Best 4-day Gila Wilderness backpacking loop (GPS track)

Рет қаралды 21,737

Kurt Papke

Күн бұрын

Gila Wilderness backpacking loop - GPS track:
drive.google.com/file/d/1jMN_...

Пікірлер: 63

@kimberry3470 5 жыл бұрын

Great video! Thank you Joe sharing your journey! Such a diverse place with all that gorgeous scenery!!

@KurtPapke 5 жыл бұрын

I appreciate your comments. I hope to go back again this summer.

@baskets8429 6 жыл бұрын

Great footage ! GiLa looks incredible

@couch2trailyoutubechannel281 6 жыл бұрын

Great video! That looks like a really nice hike, and you gave some really good info on it. Thanks Kurt!

@KurtPapke 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback!

@CameronHall88 6 жыл бұрын

Really enjoy your videos. I spend a lot of time at Guadalupe Mountains NP in West Texas but have been wanting to give New Mexico a try. Thanks for the great info and tips.

@KurtPapke 6 жыл бұрын

This would not be too bad of a drive for you from West Texas.

@salgutierrez1378 3 жыл бұрын

Very good practical information on hiking this route. One of the best hiking videos I have seen.

@KurtPapke 3 жыл бұрын

Hey, thank you Sal!

@0l_pops531 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks Kurt, I really appreciate the specific trail information you give in this video. The foot torture of hiking on small rocks made me chuckle and reminded me of the AT in Pennsylvania, aka Rocksylvania.

@KurtPapke 3 жыл бұрын

Great to hear that you found the details useful!

@crushmandible6030 5 жыл бұрын

Kurt - wonderful video! I've been binge watching your channel since I discovered it! I spent 5 days / 4 nights in Gila at the beginning of June 2017. I went with a couple of buddies and we thoroughly enjoyed our time there. Watching your video brought back many good memories. Our route was somewhat similar, only in reverse. Our loop took us from the visitors center up the Middle Fork to the Meadows, where we crossed over to the West Fork via Big Bear Canyon trail (#28). Once on the West Fork we hiked back to the visitors center. I loved your retrospect at the end of the video. If I were to do it all over again I would do your exact route in reverse. I feel like we missed out on some of the nicer parts of the West Fork entering it from Big Bear Canyon Trail.

@KurtPapke 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks so much for the info on your hike! I hope to get back there in a month or two and do the remainder of the Middle Fork to the west.

@caprockappraisals1 4 жыл бұрын

We're are heading up from Texas to do this hike in a couple of months... Can't wait! Great video! I'm even more excited now!

@KurtPapke 4 жыл бұрын

Good timing on your trip!

@defcoord 6 жыл бұрын

Really enjoyed the video, thanks for sharing! Also, thanks for sharing the gps waypoints.

@KurtPapke 6 жыл бұрын

I appreciate the feedback!

@migke777 5 жыл бұрын

Great video, thank you this information is great!!!

@kinnymane8593 Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for the amazing video

@KurtPapke Жыл бұрын

I’m considering going back for a slightly longer loop in a month or so. Thanks for your kind words!

@DonMilligan 6 жыл бұрын

Really enjoyed this video Kurt.

@KurtPapke 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching Don!

@freshavocado8572 6 жыл бұрын

Your videos are great thank you

@KurtPapke 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for taking the time to provide feedback, I appreciate it!

@permculture Жыл бұрын

The Gila is my favorite spot on the planet, and you have a beautiful video. Unfortunately videos as nice as this will do to the Gila what REI did to the outdoors.

@KurtPapke Жыл бұрын

I hear you, but the Gila is already well known in the Tucson hiking community. It is remote enough that most folks won't make the drive. I am also not famous enough to attract enough viewers to lure into the area. Thanks for the nice words on the video though!!

@eric78660 4 жыл бұрын

I did an almost identical route last May, just a little more distance. Started at the Cliff Dwellings parking lot and went all the way up the WestFork to Hells Hole to camp for day one. Day two, I went up to Woodland Park, then along Lilley Mountain and back to Prior Creek cabin to camp. Day three I went down to the Middle Fork all the way back to Little Bear and camped there before walking out on day four. Lessons Learned: probably should've left my pant legs zipped on (grassy river banks and flies were annoying), don't leave bug juice in the truck, Trail 29 sucks, watch out for big groups at Little Bear.

@KurtPapke 4 жыл бұрын

Those are good lessons, thanks! Headed back there for a week in May, pumped!

@1121gsm 3 жыл бұрын

Great video. I love New Mexico and spent some time there with my daughter who lives in Carlsbad. We climbed Guadalupe Peak (I know it's in Texas but it seems like New Mexico) and loved the whole area.

@KurtPapke 3 жыл бұрын

I was scheduled to go back there next month, but COVID...

@user-ot4xy3bh3r Жыл бұрын

Nice job with video and commentary. Considering this loop -- can you comment on +/- of travel in a clockwise direction as you did (West Fork to Middle Fork) versus counterclockwise? Thanks.

