Group hiking / camping

[squeezebox]

So if you are in a dedicated group, like a family, scout group, or even a married couple, how does you pack list change?
I'm thinking tent size? stove & pots, plates? type of food? bring a big tarp? Water filter, bucket? 1st aide kit?
Does your hiking style change? What else changes ??
What about the folks who fall into a group for a few weeks or months?

[Demeter]

My pack list doesn't change much. When with my spouse or kids, I still carry water filtration and stove. Just extra fuel. We carry our own food. We sleep in hammocks, so YMMV.

[Old Hiker]

Depends on the outing. Scouts: sometimes car camping with my "normal" pack in camp, but everything else possible in the car. Hiking on an AT section hike, "normal" but with the large first aid kit. Support crew carries anything extra.

Wife won't camp anymore. That ends THAT discussion !!! :eek: "Normal" pack, but maybe extra food/clothes in the car.

[gsingjane]

There may be more efficient ways to do this, but it's sort of the way I've devised for handling group gear and hiking wise.

Hiking style: slowest hiker in the front, followed by me or my adult assistant, and at the end, me or my adult assistant. Group doesn't split up, ever. If faster hikers get antsy, too bad. Make clear the distinction between packs-off breaks and packs-on breaks... call packs-off breaks judiciously because any such break will take a minimum of 30 minutes. Picture turning an aircraft carrier...
I'l
Food: I pair up the group and every two hikers get a food bag, with individual food bags, except for dinners, inside. Hikers are paired for cooking dinner.

Gear-wise: just bring more of everything, more tents, more stoves, more filters. Every hiker is informed ahead of time that she'll carry not only her own stuff but a portion of the group gear. Since often the kids will share a 3-person tent, I'll usually have one hiker carry the tent but then the other two people will carry more than their "fair share" of the food, etc. I have found "parting out" the tents, in terms of one person carrying the poles, one carrying the rain fly etc., doesn't work as well.

I have from time to time looked into such things as a high capacity water filter but since I have no gear budget, I've sort of left it in terms of carrying more of the stuff I already have. Oh, and I do have a much better first aid kit I put together after taking WFA that I bring on group trips.

Jane

[garlic08]

As with everything else, "It depends." When I hike with Mags, or Pickle, for instance, it's basically a solo trip with good company. Our styles and paces are almost identical. But generally I count on a slower pace, and bring more food and something to do while waiting--a puzzle, something to read. If I'm a leader of a slower group, everything changes, like noted in post 4 above--more gear, first aid, organization, extra stuff.

[Starchild]

It would depend on how the group modified the hike. If I am going less miles, which most likely I would in some for some of these circumstances, I may bring more to allow better enjoyment of the camping part. It also depends on the degree of the intention to stick with each other for the entire time, or is their a chance of separation. If the group will be together then a larger tent which may come to less weight per person then individual tents. Likewise for cooking, I may bring a heavier stove and larger pot but use it for multiple people, so less weight per person. Water filtration likewise needs a efficient way of treating lots of water, seems like a good use of Aquamira to me.

[gsingjane]

I have seen the NOLS and other outdoor groups do things very differently, and that's also piqued my interest. They bring a huge tarp, and everybody sleeps together under the tarp, just side by side. They also bring a selection of foods, all different things including produce, grains, etc., and then they cook up a big meal which everyone shares. They don't seem to do a lot of prepared foods or supermarket stuff, it's more like, here are some potatoes and onions and oil and sun-dried tomatoes and figure out what to do with it. It's really admirable to watch!

The other thing I wanted to add about groups is that I also bring along some fun things in case we get where we're going early and have extra time to kill. I like tiny playing cards for Presidents or Spit, Mad-Libs and a frisbee... those aren't things I'd bring for myself, since I'd much rather curl up with a book, but they can be fun for groups.

Jane

[Dogwood]

When I fall in with a group of thru-hikers they are still on their own. I'm mindful of sharing with them what I can but I'm not out to babysit this kind of group.

With kids, those new to hiking, GF, etc I'm out there mainly for them getting them turned on to hiking and Nature so I'll carry, share, instruct, and in general be more responsible for them. When out with others being the leader I make sure to thoroughly research and prepare for the hike based on those terms of being the group leader out mainly for them. Being there for others so they can get turned on to the outdoors increasing their appreciation of Nature is a great reward in itself for me.

[DandT40]

When I hike with my wife and kids I bring a bigger pack to hold the bigger tent thats needed. I usually carry the food for the group as well and leave them with their cloths, pads, and quilts (and any personal items). We only carry one stove, cook set, etc...

As far as hiking style my one daughter is faster and I usually hike with her while my wife and other daughter are usually playing catch up. I'll sometimes hike with the slower group to keep them motivated and moving and let my faster hiking daughter hike ahead. The biggest change is the number of miles. I always keep it much lower (8-15 miles instead of 20+) then I would solo. Especially with kids they enjoy the time playing around at camp or just relaxing a lot more than long days of walking.

[booney_1]

I like a larger collapsible bucket or water container to treat gallons at a time. It's very convenient to task a couple of people with collecting and purifying water for the group. The collapsible bucket(s) is also nice for cleaning dishes properly. Most scout groups should be using the soapy bucket...rinse...then dip in water+bleach method. There have been discussions on here about proper cleaning, most people are pretty casual about it. But I think it's important for youth groups to be a little extra careful. Having a group water container hanging from a tree also helps in the hand washing department, which is also important for larger groups.

I also like reflector ovens. They are not as popular as they used to be. But they are great for cooking dessert for a group. And they are light enough for group backpacking.

[Feral Bill]

It is tough coordinating varying speeds. You will go much slower than solo. For a medium to large group, figure on 1 mph including breaks.