links to your CalTopo map), a description of the trip itself, and any lessons learned that could help future parties. Documentation should also specifically highlight how CalTopo was used throughout the trip, including during the trip planning process and in the field. Trip report videos that meet the above criteria can also be submitted in lieu of a written trip report.
Recipients are encouraged to make their trip report come alive with photos, videos and drawings. The more informative, reflective and creative your trip report, the more widely we will be able to share it on CalTopo’s website and social media.
Additional information
If your trip is canceled, rescheduled after March 31, 2024, or significantly altered in some way, please contact the grant manager at info@caltopo.com. If your trip does not occur, all funds must be returned to CalTopo.
Any media of the team or individuals submitted with a trip report may be reproduced in any manner that CalTopo desires. CalTopo reserves the right to use any media submitted with a trip report on the CalTopo website or in marketing materials.
Any questions regarding this grant should be directed to the grants manager at info@caltopo.com.
THE 2023 ADVENTURE GRANT IS CLOSED AND NO LONGER ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS.
https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.png00Meghanhttps://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngMeghan2023-03-01 06:23:412023-04-03 07:06:07The 2023 CalTopo Adventure Grant is now open!
Terrain: 167 trails spread out over 2000+ skiable acres, ranging from groomed runs to steep glades and chutes
The Challenge
Based in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, BCSP never knows exactly what type of call might come in. The professional ski patrol regularly responds to calls from lost, injured, or immobile guests on the resort as well as more complex incidents, including accidents and avalanches in the terrain adjacent to the resort that often require cooperation with outside agencies. BCSP needed a user-friendly solution that would allow them to quickly share information, coordinate patrollers, and streamline their response to any type of incident.
The Solution
A CalTopo team account allows BCSP to seamlessly connect their entire patrol on one platform, making it easy to share information and respond effectively to any call. All team members can instantly access any team maps from a computer or mobile device. Edits to team maps, including live recording tracks for patrollers on the hill, will appear in real-time for anyone on the team with a data connection. Team specific features like SMS locators enable BCSP to quickly gather crucial information about a call and coordinate an effective response. Check out the graphic below to learn more about how BCSP uses their team account to respond to a typical call.
If a call requires cooperation with outside agencies, BCSP can easily share maps with people outside of the team account, facilitating a more coordinated interagency response. For complex and large-scale incidents, BCSP also has the option to create a Mutual Aid Incident, allowing them to quickly onboard people from outside agencies and rapidly scale up as needed.
Whether the call comes from on or off the hill, a CalTopo team account has allowed BCSP to improve how their patrol responds. “A CalTopo team account allows us to see the bigger picture and coordinate an effective response,” says Brian Vestal, BCSP Snow Safety Director. “It’s been a game changer for our patrol.”
CalTopo team accounts are priced based on organization size. If you’d like to learn more about CalTopo team accounts, visit caltopo.com/teams or contact us at info@caltopo.com.
https://i0.wp.com/blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/BCSP-patroller-600-×-350-px-4.png?fit=600%2C350&ssl=1350600Meghanhttps://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngMeghan2023-02-22 09:10:182023-02-22 12:08:09Ski Patrol Case Study: Responding with CalTopo Teams
In May 2022, CalTopo Adventure Grant recipient Sean Marble attempt to climb the north ridge of Mount Hayes and then packraft out the Little Delta River. Over the course of the trip, Sean and his partners faced a myriad of challenge: hidden crevasses, precarious tent platforms, exposed climbing, challenging weather, endless postholing, and rivers bordered by towering ice wall. All in all, a proper Alaskan adventure!
If you’d like to learn more about Sean’s trip, make sure to check out his full trip report here.
https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.png00Meghanhttps://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngMeghan2023-02-16 12:55:032023-02-16 12:55:03Mt Hayes North Ridge (Full Video)
Planning and navigating a ski tour can be complex. CalTopo places powerful mapping tools at your fingertips, but it’s more than just following a line. Which map layers are the best for scouting terrain? How long will your intended route actually take? Does your proposed trip for the day align with the current and forecasted conditions in that area?
Created in collaboration with the American Mountain Guide Association, Goretex NA, and Fischer Skis, the Pro Tour Tips: Trip Planning video series features helpful and bite-sized trip planning tips from professional guides for every step of the process. From the best map layers for avoiding the dreaded bushwhack to using the mobile app to navigate your plan in the backcountry, these tips will help you get the most out of your next ski tour.
