Hal Baas and I asked Ken
Messinger if he would write
a little something about his Sheep Mt experiences. Thanks Ken!
I've been doing some searches with my HAZ
group (hike Arizona.com)
and my Arizona hikers group. I was there Tuesday the first
day of the search and three of us had to leave to make room
for horse trailers. I did stop down at where the road comes
out at hwy 87 and relayed back to command when the horse
trailers started in so they wouldn't run into anyone on that
narrow steep FR 201. I also talked to the leader of Central
Mountain Rescue and suggested the Mt. Peeley Trailhead had bad
communications and setting up closer to the Hwy was a better
idea. He agreed and then left to find a site that would be
close and that could handle a landing zone.
I came the next Friday on an off day for search and a couple
of us went in through the Mormon Grove Trailhead with no
results. The next Monday I took my ATV in on FR 25A a very
rough road. I hiked trail 86 to trail 260 then up the AZ
trail to Thicket Spring no results. Then yesterday I did a
three hour search around the MT. Peeley trail head. Lot's of
ups and downs around the trailhead. Maricopa's Fox one search
helo over flew the trailhead at 12:pm I finished up a four
hour trailhead search with no results. I did get a chance to
meet up with five members of my online hiking groups.
Ken
Messinger
Interesting web site by
Deb Lauman
who does the
http://debssarstories.blogspot.com/ website in Coconino
County.
http://www.24hourpack.com
Comments from a couple
of members about the web site.
The packs look a little pricey but since
they include the option of getting one set up to fit your
needs, it may be a good idea. For example, I think the GPS
that is included is not the one I would recommend, and if you
build a pack, excluding the GPS, the price would probably be
better.
Kathy
I took a quick look at the contents of the
packs and it looks pretty good as long as the buyer heeds the
disclaimer at the bottom of the page:
"These pre-equipped, 24-hour
packs are not intended to replace common sense or
skill. Neither are they meant to include the full complement
of what one should carry. (See
Other Recommended Gear for our suggestions.) It is always
the responsibility of the user to add any and all food and
water, clothing, shelter, technical and other gear he or she
deems necessary for the outdoor adventure or mission, and to
ensure that all gear is in proper working order. Equipment
should always be reviewed and tested before taking it into the
field. And know how to operate all of the equipment in your
pack before hitting the trail. You may want to read,
Hikers: Common Mistakes to Avoid, for some additional tips
on staying safe--and getting found--in the backcountry."
"Please also note: These kits
are not being endorsed by any SAR team or organization;
they are merely combinations of known, brand-name gear put
together by our company as options for the basis of a 24-hour
pack."
Some of the most important items in the pack are useless
unless the buyer knows how and when to use them. The buyer
also has to supply the right combination of food and water
plus appropriate shoes and clothing for the climate, time of
year and weather. They also would need a good map of the area
and how to read it. I would also like to see a little more
substance for making a shelter. I guess there is no
substitution for knowledge and that is something you cannot
buy as part of the packs offered at this web site. It might
give an unknowledgeable persona false sense of security that
he had all the bases covered if he bought one of these
packs... and who knows get him into trouble without him
knowing it. On the other hand a knowledgeable person would
have no trouble assembling these things in his pack on his
own.
I guess if a knowledgeable person was willing to pay for the
convenience of having these items preassembled for him and
then add the rest of what he needed to complete his pack
system one of these would be a good idea... Then again I think
I would rather see an unknowledgeable person go out on a hike
with this stuff in his pack even if he didn't know how to use
all of it as long as he didn't think he had purchased
"invincibility-in-a-pack". It would surely be better than a
pint of water or a can of beer and a pair of flip flops for a
24 hour trek into Fossil Creek.
Greg
Arizona State Milepost System
We have had the Arizona State Milepost System
Map on our website for some time. It's a large file and if we
print it, the numbers are so small that they're almost
unreadable.
We have broken it down to
three sizes that will fit on an 8 1/5 x 11 inch piece of paper
printed as Landscape instead of Portrait mode. Give it a try.
Might be nice to print all three to keep in your car.
Arizona State Milepost
System
Click
HERE
for a full sized PDF map of the State Milepost System
This map is
available in three regions for easier viewing and printing.
1.
North
2.
Central
3.
South
