Gettibg high on the hunt
Elk
I hunt MT and altitude isn't too much of an issue. How do you guys prepare for 10,000 plus in CO?
Prepare for a ton of dope jokes!
Good luck in CO!
altitude can affect u totally diff from trip to trip one trip fine next not so good . I was at them ultra hi colo peaks at 13 plus and i got a case of sickness extreme headaches even some respiratory issues while i tried to sleep . 10,000 u should be ok
I hunt MT and altitude isn't too much of an issue. How do you guys prepare for 10,000 plus in CO?
Time is your friend. The sooner you can acclimate the better.
Avoid alcohol. Drink plenty of fluids.
Living at 8,500' I often go down in altitude to hunt.
Good luck.
I live at 800ft, so next week I don't know what to expect. I did go hiking up at 10,000 once and got tired fast. Odd felling. I'm saturated with water now as instructed. And what would a drink do to me while there in the evenings? Easily avoided for me, just asking.
No alcohol and lots of hydration for me. I start chugging water on the way up there.
Takes one good day for me to acclimate these days. Hydration seems to help keep the leg cramps to a minumum after the first day of hiking.
If you party the night before your high elevation hunt...you will pay for it the next day. Just FYI.
Best of Luck Jeff
Their is meds you can get from ur Dr to help prevent from getting sick, it called Diamox... Just goggle altitude sickness and read...You can also take Ibuprofen before u start out.. Here's a link to info on it..
http://healthland.time.com/2012/03/20/ibuprofen-can-prevent-altitude-sickness/
If you drink in my experience it will effect you more than at lower altitude including the hangover and dehydration that comes with it. I will have 2 beers or 2 mixed drinks once in a great while if we have an afternoon of butchering to do. doesn't seem to do anything adverse to me in those quantities.
What % is the oxygen at those altitudes?
For 12 Years I spent every summer in CO where the valley floor was 9600' and the surrounding peaks were 13K, and I spent the rest of the year at sea level.
Now, my preferred draw hunt in is northern NM where we camp at 10400', and I still live at sea level.
My experiences are this: -Hydrate. And then have some more water. And then maybe another gulp. Cuz your body will be throwing off moisture from every orifice, spiracle and square inch of alveoli. You may need extra salt and electrolytes from all the water being flushed through you. - No alcohol. None. At least for the first five days (my own feeling is it takes me 10 days to fully and truly acclimate. - Slow down. If you're in good shape at lower levels, you'll still be in good shape up high, and you'll feel like pushing yourself the first couple of days. What a little less O2? Something for dilettantes and feeble-framed amateurs to worry about. That's what gets me in trouble everytime. - The 3rd day is always the worst. Don't know why, it just is. Pop a couple advil, slow down a bit and let the bulls come to you. Day 4 you can get back to crashing though deadfall, busting out elk, and impressing your buddies.
Of course as stated by others, every body and every trip, is different. But the above are good starting points.
Bull-tipper I know at 10,000ft there is only 1/2 the oxegen there is at sea-level (that's where I Live) I do some running and a stair- stepper.It's never enough but I do seem to get might wind back quicker because of the exercise.Gonna be 63 and the thought of stayin home never enters my mind.
At 10,000 ft there is about 25% of the oxygen available as at sea level. It's 50% at 18,000 ft, big difference.
I'm sure it's happening more and more often in CO these days.
Thanks for not letting me down, gobbler! lol
Bull-Tipper, I always do the Diamox starting 2 days before I head west and for a few days after I'm there. Been sick before and it sucks! Never had a problem since taking Diamox and I've driven straight up from IA to over 11K feet in less than 24 hrs., set up camp, hunting the next day.
Oxygen level at altitude calculator link. There's a little more to it than this but U'll get the idea.
http://www.altitude.org/air_pressure.php
Thanks guys a CO hunt is in my near future. Good stuff to know. Now headed to punch a hole in Cecil the Elk in MT.
I will start taking Diamox tomorrow as I will be heading north of 10K. Cheap insurance as far as I am concerned.
I've been on 2 or 3 hunts/ski trips over the years where folks got sick.. The the real bad sick,, but the I can't hunt/ski for a day or I think 3 once. A few times I got headaches.. That the worst I got.. But for some reason 2 or 3 times I got nasty sore throats.. Now I take meds for sore throats when I go..