Ready to dive deeper into trip planning with CalTopo? Make sure to check out the Winter Travel Series, where we systematically break down each step of the trip planning process and highlight the best mapping tools for the job. Whether you’re a mapping app newbie looking to master the basics or a veteran searching for tips to take your skills to the next level, there’s a little something for everyone.
https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.png00Meghanhttps://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngMeghan2023-02-14 13:13:172023-02-14 14:44:14Get More Out of Your Next Ski Tour
Aidan Goldie-Ahumada used his CalTopo Adventure Grant to return to his home country of Chile to attempt several ski mountaineering missions. With limited information available, Aidan and his team were challenged to build their own forecasts across three distinct snowpacks. He left with a new perspective, and some of the best ski descents of his life. Below is his trip report- enjoy!
In the austral winter of 2022, I was afforded the opportunity to take a trip to Chile with the generous support of the CalTopo Adventure Grant. The goal of the trip was to ski remote volcanoes in the Andes range of South America. Our month-long trip gave us a little bit of everything, from extended ski tours in challenging conditions to some of the best ski descents of our lives. This trip report will highlight a few of the locations we visited and how we approached the process of trip planning for a variety of objectives.
This trip was particularly meaningful for me due to my Chilean heritage. I was born in Chile in a coastal town surrounded by the Atacama desert. After a few years, our family emigrated from Chile and ultimately settled in North America. Chile, for many years to come, was a country where I would visit to see family around the holidays, eat good seafood, and enjoy time on the beach. More than anything, this trip granted me the opportunity to see my home country in a new way. Through the lens of ski mountaineering, I was pushed into small mountain towns and remote locations that I never had the chance to experience otherwise. It is a privileged opportunity to feel like a tourist in your home country and witness the regionality of a country as diverse as Chile.
At the present moment, I live in the Roaring Fork Valley near Aspen, Colorado. In Colorado, we are very lucky to have an infrastructure to both access high-elevation mountains, and dedicated weather and avalanche forecasting. Every winter, I get into a morning routine that starts with the Colorado Avalanche Information Center bulletin quickly followed by a trip to CalTopo for the rest of my trip planning. This is a luxury that I, and other Colorado-based backcountry skiers, have because a lot of the burden of data collection falls onto other avalanche professionals. We have a talented group of avalanche forecasters around the state, and the American west, that post their observations online for others to see. These observations, along with user-submitted observations, are compiled in the form of an avalanche forecast that can highlight the critical avalanche problems that one can anticipate on a given day. This is especially important in Colorado as we will hold a tricky avalanche problem called a “persistent weak layer” throughout most of the winter. It takes many observations over a large spatial range to identify the nature of that avalanche problem so having that forecasting infrastructure is important for backcountry skiers in Colorado to recreate within appropriate margins of risk.
When you access mountains in remote parts of the world, that privileged infrastructure ceases to exist. In essence, you need to be your own forecaster. This includes tracking the season’s historical snowfall to predict the structure of a region’s snowpack, tracking weather patterns and conditions, and making field-level assessments to verify modeled forecasts. My professional-level avalanche certifications have given me a foundation to do this individualized forecasting but I have found CalTopo to be a particularly useful tool that compiles a lot of that forecasting data in one location to get a clear picture of both the snowpack and the day-to-day conditions that can influence the avalanche problems.
In this trip report, I will highlight three distinct regions of Chile that we visited and the three distinct snowpacks that we encountered. Each type of snowpack takes a different approach to trip planning and terrain selection. All of which necessitated the use of remote weather forecasting and high-quality mapping software such as CalTopo.
Los Lagos: Maritime Snowpack
Chile’s Lake District is defined by the many lakes and Andean foothills that lead into the Pacific Ocean. From these foothills emerge a chain of volcanoes birthed from a major tectonic subduction zone that created the Andean Mountain Range.
Our trip started in the heart of Chile’s lake district and the gateway to Patagonia, Puerto Montt. Settled in an ocean inlet with a topography that allowed the construction of ports that can accommodate large cargo ships, Puerto Montt is a bustling city with dramatic volcanoes on the horizon. With moisture-laden air quickly rising from the ocean and onto the peaks only a short distance from the coast, we found a heavy maritime snowpack. A maritime snowpack is characterized by the moist ocean air that will drop deep and heavy snow as it makes its way up and over the Andes. Throughout this district, we would see a distinct snow line as rain transitions to sleet and then to heavy wet snow as the moist air quickly rises in elevation and begins to drop that moisture as the air pressure decreases.
