Amputee Outdoors

 Adaptive Outdoor Activities for Outdoor Enthusiasts!
 

I started my hike to Pete Lake around 2 pm and arrived there around 4 pm. It's only about 4 miles and the trail has very little elevation gain. Once at the lake, I found that I was the second party to arrive for an overnight stay. Within about an hour, three more parties arrived, so I wasn't the only one getting a late start. :) The plan was to spend the night at Pete Lake, get an early start in the morning to beat the heat and make it to Spectacle Lake in the early afternoon. Spend the night at Spectacle and on the following day, hike the approximately nine miles back to Pete Lake Trailhead. Once I'd relaxed by Pete Lake for a while, I set up my new hammock with an integrated bug net. The bugs at Pete Lake this time of the year are nasty. By about 7 pm I'd had enough, (bug spray only dissuades the lazy bugs), and retreated to my hammock to try and get a full night's sleep before starting the next hike around dawn. I had tested this hammock at home before going on this backpacking trip, but that was in near-ideal conditions. I found that in less-than-ideal conditions, the hammock has some problems. For one, no ridge line to control the hang angle and length. Another is that the straps stretched in the night so I went from hanging at chair height to about 12 inches from the ground by morning. I woke at first light, had some porridge, packed up, checked around to make sure I'd not left anything, and then started my trek to Spectacle Lake. The trail starts much like the trail to Pete Lake, with not much elevation gain along a well-groomed path. Along the trail, there are several logs that have fallen across the path. Most are easy enough to get over and even those that are a little more challenging didn't stop me, and I have a prosthetic leg. The trail will lead you to Lemah Creek where you're supposed to ford the stream. I wasn't going to do that. It was about 2-3 feet deep and running fast. Fortunately, in addition to trees across the path, there are also trees across the creek. I continued along the trail to Lemah Meadows and on the left found a cairn marking the unofficial trail (a little bush-whacking is needed) that leads to two sets of logs that cross over the two branches of Lemah Creek. It was a little tricky, but with good boots, balance and hiking poles, I was able to make it across easily. It's not long after crossing Lemah Creek that you leave the forest shade and enter the burned remains of the forest. Nature has started reclaiming the land, but there's little to no shade so sunblock, long sleeves, wide-brimmed hat, are strongly recommended to prevent sunburn. There are several streams along the way and a waterfall. Take some time to relax and enjoy those. I replenished my quickly depleting water supply at them and doused my hat in the streams to cool myself down. After a lot of switch-backs and elevation gain, you'll attain the ridge where you can look down to Spectacle Lake. The trail down the basin to the lake starts off steep but manageable. As you get closer to the lake you'll find that the trail starts splitting off into several different paths to various campsites. To go to the peninsula that almost divides the lake in two, stick to the paths going left. They are a little hard to find, the one I took went over a massive flattish rock outcropping and down a steep path. This took me to the peninsula and even more social trails to explore. At this point, I just started exploring the peninsula looking for a good campsite. I found a great spot next to the lake and rigged up my hammock. Testing it I found that it was sinking down to the ground. The distance between the trees was too great. I relocated it to a couple of trees that were closer together but still had to pull it so tight that I was getting badly squeezed at the shoulders. Fortunately, I always carry a ground tarp and using that, my rainfly, hiking poles, and some line I always carry, I was able to set up an open-ended A-frame tent. I positioned it so the breeze coming off the lake would go through the tent. This helped cut down on the bugs and with a few sprays of bug repellent, I was able to avoid all but the most determined bugs. After dinner, I spent some time wandering around the peninsula, chatted with a few other campers and then settled down to watch the sun go down behind the mountains. One of my favourite things to do when camping is to sit and just look at the view. The next morning I woke up a little before dawn and so enjoyed my morning porridge watching the sun come up. It was going to be a hot one again so I made sure to fill all four of my one-liter bottles with fresh (filtered) mountain lake water, packed up and hit the trail before 7 am. The hike out of the basin in which Spectacle Lake sits is really the only hard part of the hike back. Once that's done the trail is generally a relaxing hike back.

