View Full Version : Crazy for hiking alone?
joeboxer
02-22-2010, 21:15
Just curious, Anyone think you're weird/eccentric for hiking alone? Not that anyone should care, but i get a lot of mixed reactions when i tell people I hike by myself.
Marmotnj
02-22-2010, 21:20
I love hiking alone, no talking. I love when you can hear a group of people coming, take a step off the trail and wait for them to pass and sometimes take them by suprise, or they don't see you at all.
bmwsmity
02-22-2010, 21:27
i also love hiking alone...get to go at my own pace, just me and nature...
some people just dont get it....too bad for them, i say
Not strange at all... Of coarse if given the choice, I'd enjoy company on occation.. I used to always go solo, mostly, because most people my age don't share the freedom I have, so it was more out of necessity than choice.. Luckly I now have a partner that was willing to take the jump out the ordinary work a day world and into a more calm homesteading lifestyle, and even more lucky, she enjoys spending our time outdoors as much as I.. So I rarely go solo anymore, and it's been mostly good...
Morpheus
02-22-2010, 21:29
I agree. I set my own pace. Enjoy the time alone each day tuning into nature and then camp near shelters if i like the energy of the people there. I used to hike with a bud, but comparing the two, I like solo.
johnnybgood
02-22-2010, 21:30
When asked why you hike alone ,give them a straight face and tell them it's doctors orders. :cool:
RollingStone
02-22-2010, 21:58
Nope. Even my wife and daughter don't want to all be together all the time. We just split up and do our thing if we want. It's nice being alone with your thoughts.
Rockhound
02-22-2010, 22:07
Just curious, Anyone think you're weird/eccentric for hiking alone? Not that anyone should care, but i get a lot of mixed reactions when i tell people I hike by myself.
Yes people think I'm weird/eccentric but it has nothing to do with hiking alone. That's just a coincidence.
Chaco Taco
02-22-2010, 22:08
Yes people think I'm weird/eccentric but it has nothing to do with hiking alone. That's just a coincidence.
But you are weird and eccentric:rolleyes::D
drifters quest
02-22-2010, 22:10
There's a lot of people that think i'm crazy for going on the AT alone, especially being a young female. Then there's the bunch that don't think they would think hiking alone would be any fun either. I started hiking by myself because barely anyone in this area enjoys this type of thing, especially in the Winter. I can set my own pace and do what I like and got kind of used to it. I don't really care for my hiking partner here but climbing steep hills for miles on end is a good way to get someone to quite talking and I don't quite feel safe enough in the Wyoming mountains solo this time of year.. not really a good idea. I really try to tell people that i'm hoping to meet up with someone to hike with along the way and eventually they give up.
sasquatch2014
02-22-2010, 22:12
When asked why you hike alone ,give them a straight face and tell them it's doctors orders. :cool:
Even better tell them that the voices in your head keep you company and as a matter of fact "they" said you can't come along.
Hiking "alone" is a relative term.
I have hiked trails "out west" and encountered only 4 people in 6 days (two groups of 2 hikers). A total contact time of just 1-2 minutes. I would classify that as hiking alone. That level of solitude is relatively rare.
We might not have an official hiking partner--but we are often far from being "alone" when we are out on the trail. There are usually other people hiking the same section of trail--at the same time--and stopping at the same GENERAL places to get water or to sleep for the night. We also encounter people hiking from the opposite direction. So, we are not really "alone" on many trails
It is my understanding, that most people would find it difficult to hike the AT completely "alone" for an entire thru hike. Too many people and too many trail towns.
I also hike alone, now that I'm a bit older. In my youth I always hiked in small groups. I like this much better.
TWS
I get mixed reactions, too, but mostly people are very positive and think I'm really brave.
From the descriptions here, I don't think you could hike the AT alone unless you southbounded and were really unfriendly.
ridgerunninrat81
02-23-2010, 00:47
I also hike alone most times. Its your own pace ,You own interests, and Your own trip. However I enjoyed the presence of others and the comradery of other hikers at the shelters at night.
Folks think I am crazy (and foolish) to hike alone. However, going back to my previous post, we are often not as "alone" on the trail as they think we are. People seem to think that there is no one around for miles and miles and that we go for days and weeks without seeing anyone. It is not THAT lonely nor THAT remote.
Weird? Depends on the shape of your tinfoil hat.
kayak karl
02-23-2010, 07:43
i never hike alone. i alway take my invisible friend "Harvey"
bulldog49
02-23-2010, 08:47
I'm a solo hiker and don't care what other people think about it. Maybe that's WHY I'm a solo hiker. :-?
Sumone86
02-23-2010, 09:28
hiking by myself is the best. i don't hike though to make it from one point to another but to have a reason to be away from people and in the bush.
i never hike alone. i alway take my invisible friend "Harvey"
hehehehehe....... What color are the trees in your world?
Plodderman
02-23-2010, 10:46
Over the years I have hiked mostly alone out of convenience. Difficult to find people to hike with and to find a schedule that works for more than one. Over the years I have had a few good hikers with me and had a great time but 95% of the time I go by myself.
I'm not telling my family until the last minute, because I want to avoid the fallout. ~K2~
No, but have friend know what you are doing.
SmokyMtn Hiker
02-25-2010, 16:08
I hike alone almost 100% of the time and I prefer it that way, I am on know one's schedule but mine. I always leave my schedule with my wife so she knows about where I will be if there was an emergency or I not make contact or show up at my pick up point. Some of my co workers think I am crazy and it's dangerous but I tell them it less dangerous than driving to work and back everday.
NorthCountryWoods
02-25-2010, 16:25
Before I met my wife, I almost always hiked alone. I really did enjoy it. Now she always comes along on over-nighters, but I still day hike on my own occasionally.
If you are comfortable in your own thoughts, there's nothing wrong with it at all. That is not the case for everyone tho. I've met a few on the trail that have been in their own head too long...whether it be a couple months or a couple days, not everybody can cope.
kayak karl
02-25-2010, 16:38
hehehehehe....... What color are the trees in your world?
http://www.popportraits.com/paintings/Max/Max-WithoutBorders.jpg
:welcome to my world
Happens all the time, the conversation usually goes like this;
"How far did you hike?"
"Oh, X miles or so"
"Who went with you?"
"No one, I was by myself"
<shocked expression and statements about how they would never do that, I'm crazy, bears will eat me, I could fall in a hole and die alone, etc...>
Jester2000
02-25-2010, 16:58
If I'm alone, what's with all the voices?