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- Jan 7, 2003
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... is better than a good day in the office!
After every trip I take I usually write up a report for my own records. I thought you guys might enjoy reading this one. Mac
Capanema Trip
We left a little later than we wanted to on Thursday morning (Oct 6) due to Emersons work related problems. He is a contractor and had to make sure his crew knew what was expected of them while he was gone. Our plan was to stay on top of Battatal (Capanema) and maybe explore some of the valley beyond the next day.
We started hiking at about 11:00. Emerson was having a tough time of it initially. He carries a few extra kilos. I was feeling the lack of cardiovascular exercise myself but adjusted pretty well.
We refilled our canteens at the creek and again at the first spring on the way up the slope. This is the end of dry season and the rains havent started yet. The springs on the way up normally hold some water but there were very few seeps visible on the rocks and no running water from mid slope up.
By 3:30 we were on top, elevation 6,500 feet. The wind was blowing about 20 25 mph from the backside of the mountain. We bypassed the Castle, the actual top of the mountain, not visible from the bottom. The Castle is a large formation about 100 meters long, 50 meters wide and about 25 meters high. It is full of large angular boulders and would be a good place to seek shelter. Our objective at this point was water.
Between the two of us we arrived on top with little more than a liter. That would have been enough for us to spend the night but not the following day. It also wouldnt allow us to cook, or even eat. We had to find a source of water and a sheltered place to set up camp.
The shelter was fairly easy to find. Beyond the Castle, headed north there is a large flat field bordered by rock formations that look like The Great Wall on the west and The Submarine on the east. Since the wind was blowing hard from the east the leeward side of the Submarine made a natural windbreak. The area is relatively flat and covered with grass. We deposited our packs in the lee of the Sub and headed north to another part of the peak to search for a spring that I had used before.
The far side of the next rise to the north had a good supply of flowing water every time I had been on top before so it was a natural place to start searching. After about an hour of searching we were getting discouraged. The mountain appeared bone dry. The only exception was the bromeliads. These grow in abundance on the peak and collect rain/dew/condensation from the thick fog that normally clings to the crest. Each one contains about 20-60ml of water of variable quality.
I had a 60 ml syringe and a 1-meter length of tubing. Emerson mentioned the fact that if we kept searching for water we wouldnt have enough time to collect enough water from the plants and set up camp before dark. I cut him a short piece of tube with my neck knife and left him to collect water while I continued to search.
(NOTE TO SELF: Everyone carries a tube and syringe in the future.)
I set off on a pointless search for flowing water. I did find a patch of wet sand but probing down into it with my BK-7 revealed that it wasnt saturated enough to bother digging.
I walked about 3 km searching the west side of the ridge where most of the seeps seem to break the surface. This got to be too dangerous as the slope turns into a vertical drop down over the edge and I didnt feel like dying. After getting into a second sticky situation I reasoned I would rather be thirsty for the night than a quadriplegic for life. Discretion was the better part of valor.
I found Emerson again, still sucking water out of plants. He had collected almost a full 1-liter platypus bag. Between the two of us we finished the bag. It took about an hour to collect a liter of water. The water quality was poor. The bottoms of the plants contain a great deal of dead plant matter and the water has mosquito larvae swimming in it. It would have to be filtered and treated.
With one liter of water to our credit we headed back to set up camp. Emerson found a good windbreak at the south end of the submarine. About midship there is a large rock with a flat space alongside and I settled on it as my shelter location. Out of the wind it was actually quite nice.
Our shelters consisted of US Army ponchos, bivy sacks, and tropical weight bags. I also had a poncho liner along. Emerson brought a warm coat to sleep in. I took time to filter and treat the plant water while there was still light. It filtered up pretty well yielding a full canteen of treated water, enough to spend the night and we could make more in the morning from the same source. As far as I was concerned our water problem was solved (60 ml Syringe, Canteen, PVC filter, Potable Aqua Plus).
The field between the Sub and the Great Wall is filled with grasses of various types so we set about cutting and ripping up grass for our beds. As I worked my way south in the field moving from one bunch of grass to the next I suddenly discovered a stagnant pool of water about three meters long, two meters wide and about 30 cm deep. It was down in a sinkhole rimmed by tall grass. I called Emerson over and we had a good laugh. We hadnt spotted the pool because it was in an unlikely place and we had passed by on the far side of this field checking out the Sub as a possible location for a campsite.
We looked over the pool with Emersons mini-maglight. The water was of very poor quality, filled with bugs and such, sort of dark but transparent. It would have to be treated heavily but would be every bit as good as the stuff we were sucking out of the plants and much faster to collect. Our water problem was solved. I filled two of the 2-liter Platypus bags at the pool. I like to use a full two liter bags as a pillow. Emerson seemed resistant to the idea for some unknown reason.
