My friend works for the Sierra Club, and sent me a message about a new hiking trip that’s specifically gluten-free. Now, I am not an outdoorsy person by any means, so I’m assuming why he sent me this was to pass along to my readers that actually are. But this is labeled a beginner’s trip, a 2 on a scale of 5 difficulty. But I’m seriously not an outdoors person. Seriously. But hopefully you guys are, because I think nature is awesome, and if I could overcome my fear of the outdoors, this seems pretty cool.

Details about this hike can be found on the Sierra Club website. This hike is in Central California in Stanislaus National Forest.

I had a chance to talk with the original hike leader, Pamela Chisum.  She wrote, “In my case, I actually became a leader after receiving my celiac disease diagnosis in 2003, because that was the only way I could be in charge of the food.” Does that resonate or what? I’d rather host a party and be in charge of the food than go to someone else’s house where I don’t know if I can eat anything!  On some of her other trips, she has been gluten-free (obviously), but also providing gluten-full food (regular tortillas, Cliff bars, etc.) for the rest of the group. Apparently the dinners and the breakfasts on her hikes have always been gluten-free – how awesome!

Unfortunately due to an injury, her assistant will now be leading the beginner’s backpacking trip, but she’s educated in the GF lifestyle and has lead with Pamela before. Her details include:

Jindra Goodman is an experienced backpacker who has participated in and led many High Sierra outings with the Sierra Club. In addition, she has backpacked in New Zealand, Nepal, Patagonia, the Alps, the Tatras and the Czech Republic where she learned her backpacking skill as a youth. She is also an avid member of several wilderness search and rescue teams in the Bay Area and Sierras. Jindra just recently retired after four decades as a professor of meteorology at San Jose State University to enjoy her grandchildren, skiing, running, swimming, and cycling.

I love supporting companies that are making life easier for us gluten-free eaters. This is an awesome opportunity for backpackers, or people who like nature, who won’t have to worry about what to eat.

DETAILS

Where: Stanislaus National Forest, California

When: July 22-29, 2012

Trip Number: 12127A

Price: $575 (deposit $100)

Capacity: 13

Includes:

• All meals (gluten-free and vegetarian-friendly)
• Shared equipment, including pots and pans
• Exercise and lots of fun

On the website it says, “while this trip is designed for those with gluten intolerance, we welcome anyone who’d like to go gluten-free for a week.” Awesome!

Itinerary

(per the website) Day 1: We will meet at Crabtree trailhead, where we will spend the afternoon reviewing equipment, weighing packs, and reviewing wilderness etiquette. We’ll camp here at an elevation of 7,200 feet and get to know one another over dinner (provided).

Day 2: We begin our trek past Pine Valley and Camp Lake, up an 8,000-foot pass to camp at what is informally known as Lily Pad Lake, about five miles from the trailhead.

Day 3: Today we drop down into Piute Meadow, passing Piute Lake, and hike just over four miles to our camp at Gem Lake.

Day 4: Another four-mile day takes us up to Wire Lakes, where we will camp for two nights.

Day 5: Layover day. For those interested, there will be a day hike over to Long Lake, where we’ll have lunch.

Day 6: This is our longest hiking day, with about seven miles to cover, but not much elevation gain/loss. We will hike through Saltlick and Whitesides meadows and down to Y-Meadow Lake. From there, we’ll do one mile of easy cross-country to our campsite at Granite Lake.

Day 7: Layover day. A cross-country day hike will take us to Tom’s Canyon or Toejam Lake.

Day 8: We start the dayhiking downhill and cross-country, taking us to Bear Lake, where we return to the trail and head back to Crabtree.