5 Tips to Hike Alone Safely
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As a mountain lover, I’m wild about hiking but I rarely
find a companion to share my passion. This means that I often go for
solo, wild walks which is good in one way, because I can hike at my
pace, stop whenever I want to take a photo or simply admire the
landscape, take a nap in the grass or rest in a mountain hut to have a
coffee and a piece of cake. But there’s the other side of the coin: hiking
alone (live every other activity) means that you won’t have
someone to rely on should you find yourself in trouble or difficulty.
Thus here are a few tips that can help you enjoying a
solo walk while feeling safer.
- Prepare your itinerary: That sounds obvious, I know,
but I have to admit that being sometimes a kind of wild woman I’m not
always following rule number 1: study the path, its length and
difficulty.
- Let know at your
hotel, guesthouse or mountain hut where you’re going: being an
optimist, sometimes even a little reckless, I usually don’t think that
accidents might happen. But they do happen! You might find yourself in
trouble, on an isolated trail, and in the mountains cell phones are
not always working. If you don’t show up in the evening, someone will
call for mountain rescue and knowing your planned itinerary will make
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To read full post, please go to Wild About Travel
3 responses to 5 Tips to Hike Alone Safely
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Scott Hartman said on May 12, 2010
Craig Childs IS an amazing writer, and The Secret Knowledge of Water, his most amazing book. I know Craig, he’s a former teacher of a man I worked with in Escalante, Utah. I remember him sitting by the window of the cafe where I was chef, watching the sky, hoping for a storm so he could head down into the slot canyons and wait for a flash flood. I remember too one pre-dawn morning while I was prepping in the kitchen, it was raining and Craig knocked on the back door. I let him in, dripping wet he revelaed a shakuhachi flute and began to play a beautiful traditional song.
And Ann Zwinger – another classic writer of the west and wild places
Carolyn Hopper said on May 10, 2010
If you check out the American Hiking Society and don’t have this list already –
they have the list of “10 Essentials” for hikers. Do you have a back pack you can put a “camel” in. Those are great. Although in the desert you’ll need more water depending on how long you’re planning on being out. A fun/interesting read :
Craig Childs “The Secret Knowledge of Water.” He’s a great writer . Really puts you in the scene/setting–if you’re thinking of going out into desert hiking.
A note on the weather – here in Montana and Wyoming – in the Beartooth Mtns.
lighting can come out of a clear sky. “Land Above the Trees” – one of the authors is Ann Zwinger – is a good tome for hiking in tundra.
I have an article in a past “Outside Bozeman” about a class Dan and I took through the Yellowstone Association Institute in the Beartooths.
Scott Hartman said on May 10, 2010
A good, general list for solo hikers. To it I might also add whatever you think is a minimum of water to take (I’m a desert walker) and perhaps a few essential items – knife, matches, etc . . . “just in case”