Preparing for high elevation jobs

[VanGrrl57]

I can only concur with what most others have said (I have experience up to 14,000ft).

If you don't want to slowly gain elevation you can go straight in at 8,000 but take measures to avoid altitude sickness. First two days, do nothing. Drink lots of hot/warm water. After that, take it slow and just ease into it. You'll probably notice yourself get out of breath easily when exerting. Make sure to be drinking at least 2 litres of water per day if not more. Hydrate as much as you can before sleeping because even if it means getting up at night to pee, that's better than waking up with a banging headache and spending the first two hours of the morning getting with it. That only happened to me camped at 14,000 though. 11,500 was no problem.

Should you become really sick, just go down. I'd consider that quite unlikely though unless you went a lot higher and started running around immediately.

P.S. Water takes longer to boil at higher elevations.


Yeah, I can relate. Where I am at in Yellowstone is 7,800 feet---I'm at Canyon Village (Wyoming) and I'm working at Yellowstone Adventures. When I first got here, it was around 5:30 am at West Yellowstone, MT. I had maybe a couple of hours of sleep because I had to report to HR at 8 am. I drove all the way from Sioux Falls on Easter Sunday to West Yellowstone since I wanted to spend the holiday with my daughter before leaving out. However, not getting enough sleep was not a good idea. I was so tired once I was at my seasonal location. I also got sick because I was not used to being up that much in elevation. Once I got to where I was, I just went to sleep but had a horrible headache. The people already here told me to drink lots of water and especially so before going to bed. Once I listened to their advice, I felt better. I guess it will take me some time since I have never been anywhere other than Florida and South Dakota as an adult. It's better now for me, though. I really enjoy it here.

I have taken some cool pictures with my smartphone. SIGH! I have to save up and buy another computer as mine took a crap on me. I'm using the employees' computer in the common area in the dorms right now. The Internet is quite slow here and is not very reliable. It is what it is.

VanGrrl57

 

[Vagabound]

UPDATE:
Just want to take a minute to pass on that, after my first week in the mountains at about 8,000 ft., the Buddy heater and Coleman single-burner Powerpack stove are both working fine. Same as at lower elevations. No problems with propane.

Thanks again to all for your help with this topic.

Tom

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Just want to take a minute to pass on that, after my first week in the mountains at about 8,000 ft., the Buddy heater and Coleman single-burner Powerpack stove are both working fine. Same as at lower elevations. No problems with propane.

Do you have a barometer?  Just curious what the barometric pressure is at that altitude.

 

[highdesertranger]

thanks for the update Tom. highdesertranger

 

[jimindenver]

Do you have a barometer?  Just curious what the barometric pressure is at that altitude.

It changes up and down with the weather.

 

[Vagabound]

Do you have a barometer?  Just curious what the barometric pressure is at that altitude.

I don't, John, but I'll ask around. If I find one, I'll keep track of the pressure for a week or two and then let you know.

In line with Jim's comment, I can tell you that the weather turns on a dime, so there will likely be significant fluctuations in the pressure.

Tom

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

It changes up and down with the weather.

Astonishing!  And does it also get warmer when the sun is up and cooler when the sun goes down, by any chance?

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Do you have a barometer?  Just curious what the barometric pressure is at that altitude.

If you have internet some of the weather sites give barometric pressure as part of their package.  I use Weather Underground, they give it in a graph and table. 

Forecasting in mountainous areas is a crapshoot, as anyone who lives in the mountains will tell you, but pressure is part of a large system and shouldn't be affected by local conditions.

 -- Spiff