Hikers recently rescued from an extremely challenging trail in B.C. had planned their trip using Google Maps, prompting a warning about the perils of relying on that platform in the backcountry.
There’s always a few stories every year about people nearly dying trying to climb mount Snowdon in Wales, and while it’s definitely no hill it’s also not exactly K2. The problem is that they try and climb a mountain called Snowdon in flip flops and short shorts, because it’s warm at the base.
I was ready to poke fun at the UK because 1km is an unimpressive peak but I see that most the trails start pretty much at sea level so that is one hell of a walk. (And half a million people do it every year!)
If you know the alpine mountains, there is something you need to be aware of if you go e.g. hiking in Scotland: Weather is a lot harsher there even at lower altitudes. A peak of 1200 meters can be as challenging as over 2000 meters in Switzerland or Austria. Even at a height that would be an afternoon walk more southern, the wind chill can be really dangerous.
It is said that the atmosphere is thinner there in more northern latitudes, and while this is physically is nonsense, this describes something real.
I’m used to the Pacific Northwest and don’t do real mountaineering so the 2-3km+ summits are beyond me. Even the 10 mile (whoops, switching units) glacier hike I did in Alaska only went up about 2000 feet. I prefer long walks over steep ones.
There’s always a few stories every year about people nearly dying trying to climb mount Snowdon in Wales, and while it’s definitely no hill it’s also not exactly K2. The problem is that they try and climb a mountain called Snowdon in flip flops and short shorts, because it’s warm at the base.
I was ready to poke fun at the UK because 1km is an unimpressive peak but I see that most the trails start pretty much at sea level so that is one hell of a walk. (And half a million people do it every year!)
If you know the alpine mountains, there is something you need to be aware of if you go e.g. hiking in Scotland: Weather is a lot harsher there even at lower altitudes. A peak of 1200 meters can be as challenging as over 2000 meters in Switzerland or Austria. Even at a height that would be an afternoon walk more southern, the wind chill can be really dangerous.
It is said that the atmosphere is thinner there in more northern latitudes, and while this is physically is nonsense, this describes something real.
I’m used to the Pacific Northwest and don’t do real mountaineering so the 2-3km+ summits are beyond me. Even the 10 mile (whoops, switching units) glacier hike I did in Alaska only went up about 2000 feet. I prefer long walks over steep ones.