TOPO - what's steep?

[foss]

I'm trying to narrow down a few potential hunting areas in CO with google earth, onX, etc., but having never been there I don't have a good reference point for how steep is steep. Does anyone have grade/slope/degree guidelines they'd be willing to share? What do you consider flat, average, and "not unless you're crazy" slopes? I'm in good average physical condition, and this will be an Aug or Sept trip. I'm looking forward to the challenge, but don't want to plan too aggressively and not enjoy the experience either. Thanks

 

[Kootenay Hunter]

You have to calculate the grade to figure out how steep it is, but many, with experience can use the contour lines to make a judgement.

Take a measurement of distance, place that over a contour lines. However many contour lines x the contour line height divided by the distance will give you a grade in %.

For reference, an average ski run would be about 30% grade (90ft of height over 100 yds), house stairs is closer to 40%, but are stairs, so.

Walking for hours up a ski hill slope is not fun, but I'd take a steep grade shortcut to gain a flatter ridge, so it's all dependent.

Depends how long and far you want to hike on a particular grade.

 

[psp8ball]

A couple thoughts on your question. You can hunt steep/rugged country if you're not going straight up or straight down. What I mean by that is plan a loop or hunt that goes more sidehill than straight up and down faces. For me, steep country is 45 degrees or more. Anything 40 degrees or more and I'm only going up or down it because of bugles. Otherwise, I'm side-hilling trying to cover more ground.

I like to use Google Earth to plan hunts in places I've never been. Find your trail head and use their Ruler feature. Use the "Path" feature (vs a straight line) to plot out a course. When using "Path" there is a "Show Elevation Profile" checkbox. It will show you how steep your route is at any given point, show distance, and elevation gained or lost. Ideally I'm trying to stay at 20% or less grade for sustained periods.

I've hunted before, so I use numbers from previous hunts (distance, elevation, angle, etc) to compare to a new spot to see what to expect from a physical standpoint without ever having set foot there.

You may want to go to the National Forest Service Interactive Maps site. https://www.fs.fed.us/ivm/ They just re-did it and it's fantastic for finding roads and trails. If it's your first time there, I'd have a few hunts planned that at least start out on trails. You're usually guaranteed to have a fairly efficient way of covering ground that way, and can always drop off the main trail when you feel like it.

 

[blackpowderhunter]

i'd say find habitat and hunt that. granted....i understand you're trying to get a general idea.
but i've killed elk and bears in crap id never hike down if i hadnt seen an animal before hand.
it's amazing the places they can live.
i guess what im saying is...don't discount an area based solely on numbers.
edit..i just checked some areas on onx.. 200 ft of elevation over about 120 yards in most of the areas. it sucks, but there are animals.

 

[ndbuck09]

use the ruler tool in Google Earth, select "path", make sure the box by "show elevation profile" is checked and it'll show you your data. GE doesn't have the contour lines obviously but if you use whatever map system your looking at the topo on, just draw a path there, toggle to a satellite view and then copy the line on google earth and you'll get a nice graph showing the elevation profile through the distance of the path.

 

[mdp22]

I reference www.hillmap.com and select the CalTopo Slope Overlays and it does a good job of showing the steepness of areas. Works good for planning routes in the mountains.

 

[foss]

Clearly I need to spend more time in Google Earth. I had no idea it had the elevation features mentioned. I was using the onX contours and distance tool to calc grades. I've identified a half dozen areas I want to study in more detail. Most of them would be loops that minimize any doubling back to get out.

 

[Scooter90254]

What I can tell you is some of the red on the trail slope feature with ONX means you need climbing ropes to get down it.

Last year we purposely tried to find steep areas to get away from other hunters. We weren’t afraid of a hard hike. What we learned is steep can literally be cliffs where you would fall to your death.

Long story short Colorado can be too step. Haha

 

[spike camp]

There are few areas that are too steep for either Elk or hunter.
Even areas with outcroppings and crags, are do-able.
Scree slopes and getting cliffed out are about your only concerns...

Learn how to read contour lines on a topo.
Basically, if there is no space between lines, avoid that spot.

 

[Elkchaser54]

My general rule of thumb is 1000 feet of elevation gain/loss over a mile is doable but that's where the line is drawn, when you see more then 1000 feet over a mile or 1000 feet up or down in less then a mile that is some rugged country to hike. Elk love this type of terrain and there in lays the reason to hike your butt off and get in shape.

 

[Dos Perros]

I reference www.hillmap.com and select the CalTopo Slope Overlays and it does a good job of showing the steepness of areas. Works good for planning routes in the mountains.

Second hillmap. Essential planning tool. 35-45 degrees is doable over shorter periods. Anything steeper than that can be pretty risky, you'll be using your hands, etc.

 

[Beendare]

Pull it up on GE and tilt it...you will see that a heck of a lot of it is steep. /grin

 

[spike camp]

I personally like Acme Mapper and the terrain feature.
Really gives a good perspective.

 

[arwhntr]

I use caltopo.com to check incline %s when planning routes. When I see that purple I cringe knowing it's gonna be a ball buster climb. Even in red/orange/yellow zones I plan to zig zag my way up unless I'm crunched for time.

 

[Felix40]

15% is the max on a lot of treadmills.

30-40% is commonplace and probably what the average elk country looks like where I have hunted.

60% is about the point where you will start needing to use your hands some. It is not sustainable for a long distance but very doable for short distances.

80% is basically full on scrambling.

 

[LongWayAround]

It's usually steeper than the map or GE looks. If the contours start running together, plan another route.

You can adjust the relief on GE too to get a more accurate idea of the topography. I forget the exact steps offhand but it's pretty easy.

 

[GotDraw?]

Also, be aware that TOPO Maps often lie and misrepresent small section of terrain and this can cause real problems. You may find something on a topo that looks do-able, but when you get there in person there's a 20-30' sheer cliff that wasn't represented and now you're screwed.

Been there.

Anyhow, this happens because topos are generally not based on complete and granular information, there is a lot of algorithmic interpretation to drawing those lines. Don't completely rely on armchair scouting. Ground truth can be very hard-learned.

JL

 

[Texasbuckeye]

15% is the max on a lot of treadmills.

30-40% is commonplace and probably what the average elk country looks like where I have hunted.

60% is about the point where you will start needing to use your hands some. It is not sustainable for a long distance but very doable for short distances.

80% is basically full on scrambling.

Dang, I need to re-evaluate hiking/climbing...80% is only 10 degree off straight up. I would never approach that kind of slope without ropes and lots of help. Going down at 80 degrees is essentially a controlled fall (? The controlled part if the ground isn’t solid) and would be a disaster for most without ropes and attachment points.

 

[elkduds]

Dang, I need to re-evaluate hiking/climbing...80% is only 10 degree off straight up. I would never approach that kind of slope without ropes and lots of help. Going down at 80 degrees is essentially a controlled fall (? The controlled part if the ground isn’t solid) and would be a disaster for most without ropes and attachment points.

I have good news for you! 45 degrees roughly equals 100%. Rise of 1 over run of 1.

 

[Idaho_Potato]

My general rule is if I'm hunting in Idaho it's probably too steep. But seriously, if the elevation gain from the truck to where I want to go is >2000 feet in a relatively short distance I assume the worst especially if there is no trail to get there. Just from experience and my own fitness, I know that if I have to get up and down that >2000 feet in the same day I'm going to be sore. It's often times doable but can turn into a shit show if the terrain is unstable or there is no clear route.

I hear guys talking about 3-4,000 foot elevation days packing meat. They are either full of it or blessed with a better set of genetics. Could be both, I honestly don't know.