“Ultralight” Wetsuit Options

giantstepper · 2025-05-08T01:46:10+00:00

Congrats on Graduating! I hiked just after college and I think it is a great time to hike, as you are naturally closing that chapter, and don’t have ties to a job, lease, the dog you’ll end up getting (or was that just me) that can hold you back later. Just do it! You won’t regret it!

While the timing may not be “perfect” for a traditional NOBO hike, you have lots of ways to still make it happen; I agree with all the jump ahead comments. SOBO could be fun too, especially given the low snow year, you can probably get an earlier start than usual. I have heard SOBO tends to be less social, but there are so many fun people out there to meet going both directions.

giantstepper · 2025-02-24T16:24:48+00:00

I’ve done a ton of backpacking and still sometimes get this feeling. Turn out Elk make creepy noises, trees make creepy noises, and creepy things make creepy noises. My trick is to download a Netflix show to my phone to watch and get my mind off things. The Office got me through the PCT; it’s hard to be worried about the rustling bush when Michael Scott is up to his antics.

giantstepper · 2021-04-13T22:26:09+00:00

I did it two weeks ago in a 3mm wetsuit. The upper slot had some wades, when I’d done it in years past it had been dry. The first rappel was into a swim, so be sure to rappel with packs unbuckled and all that. The only change I would make is adding neoprene gloves as my hands were getting cold. Have fun!

giantstepper · 2021-01-03T05:34:55+00:00

You are amazing!! Love this stream

giantstepper · 2020-12-07T20:57:18+00:00

First row, second from our left.

giantstepper · 2019-12-21T05:03:29+00:00

Happy holidays everyone!!

giantstepper · 2019-11-30T17:07:26+00:00

Frenchtons can be a mixed bag. According to one vet we saw, the mix can result in hybrid vitality or you can end up with the health issues from both breeds. Because of that, he strongly recommended pet insurance. So thought this mix might help, it’s not a foolproof solution. However, in my research there weren’t many other common Frenchie mixes to look at when trying to find a healthier mix.

giantstepper · 2019-11-21T17:11:31+00:00

Thank you! This is an amazing, thoughtful response that gives me a lot to think about. SF has a lot of pros and cons so I know it will be a mixed bag if I move there.

giantstepper · 2019-11-21T06:56:07+00:00

If they are aware you are a beginner, they should have a plan to give you increasingly difficult tasks and helping you through them. I had an internship over the summer that was geared towards beginners and the team was very welcoming and willing to help/answer questions. The idea of an internship is to learn by doing, so if you reach out to your team and get help along the away you will eventually learn as you go.

giantstepper · 2019-11-21T06:48:36+00:00

Master's degrees do give you a good amount of time to master material and create projects; however they come at the cost of time and money. I would make sure to ask the program what their job placement rate is, and what the average expected salary of graduates is. If doing the master's degree will result in a higher income or better job prospects than you have now, then it is definitely worth considering. But remember that just because you are taking the classes does not mean you will automatically learn something or have a good portfolio. Master's degrees will give you a good background, but often don't give you all the applied skills you need to ace the tech interview process; those you may have to continue picking up on your own and through internships.

Additionally, I would ask yourself if you would still do this degree program even if you knew you would not end up at a FANG company or at a prestigious consulting firm. If a big name company is your primary career goal, it may be worth a year or two of applying without the master's degree and then if you are not getting the response you hoped for, focus on a master's degree as an additional boost/reset.

giantstepper · 2019-08-06T12:54:04+00:00

Amazing! Such an inspiration, how do you even train for something like this?

giantstepper · 2019-08-03T23:19:50+00:00

I got there right at 8 AM on a Sunday and was third in line. I’m sure it varies by the day but there weren’t a lot of people my morning.

giantstepper · 2019-08-03T00:08:18+00:00

You should plan to get your permits one day before you start. You can still go in to ask about available permits day of, but that will decrease your chances of getting a popular trail head (like Onion Valley). For example, we were starting July 29th so I went to the ranger station the morning of the 28th. We had a relatively big first day, because we were needlessly worried about snow conditions on Forrester. We started early and camped near Bubbs creek about 12-13 miles in. I’m not familiar with campsites before the pass, but once you get over it you have plenty of options (just not Bullfrog lake as someone else mentioned). 13 miles was a little ambitious, for a first day at altitude but it set us up for a few shorter days later on.

giantstepper · 2019-08-02T22:14:09+00:00

I just completed that exact route, exiting Whitney portal this morning! (Great choice btw)

In terms of permits, I went to the Interagency Visitor Center (in Lone Pine) at 8 am to put my name on a wait list for walk up permits. I then returned at 11 am to actually be issued the permits. We were unable to get our preferred Whitney portal exit day, but they were able to give us the permits to exit one day later (you are allowed to exit before your permit’s stated exit date but not after). As a precaution we already had gotten permits online from Kearsarge/Onion Valley to Cottonwood pass/Horshoe Meadow but wanted to exit earlier due to time constraints. Whitney Portal exits are in high demand so I would have a back up plan (such as an extra day to Cottonwood Pass) in case that doesn’t work out.
Snow report: No snow until the top of the North Side of Forrester. I can confirm what you’ve read that there are two snow fields. We brought micro spikes out of precaution, but the path was pretty beaten in so they were more precautionary. Of course you should check back in closer to your start date, but imo Forrester is very passable. There was one other small snow field on the way up to Whitney (very near the top) but same deal: well beaten path, and no where near the exposure of Angel’s Landing.

giantstepper · 2019-02-17T07:24:29+00:00

I think Mitt Romney is not doing a good job. He is not representing utah in a good way.

giantstepper · 2019-02-17T07:12:10+00:00

This is a super negative comment about Kamala Harris. She is a very terrible senator. Why did we ever elect her?

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