Let's face it, hiking around in nature carries with it inherent dangers. Everything from twisted ankles to broken bones or worse. Knowing this, and being thinking beings, we plan for that contingency and take steps to prevent injuries. However, things happen. So now you've been injured, what to do? Assess the situation: If you are injured, stop and take a moment to assess the situation. Determine the severity of your injury and whether you are able to continue hiking. If you are unable to continue, it's important to stay put and wait for help. Review the equipment you have with you. What can you use to stabilize the injury? What can you use to call for help? Stay calm: It's important to stay calm if you are injured while hiking. Panic can make the situation worse and can hinder your ability to make good decisions. Take deep, slow breaths and try to remain calm until help arrives. Panic destroys thinking. Thinking is how our species survives and overcomes. Calm yourself and think things through. Seek help: If you are unable to continue hiking and your injury is severe, it's important to seek help. Use your phone or other communication devices to call for help, and provide as much information as possible about your location and the nature of your injury. If there is no cell phone reception, can you send a text message? If not, use your whistle to call attention to your location. Lost your whistle? Bang two rocks together and shout out for help. Treat your injury: If your injury is minor, you may be able to treat it yourself. Use first-aid techniques to clean and dress the wound, and take pain medication if needed. If your injury is more severe, you're going to have to do the best you can with what you have while you wait for professional medical help. I strongly recommend taking a Wilderness First Aid course at least once. Stay warm and comfortable: If you are injured and unable to continue hiking, it's important to stay warm and comfortable until help arrives. Use a first-aid kit or other supplies to create a makeshift shelter. This is especially true when the weather is either cold and wet or hot and dry. Hypothermia or dehydration will only make a bad situation worse. Coming back to the idea of prevention: bring along the Ten Essentials, check out the trail conditions and weather before you go, stay on the trail, and use the most important tool you bring on every outdoor adventure, thinking. :)

With the season changing to winter, it seems appropriate to talk about hypothermia. Roughly 1,300 people die each year from this very preventable condition. Hypothermia is a condition in which the body's core temperature drops below the normal range, resulting in symptoms such as shivering, numbness, and confusion. This condition can be caused by prolonged exposure to cold temperatures, or by wet and windy conditions, which can reduce the body's ability to retain heat. Left untreated hypothermia can lead to complete failure of your heart and respiratory system and eventually to death. To avoid hypothermia, it is important to be prepared for cold weather and to wear appropriate clothing, such as layers of insulation, a waterproof and breathable outer layer, and a hat and gloves. Keep in mind the old saying, “Cotton kills”. This is because cotton will hold onto moisture and as that moisture cools, so will you. So, for all your layers, stick to moisture-wicking materials or wool. It is also important to stay hydrated and well-nourished and to avoid strenuous activities, which can increase the body's heat production and metabolism. If someone is experiencing hypothermia, you need to take immediate action to help them recover. This may involve removing any wet or damp clothing and replacing it with dry and warm clothing, such as a dry jacket or blanket. It is also important to provide warm and sweet drinks, such as hot chocolate or tea, and to provide gentle and passive heat, such as a warm water bottle or heating pad. If you’re outside, get a blanket or pad under them to prevent the ground from pulling even more heat out of their body. It is also important to seek medical attention if the symptoms are severe or if the person is unable to recover on their own.

