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Mark
Your Calendar for
ROCKY MOUNTAIN RESCUE
Come to our regular board
meeting on Monday, March 5, 2001 at 6:30 pm at the new USFS office.
Members of the Rocky Mountain Rescue team will give a presentation on
rescue techniques and stories within the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area.
COMMUNITY
FOUNDATION GRANT
The Boulder Community Foundation has generously awarded the IPWA a
$2,500 grant for the Backcountry Wilderness Host Program training for
this year. Uniform shirts, badges and hats are some of the items that
will be available as a result. We’ll look sharp this year!
WEED SCOUTS
Interested volunteers will be offered the opportunity to learn more
about the invasive weed infestation in our beloved Indian Peaks
Wilderness Area. Weed identification and reporting methods will be
covered during our annual training on Saturday, June 9, 2001.
CAMP CHUCKLES
The Department of Fish and Wildlife is advising hikers,hunters and
fishermen to take extra precautions and be on the alert for bears while
in the back- country. They advise people to wear noise-producing devices
such as little bells on their clothing to alert but not startle the
bears unexpectedly. They also advise you to carry pepper spray in case
of an encounter with a bear.
(See
Bears, continued on page 2)
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Did
you know
The Indian Peaks:
- was designated a Wilderness in 1978?
- name is derived from the many peaks
that are named for Indian Chiefs and Tribes of the West?
- consists of
approximately 60% subalpine terrain?
- forested areas
cover only 41% of it ’s entire 73,000 +acres?
- has over 50 lakes and about 125
miles of perennial streams?
- is one of the most heavily used
Wilderness Areas in the country?
Did
you know:
John Heasleys' book
"Colorado’s
Indian Peaks Wilderness" is available for purchase
through the Indian Peaks Wilderness Alliance? This is a "must have
"for anyone interested in the Indian Peaks Wilderness. No
hiker/backpacker entering this wilderness area should be without it! The
best part is that a
portion of the purchase price goes toward funding our efforts in the
Indian Peaks, so please order one or more copies of this fabulous
book today! Watch for more excerpts from Johns' book in upcoming issues.
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GAITERS
ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA!
by D. Jan Stewart
I've been a volunteer for the Indian Peaks Wilderness Alliance for many
a year (around fifteen). A few years ago I took my husband on his first
trip to the Indian Peaks for the three-day Fourth of July holiday. It
was a lovely day Saturday when we went over Arapaho Pass to Caribou
Lake, a little windy, but that's normal for the high passes. As a
Backcountry Wilderness Host, I counted more than a hundred hikers on the
way up to the pass, which thinned out considerably as we started down
the 23 switchbacks to the lake.
We set up camp and went to a stream for water. I noticed a few
snowflakes flying around and pointed out to Ben how usual it is to see
snowflakes even in July when you're over 11,000 feet in elevation. I
also noticed that the temperature dropped somewhat. After a backpacker's
dinner, we walked around the lake. Idyllic! However, I did notice that
the flakes hadn't lessened as I expected they would. Tired from the
hike, we went to bed early.
A few hours later, I woke to the realization that our tent was beginning
to feel the effects of the snow. We got out and
(See Gaiters, continued on
page
2)
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