In terms of avalanche concerns, we would expect to see a stronger deep snowpack structure and avalanche concerns arising from newer storm snow.
The highlight of this leg of the trip was on the prominent mountain seen from Puerto Montt, the Osorno Volcano. When we first arrived, we took our rental around the large Lago Llanquihue with black-sanded beaches and marveled at the fresh coat of snow that had fallen only a few hours before. We drove on a road that snakes through a lush rainforest with a thick understory and dark volcanic soil. As we wind up the side of the mountain we quickly start seeing this rainforest transition into a snowy landscape as we reach the critical elevation where colder temperatures can support snow crystal formation.
The small patches of snow on the side of the road quickly turned to snow banks and then suddenly the road was impassable. We would later learn from a local that this snowstorm dropped snow at some of the lowest elevations in about 10 years effectively closing the road further down than it had closed in recent memory.
At the road closure, we were a couple of thousand feet below and a handful of miles away from our intended stay for the night, the Refugio Teski. We packed up our bags for a couple of nights and toured up to the Refugio which also serves as the base of the small Osorno ski lifts. We found the Refugio surrounded by drifted snow and a small staff waiting inside. The staff at the Refugio Teski was very accommodating as we dried our gear and got our packs ready for a long outing the following day.
From the Refugio, we climbed another 5,000 feet to the summit of Osorno early the next morning. The previous evening we watched strong winds take snow up and over the volcano as a prominent lenticular cloud formed over the summit. We would need to ski the windward side of the volcano and hope that the wind had not carried too much of the fresh snow over to the other side, otherwise a very firm and icy climb and ski descent awaited us.
As we started touring up the western flank of the volcano, we quickly observed the difference that a small aspect change can make in the snow quality. On the southern side of the mountain, the aspect that took the brunt of the gale-force winds, we found large swaths of rime ice-crusted ski-lift towers and ridge lines. Following the contour of the mountain towards the west, the snow softened up and revealed a nicely preserved, albeit slightly wind-buffed, western aspect of the mountain that would make for an excellent ski descent. We made quick work of the climb, skinning through the soft and supportable snow until the slope became too steep to skin the closer we got to the summit crater. On the summit, we found a clear and calm moment to eat lunch and enjoy the rarity of a calm Patagonian summit.
Our group transitioned our skis for the downhill and enjoyed a 6,000-foot ski descent along the western flank of Osorno with perfect and creamy powder turns along the way.
Araucanía: Intermountain Snowpack
With the great success of finding a long ski descent in great snow conditions we drove north to chase a storm in the Araucania region of Chile. Further away from the moist maritime air, the Araucania Mountains largely hold an intermountain snowpack, one that is characterized by greater temperature fluctuations than those found near the ocean-buffered maritime regions and therefore more variability in an intermountain’s snowpack structure. This variability is combated by a deeper overall snowpack that is needed to ski steeper objectives. We set forth to the mountain town of Pucon to catch a significant low-pressure system that was looking likely to deliver a monster snowstorm.
We arrived in Pucon late at night as the first snowflakes started falling and dropped 22 inches on the Araucania mountains overnight. With powder on our minds, we woke up early the next morning to pay a visit to the towering monolithic volcano above the town of Pucon, Villarica. As we started driving up the access road towards Villarica, we started seeing cars sliding on the steep road, a sign that we needed to stop and put on our chains. After wrestling the chains onto our tires we were only able to drive a few hundred more feet before a Chilean Police car made the call to stop traffic from going any further.
This is where we realized that a large snowstorm does not have the same effect as our Colorado Mountains. Here there isn’t the government infrastructure to plow the roads and make mountain roads passable for everyday citizens. This kind of investment is only made on select high mountain passes that truckers use to ship goods between Chile and Argentina. In the small town of Pucon, once the snow falls and makes a road impassable, that road remains impassable until the snow melts again. From this point we realized that our strategy of following storms would not be as effective as we imagined.