OK, let's first start with why Poo Poo Point has such a memorable name. According to one of the hiking guidebooks written by the late hiking and environmental advocate Harvey Manning, the name comes from the logging industry about a century ago. Loggers used whistles to communicate from the logging tower operator to the workers down the hill. According to the Issaquah Historical Society, the whistle would be a signal that two logs were tied to a cable, ready to be towed. So there you have it. If you had some other more juvenile idea in mind as to the origins of the name, well that's you. Poo Poo Point is just outside Issaquah, WA., and is one of the most popular hiking trails in the Seattle area. This means that if you want a parking spot at the trailhead, get there early! It's also where paragliders and hang-gliders take off from. Not during the winter, but in the summer months they are almost constant and a lot of fun to watch. I arrived at the Chirico Trail trailhead at 8 am, crossed the field where the gliders land, and started the ascent. The Chirico trail is only 3.8 miles, roundtrip, so it's short enough to do and get back in time for lunch if you start early enough. You're going to gain 1,760 feet in 1.9 miles and get to a total elevation of 1,850 feet. The trail is very well maintained, although there are a couple of locations where folks have created a shortcut. Please don't use these as they cause erosion of the trail which is bad for everyone. About halfway up, the lengths of trail that were covered in snow/ice pack started to get longer and slippery so I took a break and strapped on my crampons. I strongly recommend bringing crampons for any hike in the mountains between November and April. I took my time on the hike, filming segments for Amputee Outdoors, so I didn't reach the summit until about 11:30 am. Once there I was pleased to find Mt. Baker to the north was not just visible, but clearly so. I set up my hammock, got out my flask of hot chocolate (always tastes better when it's been snowing), and my lunch. Relaxing there for about an hour I watched other hikers come and go, all marveling at the view. The weather started to change around 12:30 pm so I packed up and started down the hill. Good thing too as the clouds moved in and it started snowing. I saw a lot of slide tracks on the trail where folks without crampons had slipped and slid down the hill. Hopefully, they didn't injure themselves. Poo Poo Point is hikable just about all year round, but only if you have the right gear. If you plan on going up there this winter, please make sure to have crampons and later in the winter, snow shoes. See you out there!

I've read two news stories in the last week about folks that died on the trail due to exposure or hypothermia. While the news stories didn't go into detail about the gear they were carrying, it's a fair bet they were not properly equipped for the rapid drops in temperature we see this time of the year. This is especially true in the mountains where micro-weather patterns can occur. If you saw my latest video (Mason Lake Solo Camp) you'll notice I'm carrying 45lbs of gear on a 3.5-mile hike to a lake where there was little to no snow and sunny weather all day with a weather prediction for sunny weather the next day. The hike was just an overnighter. Why 45 lbs on an overnighter? Because I assumed the weather would go sideways on me. Sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn't. I carry with me one of those $4 emergency blankets, along with an emergency shelter made of Mylar. There's one more pair of wool socks than I need in the pack, and a puffy, insulating jacket. Shoved in the bottom of the backpack is a pair of ski gloves. None of that stuff was used in my last overnighter. That doesn't matter. What matters is that if the clouds moved in, the temperature dropped another 10 degrees and the rain started falling or it started snowing, I would have the gear needed to get through it. If I sound preachy in this blog post, it's because that's what I'm trying to do. Preach preparedness.

I was surprised when I got to the Ira Spring trailhead parking lot. I arrived at 8 AM and had expected only a partially filled lot but found it was nearly packed with only a couple of spaces available. The fact that the day was literally cloudless and the sky was that shade of blue that inspired Perry Como had a lot to do with it. Strapping on my 45lbs backpack, (hiking the Cascades above 3,000ft this time of the year you tend to have a lot more gear) I started out. I had on an out layer which didn't make it half a mile before it was strapped to the pack. The sun was blinding and with that much weight I was really heating up. As the trail changed from an easy incline to switchbacks there appeared snow/ice patches more and more frequently. With the benefit of hindsight, I should have put on my crampons a lot sooner. With all the traffic on the trail, you would have thought you were on I405 at rush hour. That was fine by me as I met a lot of really friendly folks and enjoyed conversations with folks that were just as happy as I was to be on the trail. Some were very experienced, some not so experienced, but all enthralled by the views of the mountains and especially Mt. Rainier. I made it to Mason Lake around lunch time and after a quick bite to eat, set up my hammock and rainfly. The sun was shining, the hammock was inviting so I relaxed and took a nap for an hour. Why not? As the sun started moving closer to the edge of the mountains I decided to get busy with setting up for the night. I found a flat rock, moved it over to my camp site and with a few twigs built a little fire on it to keep warm. The wind was really picking up so I got creative with some paracord and my ground tarp to make a wind break. For the most part it worked but as the evening wore on, the wind became stronger and started to blow the embers of my little fire all over the place. It was time for bed. I shoveled a load of snow onto the fire to put it out and crawled into my hammock expecting to get a good night's sleep. Nope. The wind kept blowing harder and harder. Twice I had to get up and adjust or fix my rainfly which was being battered badly by the wind. The noise was a little un-nerving and I could hear my hammock straps vibrating in the wind. Finally, about 2am the wind abated and I was able to drift off to sleep. The morning was worth it. Mason Lake was a perfect mirror of the mountains surrounding it and honestly took my breath away. I cleaned up the campsite and took down the wind break I'd put up. It was partially taken down by the wind anyway and then cooked up some porridge and a cup of tea. The lake was enchanting and I lingered over breakfast and delayed breaking camp for a while just enjoying the views. Finally breaking camp, I got packed up, did a last walk around to make sure there was nothing left from my visit and headed back down the trail. Despite the scary night, this was a great overnighter.

