your highest camp

[Chip Down]

The recent South Sister Bivy TR has me wondering...what's the highest you've camped? I know for some the answer will be "how the heck would I know?"

I guess it would be South Sister for me, at 10358. Highest campsite with tent would be the Adams Lunch Counter at 9350'. Highest multi-night camp was Hidden Valley on Shasta, at 9200'.

My highest failure was Adams summit. At pikers Peak, it was too cold and windy to even consider a night on the summit, so I dumped my overnight gear and continued. When I reached the top in the afternoon, it was 28F and howling. Still, I kinda wish I had done it. What an adventure that would be! Nobody really needs 20 fingers and toes, right?

Highest unplanned camp was a horrific terrifying flat spot on the west rib of Jeff, maybe about 9000-9500?

[Don Nelsen]

...Highest unplanned camp was a horrific terrifying flat spot on the west rib of Jeff, maybe about 9000-9500?

On one of my several solo hikes up Jefferson I noticed three or four flat spots on that west rib and wondered who would camp in such exposed areas.

Chip, I guess you're it!

I took photos of three of the spots, all at about 7750 to 7900':
Here's one of them:


And another:


The view from the above was pretty darn nice:


Another view from the above campsite:


Here's a third campsite:


Were any of these where you spent the night?

dn

[Peder]

[Chip Down]

Don: No, much higher, steeper, exposed, unstable, subject to rockfall. But continuing by headlamp would be even worse, so hunkered down in my bivy sack.

Peder: The confident poster knows he doesn't even need to mention a number, because his pic says it all.

[drm]

Well, since you asked, this is somewhere near 16,000' in Pakistan. I don't remember the name of the glacier (I've got a map somewhere) but it is somewhere near the mountains Chogolisa and Masherbrum. Summer of 1994. We were above 15000 feet for about ten days trekking on various glaciers. trip report

[Peder]

We were above 15000 feet for about ten days trekking on various glaciers. trip report

Those are fantastic pictures Dean and those river crossings are not to be trifled with! An acquaintance (we went on a few climbing outings together) got swept away whilst trying to cross a stream in the Himalayas last summer when guiding a party. Interestingly enough, he had summited K2 back in 1984 or '85 and that is one of the world's most difficult and dangerous peaks.

[Water]

wow! great reports. Highest I've camped.. must be in Wind River Range 11,000ft. Would like to do a camp atop hood some day..

Don, with deference to your pics (awesome sites, imo.. if you have water!) that looks like the SW ridge. Chip Down mentioned the West Rib which I am befuddled there is even anywhere to bivy down, having been up about 75% of it..

[Don Nelsen]

wow! great reports. Highest I've camped.. must be in Wind River Range 11,000ft. Would like to do a camp atop hood some day..

Don, with deference to your pics (awesome sites, imo.. if you have water!) that looks like the SW ridge. Chip Down mentioned the West Rib which I am befuddled there is even anywhere to bivy down, having been up about 75% of it..

Water,

You are correct - my pics are on the SW ridge. I just checked my gps tracks and I was mis-remembering the actual location when I posted. Good call!

dn

[Crusak]

When I was a 15 year old kid my dad and I camped overnight while backpacking at about 9,000' on Pikes Peak in Colorado. That's definitely the highest camp I've ever done. That was in 1980.

All I remember from that trip was that a very large raccoon harassed us that night and tried to get into our packs (where our food was stored). I also remember that our gear was surplus store quality stuff, old military gear and such. Great adventure!

[Aimless]

The highest I've ever camped was probably on a trip to Rocky Mt. Nat'l Park in 1971 when I was 16, but I can't say exactly how high my siblings and I were, 45 years later. My highest camp that I can verify was at 8200 ft. in the Wallowas.