"High" Altitude Advice?

[KZKlimber]

I plan on attempting Humphrey's Peak in Arizona in about a week. At ~12,600 feet it will be my highest elevation climb to date. OK so it's not exactly the "Death Zone" but any advice beyond drink a lot of water and tylenol for headache? I've been at 10,000 ft a number of years ago and don't remember any problems. Any stories (even horror stories) would be appreciated!

KZ

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

Most important thing is how high you will sleep. Over the years I have gone to Colrado and California four times to, what else??, bag fourteeners.

In Colrado I have never had a problem. I fly in from Boston (as close to sea level as you can get!), drive from Denver to a mountain town at about 7,500 to 9,000 feet. That evening I walk in town, huffing and puffing even of totally flat roads. Next day I have no difficulty bagging a twelver (I huff and ouff all the way, but I ge to the top!).

In California we did a two day overnight before attempting Mt. Whitney. One night car camping at Onion Valley Campground (about 9,000 feet, as I recall), then we backpacked to Kearsarge Lakes at around 11,000 feet. We also spent a night at Trail Camp before summitting.

Note, though, that acclimatization is a very variable and personal thing.

 

[Jim lombard]

High Elevation

Mohamed said it well, spend a night or two for your body to adjust to the elevation. You'll probably be staying in or around Flagstaff at 7,000 ft.

I climbed Humphrey's Peak almost 3 years ago. As you said, bring lots of water, we had 3 quarts each and all but one ran out before finishing. The UV is pretty intense in AZ and it seems to suck the moisture right out of you. Enjoy this hike, we did. The views of the ancient crater are pretty amazing as you reach the ridge that connect Humphrey and Agazziz. Before this massive volcano blew it's top it resembled Mt Hood and it was the highest mountain in the lower 48 at over 16,000 feet.......according to vulcanologists.

 

[jfb]

A couple of years ago, I took a business trip to Dnever and stayed over to hike in RMNP. The one thing I remember most about hiking at altitude was gasping for air while hiking at my normal speed along an easy trail. My advice to you is to monitor your pulse and go slower than you normally would at lower elevations.

 

[mavs00]

Ditto...........

Great Advice so far..... I've flown from NY (upstate) to out west (CO, NM, AZ, UT, etc.) and never had a problem, so long as I had few days to aclimate. Once got a touch of sickness DRIVING to the top of Pikes Peak (14'200), hiking up that high was much better for some odd reason. Ditto for several other hikes in the 10'500-12'500 range.

If you have the time, take a jog, or brisk walk around Flagstaff (or even better, Sedona) and get a little exercise in the days prior to when you plan to hike and you should be fine. Extra water and listening to your body will help too.

I distinctly remember a few hikes in Bryce NP, Utah (9000') where we were very amused at our high heart rates and breathlessness without any feeling of being tired on a fairly level 7 mile hike/walk.

Have fun, It's a beautiful area.

 

[poison ivy]

You will love hiking Humphreys, I hope you have a great trip.

We climbed Humphrey's our second day in Arizona... and it was our first "high altitude" hike. The first day in AZ, we drove to Sedona and hiked some of the red rock trails, which I thought was very helpful. I also loaded up on the water and aspirin. My hubby didn't take aspirin before we left and ended up suffering from a very bad headache.

While hiking the mountain, I didn't find myself gasping for breath or anything. I did notice that it took more energy to walk... I guess the best way to describe it was my feet felt like I was wearing lead boots.

Have a great trip!

- Ivy

 

[wally2q]

Altitude

Slow pace is important if not acclimatized.

If you push yourself, you may notice any or all of the following:

1. Shortness of breath & reduced performance (compared to your "norm")
2. Tunnel vision (leading to a fall - not fatal but you may get cuts etc)
3. Headache
4. Nausea (leading to you know what)

I experienced #2 above - but controlled it with breaks. A slower consistant pace would have been better, but I was studying my limits.

Pain killers are a good preventative measure. I use ibuprophen.

Very rewarding hike: a MUST DO in my books!!!

the wall..........

 

[WalksWithBlackflies]

Water, water, water... the air is much drier out west and gets drier the higher up you go.

 

[David Metsky]

And sunscreen, don't forget lots of sunscreen. The sun is more potent at altitude.

-dave-

 

[Mad Townie]

Kevin's post reminds me that altitude "issues" vary greatly from one person to the next. If you've never had problems at altitide before, you probably won't. If you have, you probably will.

Anecdotal evidence seems to indicate that people who are in very good shape can have a paradoxically higher rate of altitide problems.

