2 Aussies looking for advice: 6 week climbing trip from San Fran to Bugaboos

G'day!

Me and a mate are trying to plan a climbing/ mountaineering/ hiking/ generally awesome stuff road trip, starting in San Fran and going up through Seattle and finishing in The bugaboos in Canada. We have a spreadsheet/tick list going of all the things we would like to climb, basically starting off with a big wall in Yosemite. I figured since you guys/ girls live there, does anyone have suggestions on 'must climb/hike' places? or probably more importantly is there anything or any place we should avoid? I've been to Seattle before and I'm vaguely aware you lot have some pretty intense permit systems for national parks access. Dunno if that's going to be an issue, but is it something we need to care about?

At this stage we are looking around July/ August/ September if that helps.

Not entirely sure how we are getting around, likely some kind of van our ute or something. and some combination of camping/ couch surfing and staying in hostels

Any info you could share would be great! we can repay you in vegemite or belays.

cheers,
Jason

ps, dont be weak, choose the vegemite! :p

That is a broad question....

Really the trip planning is for you to figure out. National/State Park permits aren't intense except for the peak parks in peak season... Which for Yosemite you certainly will be dealing with intense demand. Looks like you'll be getting to Yosemite in July, its a bit warm then!

All the information is available online... Not to hard to research it really..

Funny that you are doing it South to North doesn't make much sense weather wise. North to South would be FAR better for weather and for crowds.

Didn't even think of going the other way, but that is the kind of advice I'm chasing, Thanks! Knowing the permit isn't an issue is good, but in Australia that sort of thing just exist so that's why I asked about it.

I get my post was somewhat broad, but any advice on things people wish 'gee I wish I knew that before hand' is what I'm more after, which is typically not the kind of thing you tend to find online.

Here is all you need to know about your trip:

lmgtfy.com/?q=planning+a+cl…

Welcome to california the state where everyone is friendly.

patto wrote:Funny that you are doing it South to North doesn't make much sense weather wise. North to South would be FAR better for weather and for crowds.

That's also true for the Bugaboos, at least for the weather (probably not the crowds, though). They often get significant snowfall by early September. And the Bugaboo-Snowpatch col is usually in much better condition in July than September.

North to south makes more sense for your time frame, since seasons are reversed up here.

How do airfares into/out of Los Angeles compare to San Francisco? If you go north to south, a good finish to your trip would be a wall in the Valley (and maybe a long free classic or two), then head down the east side of the Sierra Nevada range and tick off some alpine stuff, then head down 395 to LAX and home.

Buying a vehicle in the US without a US address has gotten more difficult over the years, I would research the legalities before committing to this path. I would guess that the situation is the same in Canada.

So much stuff to climb in the western US. Not knowing your plan here are a few ideas, South to North.

Yosemite
Sierra backcountry routes, Needles, Hulk, etc.
Red Rocks, Nevada (you can do a side trip to Las Vegas for a night of debauchery)
Moab area stuff - Indian Creek, Fisher Towers, etc.
Grand Teton
City of Rocks or Sawtooth mtns., Idaho
Smith Rock, Oregon
Bugaboos

mark felber wrote:Buying a vehicle in the US without a US address has gotten more difficult over the years, I would research the legalities before committing to this path. I would guess that the situation is the same in Canada.

Good point. Also regardless of whether you're buying or renting a vehicle you'll have to end the trip in the same country that you started. You can't return a US rental vehicle to a Canadian location or vice versa, and cross-border vehicle sales are a bureaucratic black hole. Probably not a big deal since the Bugaboos are only a half-day's drive from the US border.

mark felber wrote:Buying a vehicle in the US without a US address has gotten more difficult over the years, I would research the legalities before committing to this path. I would guess that the situation is the same in Canada.

From what I understand Canada is MUCH easier for foreigners to buy a vehicle.

The US is damn difficult on many things for non residents compared to most modern countries. (AKA paying for fuel on credit card..... What is your ZIP code?)

patto wrote:From what I understand Canada is MUCH easier for foreigners to buy a vehicle.

See icbc.com/FAQ/Pages/New-to-o…:

Q. Can I buy and insure a car while visiting B.C.?
A. Yes, you can. Once you've found a vehicle you like, you'll have to transfer its ownership into your name and insure it at one of 900 Autoplan brokers around B.C... Please keep in mind, you'll need to let the broker know your address in B.C., as well as where you'll be using the car. If you plan to mainly use the vehicle outside B.C., then you may not be able to register and insure it here.

Not sure what the rules are in Alberta.