@KurtPapke Жыл бұрын

That is a great question! I wanted the Jordan warm springs near the end of the hike so I could wash off several days of grime. The stretch between the springs and the TH are also the most heavily trafficked, so depends if you want to see people at the beginning or the end.

@GregFeeneyPoker Жыл бұрын

Nice video Kurt! I'm looking for something in the 40 mile range for May and this seems like a good option. It's about a 12 hour drive from here in Houston. I noticed you did about 10 miles on your 2nd day and 16 miles on the 3rd day. Are there logistical reasons for that (i.e. better campsites, more rugged terrain one day, etc.) or did you just feel like going farther that day? Trying to get a feel for if I could do it with 2 over-nights and what my best camping strategy would look like. Cheers!

@KurtPapke Жыл бұрын

It was a 4 day hike for me, you must be combining the last 2 days to come up with 16 miles. I did decide to not spend the night at Jordan Warm Springs, it was too crowded so that did extend the 3rd day a bit. It's doable in 3 full days (my first and last days were 1/2 days), but that would mean camping near the trailhead.

@GregFeeneyPoker Жыл бұрын

@@KurtPapke Right on! For me I think it would probably work well as 2 full days and 2 partial days. Thanks!

@ralphfehlberg2648 6 жыл бұрын

Great video (as usual). Quick question, what camera or cameras do you use on your trips? Thanks!

@KurtPapke 6 жыл бұрын

I use my iPhone 6 camera exclusively. I need to upgrade soon, the battery is dying and I can hardly make it through a day on a charge.

@ralphfehlberg2648 6 жыл бұрын

I thought that was the case, based on your previous videos. I know you were testing a new rugged camera a while ago. I am about to upgrade my iPhone 6 also, probably to the 8 Plus. It is really amazing what these devices can do.

@greygardens81 6 жыл бұрын

Awesome video, Kurt! Very informative. Being from the north I don't have any desert hiking experience. Is this in a spot where it could be comfortably hiked in, say, February? Or is it pretty cold in winter?

@KurtPapke 6 жыл бұрын

Doable, but FWIW when I camped above The Meadows at altitude it got down to 25F. The water, in the West Fork particularly, was pretty darn cold. You could do it, just be prepared for the cold. I'd recommend neoprene socks to keep your feet warm. I describe the technique in my video on Aravaipa Canyon.

@trooper2221 4 жыл бұрын

looks awesome, and not too far from oklahoma city, where i live

@KurtPapke 4 жыл бұрын

It'd be a long day, but you could do the drive in one day. It's an awesome area - I am going back in May for a week.

@trooper2221 4 жыл бұрын

Kurt Papke I’d probably break trip up spend the night in Amarillo

@KurtPapke 4 жыл бұрын

@@trooper2221 FWIW, I spent a night in Tucumcari on my last road trip. That might be a little closer to 1/2 way. The last stretch through the Gila Wilderness is slow going.

@trooper2221 4 жыл бұрын

Kurt Papke hey is there any cell service there?

@KurtPapke 4 жыл бұрын

@@trooper2221 Nada.

@blaize8026 3 жыл бұрын

Hi Kurt, very informative video. I'm looking at doing something similar and was wondering if you found your distances to be fairly accurate? I guess constantly crossing the river and all the little back and forths add up because cal topo estimates the route you took as about 35 miles compared to the 45 miles on your GPS file. I don't want to bite off more than I can chew and plan a route that looks like 50 miles on paper and ends up being 65. Was the extra distance a reality of the trail? Or do you think funny GPS shots because of the canyons? Thanks!

@KurtPapke 3 жыл бұрын

Great question. I don’t think the Gila canyons are deep enough to cause GPS bounce, so I think the distances are accurate. Because of the terrain and lack of a well defined trail there is a lot of zigzagging. All those little wanderings add up after a while!

@blaize8026 3 жыл бұрын

@@KurtPapke Thanks, appreciate the response. Looks like there are enough connecting trails I can plan two routes and pick which I'll do based on the first day's mileage. Thanks!

@KurtPapke 3 жыл бұрын

@@blaize8026 makes sense

@ericstephenson145 4 жыл бұрын

Well done, thank you for sharing! I'd like to do a winter trip in the Gila Wilderness. Can anyone comment on what conditions might be encountered in late February and into March? I'm guessing daily highs in the 40s-60s and overnight lows in the 20s or 30s? What about issues with icy trails?

@KurtPapke 4 жыл бұрын

The climate data for the Cliff Dwellings will be very close to what you will see on this hike: www.nps.gov/gicl/planyourvisit/weather.htm The water will be freezing cold though.

@ericstephenson145 4 жыл бұрын

@@KurtPapke Thanks Kurt!

@keithrogers2942 2 жыл бұрын

A little late on your question but another thing to consider is the flow of the river. If there's a decent snowpack the river can be up at that time, even flood stage at certain times.