I think at this point, everyone is familiar with layering, (if not I've put a few useful links about it down below). What is often overlooked is the difference between hiking in the cold and relaxing around camp in the cold. So let's talk about that. Our bodies generate a lot of heat. A 180lbs man hiking up an incline of 6%-15% for an hour will burn up to 656 calories. Fortunately we humans dissipate heat quickly by sweating. Which is just fine if you're walking around in shorts and a T-shirt. It's a different story when we go hiking in the cold. We layer our clothes, with a base layer, an insulating layer, and then a waterproof shell. Add in two layers of wool socks, gloves, and an insulated hat and we have a situation where that heat doesn't dissipate so well. We're sweating in a thermal suit designed to keep all that heat in and the cold out. "Yeah, but my base layer is moisture-wicking and I'm not wearing any cotton.", you say. Good. However, even the most moisture-wicking fabric will still have moisture and as you hike along, your body is getting hotter and moister. After hiking a mile or so, you've removed your wooly cap, stuffed the winter gloves in the backpack, and taken off your waterproof shell. Perhaps even the insulating layer is stuffed into your backpack. Then you arrive at your campsite or lunch spot. This is when things change. You're no longer active. Your body isn't generating massive amounts of heat. That 180lbs man is now just burning about 84 calories an hour. This is where you may need more than that insulating layer. Your fingers, ears, and head start getting cold very quickly, toes too. This is why I recommend having two pairs of gloves, two hats, a scarf, and a puffy jacket stashed in your backpack on winter hikes. On the hike up, you're wearing gloves that will just barely keep your hands warm, once you get to camp, out come the ski gloves. Trudging along you have a moisture-wicking ball cap. At camp, you pull out that wool cap that covers your ears and wrap a scarf around your neck. Unpack the puffy jacket and put that on over your insulating layer and under your waterproof shell. Winter hiking and backpacking can be some of the best times you'll spend in nature. Just make sure you've packed for not just the hike or camp, but for both. See you out there! Useful Links What to wear and how to layer - https://missadventurepants.com/blog/winter-hiking-clothes How to layer for winter hiking - https://gogomountain.com/how-to-layer-for-winter-hiking/

The balmy days of summer are over, and for those of us in the PNW and other northern latitudes, this means the best days of hiking and backpacking are upon us. Seriously. The trails will be a little less crowded and we get to break out our foul-weather gear and find out just how good our knowledge, experience, and gear really are. We'll be hiking in mud, over wet rocks and roots. Starting a fire will be difficult. Setting up our tents and hammocks will be more challenging. Keeping our feet warm and dry becomes a high-priority issue. Most of all, our resolve will be tested. We are lucky here in the Pacific Northwest in that we get to enjoy a climate that is cold and damp from November through to April or even May. Hikers in the southern regions are denied this blessing. As you plan your backpacking and hiking adventures this fall and winter, take the extra time to research the area you are going. Read recent reviews about the trail and location. Keep in mind the weather predictions don't always take into account what the weather will be like in the mountains. Accept the fact that you'll be taking some extra gear, and won't be moving as fast as you did in the summer. If you have the opportunity to bring along one of our fellow outdoor lovers from the warmer states, give them the first crack at starting a fire. :) #backpacking #badweathercamping #hikingintherain #pnw #hiking #fallhiking #fallbackpacking #winterhikes #wintercamping

