How to plan a trip to the backcountry

Overview

The backcountry is a place of adventure. The uncertainty of mother nature makes each trip unique and nothing ever goes as planned. Trips require a loose agenda to navigate these challenges. The trip planning is really just studying an area enough so that you can comfortably improvise through it.

This web page provides a general outline of how to plan a trip to the backcountry. It focuses on providing tips and resources to get to scenic and remote places, while keeping in mind how the trip planning affects the trip experience. The philosophy behind this is that too much planning can spoil aspects of trips that are better experienced naturally. On the other hand, too little planning can result in unsafe and disappointing trips.

The more experience you have trip planning, the better you will get at it. That does not necessarily mean your trips will be more enjoyable. The mishaps of your first backcountry trips will forever hold as some of the best. To seek the same feeling of adventure, your trip plans will become increasingly crazy. You will explore places you never would have imagined. Your connection with nature will grow and the simple thought of a campfire will bring tears to your eyes.

Preliminary questions

Listed below are some initial questions that need to be answered when planning a trip. The priority of the questions is determined by you.

• When is the trip? Where will the weather allow you to go? Is it a crowded time of year?
• What type of trip is it? (i.e. backpacking, car camping, biking, etc.) What are your priorities?
• Who is going? Where are they located? What is their experience level?
• Who is driving? What type of car are they driving? How far do they want to drive?
• How long are you going for?

Maps

Maps are your main resource when determining the location and plan of a trip. They provide the geographical information that lures you to a specific spot. Listed below are some important maps that can be used when planning a trip.

• Physical topographic maps

These are the most important maps of all. They are what you will bring on your exploration. They provide a refreshing zoomed out view when compared to a computer based map and also tend to be loaded with the most important information. With some experience, one can easily plan and incredible trip with just a paper topo map.


• Google maps

Use the topographic and satellite view options. Scroll around looking for terrain that suits your interests. Listed below are examples of things to look for when scrolling Google maps,


• Changes in topography
• Changes in terrain color
• Water features
• Remote roads, trails, trail heads, campgrounds
• Backcountry camp spots
• When planning car camping trips, it can be nice to use satellite view to check if a road has pull-offs to camp at. A good camp spot often dictates the chosen location of a car camping trip. Its pretty easy to spot pullouts from satellite mode, so don't be surprised if someone is already perched in your chosen destination. Have backup plans and remember the cuttiest spots are those that cannot be pointed out on a map.
• When planning backpacking trips, it is usually not worth your time to identify campsites ahead of time.
• Other types of terrain that suit your interests - fishy spots, bike trails, boating routes, etc.

Additionally, Google Maps is the best software to calculate drive times on paved roads. Dirt road times are often calculated poorly. Calculate these times on your own and remember that the dirt road is usually part of the enjoyment of the trip.


• Public land maps

The BLM national data map viewer and USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States maps provide boundaries to public lands. These are typically the boundaries that you will keep your recreation within. Changing the layers of these maps can be beneficial. These maps are not always exactly correct.

Check a public land map even when your trip seems to be 100% in public land. Often times, there are small parcels of private land within a public land plot. Paper topographic maps always include public land boundaries.


• Online mapping software

These are online maps that allow you to draw a trip route on a map. The software returns an interactive milage and elevation profile of the route.

Gaia GPS is one of the best free online mapping programs. The Gaia topo map layer is a great map that makes trails and roads easy to spot. The USGS topo layer should always be checked to see if the Gaia topo layer is missing any information. The calculated elevation profiles sometimes can be questionable. CalTopo is a similar mapping software.


• Other maps

Listed below are examples of other types of maps that aid trip planning.


• Wildfire history map, firemap.sdsc.edu
• California waterfalls map, waterfallswest.com
• Sierra Nevada fishing maps, flyfishingthesierra.com
• Big Sur trail conditions map, bigsurtrailmap.net
• Near real time satellite, soar.earth

Guidebooks

Guidebooks go beyond maps by providing written descriptions of routes and places. They are far more useful than what you find searching the internet. Guidebooks are written by experts that have fully explored the area you are researching, thus, can give trustworthy opinions on where is best to go. They give you tons of trip options and are formatted so that you can easily compare trips. They also usually give little photos of the area, for the better. Used book sites like Thriftbooks are the best place to buy cheap guidebooks online. Purchase guidebooks covering areas and activities you want to research. Target the most up to date version of the guidebook you desire. Listed below are examples of great California guidebooks.

• Hiking Death Valley by Michel Digonnet
• Paddling Northern California by Charlie Pike
• California Waterfalls by Anne Marie Brown
• Touring Hot Springs California and Nevada by Matt C Bischoff
• Best Hikes of the Marble Mountain and Russian Wilderness Areas, California by Art Bernstein
• California Fishing by Tom Steinstra
• West Coast River Touring by Dick Schwind
• California Coastal Byways by Tony Huegel

Online resources

The best online resources are databases formatted similar to guidebooks. Trip report blogs can also provide great trip ideas and inspiration. However, these reports typically provide an unnecessary amount of information, photos, and videos.

Rules and regulations

Knowing the rules and regulations of an area is a key part of trip planning. This information is best obtained on the website of whomever enforces the rules of the area. Rules change with time, so look for the most up to date info in regards to them. Calling the ranger station is always a good idea. Rules are sometimes so hard to distinguish that you don't know them until your at your destination staring at a sign or talking to a ranger. Below is a list of common regulations to research before a trip.

• Backpacking permits
  
  Many public lands limit the number of visitors to an area by using quotas. A quota is the number of people that can depart from a trail head each day. A permit system is used to enforce the quotas. Learning the permit system is key to successfully obtaining the permit you want. Recreation.gov is the main website used for permit reservations. Typically, a portion of a trail head's permits are made available online 6 months in advance, while the rest are made available closer to the start date of the trip. Often times permits must be obtained at the exact time they are made available. For your best chances at these permits, practice obtaining permits ahead of time for a start date prior to the start date you want. Cancel the reservation at the checkout window if the practice round was a success. If no permits are available, remember backcountry permits apply only to your departure location. You can usually use a less popular trail head to get where you want, it will just take more time.
  
  Backcountry trips are often times last minute endeavors. This allows you to more accurately plan around mother nature (i.e. weather, snow melt, wildfires). Permits cannot always be obtained last minute, especially if you have a large group size. Many public lands do not require backpacking permits. Naive hikers assume these areas are less desirable. These places do not require permits because they are not overpopulated. Do not let permits dissuade you from going on a backcountry trip.


• Camping regulations
• Fishing regulations
• Campfire regulations
• Trail and road regulations

Trail and road conditions

Trail and road conditions change with time. Contact the ranger station and others who know the area to ensure your desired trail or road is open and passable. Know your abilities and always have a backup plan. The uncertainty of backcountry conditions makes the trip an adventure.