Making a tough day easier

[northboundanddown]

Just wondering what you guys have done to pass time on a boring day to make it brighter. I know some smoke on trail, but do you think it helps you hike further that day or do you end up shortening your day? Drinking coffee or caffenine pills? I know good food is the best bet, but we know it is scarce.

[WingedMonkey]

Oh gawd...not again

[hikerboy57]

which day would be boring exactly?
if im bored i keep on hiking or i sleep or i eat.
if im not bored, i keep on hiking, or i eat, or i sleep.
i brought a book with me and although i took a zero at chairback shelter, i read a couple of pages and it put me right to sleep. i couldnt hike, so i ate, and i slept.
i hardly ever get bored. someone once told me boring people get bored.

[northboundanddown]

I know your old as crap and seen and heard everything in your retirement village in West Palm, but give me a break.

[Kryptonite]

I know your old as crap and seen and heard everything in your retirement village in West Palm, but give me a break.

Haha. He had it coming. Good for you. I think it's a decent question. Sometimes I think the best days for me have been when I have tried to do something nice for others on the trail.

[northboundanddown]

I appreciate the answer. I just no there are days that you feel like your hiking just to get finished, and you forget why you are there.

[Kryptonite]

I think that is why drop boxes from others; trail magic, hiker feeds and just a cold soda can often mean so much. I think that after a while even the most upbeat person can have down days. This isn't for everyone, but even learning a little of a foreign language or baseball stats or whatever can help pass the time - especially at night.

[Hikes in Rain]

Bored? Geez, even my worst day hiking was better than my best day working!

[northboundanddown]

I guess bored might not be the best word. Maybe just making the day more enjoyable. That still doesn't sound right, but just some days your trying to put in mileage and don't really take everything in.

[Moose2001]

crank up the MP3 and listen to some good tunes.

[brian039]

I guess bored might not be the best word. Maybe just making the day more enjoyable. That still doesn't sound right, but just some days your trying to put in mileage and don't really take everything in.

Bored is the right word. For me it kicked in somewhere in Northern Virginia and lasted up until about NY or CT. That part of the trail just isn't very scenic in my opinion and gets really redundant (except NJ which was a nice surprise). I hiked with some great people in that stretch, enjoyed the town stops, and did big miles knowing that it would put me that much closer to New England. That and being stubborn is what got me through it.

[WingedMonkey]

I know your old as crap and seen and heard everything in your retirement village in West Palm, but give me a break.

I can see now why you are so easy to bore.

[hikerboy57]

sing. we sang the doobie bros through hours of torrential rains last friday, made it a bit more tolerable.
"......pretty momma come and take me by the hand.
by the hand/hand,take me by the hand, pretty momma, gonna dance with your daddy all night long................................"
even in the rain, we were smiling and laughing at how ridiculous the weather was, helped keep the spirits up.
we occassionally would alternate with verses of singin in the rain.

[fredmugs]

crank up the MP3 and listen to some good tunes.

oh gawd....not again

Just kidding. I save my MP3 juice for the big climbs. Bring a Kindle and load it with those free addicting games.

[WingedMonkey]

If hiker feeds and lonely self appointed trail magicians are a cure for boredom, then folks need to get off the trail.

[SCRUB HIKER]

Try learning something about the plants/flowers/birds you're seeing/hearing. I wanted to do this on the AT but didn't want to pack physical copies of reference books. But now that I have a Kindle and a smartphone (AKA those newfangled electronic devices that destroy everyone's wilderness experience), I'm going to load up on reference books and apps in the future.

[JohnWayne]

If hiker feeds and lonely self appointed trail magicians are a cure for boredom, then folks need to get off the trail.

Partner, that's a mighty high horse you're on...

[ATMountainTime]

I know your old as crap and seen and heard everything in your retirement village in West Palm, but give me a break.

LMFAO!!!!! That just made my day right there.

[jakedatc]

Good snack food goes a long ways. Nutty bars, M&Ms, Nutella, Peanut butter, Pringles, apple pies (heavy but sharing a box of them between the group for the first night out of town?), different drink mixes to change up flavors or plain water.

simple deck of cards is pretty light and if you know different games you can keep entertained for a while at shelters.

[turtle fast]

If you want to brighten up your day....one word....SNICKERS BAR...it will bring tears of joy to your face after a long grueling hike. In camp their is ALWAYS something to do like your typical camp chores (getting water, making dinner, etc), fixing/cleaning/mending gear, cleaning yourself up, or taking a well deserved nap. Reading the shelter journals is always entertaining. If you get really ambitious their is always picking up trash from the camp area or cleaning out the fire pit, or sweeping out the shelter.