This poses a problem because a large snowstorm that would indicate a delicious powder day at home, only posed a great hurdle in accessing the higher mountains. At the road closure, we found an additional 5 miles and 2000 feet of elevation gain to ski on the Villarica Volcano. With that in mind, we decided to regroup and rest for a summit attempt the following morning.
Villarica is one of the few volcanoes in the Andes with an active summit crater. As a small child, I remember seeing the red glow of lava spurting out of the summit volcano during a particularly eruptive event. When the volcano is not spurting lava from the summit, one can still see a steady stream of vapor emerging from the summit crater. This vapor is a combination of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide gas. Sulfur dioxide proves to be a nasty gas to interact with as it will come in contact with the water vapor in your lungs and create sulfuric acid and quickly tear away at your lung tissue if inhaled.
To make a summit bid, one not only needs a clear weather window but also a constant prevailing wind. It could prove dangerous if the wind, and the direction of the sulfur dioxide gas, shifted unexpectedly while we were on or near the summit.
With the threat of lung damage on the mind, we dug into the wind forecast for the area to determine the prevailing wind direction and strength and whether those variables would change during our summit attempt. CalTopo has a wind plot layer that displays current and forecasted winds and I’ve found it very useful in Colorado, particularly for forecasting wind slab avalanche problems in the event of a wind event following a snow storm. However because it pulls data from the National Weather Service, this feature is not available outside the continental US and thus was not a tool at our disposal for this particular objective. To learn more about wind plot as well as other weather forecasting layers, check out the Forecast Overlays section in the CalTopo user guide.
A PDF of Villarica generated from CalTopo with MapBuilder Topo and slope angle shading layers shown.
After a long morning skinning up the remainder of the access road and the southern flank of the volcano, we donned crampons and ice axes with the wind on our backs for the last 1000 feet to the summit of Villarica. With more wind effect and a ski descent on the windward side of the mountain, we did not get that dreamlike powdered ski descent that we got on Osorno but instead scraped down the icy and steep Villarica head wall before picking up some intermittent, chalky turns further down the flanks of the mountain.
Cajon Del Maipo: Continental Snowpack
After our time in the Araucania region, our group traveled north to visit one of the premiere ski-mountaineering destinations in Chile, El Cajon Del Maipo. We traded the comfort of skiing volcanoes for the thrill of making tight turns on long and steep couloirs.
Cajon Del Maipo is a mountain valley in the high-elevation Andes Mountains southwest of Santiago, Chile. Sitting on the border between Chile and Argentina, these mountains rise above 13,000 feet with the towering Aconcagua peak to the north. Here we found some of the most interesting and complex terrain of the trip that necessitated the use of a diverse skill set to both climb up and safely ski down.
This part of the Andes has less moisture than its maritime counterpart and some brutally cold high-elevation night-time temperatures. This yields a shallow snowpack that is particularly vulnerable to faceting. Faceting is a process of snow metamorphism that we are all too familiar with here in Colorado. In essence, faceting takes away the cohesive properties of snow and yields a snow crystal deep in the snowpack that is easy for the snowpack to slide on- think of a cutting board resting on the bed of marbles. Continental snowpacks are a staple of regions with comparatively shallow snowpacks and cold nighttime temperatures and pose unique avalanche problems.
One way to combat the persistent weak layer that readily forms in this type of snowpack is to focus your attention on solar aspects that will sinter the snowpack and potentially melt away some of those faceted snow crystals. While we would seek out south-facing aspects in our home Colorado mountains, in the Southern Hemisphere we would seek out north-facing aspects. CalTopo’s sun exposure overlay proved useful in our search for solar aspects, allowing us to not only find solar-radiated slopes but also allowed us to get an idea of the way that a region’s topography affected snow as well. To learn more about using this layer, visit the Sun Exposure overlay section of the CalTopo user guide.
This tool helped us to predict that the long and steep apron of the line we were planning to ski had experienced a significant amount of solar radiation, and could be consolidated to a point where we could safely skin up that vulnerable portion of the line in the cold early morning hours. The tight couloir above is sheltered from the day-to-day sunlight and would require small-scale decision making as we navigated. The ideal conditions would be to ski chalky and supportable snow in the couloir and then catch sun-softened snow on the apron.
As we made our way beyond the apron and climbed into the couloir above us, the scale of the line quickly became apparent. This peak holds three parallel couloirs that each are roughly 3,000 feet in length and would require a couple of hours of delicately placing our crampons on the firm snow. We navigate the couloir, alternating from side-to-side to find slightly softer snow while making careful assessments of the snowpack. We step wide of panels of wind-drifted snow considering the snow slab that could have developed.
