Do you guys have to deal with this?

[gollwoods]

Co workers are the ones I get the most negative vibes from about hiking alone. Always seems solo pursuits are looked at as odd. Then they figure whatever is wrong with you can be talked about til you see the light. After that it is terrifying to them that you at be contagious and they will be ensnared in the madness that drives you to hike alone instead of sitting around with beer watching tube sport

[Hoofit]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEOFDwWv4fk

Uyou'd better bury that one reeeeeaal deep becausethat's funny as sh.t, especially his facial expressions!

[4eyedbuzzard]

So I'm a female, 44, section hiking for the first time. I grew up camping, backpacking and hiking, am fit, and have trained well, hiking over 200 miles carrying 25 lbs. in preparation for my 165 mile section of the AT.

In the course of my prep, I've been told by the shuttle service I tried to hire that my hike plans are too ambitious and I should not expect to complete the section I have planned. (Needless to say I hired a different service.)

Probably unwarranted. But the reality is that most people, "section hiking for the first time", as you noted, overestimate the distances they can cover/average, even if they have some experience and train a bit. And shuttle folks will know this because they undoubtably pick many people up short of their planned ending points. Did he know that this was your first section hike? If so, maybe he was just offering cautious advice?

I was treated by the sales guy at REI like I'm magical because I (gasp!) seem to know what I'm doing. (Thanks to you all and Youtube!)

Same guy also called me "curvy."

It was probably refreshing to talk to someone who had some knowledge. My son works in retail tech sales and the general public tends to be clueless about most things they buy, regardless of category. Regarding curvy, women anatomically are different than men (shocking) . And while we can laugh about this epiphany, it is particularly important when fitting hip belt due to pelvic angle and hip curvature. It can also make a difference on type of shoulder straps (straight vs "S" shape).

And the backpack I bought had a flower hair tie on it. Yes, a flower. Because apparently they must specify that this is for a lady and appeal to my inherent feminine side. The don't dangle footballs or penises off the "male" packs because, you know, we already assume they are for men.

Gender stereotyping is an inherent part of marketing. It isn't going to change anytime soon. Best to click the ignore button. But I agree, I would tend to be suspect of a pack with a football and especially one with a penis hanging off of it. And at minimum, I'd check it for proper inflation first. The football, that is.

And everyone asks me, "You're hiking ALONE??" As though the trail is especially dangerous for me alone as a woman.

My question is, do you men have to deal with this s**t? Seriously. Please tell me I'm just being overly sensitive. You know, cause I'm a girl and we're very sensitive. (Lol!)

Thanks for listening to my rant. Can't wait to get on the trail in two weeks! Hope to meet some of you there. HYOH!

EVERYONE (male, female, and/or whatever one identifies as) has to listen to the "alone", "guns", "bears", "serial killers" stuff. EVERYONE. And yeah, you're mostly just being an "oversensitive girl" And by that I mean that you are getting annoyed by things that are mostly just marketing techniques and stereotypes. Men are subject to the same BS. Look at truck commercials if you want just one example. The male/female product appeal and differentiation is EVERYWHERE in life. Enjoy your hike.

[Bronk]

I once showed up at a state park about 8pm and went into the park office to buy a camping permit for the night...the first campsite along the trail was only 2 miles up the trail...and it was in Florida so the trail was flat. The lady says she won't sell me a permit because they don't allow people to start their trip so close to dark. I protested that I had a headlamp and that I could easily hike the 2 miles in less than 45 minutes and she refused to relent. Too many in this society feel the need to save people from themselves.

[GScout]

GScout, I think you would appreciate Princess Of Darkness on The Trail Show podcast. Check it out.

Great tip! Thank you.

[GScout]

I've really enjoyed the replies to this thread. Got a few giggles and a lot of reassurance.

I am a Girl Scout. Grew up scouting and am now a leader. Scouting has become much less about the outdoors than when I was growing up. But there is a movement afoot to change that, and I am trying to lead by example. There is no better place to have the world revealed to you, or to see yourself as you truly are, than on the trail. Any trail.

Thanks, everyone, for sharing your stories.

[GScout]

I tell you what, the toughest badest person I saw on the whole of the trail last year was a woman (can't remember her name) who I think was from Jersey and who seemed to be on a permanent yoyo mission. She was no spring chicken and carried a pack that looked to be well over 60 pounds including a large blue tarp that was wrapped around her pack in a jumble. She also carried a full sized machete as I saw her hacking up firewood for her camp which was far away from the shelter and tent spots. Most of the guys were terrified of her as she would only glare (and it was quite a glare!) at you when passing by, though she did talk to some the female hikers. I wonder what happened to her? Anyone out there know who I'm talking about?
I bring this up because I could just imagine her at an REI type store with a nervous salesperson trying to help her out explaining that she needs a "woman's backpack" ...I'd pay to see that!

Oh, man. I would LOVE to see that too! LOL!!