Backpacking - Lessons Learned

So, you have to learn something on every trip, right?  What have I learned about backpacking through the years?  Well, there's been a few things - some I've learned, some I've learned by watching others.

Don't always ignore your pain


When I was growing up, my brother and I tried to conquer pain.  We thought that if we could ignore all pain, then we could get through any type of physical challenge just fine.  That worked pretty good in Track and Field, and in Wrestling, and quite frankly in a lot of things we've done since.  BUT it's not always the best policy for backpacking.

To some degree you have to ignore pain while backpacking.  The packs aren't totally comfortable, you get rub spots and your back, shoulders and hips hurt, and you get tired.  But, if you're on a 50 miler, you need to pay attention to your FEET.  I started out just ignoring the fact that I was getting a hot spot in my foot, and I was able to do that just fine.  But then at the end of the day I had blisters on my feet that I wouldn't have had if I had just stopped for a minute and taken care of my feet.  Instead, I have blisters that I have to deal with for the next 40 miles!  Don't ignore your feet!  AND Try to get the boys to do the same and you'll all have a much better trip!

Duct tape works, but it's so much better without the blisters in the first place!

A hike like this is so much better when you're feet aren't in pain

Pack Light


I've always had more than I needed on a backpacking trip.  Part of the problem is that I bring extra in case anyone forgets something or something happens to them or their gear.  The other part is I have ingrained in my soul "BE PREPARED".  Be prepared for what?  For anything that might come along.  I'm the kind of guy that always has bandaids in my wallet for when my kids need one.

So I take matches and a lighter, and a few other ways of starting fire, just in case those two get lost or don't work.  I have an extra pair of pants and shirt at the bottom of my pack that I've never taken out yet, but, you never know when you might need it.  I have an extra survival kit that's all packed up together that I take along with stuff that I already have in my pack, but this is all in one package so I can throw it in my day pack if we're going on a day hike (and in that survival kit I have 2 or 3 different ways of starting fires as well!)

What can you see in the video below that probably wasn't necessary for an over nighter camping trip?

When we're just going on an overnighter backpacking trip, and I know the boys that are coming have some experience in what we're doing, I can get my pack down to about 15-20 pounds.  But on a 50 miler where we'll be at least 10 miles from the trucks (and 20 miles at most), I'll just carry the 50 pound pack and hope my physical condition is sufficient to handle it.  So far I'm still fairly young and in good shape (I'm in the low 30's).  But I know that I'll get to the point where I can't handle a 50 pound pack for 50 miles, then what?

Then I'll have to trust in the gear I have, and the experience I have to get through whatever I face.  I'll have to trust the boys (which means going through packs and making sure they have what they need sometimes) and not bring extras for them - they can survive an overnigher unprepared, it'll just help them to be prepared for the next trip.  I'll need to be experienced enough that I know what will and what won't work for all my gear (tents, water filters, stoves, fire starters, etc) so I don't have to bring up extra equipment.  I'll need to know exactly what I will need to eat on a trip to keep me full of energy, but not bring so much that I'm bringing home food afterwards.

Stick to your Hiking Pace


Everyone has a pace where they can walk for miles and not get tired (well, most people).  Find that pace and try to stick to it.  It's difficult when you have a group of boys and adults that all have different paces.  You can try to make everyone slow down to the slowest pace but that has 2 problems.

1. Sometimes the slowest person just likes to be in the back.  I've been walking with people before that have this inner need that they probably don't even recognize to be behind in the group.  No matter how much you slow down to include them, they just slow down further to stay behind.  I've been biking with someone with that mentality.  I slowed down so much that I could walk faster and yet still he stayed a ways behind me.
2. If you go slower than "your pace", you'll use more energy.  Your body has a speed in which it can keep going for long distances quite efficiently and when you deviate from that pace it throws you off.  Yes, going slower can actually use more energy than going at your pace - AND you get there later as well!

I've tried and tried to keep groups together on long hikes and it never works.  So I've come to the conclusion that when possible, it can work to split up into 2 groups if they are too much different in paces.  The problem is that then it's nice to have 2 leaders with each group which means more leaders.  But I have had times when we had a boy and a leader that were worn completely out, and we were running out of daylight.  We still needed to get a ways down the trail to where we were going to camp.  So I took some of the fast boys along with me and climbed up a big incline in the trail, then we dropped our packs and went back to help the others.  It worked out pretty good because they all got to hike at their pace, and they got to help each other make it.

Another thing, if you get bored hiking, grab a walking stick.  It will give your hands something to do, and you can focus on the walking stick instead of the monotony.  Lord Baden Powell (founder of scouting) said that if you use a walking stick, the miles will fly by.  It really works!  Give it a try!

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