Finally, we rest at the top of the line where the continuous snow ends and gives way to an overhanging rocky ledge above. We carefully remove our avalanche shovels from our packs and dig benches in the 50-degree slope to step into our bindings. We begin the careful dance of meticulously orchestrated jump turns, edge to edge, rotating our hips with our eyes firmly locked down at the 3000 feet of edgeable but firm snow below us.
Closing Thoughts:
This project offered significance in two different areas in my life. This project represents an elegant progression in my career as a ski mountaineer, as well as a rare opportunity to not only return to my birth country but to rekindle intimate cultural connections through travel and exploration.
From a ski-mountaineering perspective, this project is an opportunity to climb and ski in a region that is largely ignored by western climbers. As a ski mountaineer, I needed to rely on my ability to draw on a wide library of refined climbing systems to safely access this terrain. This trip challenged my experience as an avalanche professional to forecast conditions remotely and with limited remote sensing data. This expedition represented the union of a lifetime of mountain skills and a key test for myself in my climbing progression.
Most importantly, this project represents a reunion with my cultural roots. As an immigrant to the United States, my parents and I left Chile with tremendous sacrifice knowing that their children’s outcomes can improve with the abundance of resources an American has access to. I am thankful for the life I have been able to live in the United States and the opportunities to grow as an ecologist, educator, and ski mountaineer. As any immigrant will find, the opportunities opened up can’t fill the hole left by the trauma of leaving family and culture behind on a different continent.
I was born in the Altiplano of Chile, not the mystical Patagonia that is so often romanticized by western media, but the vast, high-elevation, salt-encrusted earth at the northern end of Chile. There is a strong foundation of culture in Chile, one that intimately ties people and the Earth.
This a reminder that we are not a species removed from the earth, but part of the biosphere. Throughout this trip, as we made our way from snowpack to snowpack, from ecosystem to ecosystem, I saw a culture that was fundamentally Chilean, but distinct in the way that different communities were tied to their natural surroundings. A fundamental contrast from the life I have built in the United States. Chilean communities shape their lives around their home ecosystem rather than trying to change the natural space around them to fit their lives.
As Chile grapples with the lasting effects of a military dictatorship and modern neoliberalism, communities tucked away in remote and ecologically diverse regions of the country best exemplify what it means to be Chilean. A community-centered culture that shows love through food, family time, and an intimate connection to the environment they belong to. I am grateful for the many people that made this trip possible. Thank you to the CalTopo Adventure Grant for supporting my trip and others in their exploration of under-explored parts of the globe.
Aidan used CalTopo’s international base layers to plan his ski mountaineering objectives. CalTopo offers worldwide coverage for the MapBuilder Topo, MapBuilder Hybrid and Global Imagery base layers as well as more limited international coverage for Scanned Topos. These layers can be downloaded for offline use on your mobile device with a mobile, pro or desktop subscription. Visit our Individual Accounts page to learn more about the features and pricing of CalTopo’s individual subscriptions.
https://i0.wp.com/blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Cajon-Del-Maipo.jpg?fit=4032%2C3024&ssl=130244032rmlam12https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngrmlam122023-01-23 07:03:422023-01-23 07:41:00Be Your Own Forecaster: Chile Volcano Skiing
Niki Choo is a 2022 CalTopo Adventure Grant recipient. Niki and her partner started in Haines, Alaska on a mission to travel from the Pacific Ocean to the Arctic Ocean- a journey of over 1000 miles under their own power (bike, canoe and foot). Below is her trip report- enjoy!
It was over two years of planning, looking at maps, and figuring out if a route would or could connect. Our goal was to loop the Pacific Ocean to the Arctic Ocean via human powered travel. The trip would take us over 1000 miles, 4 resupplies, and two countries.
On June 15th 2022 we set out. The weather in Haines, Alaska was overcast and dreary. We had a few miles to paddle on the ocean and then we would be in the delta of the Chilkoot River, and needing to upstream a little ways until we got to our bikes. The biking was probably the section we had thought about the least, and so we did lots of ‘on the fly’ calculations of distance, time, speed, elevation in order to know where we were going and how long it would take.