I made a 5cm thick grass mat next to my rock and covered it with my Thermorest pad. The sky was clear and it seemed highly unlikely that we would get even fog, let alone rain.
By about 9:00 PM it was starting to get pretty cold. I didnt have a thermometer but I would have guessed about 50 degrees, daytime temps were in the 80s. The wind was blowing at a steady 25 mph from the east. In the shelter of the rocks we only felt occasional gusts.
The moon was a sliver and the sky was totally clear when I went to bed. Just in case, I left my poncho out of my pack next to my head but I fully expected to wake up in dry conditions.
About 1:30 I found out how wrong I could be. I woke up with a few raindrops hitting my face. The air had turned white. The fog was so thick you couldnt see anything. The glow of a mini-maglight up near Emerson (25 meters away) told me he was getting set up for a wet night too.
Expecting a little drizzle I sat up in the bivy sack and pulled the poncho over my head. I dont like to zip the hood of the bivy shut, as it gets stuffy. Anyway the drizzle was just a minor inconvenience that the poncho hood could handle. I put my bush hat on to hold the hood away from my face and went back to sleep.
That lasted about an hour when it started to rain for real. Then it started to pour down rain like only Brazil can manage. It was like trying to sleep in a car wash! At least now our water problems were definitively over. I have to give them credit, the $25 Guide Gear Bivy sack does a pretty good job if you are smart enough to zip it shut and protect the face screen from direct rain. I was not smart enough though and when it started to rain in abundance I was already committed to using the poncho like I had been. To remove the poncho at this point would have soaked me good by the time I got the bivy shut like it is designed to be.
Later the next day Emerson showed me his solution. He had started out the night with his bivy zipped shut. He liked the bug free sleeping idea. When it had started to drizzle he pulled the poncho over him and breathed through a hole made by the hood. He stayed dry all night.
The heavy rain lasted about an hour and then abruptly stopped like someone hit the off switch. By then I was so tired I just took advantage of the quiet and went to sleep. I woke up shortly after sunrise when Emerson walked up to me. He had been up for about a half hour. A small trickle of water had entered my bivy and my right arm and shoulder were wet but it had not been bad enough to wake me up.
The field of grass in front of camp had turned into a small swamp from the rain. The pool at the far end of the field was now about 50 cm full and there was a trickle of clean water flowing down a rock at the top end. The water was clear and cold with a slight amber color but no debris, mud, or insects floating in it.
Continued...
After every trip I take I usually write up a report for my own records. I thought you guys might enjoy reading this one. Mac
Capanema Trip
We left a little later than we wanted to on Thursday morning (Oct 6) due to Emersons work related problems. He is a contractor and had to make sure his crew knew what was expected of them while he was gone. Our plan was to stay on top of Battatal (Capanema) and maybe explore some of the valley beyond the next day.
We started hiking at about 11:00. Emerson was having a tough time of it initially. He carries a few extra kilos. I was feeling the lack of cardiovascular exercise myself but adjusted pretty well.
We refilled our canteens at the creek and again at the first spring on the way up the slope. This is the end of dry season and the rains havent started yet. The springs on the way up normally hold some water but there were very few seeps visible on the rocks and no running water from mid slope up.
By 3:30 we were on top, elevation 6,500 feet. The wind was blowing about 20 25 mph from the backside of the mountain. We bypassed the Castle, the actual top of the mountain, not visible from the bottom. The Castle is a large formation about 100 meters long, 50 meters wide and about 25 meters high. It is full of large angular boulders and would be a good place to seek shelter. Our objective at this point was water.
Between the two of us we arrived on top with little more than a liter. That would have been enough for us to spend the night but not the following day. It also wouldnt allow us to cook, or even eat. We had to find a source of water and a sheltered place to set up camp.
The shelter was fairly easy to find. Beyond the Castle, headed north there is a large flat field bordered by rock formations that look like The Great Wall on the west and The Submarine on the east. Since the wind was blowing hard from the east the leeward side of the Submarine made a natural windbreak. The area is relatively flat and covered with grass. We deposited our packs in the lee of the Sub and headed north to another part of the peak to search for a spring that I had used before.
The far side of the next rise to the north had a good supply of flowing water every time I had been on top before so it was a natural place to start searching. After about an hour of searching we were getting discouraged. The mountain appeared bone dry. The only exception was the bromeliads. These grow in abundance on the peak and collect rain/dew/condensation from the thick fog that normally clings to the crest. Each one contains about 20-60ml of water of variable quality.
I had a 60 ml syringe and a 1-meter length of tubing. Emerson mentioned the fact that if we kept searching for water we wouldnt have enough time to collect enough water from the plants and set up camp before dark. I cut him a short piece of tube with my neck knife and left him to collect water while I continued to search.
