Alpine Field Bootcamp - Autumn 2024

[Peter Van Geit]

Dates for the Autumn season have been finalised - register here,

The Alpine Hiking Bootcamp was started in 2022 as a one week practical course to teach people on alpine style exploration of the Himalayas and grow the independent hiking community in India. The course consolidates my extensive field experience on exploration of more than 350 passes across the Indian Western Himalayas in recent years and teaches students to independently plan and navigate Himalayan traverses. The bootcamp is organized twice annually in Manali in Spring and Autumn. More background over here.

Students will master the art of alpine style hiking in the Himalayas through 16 hands-on modules covering all key aspects of planning and executing an alpine style journey in the mountains. The bootcamp is practical oriented including class room theory, hands-on assignments on phone and field assignments in the trails around the basecamp.

• Hiking Styles – different styles of hiking the Himalayas and significant benefits of Alpine style
• Open Street Maps – introduction, configuration and usage of de facto maps used by the international hiking community
• Understanding Maps – extensive hands-on on map reading via OSMAnd
• Topography – understanding mountain topography, contours, identifying terrain features, peaks, ridgelines, valleys, mountain passes
• Himalayan Communities – fixed & seasonal settlements, nomadic tribes, trails, wildlife. Importance for alpine style hiker
• Hiking Gears – minimalist fast-hiking gears – clothing, weather, shoes, backpack, navigation, communication, technical gears
• Shelter & Camping – usage of natural shelters, tents, camping, sleeping bags for night shelter and adverse weather
• Hiking Networks – global OSM network, route scope, SAC scale, visibility & navigation, overview of popular hiking regions
• Himalayan Geography – high ranges, major rivers, peaks, mountain passes in Western Himalayas – Himachal, Uttarakhand, Ladakh and J&K

• Food & Hydration – importance of food planning and hydration while hiking a Himalayan traverse
• Himalayan Terrains – understanding how to traverse rivers, forests, meadows, rocks, moraines, glaciers and snow
• Survey Maps – history, downloading, geo-referencing, usage & understanding
• Navigation Techniques – GPS based, terrain features, topographic maps, compass & altimeter
• Seasons & Weather – importance of weather and seasons while planning a high altitude traverse in the Himalayas
• Traverse Planning – planning day-hikes, mountain passes, high altitude traverses, acclimatization, multi-pass traverses, long distance journeys, seasonal planning, using satellite maps, topography based route planning
• Himalayan Resources – digital maps, traditional Himalayan paper topo maps, blogs, hiking route repositories, institutes, books
• Mapping Routes – exploring and digitally mapping new trails and outdoor features for the international outdoor communit

--

Die with memories, no dreams

ultrajourneys.org

instagram.com/petervangeit