Ordering your copy of “Loop Hikes in the Olympic Mountains”
If you haven’t ordered your copy of the Book yet,
I recommend:
- Port Book and News, Port Angeles, WA
- Pacific Mist, Sequim, WA
- Dungeness River Nature Center, Sequim, WA
- VillageBooks.com, Bellingham, WA
Or online
“Loop Hikes in the Olympic Mountains”
OR, buy your book at the events below.
Book Signing and Sales Events:
Dec. 2
Dec. 16
at Port Angeles Main Library, Carver Room North: 1 pm – 3 pm
at Pacific Mist, Sequim, WA 11 am – 1 pm
More events will be listed on January 15th, after the holidays.
Reader's responses to the Book:
“Loop Hikes in the Olympic Mountains” is off to a good start. All of the feedback from readers is positive and surprising. Here is one that took me by surprise:
“We just finished your Loop Hike book. We do daily reading together. We would read one hike each day. It was so much fun reminiscing each day covering many of the trails we have hiked over the years. In fact, we had hoped to hike every trail in the park.
That being said, congratulations on a wonderful treatise of your years of experience in the park. Well done! I think it will be a major resource for hikers and probably saves many from unnecessary hardships and possibly death.
I could sense your 15 years of working with the public in your volunteer position at the park headquarters. I can imagine you incorporating your education background in your communication skills. I loved the humor that you inserted throughout the texts. I would often end up laughing at many of your accounts.
The other treat was your historical account of your youthful adventures in scouts and all the climbs and hikes you did with Baker et al. I always remember the special fun that you and Baker would bring to the experience. Yes, a great shout out to our scout leaders, basic mountaineers’ leaders, park personnel, and even Mrs. Justin! Wow!
I guess I should not be surprised with your natural history knowledge. I would have loved to have you guest teach in my Earth Science class. Well done by incorporating natural history in your text.
I could go on and on. Also, thanks for the section on fitness, nutrition and stretching. It is a great addition.
Thanks again for sending me a copy of the book.
PS: Dan had the most influence on my passion for climbing. What a great way to acknowledge his impact on us by dedicating the book to him.”
My Response to the Reader:
The response from readers has been positive and, in some cases, energetic and uplifting. Having written the book and handed it to the readers I knew that the book was exposed to criticism at some level.
The letter I received came from a hiker/climber that I’ve known most of my life. We had hiked many of the same trails from youth to aged. I expected an honest critique of my work, and I really got one. Read his letter once more and you’ll appreciate the elements of the book that brought it to life. In addition to the loop hikes the letter commends the nature of my inclusion of the helping hikers get the most out of their efforts, examples of what’s to be expected and cred given to those who have given their time and resources to help me and the book to be useful. I could feel my emotion rising as I read the letter and I turned to tears in remembrance of Dan Baker.
Questions and Answers:
Please note that submitters’ names are never identified; after all, you are looking for answers, not who asked the question.
Q: How many Life Straws would I need for two people for a week?
A: Take one Life Straw for each person. Don’t use the Life Straws if it can be avoided. Rather than depending on Life Straws, boil water for cooking, drinking or spit baths. Boiling will never let you down.
Q: What are the best stoves and fuel to carry?
A: The stove you are using is the one stove you understand from previous hikes. If you need a new stove, I would consider MSR, Jetboil or Primus. Check them out at https://www.outdoorgearlab.com
Q: Should I carry/use walking sticks?
A: There are a lot of differing answers. Personally, I use a stick or a branch at stream crossings only. I don’t carry them. I usually find a stick nearby and sometimes at the crossing. Planting the point of a walking stick every time you move your feet is unnecessary and the over-use of the walking stick degrades the trail. The more you use walking sticks the more you rob your body of balance. If you don’t use walking sticks your body will strengthen your muscles, improve the limits of your natural balance and maintains core alignment.
Q: “I’m really enjoying the book, but I wonder why you have determined that the Heather Park loop is being rated as so difficult.”
A: The Lake Angeles – Hearth Park Loop has its rating level of difficulty based on the aggregate application of the following criteria listed in the Book’s Appendix. Length, Elevation, Rocky Trail, and Exposure applied as listed in the Appendix results in a rating of 12.79. A new hiker would most likely agree to the rating, but an experienced hiker would see it as overrated. The loop has a static rating in the book, but a hiker’s assessment of the rating is likely a reflection of their strength and experience in the Olympics.
