Post by Philip on Aug 11, 2019 14:36:02 GMT -9
This is an informational thread to accompany the following video depicting a 38-mile (approximate) backpacking route from the Heitman Lake Trail to the North Sharatin Mountain Trail at the end of Anton Larsen Bay Road.
The basic route is shown in the map below in yellow, with the bail options shown in red. More detailed route information will be posted below.
Downloadable Data:
Here is a link to the full set of trail data with the main route, alternate routes, bail options, possible campsites, water sources, and some trail notes for Google Earth or a GPS phone app like Gaia: Kodiak Sidecountry Challenge Route (.kmz file via Dropbox)
What time of year?
Center Mountain and the ridges behind Bells Flats hold snow well into July. Unless you enjoy steep snow slopes and post holing, you will probably want to wait until late July to do this trip. It will be good well into the fall until things start to freeze. Salonie Peak, Center Mountain, and numerous peaks along the route are easily seen from the city of Kodiak. If you observe significant snow patches on any of those peaks, you may want to wait until a little later in the season to attempt the route.
Which way?
North or south? Should you hike from Sharatin to Heitman, or the other way around? It is probably six one way and a half dozen the other, but the brush sections might be slightly more pleasant on the northbound route since the thicker stuff is generally encountered when going downhill. Both directions have tough climbs (Salonie and Sharatin when going northbound, and Center when going southbound). One benefit to traveling southbound is that you are presented with bail options early and often so you can change your mind about doing the full trip at regular intervals, while northbound you are sort of committed until you reach the first bail route taking you out to Kashevaroff, which is a 10-mile hike in itself.
How many days?
This totally depends on your fitness and interest in pushing yourself. I did it as an overnight hike. Not many people would enjoy that pace. It would be a doable 3-day trip for strong hikers, being broken down into approximately 12-mile days. A 4-day hike would be quite pleasant with each day at 8-10 miles. This also puts you into the best campsites each day which happen to occur at around mile 8 (Salonie Peak), mile 16 (upper Russian Creek), and around mile 25 (above Elbow Creek) when traveling northbound. The total elevation gained/lost along the route is approximately 12,400 feet (see profile below). That’s like climbing Pyramid Mountain from the parking area to the summit almost 7 times.
Camping
Campsites are all wild and undeveloped. They basically represent flat spots with grass or tundra where you can pitch a tent and get good ground holding for stakes. At each of the 4 best locations indicated in the previous section there is water available. Other campsites high on ridges may be dry, so look at the .kmz file for water locations and plan on carrying a few liters of water if you decide to camp in a dry location. Weather may also be a factor and waking up in the clouds or a howling wind storm can be annoying.
Water sources
In the .kmz file provided, reasonably reliable water sources are indicated. I recorded these locations after a long dry spell, so they can be considered a bare minimum of where water may be found. All water should be filtered. There is ALWAYS an animal standing uphill of you doing its business.
Bail options
Bail options are given in the .kmz file provided. They represent generally well-traveled and identifiable routes, but may require the use of a GPS to find the start or to navigate in limited visibility.
Cell Coverage
There is decent AT&T cell coverage along much of the route, but especially on the mountain peaks or anytime you can see down into Bells Flats or the Buskin Valley.
Printable map
Below is a map showing the main route (magenta line), route variations (orange lines), bail routes (yellow lines), some select campsites, and mileage in 5-mile increments for the northbound variation. A larger version is available for download here.
The basic route is shown in the map below in yellow, with the bail options shown in red. More detailed route information will be posted below.
Downloadable Data:
Here is a link to the full set of trail data with the main route, alternate routes, bail options, possible campsites, water sources, and some trail notes for Google Earth or a GPS phone app like Gaia: Kodiak Sidecountry Challenge Route (.kmz file via Dropbox)
What time of year?
Center Mountain and the ridges behind Bells Flats hold snow well into July. Unless you enjoy steep snow slopes and post holing, you will probably want to wait until late July to do this trip. It will be good well into the fall until things start to freeze. Salonie Peak, Center Mountain, and numerous peaks along the route are easily seen from the city of Kodiak. If you observe significant snow patches on any of those peaks, you may want to wait until a little later in the season to attempt the route.
Which way?
North or south? Should you hike from Sharatin to Heitman, or the other way around? It is probably six one way and a half dozen the other, but the brush sections might be slightly more pleasant on the northbound route since the thicker stuff is generally encountered when going downhill. Both directions have tough climbs (Salonie and Sharatin when going northbound, and Center when going southbound). One benefit to traveling southbound is that you are presented with bail options early and often so you can change your mind about doing the full trip at regular intervals, while northbound you are sort of committed until you reach the first bail route taking you out to Kashevaroff, which is a 10-mile hike in itself.
How many days?
This totally depends on your fitness and interest in pushing yourself. I did it as an overnight hike. Not many people would enjoy that pace. It would be a doable 3-day trip for strong hikers, being broken down into approximately 12-mile days. A 4-day hike would be quite pleasant with each day at 8-10 miles. This also puts you into the best campsites each day which happen to occur at around mile 8 (Salonie Peak), mile 16 (upper Russian Creek), and around mile 25 (above Elbow Creek) when traveling northbound. The total elevation gained/lost along the route is approximately 12,400 feet (see profile below). That’s like climbing Pyramid Mountain from the parking area to the summit almost 7 times.
Camping
Campsites are all wild and undeveloped. They basically represent flat spots with grass or tundra where you can pitch a tent and get good ground holding for stakes. At each of the 4 best locations indicated in the previous section there is water available. Other campsites high on ridges may be dry, so look at the .kmz file for water locations and plan on carrying a few liters of water if you decide to camp in a dry location. Weather may also be a factor and waking up in the clouds or a howling wind storm can be annoying.
Water sources
In the .kmz file provided, reasonably reliable water sources are indicated. I recorded these locations after a long dry spell, so they can be considered a bare minimum of where water may be found. All water should be filtered. There is ALWAYS an animal standing uphill of you doing its business.
Bail options
Bail options are given in the .kmz file provided. They represent generally well-traveled and identifiable routes, but may require the use of a GPS to find the start or to navigate in limited visibility.
Cell Coverage
There is decent AT&T cell coverage along much of the route, but especially on the mountain peaks or anytime you can see down into Bells Flats or the Buskin Valley.
Printable map
Below is a map showing the main route (magenta line), route variations (orange lines), bail routes (yellow lines), some select campsites, and mileage in 5-mile increments for the northbound variation. A larger version is available for download here.