Anyone else get sore throats at altitude??? I just came back from being a 12k 2 weeks ago (not hunting) and I got a small sore throat.. What gives?? I got to find out why this is happening to me. Never search why I'm getting them at altitude. but will start. Ed
On one of the TV hunting show, the host which was an MD claimed that taking a regiment of ant-acid tabs before and during the hunt would reduce or eliminate the effects of altitude. I recently read that there is a buildup of folic acid when you reach high altitude quickly which gives you the symptoms. Taking 2 or 3 Tums every 6 hours prior to and the first few days of a high altitude hunt would be beneficial. Haven’t tried it myself as I’m not effected except for some dizziness the first day, but it might be worth a try.
As others have said, hydrate hydrate hydrate. And it doesn't hurt to take it a tad easy at altitude for the first day or so.
I got mild sickness one year on a ski trip. Bad headache, was gone after a night's sleep. But I didn't hydrate well, and I jumped off a bus after a 14 hour drive from 700 feet of elevation, and immediately got on the slopes at 9,000 feet plus
That's one bad experience on over a dozen trips to altitude
Anymore I hydrate really well on the way out, water and Gatorade. And I take it pretty slow the first day at altitude. We may hike a spike camp in. But I'm careful to rest often and try not to over-exert myself
BSBD are you saying there is only 25% less at 10,000ft.I'm confused?
Another informative link for your reading pleasure
Elkman, yes 25% less at 10k not 50%. At least it's 25% less than what you feel feel at sea level. Actual oxygen is the same but what you feel is 25% less than at sea level.
I live at 7k at don't notice much difference. Also spent a week at about 13k and felt fine while hiking 10 miles per day with a 65lb pack. I was younger then but could still do it minus the heavy pack and most of the hiking.
Also, keep in mind that temperature plays a role in the amount of oxygen. There's 70% of the air at 10k, but that assumes std temp, which, at 10k is about 23 deg F. If the temp is higher than 23 deg (which it usually is in Sept), the density altitude goes up as well.
65 deg at 10k equates to an equivalent air density of about 12,500 ft elev (std temp). Humidity also has an effect, but is much less than temp (higher humidity equals lower air density, which is opposite of what most people think, but again it's far less a factor than temp). This also means that the density altitude usually varies by several thousand feet from morning through midday.
The other thing to keep in mind is that everyone is impacted to some extent by the lower pressure at altitude, regardless of their fitness level. Just because you are acclimated or even live at that altitude and don't get sick doesn't mean your physical exertion for a particular task is the same as it would be at sea level.
You can take your 530 hp sportscar up to 10,000 ft, but it will still only be achieving about 370 hp on the mountain (even with the vehicle's computer throttling back fuel to compensate for less air) unless it is turbo or super charged (sidenote: turbo chargers were originally developed to reduce the engine power losses of aircraft as they went up in altitude).
Good luck!
personally i love a good joint after a hard day's hunt.
BSBD thanks for clearing that up for me I feel better already LOL.it always feels like 50% less.I'll let you know on the 15th thanks
Altitude sickness can occur in some people as low as 8,000 ft. If coming from the flatlands give yourself a day a day or two at 6,000 ft and set camp at a lower elevation. The onset of altitude sickness can take a day or two. typically it occurs in people ascending rapidly from a low elevation. If you or your buddy start start acting abnormal, cannot sleep, eat, lack hunger, or enough energy to get dressed, get severe headaches, dizzy, vomit, extremities turn gray or blue, have trouble walking straight, forming a coherent sentence, become mentally disoriented you will need to descend to a lower elevation and or seek immediate medical attention. Typically I set camp first night at 8500 ft and then move up to 9,000 to 10,000 ft but then I live at 6,000 ft. I also lighten my pack to the bare survival essentials, dress in layers, hunt with a bow that weighs less than 4 pounds with quiver and arrows. I take it slow the first couple of days with lots of still hunting at a snails pace with frequent stops to urinate. Hydration Hydration Hydration. Avoid all alcohol which not only dehydrate you but can mask the symptoms of altitude sickness which are comparable to a hangover. For more information google altitude sickness.
Of course not everyone will respond the same to altitude changes in the ranges being discussed. Most but not all humans will acclimate physiologically to the thinner air within 24 hours. Essentially, more hemoglobin is produced to capture more of the available Oxygen into your blood with each breath. Some of us have no problems acclimating quickly while others are severely affected with altitude sickness symptoms. Number one rule: forget drinking alcohol when you arrive especially if you do not know what to expect or have had any previous acclimation issues. Keep hydrated as suggested and keep your activities moderated until 24 hrs has passed. Your increased hemoglobin levels after that first day should make a big difference in otherwise healthy individuals. But, each of us may have possible differences in the level of this physiological response which needs to be understood by each individual to avoid bigger problems. Some seem to never acclimate well and if that defines your situation, you may just need to hunt for your elk lower than 9,000 ft.