After traveling just under 200 miles from Haines to Kluane Lake by bike, we finally transitioned to canoe, which would be our home for the next 2 months. We met the drop at the Techàl Dhâl Visitor Center, which is also where the Slims River used to flow into Kluane Lake but no longer does. Climate change has permanently changed the flow of the river, so that water melting from the Kaskawalch Glacier no longer flows into the Slims. It made me think seriously about what we were doing for our planet. The summer before we had been evacuated from our home for 2 weeks as firefighters battled a blaze that threatened to take our house and neighborhood. I remember checking CalTopo to see the latest fire updates and spreads, and little did I know that I would have to do that on this trip as well.
Starting off at Kluane Lake was hard as our muscles weren’t used to big days of paddling, and within the first 5 hrs I had to take many breaks and stretch my aching muscles. We were lucky that the wind held off because we knew wind on Kluane Lake could stall us for 2 -3 days. A town called Destruction Bay had been wiped clean off the map due to wind a few handfuls of years ago. So when we were met with glassy calm waters, it made me feel even more lucky.
Our CalTopo map had taken on a life of its own. When we started out we had maybe 20 – 50 things labeled, the overall route (which you can see on the left in the image below), and then some major milestones along the way. As we moved through the terrain, each day we would measure different routes, different sections, label important features such as active forest fires, big log jams, and turns in the river we needed to avoid. By the end of our 2 months, our map had grown to include over 400 labels, lines and markers (which you can see on the right in the image below).
Our original CalTopo map with the overall route is shown on the left. After two months, the map grew to over 400 map objects, which is shown on the right.
Niki and her partner used the CalTopo mobile app to access and update their map, check distances, and navigate as they traveled the route. To learn more about using the mobile app, check out the Mobile Specific Tools and Functions page in the CalTopo user guide.
Kluane Lake flows into Kluane River and that was the start of a stressful 10 days of paddling. The rivers were all in flood- the Donjek, the White and the Yukon. We paddled these rivers defensively since they were mostly fast moving, 10 mph waters, flowing into log jams, sweepers and strainers. I felt like we had to be on our game the entire time. There wasn’t much relaxing and at night we would plot how far we wanted to go the next day. We’d map distances down to the foot. Sometimes I’d map two different routes just in case we needed to take a deeper channel than a smaller side one. It really allowed us to have confidence in the backcountry knowing we could check the surrounding area, plan our route, look for areas on Global Imagery where we could camp.
Those first few rivers were fast and furious, cold and rainy. Most days we were pulled off the river for a few hours because of thunder and lightning. Only a few times were we truly worried about the river rising and maybe flooding us. It wasn’t until we reached the Yukon river that we could relax a little, but it was a short paddle into Dawson from the White. Someone told us we could do it in one really long day but after already paddling 20 miles of the White we were too tired to go that whole way and just camped 20 miles from Dawson.
Dawson City was our next resupply and for that we were transitioning to light gear, less equipment, only the essentials; because we were about to start moving upstream towards the Continental Divide. We had scouted the river 2 years prior, and then again went 10 miles up the Chandindu before starting out in our canoe. We were moving anywhere from 1 mile an hour to something less than that. Our dry pants were leaking, filling up with water up to our ankles that made it feel like shackles tying you down to the river bottom. The water was cold and it took hours for our hands and feet to warm up after we were done with the river. Our gear was cold and wet and putting it on every morning was the worst part of the day. I remember looking at the map wondering what was a new channel or what was an old channel. It was hard to tell and because the river was in flood the maps weren’t all that accurate.
We realized quickly that the Chandindu was much faster than most rivers that people upstream. On average people upstream rivers that are anywhere from 3 – 7 feet per mile of gain, and the Chandindu was 35 feet per mile. This meant faster water, more hazards and by day 10 we realized we wouldn’t make it to Seela Pass before running out of food. At one point we thought we’d check out a winter trail someone had built for winter-travel. We heard it was about 500 meters to the north of where we were and our contact sent us GPS coordinates so we could pinpoint it exactly. Being able to punch these coordinates into the CalTopo mobile app with ease was a real treasure. We were cold, tired and hungry and being able to know where we were going without too much effort was priceless.
