Ben Crowell‭

I use 1 mm dacron cordage from Oware. I use a tarp with loops (not grommets), and have never had a problem with the cordage cutting through anything. The knots I usually use are square knots, figur...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭  ·  last activity 13y ago by System‭

With the exceptions of grizzly bears and polar bears, bears are nuisance animals that are after your food. They have no interest in you except as a source of food or as an obstacle to obtaining you...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

When climbing multipitch, what is the cycle of things you do when climbing each pitch, and what are the associated voice signals?

4 answers  ·  posted 7y ago by Ben Crowell‭  ·  last activity 7y ago by System‭

Basically the answer to your question is no, unless you're in very specific areas doing very specific activities. US wilderness areas are much bigger, much less accessible, and much less populated ...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

The options you're proposing are VFFs or hiking boots. There are lots of other options. What I use most of the time here in California is running shoes. They work great when conditions aren't snow...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

Bears in California are a huge problem in certain highly impacted areas such as Yosemite Valley. They are almost not a problem at all in less traveled areas such as the White Mountains. Rattlesnak...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

No, you can't rent that kind of equipment at a Park Service ranger station. They only rent out bear canisters, and even that is only at certain locations (e.g., Yosemite Valley). If you want a Spot...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

"Unlikely" is not the same as "won't happen." You're going to the White Mountains in California, so call the ranger station in Bishop and ask them. They will probably tell you that bears do exist t...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

Freezer bag cooking eliminates the hassle and environmental impact of washing your pot and dishes. You simply boil the water in the pot, then pour it into the ziplock freezer bag where the ingredie...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

I haven't seen any evidence that one brand or model of handheld GPS unit differs from any other model in its random or systematic errors. As far as I understand, the errors are determined by (1) th...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

Some rappels are simply awkward to start. The awkwardness isn't the most important issue in and of itself, but you want to avoid a situation in which the start is so messy that you get banged aroun...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭  ·  last activity 13y ago by System‭

A SPOT will only work if you can see the sky. If you're in a deep canyon where there's not simultaneous line of sight to enough GPS satellites, it won't work. PLB's these days all include GPS, but ...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭  ·  last activity 13y ago by System‭

Roland Muser wrote a book, Long-Distance Hiking: Lessons from the Appalachian Trail, based on surveys of 136 long-distance hikers, each of whom spent 3-6 months on the trail. Some relevant quotes (...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭

Freedom of the Hills has a chapter on rappelling that includes a detailed discussion of this topic. Tie it "uphill" from the belay device or "downhill"? Downhill. If the Prusik is downhill f...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭  ·  last activity 12y ago by System‭

John Muir is said to have traveled for weeks in the back country, but he never took any food with him, [...] Not true. There is a nice article here by John Huber about what Muir ate while on t...

posted 13y ago by Ben Crowell‭