When I've been out hiking people have often told me I'm an inspirations and motivate them to keep going. It feels good to know that I've had a positive impact on some people. If you are one of those folks that have seen me hiking and been inspired, have you ever asked yourself, who inspires the amputee? Other amputees inspire me. Case in point, Sam Maddaus. Sam is a left below knee (LBK) and took on one of the most challenging hikes in the world, the Pacific Crest Trail. For those of you not familiar with the PCT, it's a 2,650-mile hike along the ridge of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges starting at the border with Mexico, north to the Canadian border across deserts, mountains and reaching an elevation of 13,153 feet at it highest. This is not for the faint of heart. People like Sam inspire me and in a way that someone with both legs can never fully understand. I know those cramps in the stump, the heat causing rashes and skin problems, sudden phantom pain causing you to freeze in place and focus all your attention on not falling over and down a mountain. His will to persevere is what inspires me look up from the two feet of trail in front of me and take the next step.

This weekend Albie-Junior Thomas and his dad will hike up Ben Nevis in Scotland. At the summit, you’re 4,441 feet above sea level. OK, so for some folks in the USA that’s the hill just outside of town, so let’s put this into perspective. You’re five years old and plan on hiking up a mountain in Scotland, not known for its balmy, Mediterranean weather. Add to that you’re doing it wearing a prosthetic leg. No doubt there has been a lot of planning and preparation for this event, as there should be. You don’t go on a hike without it. Like our outdoor adventures, our lives are built around working towards goals, planning and preparing for them and then going for it. Whether it’s a hike up a Scottish mountain or getting a new job, we plan, prepare, and go for it. Young Albie-Junior isn’t just an inspiration to go hiking, he’s an inspiration to live.