(NOTE TO SELF: Everyone carries a tube and syringe in the future.)
I set off on a pointless search for flowing water. I did find a patch of wet sand but probing down into it with my BK-7 revealed that it wasnt saturated enough to bother digging.
I walked about 3 km searching the west side of the ridge where most of the seeps seem to break the surface. This got to be too dangerous as the slope turns into a vertical drop down over the edge and I didnt feel like dying. After getting into a second sticky situation I reasoned I would rather be thirsty for the night than a quadriplegic for life. Discretion was the better part of valor.
I found Emerson again, still sucking water out of plants. He had collected almost a full 1-liter platypus bag. Between the two of us we finished the bag. It took about an hour to collect a liter of water. The water quality was poor. The bottoms of the plants contain a great deal of dead plant matter and the water has mosquito larvae swimming in it. It would have to be filtered and treated.
With one liter of water to our credit we headed back to set up camp. Emerson found a good windbreak at the south end of the submarine. About midship there is a large rock with a flat space alongside and I settled on it as my shelter location. Out of the wind it was actually quite nice.
Our shelters consisted of US Army ponchos, bivy sacks, and tropical weight bags. I also had a poncho liner along. Emerson brought a warm coat to sleep in. I took time to filter and treat the plant water while there was still light. It filtered up pretty well yielding a full canteen of treated water, enough to spend the night and we could make more in the morning from the same source. As far as I was concerned our water problem was solved (60 ml Syringe, Canteen, PVC filter, Potable Aqua Plus).
The field between the Sub and the Great Wall is filled with grasses of various types so we set about cutting and ripping up grass for our beds. As I worked my way south in the field moving from one bunch of grass to the next I suddenly discovered a stagnant pool of water about three meters long, two meters wide and about 30 cm deep. It was down in a sinkhole rimmed by tall grass. I called Emerson over and we had a good laugh. We hadnt spotted the pool because it was in an unlikely place and we had passed by on the far side of this field checking out the Sub as a possible location for a campsite.
We looked over the pool with Emersons mini-maglight. The water was of very poor quality, filled with bugs and such, sort of dark but transparent. It would have to be treated heavily but would be every bit as good as the stuff we were sucking out of the plants and much faster to collect. Our water problem was solved. I filled two of the 2-liter Platypus bags at the pool. I like to use a full two liter bags as a pillow. Emerson seemed resistant to the idea for some unknown reason.
I made a 5cm thick grass mat next to my rock and covered it with my Thermorest pad. The sky was clear and it seemed highly unlikely that we would get even fog, let alone rain.
By about 9:00 PM it was starting to get pretty cold. I didnt have a thermometer but I would have guessed about 50 degrees, daytime temps were in the 80s. The wind was blowing at a steady 25 mph from the east. In the shelter of the rocks we only felt occasional gusts.
The moon was a sliver and the sky was totally clear when I went to bed. Just in case, I left my poncho out of my pack next to my head but I fully expected to wake up in dry conditions.
About 1:30 I found out how wrong I could be. I woke up with a few raindrops hitting my face. The air had turned white. The fog was so thick you couldnt see anything. The glow of a mini-maglight up near Emerson (25 meters away) told me he was getting set up for a wet night too.
Expecting a little drizzle I sat up in the bivy sack and pulled the poncho over my head. I dont like to zip the hood of the bivy shut, as it gets stuffy. Anyway the drizzle was just a minor inconvenience that the poncho hood could handle. I put my bush hat on to hold the hood away from my face and went back to sleep.
That lasted about an hour when it started to rain for real. Then it started to pour down rain like only Brazil can manage. It was like trying to sleep in a car wash! At least now our water problems were definitively over. I have to give them credit, the $25 Guide Gear Bivy sack does a pretty good job if you are smart enough to zip it shut and protect the face screen from direct rain. I was not smart enough though and when it started to rain in abundance I was already committed to using the poncho like I had been. To remove the poncho at this point would have soaked me good by the time I got the bivy shut like it is designed to be.
Later the next day Emerson showed me his solution. He had started out the night with his bivy zipped shut. He liked the bug free sleeping idea. When it had started to drizzle he pulled the poncho over him and breathed through a hole made by the hood. He stayed dry all night.
The heavy rain lasted about an hour and then abruptly stopped like someone hit the off switch. By then I was so tired I just took advantage of the quiet and went to sleep. I woke up shortly after sunrise when Emerson walked up to me. He had been up for about a half hour. A small trickle of water had entered my bivy and my right arm and shoulder were wet but it had not been bad enough to wake me up.
The field of grass in front of camp had turned into a small swamp from the rain. The pool at the far end of the field was now about 50 cm full and there was a trickle of clean water flowing down a rock at the top end. The water was clear and cold with a slight amber color but no debris, mud, or insects floating in it.
Continued...
