Solo o/n - West Clear Creek Wilderness, AZ: pics (HEAVY) and lessons learned

Really appreciate the feedback, everybody. Sorry for anyone jealous of my awesome alpargatas; I don't suggest disparaging them in front of anyone from Argentina!
 
good stuff, man. glad to hear that fall wasn't too bad. i've been on a hike before where i had no business going up to begin with and was really sketchy coming back down. as for hiking poles, they are well worth it...i'm not that old yet (32) but i'm already using them. it definitely saves wear and tear on the knees (i figured why wait until i actually need them?)...especially on downhills, i can lean on them for better balance, it's like having 4 legs instead of 2.
 
Yeah, I'm definitely moving in the direction of poles. I'll probably start off with wood, just because wood has more class with aluminum. I kind of think that for the hike I talked in this thread, standard aluminum hiking poles would have often been too short... there were several spots where the length of my stick was helpful because I was perched on a rock prodding into the water to check for depth.

I think I'm actually going to try two hiking sticks, one long and one shorter. Elbow-height grip when on flat trail, then up-high grip when I'm standing on top of something. The shorter stick can be thinner than the long one. We'll see.... gotta get up north again to collect some aspen, first, so it might be a while.
 
I got some golf clubs from a thrift store, had the heads removed. Then I shoved the graphite driver into the steel shaft from one of the irons, these happen to fit together so well I can't get them apart. From REI, I got a set of trekking pole carbide tips, they got pressed onto the bottom of the steel shaft. All of this fit together so well that there is no rattling, and I cannot get any of it to come apart.
That hiking pole has been everywhere with me for over 10 years. I've beat on trees, whacked tree limbs out of my way, thrown it like a spear, dropped it down a small cliff, it just can't be hurt.
With each step, the pole contacts the ground and has some lateral spring for shock absorbtion, and it's lightweight makes it a pleasure to use.
Anyway, that's my "trekking pole". Cost me less than $20 to make.
 
Good stuff, good story,thanks for sharing. good of you to clean up after dirtbags, i HATE, HATE, SEEING TRASH WHEN IM OUT AND ABOUT.
Good times, great pics, terrible shoes ;).....
 
Amazing thread my brother- and sounds like you got the solitude you wanted and deserved. Read and enjoyed the whole thing. Seeing the pics- made me thoroughly miss my years studying at the U of A. You sound like a damn good person too- for what its worth. Thx for sharing.
 
Sounds like a nice trip...Thanks for taking the time to share the cool pics and your ''been there done that'' insight.

Is that north of Phnx? I did some camping around Prescott AZ back in the 90s. AZ has some pretty country...LOL altho most Easterners think it's all desert like south AZ. I'll be headed thru there in a couple of weeks on my home to MO for the Fourth.
 
~Excellent post BRL, top notch pics too. That's a little bit of heaven right there.
Yeah, the body suffers a little on those outings, but to me it does so much for the mind and soul the trade off is usually negligible.
 
Great post, thank you for sharing! I have a love/hate relationship with people leaving their shit outdoors....I found a very nice jacket, a mediocre fishing rod and a cheaper than dirt rough use knife on my last trip. More for my inventory I guess... Anyway, I loved the pics and uhm....I love the shoes :thumbup::p
 
Good point. I actually used half the shit I found out there last weekend on my camping trip this weekend. Karma payback I guess for carrying that stuff out.
 
Just read this now.

"Lessons Learned" threads are always great reads, but the truly best ones are also the "Honestly Sharing Those Lessons" kind. Thanks :thumbup:
 
What a great thread!!!!!!

Thanks for taking the time to take the pics, as well as post them - it's a shitload of work to do in addition to keeping your head right while you're out there.
 
Great stuff, looks like a great area!
 
I hear ya when it comes to hauling a too-small pack, the flip side being, a tiny pack can be awesome. I just did a day hike a week ago that I had done four years before. knowing the hike, and having vastly improved skills meant that between the first trip and this trip my wife and I carried far less gear (two over-stuffed weekend packs to one little hydration pack) of course when we got to the top, the d-bags hadn't left yet and I realize why I'm glad some places are easy to get to, it keeps the riff-raff away from the places I like. I just hope that place doesn't get shut down from people abusing it.
 
Nice trip report and good photos! Thanks for posting it, even though I am late to the reading of it. IMHO, learning what not to take and do is as important as learning what to take and do. FAK is an essential that I have carried many miles before it is ever used. But when you need it, there are few substitutes.

Are there really more slobs in the backcountry these days, ar do we just notice them more? Dunno. Thanks for helping keep the trail and sites clean. I do the same thing whenever I manage to get out and about.
 
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