Poll: Hiking or Climbing Solo - Do you do it? Ever?

I started my hiking career in the Whites mostly doing weekend outings with friends. Between 1990 and 2007 my project was the AT; that included several 100 mile sections, a 650 mile section, and a final 587 mile section in 2007. Almost all those miles hiking alone, in fact I almost never (except for a few dozen miles on the AT in Virginia) had a regular hiking partner. I've gone days on end without seeing another soul on the trail. It does get lonely.

(Hiking northbound with the "wave" in Georgia, you will not get lonely.)

Winter hiking's something else. That I don't do alone. I never was a peakbagger. My heart's still into long-distance hiking, even if circumstances don't quite favor it.

bikehikeskifish said:

I have learned that VFTT does not automatically glean all of the uber hikers out there, FWIW. Many gridiots, NH200/300 finishers, SSW48ers, soloists, etc., just don't care for the "online hiking experience". So, while there is probably more experience than average in those 406/256 (just a guess), by no means can one infer that there are not others out there doing more exotic things than soloing in winter.

Tim

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Everything's specialized these days. Even within the "hiking community." Peakbaggers and long-distance hikers go to the mountains with very different hopes and expectations. But there are online forums for all interests, and lots of armchair hikers. I are one. Hopin' to fix that soon.

rafe_b said:

Everything's specialized these days. Even within the "hiking community." Peakbaggers and long-distance hikers go to the mountains with very different hopes and expectations. But there are online forums for all interests, and lots of armchair hikers. I are one. Hopin' to fix that soon.

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There are also non-hiking things that one can do in the mountains: rock climbing, ice climbing, white water boating, skiing, and studying the plants, animals, and/or geology to list a few.

Doug

Yeah, DP. I hear you. I remember a hike up and down Lafayette (well, Greenleaf, if not the summit) almost exactly 24 years ago, looking across the way, wondering why I was schlepping up this mountain, instead of skiing Cannon. I'm too new here to have a feel for the demographics and what people are into. Telemark skiing... whitewater kayaking... ice climbing... so many things I've missed so far.

Most of my hiking is done solo, no matter what the season is. I do more group hiking in the summer than in spring, fall, or winter, but even then I still mostly solo hike. Probably because most of my friends and family aren't hikers. There's just something about being out in the woods alone- one can fully appreciate the natural beauty the trail has to offer, such as trickling streams, a weird-looking plant to the side, or the little critters that call the area home- without any human interruption.

Winter solo hiking is different for me than the rest of the year; I usually stick to the low hills, but occasionally I'll make a 4,000 footer attempt.

rafe_b said:

Yeah, DP. I hear you. I remember a hike up and down Lafayette (well, Greenleaf, if not the summit) almost exactly 24 years ago, looking across the way, wondering why I was schlepping up this mountain, instead of skiing Cannon. I'm too new here to have a feel for the demographics and what people are into. Telemark skiing... whitewater kayaking... ice climbing... so many things I've missed so far.

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Many people seem to be specialists--they only do one or a few (often closely related) activities. Some are generalists* and do a wide range. If you ask a non-hiking outdoors question, someone who engages in that activity is likely to uncloak and answer.

* I personally tend to be in this group.

Doug

Funny ... I realized when I was out on Tuesday that it was the first time I'd hiked solo in nearly five years. It was both a good and not-so-good call -- on the one hand, the considerable effort entailed in breaking out a somewhat obscure VT 3,000 footer and the dubious rewards were not something most people I know would have enjoyed all that much. On the other hand, it did cross my mind a few times that the places I was would not be good places to have a mishap, by myself.

So it goes ... the next four or five hikes on the docket already have partners signed up.

Lauky and I have been section hiking the Benton Mackaye trail in GA, TN and NC this winter. In the last 165 miles we have encountered 5 other hikers. We haven't seen anyone in the last 60 miles. It gives a whole new meaning to the term solo hiking.

bikehikeskifish said:

374 people last posted in 2013, in addition to the now 263 whose last post is in 2014. I.e. they are disjoint.

Tim

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@Tim - any chance you would update these numbers? It would be interesting to see how they have changed and to see what fraction of VFTT the 143 that have taken the poll represent.

I assume one can take the poll but the thread is not necessarily bumped if there is no post as well. Is that true? I think the numbers in the poll went up by a handful, that's why I ask. Thanks.

Tim

I've been hiking for over 40 years. When I was younger, I used to plan hiking (or backpacking) trips with friends. Something would happen and they would back out and I would end up not going and angry. To prevent this from happening I decided a long time ago to plan every trip as a solo trip. If someone would like to go along, that's great. I'd love to have them along. If not, my plans still go forward. Because I hike often, it ends up that I hike solo more often than not. Friends are just not available as often as I go. My hikes are all seasons and include bushwhacking. One important point, as I've grown older, I've come to cherish the wilderness solitude. So, solo is always great, but hiking with a friend is great also.

Dave

If you hike solo, especially if you don't have a good contact person, here's another safety net that could be used. Perhaps it's been mention on this site before, but I don't remember seeing it. http://www.trailnote.com/index.cfm

cool poll. Much different result than I expected.

Since this resurfaced, and I have the data handy, I did 22/48 peaks solo this winter.

PeakName TimesBagged
Tecumseh 3
Cannon 2
Carter Dome 2
Field 2
Middle Carter 2
South Carter 2
Tom 2
Willey 2
Adams 1
East Osceola 1
Eisenhower 1
Hancock 1
Jackson 1
Madison 1
Middle Tripyramid 1
North Tripyramid 1
Osceola 1
Pierce 1
South Hancock 1
Waumbek 1
Wildcat 1
Wildcat, D Peak 1

Tim

Tuckermanpaws said:

cool poll. Much different result than I expected.

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yeah, i think this poll really shows that the majority of people who took the poll are experienced hikers. Experienced hikers tend to get really comfy hiking and having a partner or not usually won't deter them due to their comfortabilty, esp. if they have some solo hikes already under their belt. I love hiking solo or with a partner or 2, not a huge fan of groups, in general the hiking pace tends to slow with more than four.

Hiking with others is social. Hiking solo is like a Zen meditation on footsteps.

Ed'n Lauky said:

If you hike solo, especially if you don't have a good contact person, here's another safety net that could be used. Perhaps it's been mention on this site before, but I don't remember seeing it. http://www.trailnote.com/index.cfm

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Pretty neat service. Thanks for that info. I had never heard of it. I always hike solo and usually leave my wife a spreadsheet of projected times of where I'll be, which invariably she forgets at home when she's out. But she never forgets her phone!

Ed'n Lauky said:

If you hike solo, especially if you don't have a good contact person, here's another safety net that could be used. Perhaps it's been mention on this site before, but I don't remember seeing it. http://www.trailnote.com/index.cfm

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What am I missing? How is this any differant from notifying your contact with the same information before you leave and notifying them when you finish?

1SlowHiker said:

What am I missing? How is this any differant from notifying your contact with the same information before you leave and notifying them when you finish?

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Not everyone has a spouse or someone to leave their info with. The Rocks on Top website was doing this for a while for that very reason. Even a couple that hikes together might want some sort of contact in case something happens and they don't return. If your spouse stays home and handles it for you, you wouldn't need that website.