Oh, and generally speaking the incidence goes DOWN with increasing age.

 

[Bob]

don't forget to eat

hydration is important, but eating is too. Force yourself to eat something, even if you are feeling sick. Bring along your favorite food, no matter what it is, and force it down at each rest stop.

I do not agree with the comments about past performance, altitude can affect the same person differently each time. I've gotten EXTREMELY sick as low as 10,000.

In many ways altitude sickness resembles a hangover, I noticed many people in training at the last Wonalancet Gathering...

 

[Oldsmores]

...If you've never had problems at altitide before, you probably won't. If you have, you probably will...

The operative word hear is "probably" - no guarantees. A few years back an AAA guide died of HACE in South America. He had a lot of high altitude experience, and hadn't previously had any problems. This may have contributed to his not responding to symptoms quickly enough.
Moral of the story is that, as the mutual fund people like to remind us, past performance is no guarantee of future performance. Always listen to your body.

 

[Jake]

Spending a couple of days acclimating at 7000 or 8000 feet seems to be a big help.

A big second on previous advice to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

 

[Jim lombard]

Oh, and generally speaking the incidence goes DOWN with increasing age

Mad Townie, I'd never heard of this before, thank you for that information. Well put......I'm looking forward to testing this theory as I get older.

 

[KZKlimber]

Wow - you guys are Great!!

Thanks - I've written down all of your great advice!

One more question - what is the deal with "Hiking Permits" for Humphrey's. I understand you need one but cannot get them at trailhead???

 

[Jim lombard]

Hiking permit?

In 2001 we didn't have a hiking permit, we had stopped in at a local outfitter right in downtown Flagstaff and they gave us all the info we needed (except a map.) We parked at the ski resort parking lot (the resort was closed by then and is now I believe.) We hiked across the ski slopes to the trail. There may have been some changes since that I'm not aware of. I know there was a fire there a couple of years ago. Others may have hiked it more recently and know of these changes. We never saw any rangers on our hike.

 

[KZKlimber]

Permits for Winter Only

I did some more research and found permits are needed for Winter only.

Lots of good info on ArizonaHikers.com - don't confuse it with ArizonaHiker.com (singular) which is not about hiking at all.

KZ

 

[Pete_Hickey]

.....If you've never had problems at altitide before, you probably won't.

Let me RE-emphasize that PROBABLY.

I climbed a number of 14K peaks with no problem. Then, one day, ok a 12K peak.... POW... I still remember how sick I was, and how bad the headache was. And I had been camping for 2 days over 8,000ft, and I drove out there, not a quick flight.

Before that day, I thought I handled altitude quite well.

 

[TomEske]

I think Pete makes a good point. I've been at 12,000 a few times with no problems. Then a couple of years ago I was at 8,000 and got hit as bad as I ever want to. I thought my head would never stop pounding. I chalk it up to the luck of the draw.
Tom

 

[KZKlimber]

Here's how everything worked out

As usual - everyone's advice was very helpful:

1) acclimitization - we flew into Phoenix and drove to Flagstaff (~7000 ft). Could feel the elevation right away - a little mild nausea - like when you read in the car. Spent a few hours there and then spent the night at about 4500 ft. Day 2 drove to the Grand Canyon - above 7000 ft all day. Again, slept at 4500 ft. Day 3 hiked to 12,600 ft. No nausea or headache. Did not feel out of breath. Did find that my heart rate rose rapidly when exerted, but promptly normalized when I rested. Tried to keep a slow even pace.

2) Ibuprophen - took 2 motrin the morning of the hike - no headache during the climb. I did develop a headache on the descent that I believe was due to solar radiation and not altitude.

3) SUNSCREEN - applied SPF 15 to my nose, cheeks, and neck. Also wore a full wide brimmed hat. IT WAS STILL NOT ENOUGH! My forehead and behind my ears burned from the reflective glare, even the spot between my nostrils on my nose burned. I would also reccomend zinc oxide or something to cover your lips. Cover yourself like you would exposed flesh to protect from frostbite!!!!!

My head felt numb following the climb - I crashed and slept for about 2 hours. Again, I believe this was the sun and not the altitude since I've had similar experiences in the mountains or along the coast.

Good sunglasses prevented any eye strain or vision problems.

4) Hydration - made it a point to drink at every stop. Went through a 100oz Hydation pack in 7 hrs and was well hydrated.

5) Food - did not lose my appetite so eating was not a problem.

Thanks for all of your great advice!!!!