Top 5 tips for Chicago Basin

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rockchalker
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Re: Top 5 tips for Chicago Basin

Post by rockchalker »

A group of us are headed to Chicago Basin first week of September and will be taking the train from Durango with three nights in the Basin. Lots of great suggestions. I saw a comment that the cell phone coverage, at least in the basin itself, is non existent. Is there good satellite coverage for a SPOT Connect type of device?

Keep the great suggestions coming!
"There's a feeling I get when I look to the west and my spirit is crying for leaving."
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a94buff
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Re: Top 5 tips for Chicago Basin

Post by a94buff »

rockchalker wrote:A group of us are headed to Chicago Basin first week of September and will be taking the train from Durango with three nights in the Basin. Lots of great suggestions. I saw a comment that the cell phone coverage, at least in the basin itself, is non existent. Is there good satellite coverage for a SPOT Connect type of device?

Keep the great suggestions coming!
I was able to get 4G AT&T - albeit spotty - from the summits of Eolus and Sunlight. Enough to make a call home, and (unfortunately) for all my emails to pour in :x
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Dancesatmoonrise
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Re: Top 5 tips for Chicago Basin

Post by Dancesatmoonrise »

shearmodulus wrote:I tried to ski in from Purgatory Flats trailhead in January of last year. Simply amazing. I didn't make it all the way, but the solitude was just surreal.

The snow was terrible so I only made it 10 miles (just beyond the Needleton stop and the cabins there in the vicinity). And the day after I came out? Dumped 18 inches. Timing is everything. [-o<
Hey, can you provide a map/route of your trip? If you went down the canyon, how was it?

Thanks!
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leafmiles
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Re: Top 5 tips for Chicago Basin

Post by leafmiles »

what's the deal with goin' #2 up there?

is there cover and soft ground to dig a privy in nearby?

after hearing about overcrowding in the basin, i'd imagine poo fields are an immediate consequence..

and managed accordingly
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wildlobo71
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Re: Top 5 tips for Chicago Basin

Post by wildlobo71 »

leafmiles wrote:what's the deal with goin' #2 up there?

is there cover and soft ground to dig a privy in nearby?

after hearing about overcrowding in the basin, i'd imagine poo fields are an immediate consequence..

and managed accordingly
They have a version of blue-bags that are kept in the metal box when you register... carry out. But, most people are resistant to carrying those, so just find a nice area well away from the water, and dig a cat hole. Even the USFS volunteer up there to promote, among other things, the collection bag, said he hated it.
Bill W.

Time for the next great losing streak to begin.
#forcedrefocus
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JQDivide
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Re: Top 5 tips for Chicago Basin

Post by JQDivide »

All the above and...

1. Take a trash bag to cover your pack/food bags when you hang it. (Poke a small hole in the bag for the paracord/biner)
2. Jump in the creek or river before you get on the train... it's like a refugee camp with the B.O. from everyone getting on the train. And you'll feel better so will the train folks.
3. Take some beer/wine/whiskey into the basin with you... (and leave some soaking in the lower creek for the way out)
4. If you're catching the train back to Durango (3:30)... go out early and catch a ride to Silverton (11:30) to eat lunch... REAL FOOD!
5. Flip flops
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