A Change In Plans

On Sunday, B and I headed out to South Tahoe to try and get in one last snowshoe trip of the season. We had been sick with the flu and colds for most of February and were really feeling very angsty about the need to get out. We planned on hiking up Pyramid Peak - but the route turned out to be too melted out already. We drove back and forth along Highway 50 looking for a spot with enough snow to begin. All we found was dense brush and light snow. Finally, we headed down in to Tahoe proper as it began to rain. We sat in a parking lot and tried to think of an alternative. With the cold raid beating down on the car, it seemed like maybe we would have to turn back.



I sat in the car as B looked at maps on his iPhone and researched alternate trails. It seemed like such a waste to drive all the way out from the East Bay and then just turn around again and go back. It also seemed like a bad idea to do something that was unfun and unsafe just because I was too pig headed to accept my circumstances.

As I learn more about mountaineering and alpine climbing, I realize that I need to learn when to change my plans. I need to learn when to turn back, go a different way, admit defeat, evaluate, and let go of my expectations. I thought about the quote I read from a guide who had just led a team of Everest, "going up is optional, coming down is mandatory."

As the wind blew outside the car, I thought about the day when I would face having to turn around - possibly after flying half way across the world and climbing 2/3 of a mountain. I would have to be OK with it. Maybe today could be a day I practiced that skill?

"I found a hike we can try," B said.
"Where is it?"
"Mount Tallac. Just a little ways down the road."

It could be more of the same. It was raining. It was windy.

"Ok," I said, "let's go check it out."

As we drove to the new trail-head, I wondered if I was making a mistake. I told myself we should at least check it out, and I promised myself if I felt any twinge of "bad idea" I would tell B we had to turn around. As we pulled in to the snow park lot, the rain stopped. We got out of the car and geared up. We decided to follow one of the cross country ski trails and use the markers would keep us on route.



We got about 15 minutes out and the sun broke through the clouds. I went to put my sunglasses on. I had left them in the car. This sucked. I did not want to have to go back, it looked like we were really going to get a trek in despite our late start, and I really wanted to have a new blog post.

"I don't need them."

"Yes you do. We are going back."

"Uhg. Ok."

We headed back to the car, got my sunglasses and then, as we started off again, noticed a nice snowshoe track heading the opposite direction we had originally chosen. We decided to follow that trail instead. It turned out to be the best change of plans we had made in a long time. We found a new training hike for our summer mountaineering class, a new snowshoe route to share with our friends, and I got to test a new recipe out in the wild.



We ended up hiking the trail to Mt. Tallac. Even though the wind blew, the weather was warm, and we had some beautiful views when the clouds cleared.



The wind blew too hard along the ridge for us to sit and take a break. We ate snacks quickly on our feet and kept moving. I decided we could test the stew recipe on our way back to the car, back down in the aspen groves.

We got back to the groves around 2:30pm. It was the first time we had sat down all day, and it felt good to be out of the wind.

B started up the JetBoil and I took the insulated camp bowl and stew mix out of my pack. B poured the stew in the boiling water.



I stirred it for two minutes while it boiled.



I poured the stew into our insulated camp bowl, then we let it sit for about five minutes.



B took the first bite. "How is it," I said.
"It is a keeper." B said, as he ate a few more bites. I had a few too.



The warm hot stew tasted so good after being in the wind all day. It warmed our hands, and our bellies. We both felt revived, and I felt a little redeemed. For what I am not sure, maybe for staying flexible all day? I had been willing to keep changing my expectations - and somehow it felt like I had been rewarded for the effort. Hopefully you can enjoy this recipe under less trying circumstances.

This recipe was a long time in the making. It requires that you make a leather out of a homemade stew base and dehydrate some vegetables in advance.

Beef and Vegetable Stew - Serves 1

1/4 cup freeze dried roast beef
1/4 cup freeze dried potato dices
1/4 cup dehydrated veggie mix*
1/4 dehydrated Homemade Stew Leather
1/2 Tbsp beef bouillon
1 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 cup boiling water

At home:
Put all ingredients in a Ziploc bag. Write 1 1/2 H2O on the bag with a Sharpie.

On the trail:
Boil 1 1/2 cups of water in a pot or JetBoil. When the water begins to boil, stir in the stew mix. Let the stew boil for two minutes, stirring the entire time. The stew will thicken as it boils. After two minutes, pour the stew into an insulated mug or camp bowl. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Check the consistency. If veggies are still a bit stiff, put the lid back on and let sit for another 3 minutes. Add salt & pepper to taste. Enjoy!

*If you don't have time to dehydrate the vegetables, you can buy Just Veggies instead.

Castle Peak Biscuits

In August, my husband and I are taking an Alpine climbing class through the American Alpine Institute - which finishes with a summit of Mt. Baker. While we have been backpacking for more than 10 years, we have never climbed a mountain before. Last week we received our itinerary, packing list and reccomended training schedule! I have many things to purchase and rent, and a whole lot of training to do. As part of our preperation, I have planned to work on some new recipes.

Since backpacking is one of the only places I think I can manage to eat biscuits & gravy one hundred percent guilt free - I have decided to add it to the menu for this adventure.

On Sunday, I took my new biscuit recipe out to the test kitchen - Castle Peak (up at Donner Pass).



My test kitchen is at 8,320 feet. On what I call "lunch rock" about two-thirds of the way up to Castle Peak. We have been out on this snowshoe trek three times this year, and this is the first time we made it all the way to the top. I am pretty sure it was the biscuits that sustained us.




I read up on backcountry baking, most of what I found online involved baking instruments and contraptions - which I wanted to avoid. I also wanted something that was easy to clean up and did not create too much waste that I would eventually have to pack out. This is a pretty standard biscuit recipe, with the baking powder adjusted for the elevation. Powdered milk is substituted for the real thing, and water is added on the trail. These biscuits are a bit on the savory side, since I intend them to go along with sausage gravy in the near future.

Backcountry Biscuits - Makes 12 biscuits
2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 cup powdered milk
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup all vegetable shortening
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 cup water
1 Tbsp olive oil - or olive oil packet
1 ziploc bag - gallon size
Medium-size cook pot with lid

At home:
Add flour, milk, baking powder, salt, and pepper to ziploc bag.
Add shortening to bag and work in to flour mixture with hands
Place olive oil packet or sealed container of olive oil in ziploc
Seal ziploc bag, removing as much air as possible
Write "1 cup" on bag with a sharpie

On the trail:
Remove olive oil from ziploc bag and pour 1 cup of water into bag and seal.
Massage the outside of the bag, working the water into the flour mixture until a thick dough forms. Set aside.
Rub a small amount of olive oil on the bottom and half way up sides of pot. Place pot on lit stove.
Rub a small amount of olive oil on your hands and reach into the bag and grab a golf ball size amount of dough.
Roll dough quickly in your hands to form a ball. Press ball between your hands to make a patty.
Place biscuit patty in pan. Continue until bottom of pan is full.
Place lid on pan and cook on medium heat until the bottom of the biscuits are brown and dough has begun to rise.
Flip biscuits with a fork or spoon and place lid back on.
Cook biscuits until second side is brown and crisp.
Remove from pan and repeat process with remaining dough.
Serve with jam, butter or gravy.