After hearing that my first survey trip would be in the High Unitahs, I didn’t think much of it. But I soon heard horror stories of a seven mile hike that climbed 3000 ft to the top of a 13,000 ft mountain. Apparently, past interns have gotten lost up there, never to return, and the other crew was worried that we would not all make it back alive.
While many of these stories were a bit of an exaggeration, many myths have a basis in truth. We left at 5:00 am, with only the essentials: tent, sleeping bag, food, sun block, etc. Fortunately, we had pack mules and horses to carry some of our stuff up (I thought this was really cool, but they didn’t actually hike with us, so we had very little contact with them).
The hike really was seven miles long, but we didn’t have to climb 3000ft. We started at an elevation of 8,900 ft, and climbed to 10,400 ft. As you might know, the atmosphere is significantly different at high elevations, the sun is much more intense (hence the importance of sun block) and there is less oxygen (making whatever physical activity you’re doing that more difficult). The trail was up and down, so while we only climbed a total of 1,500 ft, we were hiking up more hills than we might have desired. The trail was difficult, as it was a dried up streambed. We fought not only large cobbles that made up an unsteady and uneven terrain, but there were also many sections that still had water running through the trail (I only fell in once). However, after five gruesome hours of hiking, we made it to our
destination, the high lakes, where we would spend three days camping and surveying. It was absolutely beautiful up there, just look at the pictures and see for yourself. I saw a marmot, so now I can say I’ve seen the animal my jacket and tent were named after. Luckily it didn’t rain, as afternoon thunderstorms are common. In the day, it was nice, in about the low 80’s, but in the night it dipped into the 30’s. Fortunately, I just got a zero degree sleeping bag and a thermorest pad, so I was warm enough.
As tough as the first day was, I think the day of surveying was much worse. To survey, everyone in the crew (there are four of us) lines up with fifteen meters separating us. Then we walk transects (straight lines through the area we’re surveying). It is important to maintain our intervals and direction. This can be difficult if there are obstacles like trees/rocks/cliffs/streams in the way (there always is). In these transects, we basically look at the ground for anything that has been created/modified/transported by humans; when we find something, we fill out forms. We spent nearly nine straight hours surveying on Wednesday, and after our intense hike it, I was really feeling it.
We spent our last day hiking out (it only took three hours that time). Hiking out was much easier, and when we were back to the truck, I was so glad to see an outhouse at the trailhead.
All in all, it was an awesome trip, intense and hard, but I’m proud to say I did it. When we got back to the forest service office, the other crews were glad to see we were alive, and we did our part to perpetuate the horror stories of the High Unitahs.
Now I hear that they might send us up there a couple
more times, I’m not sure how I feel about that.
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