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Rocko1 Posts: 597
2/12/2019
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Took the wife up to Whale Peak via the Pictograph trail this Saturday. I have done the regular route from Pinyon Mtn Rd a few times and wanted to try this approach. Got to the pictograph trail head about 8:30am on Saturday. Was about 44f and slightly breezy. Took off towards the pictograph rock-1 mile from the trail head.
Pictograph
We headed north from the pictograph rock and searched for the canyon that would take us up to the main trail to Whale.
Canyon ahead.
The canyon section-1.5 miles is a mix of boulders and small sandy sections.
A more rare flat area.
A nice cave we had to go through. This was about halfway up the canyon. It's bigger than it appears.
Looking back down the canyon we were climbing.
It connects to the main trail about 3 miles in. There are plenty of nice backpacking(flat) spots up here. This is one example:
Some really nice scenery up here. My favorite part of AB so far.
View from the saddle just below the peak.
Was cold and windy at the top. 45f with 25+mph gusts.
A quick cup of coffee and it was back on the trail.
Saw these bones on the way back. Small coyote?
Also saw this tree that looked like it had oranges on it-not sure what this was. Any ideas?
Some nice flora up here and in the canyon.
Desert Apricot
We made it down the canyon much faster-about 55 minutes and bypassed the cave by going up on the south side of the canyon about 100'. There were some rock cairns but you could have just picked your path. We dropped back down as it wasn't much faster going with the loose rock.
Made it back to the car just before the rain started. Was a good day. Not as exciting as the Bighorn Canyon trip but a great workout hike.
Bonus picture. At the top of Banner Grade we saw a large group of turkeys-13. I have not seen this many at one time.
edited by Rocko1 on 2/12/2019
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dsefcik Administrator Posts: 2622
2/13/2019
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Nice TR, looks like a good trip.
The "oranges" are galls usually made by gall wasps, they are basically infestations.
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http://www.sefcik.com
http://www.darensefcik.com
http://www.carrizogorge.com
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Rocko1 Posts: 597
2/13/2019
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dsefcik wrote:
Nice TR, looks like a good trip.
The "oranges" are galls usually made by gall wasps, they are basically infestations.
Ah, I thought it was strange. This tree had a few on the ground under it too.
It was a good hike. It appears Gaia GPS is not recording the elevation gain correctly-when I import the KML/GPX data into Google Earth it's showing a 2,525ft gain. Kind of a bummer as I really like the app but I am now seeing 10-20% discrepancies in gain/loss numbers.
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Buford Posts: 456
2/13/2019
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Looks fun. Was it the right amount of scrambling?
Many programs don’t calculate gain/loss well. Fit bits and similar have issues. Hiking during a storm when the pressure is changing doesn’t help.
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Links to my photos: ABDSP photos, Bighorn sheep photos, ABDSP time lapse video, Wildlife photos (mainly birds)
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tommy750 Posts: 1049
2/13/2019
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Nice trip. Looks like the metal sign is holding up better than the old wood one. You ever try the Jerry Schad Whale Peak loop from Blair? Also kinda like starting in Pinyon Wash: https://caltopo.com/m/HTBN
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tekewin Posts: 368
2/14/2019
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Rocko1 wrote:
dsefcik wrote:
It was a good hike. It appears Gaia GPS is not recording the elevation gain correctly-when I import the KML/GPX data into Google Earth it's showing a 2,525ft gain. Kind of a bummer as I really like the app but I am now seeing 10-20% discrepancies in gain/loss numbers.
Nice trip on Whale. I love that terrain, but I've only done it the easy way from the other side.
Getting accurate gain/loss is not easy. After many different approaches, I am now using GPS visualizer with some fine tuned options.
The complexities are explained here.
So, I use their Profile page, and these options:
1. Add DEM elevation data: best available source
2. Calculate elevation gain: Yes
3. Elev. gain threshold: 5m
4. Trackpoint distance threshold: 5m
Give that a try and see if you like the results better. It eliminates a lot of errors but nothing is perfect.
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Rocko1 Posts: 597
2/15/2019
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Buford wrote:
Looks fun. Was it the right amount of scrambling?
Many programs don’t calculate gain/loss well. Fit bits and similar have issues. Hiking during a storm when the pressure is changing doesn’t help.
It was fun. Yes you were right. Not anything at all difficult but plenty of stuff you are stepping up-12-36" steps with a few 40"+ you have to throw up the hiking stick and pull pull yourself up in a kind of upward portion of a dip style move. It should burns the quads! When we hit the regular trail it was like heaven.
tommy750 wrote:
Nice trip. Looks like the metal sign is holding up better than the old wood one. You ever try the Jerry Schad Whale Peak loop from Blair? Also kinda like starting in Pinyon Wash: https://caltopo.com/m/HTBN
I have not done Schads route-that looks like a beast. Having done both Pinyon and pictograph directions I prefer the pictograph. The canyon is nice full of a variety of sites. It's harder but is more scenic in my opinion.
edited by Rocko1 on 2/15/2019
tekewin wrote:
Rocko1 wrote:
dsefcik wrote:
It was a good hike. It appears Gaia GPS is not recording the elevation gain correctly-when I import the KML/GPX data into Google Earth it's showing a 2,525ft gain. Kind of a bummer as I really like the app but I am now seeing 10-20% discrepancies in gain/loss numbers.
Nice trip on Whale. I love that terrain, but I've only done it the easy way from the other side.
Getting accurate gain/loss is not easy. After many different approaches, I am now using GPS visualizer with some fine tuned options.
The complexities are explained here.
So, I use their Profile page, and these options:
1. Add DEM elevation data: best available source
2. Calculate elevation gain: Yes
3. Elev. gain threshold: 5m
4. Trackpoint distance threshold: 5m
Give that a try and see if you like the results better. It eliminates a lot of errors but nothing is perfect.
Thanks for the info. Here is what it came up with.
edited by Rocko1 on 2/15/2019
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rockhopper Posts: 668
2/16/2019
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Nice trip Rocko1. Best time of year to climb it. Between the storms. Glad you both had a good hike. Fantastic views all around.
Tommy: I have an old pic of that wooden sign somewhere. I'll try to find it.
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rockhopper Posts: 668
2/18/2019
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Tommy: I found this old pic of the wooden sign. Jan 2 1990. The sign was already split and laying near the summit.
Whale Peak from Granite Mountian peak. I often thought of climbing it again up the south slope from the S2. Anyone done that route?
edited by rockhopper on 2/18/2019
edited by rockhopper on 2/18/2019
edited by rockhopper on 2/18/2019
edited by rockhopper on 2/18/2019
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