3/29-4/1: Lost Coast Backpacking Trip

[Guest guest]

Here's a backpacking trip you won't want to miss, hiking along

the ocean for three days and listening to the soothing sounds

of crashing waves. We'll be setting up a campfire each night

and have a jolly good time. This isn't a veg*n only trip, but

it'll be great to have some along so we can share each other's

tasty treats.

 

March 29-April 1: Lost Coast Backpacking Trip

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Sign-up required (trip will be limited to 12 people)

Backpacking experience is required for this trip.

 

Destination: Lost Coast trail in the King Range

National Conservation Area in Humboldt County

Leaving: Friday, March 29 - afternoon or early evening

Returning: Monday, April 1 - evening to late evening

Driving distance: Approx. 250 miles (60 miles south of Eureka)

Driving time: Approx. 5 hours (2 1/2 hours more is required on

Saturday morning as we drive most of the cars to

the north end of the coastal trail). Shuttle from

to the south end to north end and back on Monday

will take an additional 5 hours.

Hiking distance: 25 miles (8-10 miles per day)

Begins at the mouth of the Mattole River

and ends at Black Sands Beach, just north

of Shelter Cove.

Elevation gain: Rolling hills, but mostly on the beach, where

terrain ranges from fine sand to big boulders.

Difficulty: Moderate - hiking with a backpack on sandy beach

can be slow and quite a workout--we will hike on

the trails whenever possible.

Tides: High tide will restrict hiking at certain segments of

the trail. For this trip, high tide occurs around noon

time each day, so we will try to hike early in the day

at these segments: Punta Gorda (2.9 mi from Mattole),

Sea Lion Gulch to Randall Creek (4.5-8.4 mi), south end

of Miller Flat to 1.5 mi north of Gitchell Creek (16.7-

20.7 mi).

Costs: A few bucks for camping first night; most will be

driving expenses (approx. $30) plus your own food.

 

Additional information:

http://www-db.stanford.edu/~crespo/lostcoast/

http://www.ca.blm.gov/arcata/king_range.html

http://www.gorp.com/gorp/location/ca/lost_co1.htm

http://www.bayinsider.com/recreation/guides/camping/lostcoast.html

 

Check out these pictures:

http://www.abovecalifornia.com/pictures?mode=1 & tripID=11

 

Suggested gear checklist:

http://www.backpacking.net/ten-essl.html

http://users.aol.com/gburch2/bpgear1.html

http://home.earthlink.net/~kirkm2506/BackpackGear.html

 

 

It has been almost two years since the Stanford Outing Club

has gone on a trip to the Lost Coast (and I was on that one)

so it's time to repeat this three-day journey along northern

California's Pacific coast. I won't spend too much effort in

describing the hike here since there are plenty of write-ups

and photos accessible by the links given above.

 

Some logistics: since this is a one-way, 25-mile hike from

north to south, we will need to shuttle people between the

trailheads. There are commercial taxi services available,

but Roxanne, one of the few shuttle operators, charges $40

per person. This is a bit steep, IMO, so I suggest we stay

at one of the campsites near Shelter Cove on Friday night,

and leave one car at Black Sand Beach before taking others

to the trailhead at Mattole, 2 1/2 hours away.

 

Everyone is responsible for his/her own backpacking food

(sharing food around camp fire is encouraged, of course),

but shared equipment such as tents, stoves and cookware,

and water filters will be coordinated once I know who is

going. If you're interested in coming, please provide me

with the following info and I'll get back to you by the

beginning of next week.

 

* Name

* Contact info (e-mail, phone #s)

* Do you have a car and willing to drive?

How many people (with backpacks) can it fit?

* What shared backpacking equipment do you own?

Tent, stove, cookware, water filter, etc.

* Where and when would you like to leave?

* What silly human tricks do you know?

 

Trip " leader " : Erhhung Yuan

erhhung

(w) 408-490-6209

(m) 510-290-3275