Not scared, maybe a bit nervous

[skinnbones]

At the beginning of your AT hike (before you became part of the trail) does anybody recall being nervous sleeping alone in a tent? I'm not scared of tenting alone in a wilderness setting, but I'm sure I will be a bit edgy the first few nights. Am I alone on this?

[Meriadoc]

You are not alone. I was edgy the first few times I was alone. :P

[tarantolk]

Your not alone, I literally got sick every night for the first week from nerves.

[tf bear]

You will ultimately be fine. Just make sure you Are tired and do not drink any thing caffeinated. At the end of your hike you will find it hard to sleep indoors on a bed.

[Sarcasm the elf]

It's totally normal to worry about it, it's just something that you have to get used to.

[moldy]

Plenty of other hikers out there, camp within earshot of a shelter early in your hike.

[HooKooDooKu]

I still get a bit nervous each time I'm driving toward the GSMNP to take one of my boys camping.

Actually, my worst case was the 1st time I took my younger son camping. The whole way we were heading toward the campsite, we kept hearing day hikers telling us about the bears they had seen at the campsite. I never saw the bears, but because I was trying to stay so attuned to any noises that night, I started having a lucid dream (that's when within your dream, you realize you are dreaming and can even control the dream).

[Leanthree]

I generally sleep lightly my first couple nights in the backcountry.

It used to be far worse until I had a bit of epiphany that I was getting anxious about not sleeping enough so I wouldn't sleep enough. Mental change and now I fall right back asleep when I inevitably wake up a few times the first few nights.

[saltysack]

NyQuil!!!!!


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[Old Hiker]

Nope - seems to be a normal occurance. I woke up at every real and imagined sound for a week or better before I was so tired I slept through everything. Had a couple of nightmares as well. One was a bear sitting on my chest demanding my Fig Newtons !

Except the Nature calls. Couldn't ignore those. Dag-nab it.

[Another Kevin]

My first few times out, I was quite nervous indeed, but I was a little kid. I've got enough clueless weekends behind me that nowadays my technique for falling asleep in a tent is pretty simple: get into sleeping bag, close eyes, fall asleep.

This thread, though, makes me scratch my head a little bit. Do most people actually start thru-hikes without doing a long shakedown: at least one hike long enough to need to resupply, not to mention several shorter trips? That seems odd to me. Even with a lot of weekends behind me, I think there's stuff I'd want to tune up before making that kind of commitment. Because I'm clueless about long-distance hiking.

[fins1838]

Be Kalefull. Be vewy vewy kaleful.

[kayak karl]

i don't like sleeping with others around, shelters and even hostels with people moving around all night. the worst for me is when i hear vehicles close by. i never sleep near a road, but sometimes cars sound closer then they really are.

[Drybones]

One of the good/bad things about the AT is that you are never alone for long. Something I found interesting was how quickly (a few days) I developed a sense of belonging on the trail, like it was home.

[Weather-man]

At the beginning of your AT hike (before you became part of the trail) does anybody recall being nervous sleeping alone in a tent? I'm not scared of tenting alone in a wilderness setting, but I'm sure I will be a bit edgy the first few nights. Am I alone on this?

Your response is normal. It's not the fact that your tenting but rather that your environmental conditions have altered significantly. This is a normal human response and one of the reasons that we're the apex animal. You'll settle in once your senses have attuned themselves to the radically different and new stimuli.

Once they do, you'll settle down.... to be completely candid sleeping "like a log" is luxury and a result of living in a modern 1st world civilization. It's ok to sleep light. It's kept folks alive for a couple million years.

[rocketsocks]

Your response is normal. It's not the fact that your tenting but rather that your environmental conditions have altered significantly. This is a normal human response and one of the reasons that we're the apex animal. You'll settle in once your senses have attuned themselves to the radically different and new stimuli.

Once they do, you'll settle down.... to be completely candid sleeping "like a log" is luxury and a result of living in a modern 1st world civilization. It's ok to sleep light. It's kept folks alive for a couple million years.

gotta agree with the Weather-man, many groups in the animal kingdom post a Sentry...so to speak, were no different. Ear plugs are my Sentry, and fate is my friend....and most definitely sleeping soundly is a luxury not many enjoy.


...Now I lay me down to sleep...


and if that don't get it for ya, maybe try this...

http://www.udap.com/bearshock.htm

guaranteed to oscillate the nuts off a grizzly...with a mild electrical correction.

[HikerMom58]

Nope - seems to be a normal occurance. I woke up at every real and imagined sound for a week or better before I was so tired I slept through everything. Had a couple of nightmares as well. One was a bear sitting on my chest demanding my Fig Newtons !

Except the Nature calls. Couldn't ignore those. Dag-nab it.

LOL... Similarly, my daughter woke herself up shouting, "bad bear!" because she had slept with her food, in her tent, that night.

[HikerMom58]

i don't like sleeping with others around, shelters and even hostels with people moving around all night. the worst for me is when i hear vehicles close by. i never sleep near a road, but sometimes cars sound closer then they really are.

How true! It's the AT, there aren't supposed to be "motorized vehicles" in the woods! Alas, there was an ATV "passing through" at 5:00 AM.

Having said that, I hate doing any thing alone in the woods. (walking, sleeping etc.. ) I hate it! I wish I could enjoy it, sometimes, believe me.

Skinnbones--- I'll hope that you can get used to it! Sounds like plenty others have!

[hikerboy57]

last year,at tray mountain, i heard choppers in the middle of the night, and it reminded me of home( i live near an airport and airtraffic is pretty much a constant.)had no problem falling asleep.
i usually have a bit of anxiety the first night out till i get use to the sounds of the forest and listen to the wind, puts me right out.

[Old Hiker]

last year,at tray mountain, i heard choppers in the middle of the night, and it reminded me of home( i live near an airport and airtraffic is pretty much a constant.)had no problem falling asleep.
i usually have a bit of anxiety the first night out till i get use to the sounds of the forest and listen to the wind, puts me right out.

Oh, yeah!!! Forgot those near Springer a couple of nights. Plus the machine gun fire, explosions, etc. Interesting attempt at sleeping THAT night !!