Guest blog post from PegLegPowderSkier As a very avid outdoorsman before I lost my leg (left below knee). Figuring out how to do things I once did has been the most difficult challenge for me. Things finally started to come together after the 3rd year as I started testing various feet and socket set ups. I went back to a pin because the chances of my socket falling off became much less. Finding a foot that the ankle would articulate a lot so I could hike across a hill up or down steep slopes or over river rocks was difficult. I don’t say it’s like it used to be and that too had to be a reality. Everyone says “Oh, you will be able to do everything you did before you lost your leg”, to a certain point that is true. It’s something I heard while I was in ICU for several months and then several more before I was able to start the walking process. I remember the thing that was most difficult was watching a video or show and see something I really loved to do but then had to wonder if I would ever do that again and if so, how different would it be? This was my biggest challenge, this constant roller coaster, I wanted it to be like it was before the accident. One day I was meeting with my doctor who has been a family friend for years long before my accident. As I met with him one day, he could tell I was depressed, and he asked why. I told him I just wanted to have it be like it was before the accident. He then said the most important thing that helped. He said the moment my accident happened my life changed, and it was never going to be the same. It was never going to be the same, I didn’t want to hear this, but it was true. Up to this point every medical person from surgeons to rehab to nurses everyone would tell me everything was going to be good, and I’d get right back to doing what I loved. This was the first thing they could have said, but I believed them and why not right? My good friend and doctor finally said it’s never going to be the same, finally the truth. As we talked about various activities, he said I would be able to do them I was just going to have to learn how to do them slightly different and this was going to require a learning curve. From this point on I took a different approach to figuring out how to do it no matter how difficult or different it was from before. For hiking, fly fishing with waders, skiing, hunting all of these activities that legs and feet and balance were important. Things like ankle articulation getting fitted or dressed properly all had to be figured out. A foot different from my daily had to be found. Braces and knee support things that I didn’t need before I now needed. My younger sister gave me some good advice as I was frustrated figuring it out or having to do things a new way. She said when you were in high school and dating you could date different girls, that was normal. Then you got married so now you date just one your wife, this became your new normal. You used to drive a beater car and live in a small trailer as I was starting my business, that was your normal. Now you live in a nice home in a nice safe neighborhood, this is your new normal. You used to just go on vacation with your wife that was your normal now you go on every vacation with your kids and wife, this is your new normal. You used to just put on your shoes or boots that was normal. Now you put on your shoes, boots, and leg this is your new normal. She said there is no constant normal. Normal is always changing. Dealing with your prosthetic and having to do your activities a way is your new normal and as you get older that too will change. I’m going onto my 7th year as an amputee I’ve yet to do activities I used to mainly because of follow up surgeries and Covid lock downs but I have plans to do them. I’ve got passed expecting it to be like it used to be, that took a while. I’ll be forever grateful for my doctor and my sister being real with me and setting proper expectations. Do I believe you can do any activities you used to indoors or out? Absolutely. Just understand you most likely will have to do them a little bit or a whole lot different, but it can be done. If you have not done something since becoming an amputee, start figuring it out. Get with your prosthetist and make sure your prosthetic is built for that activity or if there is a better one. Talk to your doctor to make sure you’re fit to do so. Amputees are notorious for gaining weight and being out of shape. I had to work back slowly to get into shape. I hadn’t put on a ton of weight, 15 pounds, but I had zero muscle tone. The heart is a muscle, and I didn’t need it cramping up like a bad Charlie Horse and have me keeling over. I got my heart checked and a physical and met with an experienced trainer that started me out slowly until I was able to have muscle and endurance. Everyone in the sub is a fighter, you’re still alive. Our amputations are about every limb, and you’ve all been on the roller coaster of wanting to do what you used to, but you’re not sure how or if you even can. Everything we did before can be done there are not a lot of how-to videos do out there. Someone just like us figured it out they just have shown how. So, this means most likely you get to reinvent the wheel. Do all of those who will come after you a favor and show the whole process, I still have a few things I’m working on, so I’ll try and share that. Guys and Gals, we didn’t die but some of us have are dead lying in bed or sitting in a chair. It’s time to rise from the dead even if it’s hard as hell. I can tell you the discovery process has been just as fun as I learned the first time, it’s been worth it. It sure beats the day I sat with a gun in my hand because everything was different and some of you know what I’m talking about. Success in life is a planned event, figuring out your new normal will not be any different. – Peglegpowderskier

In 2010 there were 33 million folks that went hiking. By 2021 that had increased to 59 million people, almost doubling in eleven years. According to statistics from AllTrails, the number of logged hikes jumped by 171% in 2020. In 2020 1,275 miles of trails were added to the National Trail System. Clearly there's a demand and thankfully national, state and even municipal governments are working to meet that demand. But what's driving that demand? COVID-19 clearly impacted the outdoor participation numbers. But even before that the trend was going up. I see three main drivers of this increase: Social Media - Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, etc., are filled with pictures, stories and videos of folks enjoying the outdoors. I'm one of them. As each person uploads their photos and videos, they inspire more folks to go out into nature and do the same. Health benefits - Multiple studies have shown that outdoor exercise, especially hiking, increases not just overall heart, muscle and lung health but provides benefits for diabetics, ADHD, bone density, blood pressure, and mental health. A desire to reconnect or stay connected with the beauty, majesty and power of nature. For those of us living in the information dense and technologically connected world, we can often be tricked into thinking we're experiencing things. We carry around a device that can immediately provide us with 4K videos, movies and high-quality pictures. Yet no matter how high the quality of the video, it's a pale shadow of the real experience. Something in us knows this and yearns to feel the air on a hill or mountain, drink from a stream or lake, feel and smell the rain, and run our hand across trees and boulders. I sincerely hope my website and videos have inspired and helped others to make that connection to nature.