‘Llama packing in the Escalante Country’ will be featured in a virtual presentation Tuesday, May 25 as past of the Los Alamos Mountaineers regular meeting. Photo by Bill Priedhorsky

Hiking in the Escalante Country. Photo by Bill Priedhorsky

A group sets out on a llama packing trip. Find out why llamas are so well-suited for he backcountry during a May 25 virtual presentation by the Los Alamos Mountaineers in collaboration with PEEC. Photo by Bill Priedhorsky

BY BILL PRIEDHORSKY
Los Alamos Mountaineers

There are many ways to travel in the wilderness. Some folks carry their gear on the backs; others ride horses. Yet another means, one that has been taken by the Los Alamos Mountaineers, is llama packing, where the soft-footed South American animals carry the gear. For their monthly online meeting, the Mountaineers will hear a talk by BJ Orozco entitled “Llama Packing in the Escalante Country”, at 7 p.m. on Tuesday evening, May 25.

BJ has spent a decade as proprietor of his llama guiding company Llama2Boot. Llama2Boot, based in Boulder, Utah (population 226), has run over 100 full service trips for clients from around the world. In his presentation, he will tell about the llamas – workers, retirees, and up and coming youngsters – and why they are so suitable for the desert backcountry, going places that horses cannot, and travelling gently on the land as they carry 70-pound loads. He has many stories of his trips in the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and points beyond. Planning is essential in order to get the people, llamas, gear and supplies together at the right place and the right time. In reward, travelers experience some of the most rugged, isolated, and beautiful country in the 48 States.

Whether catered or self-service, llama packing fits the Mountaineer’s goal of “Outdoor Adventure for Everyone.” BJ will explain how one can take part in his own trips, or the trips he caters for the Mountaineers. This fall, the Mountaineers will return to the canyons and slick rock of Antone Ridge above Death Hollow, a 600-foot deep canyon that runs from Boulder Mountain to the Escalante River. At the time of this writing, spaces remain – see http://lamountaineers.org/drupal7/node/1362. Mountaineers’ meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday of every month. Recent meetings have been held electronically starting at 7:00 PM, in collaboration with the Pajarito Environmental Education Center (PEEC). Registration details for the meeting can be found at https://peecnature.org/events/details/?id=36988