Q: “Does ONP work to remove invasive species? Mountain Goats”
A: The simple answer is yes. However, the effort is more complicated than you might expect. For example, Mountain Goats are not native to the Olympic Mountains. They were introduced to the mountains in the 1920s by people who thought it was a good idea. It wasn’t. The number of Mountain Goats are without an adequate number of predators. Over the last few years Olympic National Park engaged in an extensive program of “capture and remove” followed by euthanizing them. Be it plants or animals, the Park is diligent in doing its best to protect the natural environment that is the Olympic Mountains.
A: Olympic Violets are found only in the Olympic Mountains. The Goats found the violets to be a favorite snack. Without the removal of the goats, Olympic Violets would eventually become extinct.
A: Why are some parts of the Alpine Meadows scraped away to dirt and rock? The goats had a habit of rolling and squirming on the ground to shed winter coats and, in some cases, to rid themselves of insects.
A: An Alpine meadow’s growth is extremely slow. As such, Stock Trail users are required to not bring hay into the Park. This requirement is intended to reduce the opportunity for hay grasses to establish themselves in the meadow.
Snow Camping
You can skip this segment if you’ve snow camped more than once. For those of you that haven’t experienced Snow Camping I’ll place some emphasis on camp skills and the serenity of camping in the snow.
The most fundamental fact in the arena of snow camping is, “if it’s not colder than the snow, it is and will be WET!” Let’s start with outer gear from your feet to your hat.
A lot of hiking boots are waterproof, but not all are well insulated. You might not even have given thought to insulation in August, however a hike in midwinter snow will immediately grab your attention. Your feet are distant from your heart and your body’s priority for blood circulation has your feet near the bottom of the list.
Snow pants and parkas will keep you dry. The biggest problem is knowing when these two items are overheating your body, get you wet from the inside out and drying them is difficult at best. Monitor your body, remove excess clothes, then put them back on when your day’s efforts have been reduced.
You head carries a good deal of your body temperature. If your head is over-heating or your head is beginning to sweat, slow down, remove the hat periodically and most importantly don’t get wet.
When you set up camp the tent and the stove will stay relatively dry until you go to use it. Cooking in the tent is the worst idea because the result will adversely affect you. The internal volume of the tent is insufficient to avoid gas poisoning. Cook outside and, if it’s snowing cook under an open-tarp set-up.
When you sleep in the tent you can bet that your body heat and exhaling will result in ice inside and out of the tent. The solution to the icing problem is to take down the tent and turn the tent inside out to shake the ice out of the tent, and even the sleeping bags, so that it will not be wet on the inside the next night.
Finally, everyone is well versed in how to protect yourself in the summer. Insect spray, a brimmed hat, sunglasses and light materials with long sleeves are some of the necessary protections. Staying dry and warm in the winter is also demanding. Before you head out to snow camp stop and consider the problems and solutions that will work to your advantage.
Where to buy "Loop Hikes in the Olympic Mountains"?
Sequim and Port Angeles:
Locally Known
Pacific Mist
Forage
Dungeness River Nature Center
Port Book and News
The Internet:
VillageBooks.com
Barnes and Noble
Amazon
I’ve been writing about some of the elements of the book since March and I will continue to do so. If you or your friends haven’t checked Loophikes.com lately, finally the book has been published and is on the shelves. It’s what we’ve all been waiting for. There is no better time to order your book. I’m certain that you’ll be pleased. The book is one-of-a-kind, informative and explores loop hikes that haven’t been published as a book. The “Grand Loop of the Olympic Mountains” is a loop that may not ever have been hiked. Whether you’re new at hiking or you’re an expert hiker, the book will be useful and helpful—and it will expand your collective experience.
Loophikes.com provides you with information about the book and information that is not in the book but is relevant to your understanding.
Loophikes@olympus.net provides you the ability to ask me questions and get answers to the best of my ability. All the answers will be available at loophikes.com without identifying the person who submitted the question.
All of the past articles beginning with March are accessible. Click here to visit the Archive page. Additionally, if you’re interested in what’s coming next, here they are:
December 1: Q & A and Snow Camping
December 15: No Article for December 15
January 1: No Article for January 1
January 15: Will show up after the Holiday break.
Loophikes.com will be back up and running with:
Building stamina for spring hiking and Back Country Reservations
Visit LoopHikes.com frequently. Photos, information and stories change periodically, but sharing information with you comes first. Questions? Contact me at LoopHikes@olympus.net. Your curiosity is the foundation of building a better understanding. Tell your friends.