Confess your newbie-hiker blunders...

[Manwich]

I carried 6 "capri suns" on my first 2-night-hike.

I also carried a military-surplus collapsible shovel (which must weigh about 2lbs.)

I insisted on a flint-magnesium lighting mechanism for fire, instead of a bic.

[Bootstrap]

Mmmmm when I was in high school I used to carry a cast iron dutch oven and an axe, and a huge cotton military surplus tent. I probably carried about 60 pounds.

And that is also about what I carried the first time I backpacked as an adult, about 4 years ago in the Grand Canyon. I remember putting about 10 pounds of tortillas into a pit toilet down near Phantom Ranch when I realized I had packed WAY too much food. On that trip I was also wearing boots that I had bought at REI, but they did not fit that well, and when you add in the extra weight, I had awful blisters. I think I did just about everything wrong on that trip, and had a great time.

[Tinker]

Cotton sweat shirt and jeans (back in the 70s that wasn't too unusual). Saved by the poncho .
Wearing heavy boots that weren't broken in (blisters all over - no problems since I switched to trail runners and sandals).

[CrumbSnatcher]

wasting money on a dogpack!

[Nicksaari]

waited almost two years to buy a filter. carried most of my water in.

let some bears scare me out of camp at sky meadows state park. packed all my gear up in about five minutes, which took two loads the first go round, headed straight back to richmond.

these two experiences gave me a herniated disk and horrible back spasms: first, car camping with then girlfriend in GWNF, dry river district- switzer lake. gathered all this firewood, began to chop away with nice axe while wood was on ground. stupid.
second: while camping at matthew's arm in SNP, decided to hike overall run loop- about eight miles, two thousand ft down and back up. did this all in a pair of Vans- the shoes i skateboard in. oh yeah, and i carried eight 16 oz water bottles in a BOOKBAG. W T F was i thinking? this rehatched my spasms from the previous spring, doctor said disk herniated while chopping the wood, closed the deal with that walk back up that ridge.

my back is as strong as ever, pain nonesuch.
and my outdoor skills and common sense have reprised a thousand fold.

Good Thread: look forward to hearing Lone Wolf's newbie hiker faux pas.

[Feral Bill]

Cotton socks-once

Heavy stiff boots-for way too long

Sleeping with my food bag as a pillow, in grizzly country

[Doctari]

AT Troll would need to double the bandwidth for me to list them all here, but:

70 PLUS pound pack for a 8 day hike. Full of "What IF?" stuff. AND I was hiking in steel toe work boots, , Yea, that was a joy.

(Some of the stuff I had: steel 2 Ltr pot and lid, Wool long sleeve shirt & matching pants, 2 HEAVY jackets, 1 light weight jacket, 6 days of food to get from Springer to Neels gap, etc.)

[Engine]

I look back on those days with a certain fondness and complete awe regarding my apparent insecurity. I was prepared for WW III. I started trips with a 70-80 pound pack (carrying food for multiple family members). We carried things like landing zone strobe lights and signal mirrors, emergency blankets and a 3 pound first aid kit. A kite, frisbees, and other games for things to do in camp...I was hiking "to get away from it all" and I was bringing it with me.

[Mrs Baggins]

First long day hike - - in brand new Wolverine boots (1979), huge blisters and infected feet

First overnight hike - - everything too heavy and didn't bring any pain killers. Had to go begging at the shelter to get some Advil. Now I bring enough for everyone!

[Egads]

My 1st foray into winter hiking included leather slick sole shoes, winter weight carhardts, a wool sweater, and a yellow rubber raincoat. Managed ~6 miles in this set up.

[russb]

I wasn't hiking, but water-walking... I was 8 years old in the bow of the canoe with my father in the stern. I noticed something floating in the water amongst all the "muck". It was an egg. I was told to leave it alone, instead I wanted to chuck it at a tree. I retrieved it and was winding up and it slipped out of my hand and broke in the canoe (aluminum). The stink was nauseating. Since we were in a place where getting in/out of the canoe would have been difficult at best I had to live with that stink for at least an hour. Gawd I can still smell it 30 years later.

[Summit]

I took almost all food that had to be cooked and forgot a lighter. I took wooden matches that require a striker but no striker. Luckily, the first night I found a soggy book of matches down in the nearby shelter (Plumorchard - old shelter). The matches were ruined, but not the striker.

[CowHead]

Mine was a 62 lb pack I think I even took the kitchen sink

[steve43]

canvass boy scout backpack, k-mart 3 person tent and lots of cotton clothing. it was an overnighter in the linville gorge in nc, and it literally changed my life.

fifo

[JAK]

Bought a 6 pound $300 backpack, twice. Now finally I have a 20oz 3100ci $100 pack.

First few hikes, summer or winter, I carried spare clothing, basically 2 of everything, and twice as many socks as I really needed. Figured out that it is easier to keep one set of clothing dry than two.

[kayak karl]

Mine was a 62 lb pack I think I even took the kitchen sink

same here, did u have fold-up steel shovel with the canvass pouch, with matching axe and canteen on other side. i did

[Seeker]

was about 9 when i did my first multi-overnight backpacking trip with a friend and his parents... had a cotton batting sleeping bag (didn't get wet, but man was it heavy!), and those plastic-leather work boots from kmart. ouch.

first time i ever set up a tarp, it was in a compacted tentsite depression that filled in when it rained that night. miserable.

gear:
clothespins (***?)
3-man tent. for me. (ok, in fairness, it was all i had)
extra underwear (what was i thinking?)
2lb stove

[Cabin Fever]

Hickory handle tomahawk. Hey, it's lighter than an axe!

[Lyle]

I started my first long-distance hike carrying two one-liter Sigg bottles filled with white gas for my SVEA.

[bloodmountainman]

My first few week long trips I carried way more food than I actully needed. It's a long learning curve to get your food- time/distance ratio "just right".