Since the Chandindu proved to be too hazardous, we turned back down and accessed Seela Pass via the Blackstone River. This meant we were upstreaming a river that was moving much slower and made it possible to get to the Continental Divide another way. Seela Pass was spectacular, we were in Tombstone Territorial Park and was one of my most favorite parts of the trip. The water was crystal blue, like nothing I had ever seen before, and the animals were amazing.
Seela Pass was the highest elevation we’d reach on the trip. Everything from that point onwards was downstream and it felt good to have that milestone behind us. As we transitioned back to the boat and started to paddle down the Blackstone, the ease of moving with the water instead of against it was real. The Blackstone is a spectacular river, winding its way through mountains and imposing rock. We did some hiking along the way, but mostly just navigated the class II whitewater, camped on gravel bars, and watched the crystal clear water flow beneath our boat and off our paddles.
The Blackstone flows into the Peel River, a river two to three times as large as the Blackstone! We had to be careful not to get caught in the middle of the river when a rapid was coming. There were some big class III rapids that we ran, damaging the boat on one, and some class IV rapids we lined around. On the Peel there is a class V section of whitewater, called Aberdeen Canyon, that we had to portage. The portage itself took us 2 days to complete. On day one we did 2 trips, first with our barrels the second with our dry bags. The second day we went back for the canoe and slogged it up and over trees, mud, muskeg, tussocks. It was super helpful to have creeks labeled on our CalTopo maps because the only landmark we had was that “the trail starts on river right after a creek”. We passed three creeks within this zone before finally stumbling upon the trail. We used the Scanned Topo layer on the mobile app heavily even though we knew they might be outdated. It was the best recon we could find and having them at our fingertips was so helpful. We’d usually compare the Scanned Topo maps with Global Imagery to have the best idea of what we had ahead of us.
The Scanned Topo layer with the portage route in Aberdeen Canyon labeled.
And as we continued to paddle the Peel towards Fort McPherson, the river changed. Wind started to become a factor, and there were a few days that we couldn’t go anywhere because the wind was so fierce. Many more rivers flow into the Peel, so by the time we arrived at McPherson the river was slow moving and silty. We again, found ourselves looking forward to meal time and relaxing on the gravel bars.
Our final resupply was waiting for us at Fort McPherson, where big water awaited. The Peel flows into the Mackenzie, which is over 3 miles wide in places. We had to go upstream on the Mackenzie for a short period to get into the East Channel of the Mackenzie that would dump us out on the Arctic Ocean. Luckily the wind was virtually non-existent for turning the corner along Point Separation on the Mackenzie. As we neared Inuvik the wind picked up and we battled 3 foot waves for 3 miles as we came into town. We hadn’t planned on staying there but with the storm we knew we weren’t going to make it further than that.
After leaving Inuvik, the weather mostly cooperated. Although there was one night, close to the Arctic Ocean, where we almost got flooded out of our campsite. As the Makenzie delta rises and falls with the tide, we got caught in a 60 mph wind storm and had to find a new campsite at 7pm in the evening. We didn’t end up getting all our gear safely to a higher point on shore until about 9pm, and only at 11pm did we climb into wet gear to sleep.
We had some intel from the locals that we could go stay with some Reindeer Herders who lived most of the summer at a whaling camp called Whitefish. The Inuvialuit People manage the reindeer herd and we were lucky enough to dry out our gear and spend the night there.
The next day was our final paddle into Tuk, again the wind and weather shone bright smiles as we paddled the last 20 miles without a ripple on the horizon. The weather up there can change in an instant and we knew it wouldn’t be unlikely for us to be stuck for more than a few days waiting for the wind to clear. Luckily we caught a perfect window and had smooth sailing into Tuk. There were mixed emotions coming in. I was super excited and glad to have reached Tuk safely, excited to see my Dad and my sister who had traveled to see us finish. I was also sad that this part of the summer was coming to a close; and the idea that we may never get to see the Arctic like this again as permafrost continues to melt and destroy the way of life up there made me sadder still.
Niki used the CalTopo mobile app to access and update her map as well as navigate the terrain. Don’t have the CalTopo mobile app? Download it for free from the Google Play or Apple Store.
https://i0.wp.com/blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/IMG_1381-3-1.jpg?fit=4032%2C3024&ssl=130244032rmlam12https://blog.caltopo.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/caltopoLogo_menu1.pngrmlam122022-11-22 10:45:372022-11-22 10:45:37By Bike, Canoe, and Foot: Connecting the Pacific to the Arctic Ocean