CATTLE DRIVE 2008

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PROFESSIONAL PACKING SCHOOL 2008

Schedule your own customized PACKING SCHOOL or participate in one of our scheduled classes!

Packing School #1
6 days
June 21-June 26
$900
Meet Rock Creek Pack Station ---
backcountry itinerary at Tamarack/Hilton with emphasis on mastering hitches, packing techniques and management of livestock and people to minimize impact on wilderness.


Packing School #2
Saturday June 28-July 3, 2008
6 days
$1000
Meet Sage Flat, near Olancha--Click Here for a map of the area.

A six day traveling educational pack trip from Olancha Pass to Horseshoe Meadows. Emphasis on moving camps, wrangling and feeding livestock on the extended wilderness pack trip.

PROFESSIONAL PACKING SCHOOL PROGRAM OF SECTION 1 & 2
13 DAYS
June 21 through July 3, 2008
$1700
This program encompasses both sections 1 and 2, described above.

PROFESSIONAL PACKING SCHOOL
John Muir Wilderness
6 days
September 6-11, 2008
$995
Start and End at Rock Creek
This six day course emphasizes mastering hitches, packing techniques and management of livestock and people to minimize impact on wilderness.

ABOUT THE COURSES
Each is designed for:

  • Those who use their own stock for trail riding or pack trips.
  • Those seeking employment in the commercial packing industry.
  • Those administering or using livestock in wilderness areas.

Students will participate in all activities such as moving camps, wrangling and packing. There will be time for discusssion and questions and free time for fishing and sightseeing. The course will conclude with a practical as well as a written examination. All students will receive a written evaluation and certificate of completion.


TOPICS TO BE COVERED:
  1. Catching, saddling and handling horses and mules.
  2. Planning and making loads for mules.
  3. Pack hitches and how to tie on bulky items.
  4. Riding and leading strings of mules.
  5. Feeding in the backcountry—how to graze stock, when and how to picket, how to wrangle.
  6. Horseshoeing.
  7. Veterinary skills for the layman.
  8. Methods in selecting horses and mules for back country use.
  9. Nutritional needs of pack animals.
  10. Selection of campsites.
  11. Management of livestock to minimize impact on wilderness.
  12. Planning and outfittng your own pack trips.
  13. Selection and maintenance of camping equipment.
  14. History of packing in the High Sierra.
  15. Knots used in packing.
  16. The effects of altitude on livestock performance.
  17. Maintenance of pack equipment.
  18. Trail safety.
(Cick here for a complete outline of the topics covered, as well as the itinerary for the September Professional Packing School).

Craig London D.V.M. outfitter and owner of Rock Creek Pack Station, teaches packing to University of California riding groups.

HANDOUTS GIVEN TO STUDENTS:
  • Handbook on practical veterinary care.
  • Plans showing how to make packboxes.
  • Drawings showing how to fit pack saddles.
  • Food and equipment lists.
  • Information on where to purchase mules and their equipment.
  • List of opportunities for employment in the packing industry.
  • Bibliography of reference material on packing.
  • The Handbook "Management of Livestock in the Wilderness".

    Graduates of our school include United States Forest Service and National Park Service employees, pack station owners, pack station and outfitter employees.

    COURSE FEE: $995 per person
    plus 2% Outfitter-guide fee
    All Inclusive - You furnish only bedroll and personal items.

    To enroll, return reservation form with $200 deposit. Balance due by 30 days prior.



    CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION



    Click here for more information and a map detailing where we are in California with area maps as well.

    Call us TODAY at 760-872-8331 for a quick reponse to your questions.
    You can email us, also.

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    Rock Creek Pack Station provides all of its trips as a permitee of the Inyo National Forest.

    All Trail Rides and Packing Schools are subject to an 8% regulatory reservation fee, plus 2% USFS fee.

    NOTICE: Persons of any race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion or with any handicapping condition are welcome to use and enjoy all facilities, programs and services of USDA (Forest Service).

    Discrimination in any form is strictly against agency policy and should be reported to Secretary of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. 20520


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    Last Updated: April 18, 2008

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