Do you talk on a cell phone while hiking?

[Frosty]

Q: What's the difference between being on a summit and having two people nearby having a face-to-face conversation, and overhearing one person having a cell phone conversation?

A: If the person is using a cell phone, you only hear half the conversation. Youi actually get more peace and quiet if they are using a cell phone!

Seriously, th initial objection (Post #1) said we hike to get away form civilization, and I think that is a faulty premise. It is correct for the poster, of course. He wouldn't use a cell phone, digital camera, GPS or other electronic trappings because he IS getting away.

The fallacy is in thinking everyone hikes for the same reason he does.

Some just like to be in the woods. Enjoy the views and smells of the forest. Nothing at all to do with getting away from civilization. They eat freeze dried meals, use digital cameras, Gore Tex, deoderant, all sorts of civilized things because they don't mind it. They think nothing of using a cell phone because it does not conflict with the reason they came into the woods. In fact, if you were to ask them, they would say they enjoy it more with teh cell phone (why else would they use it if they didn't prefer to?). Their idea of a good time simply is different from yours. Not better or worse, not good or bad. just different.

Personally, I don't know why people conduct business on the phone on the trial, either, but I have different life goals and a different personality than they do.

They want to talk, let 'em. If they are talking loudly, well, that is rude, but the rudeness is in talking loudly, not in using a cell phone. A loud face-to-face conversation is just as rude.

The big key: Don't let YOUR enjoyment of the woods be dependent on what gear other people carry. You can enjoy your hike even if people are using a cell phone, or drinking champagne, or taking digital pictures and emailing them via whatever that thingie is called. Or you can be angry about the way other people hike and not enjoy yourself.

 

[Tuco]

My wife has epilepsy and has had two pretty bad episodes over the last year or so.

If I notice a hike going off schedule I will not hesitate to pull out my cell and call at that moment to let her know and take advantage to see how she's feeling (heavy meds do ugly things sometimes). Or I'll just call anytime to see how she's feeling to make me feel better about getting out.

Most often I don't have coverage so it's a moot point.

Beyond that I don 't know enough people I like to consider calling....

 

[GNR]

When I'm on call...

...for psychiatric emergencies of my patients, I do have the need to be reached, wherever I am. I have a satellite phone and get great service on the peaks and even in some of the valleys. A necessary evil.

 

[Snowflea]

I say who cares?! As long as a person isn't YELLING into their phone, why should I care if they're yakking on one?? I'm just not THAT tuned in to what others are doing anyway... rather going about my merry way and enjoying my own hike.

Also, I think it's presumptuous to say that all of us go to the mountains to get away from civilization (see first post in this thread). There are many reasons why people choose to hike. (And a trail is a form of "civilized hiking," is it not?)

And another thing: the only way I'd consider champagne consumption offensive is if I wasn't offered any.

 

[bruno]

 

[Darwin]

Got one, never used it in the mountains. But I carry it anyway for my wife's piece of mind.

 

[Sugarloafer]

The only people that really annoy me are the out of stater yuppies that come up to the ski areas like Sugarloaf

Really ?????...this is like me calling everyone from Maine a toothless product of incest.


BTW......Burlington where ?

 

[mavs00]

And another thing: the only way I'd consider champagne consumption offensive is if I wasn't offered any.

Classic.......

 

[king tut]

Really ?????...this is like me calling everyone from Maine a toothless product of incest.


BTW......Burlington where ?

May God bless you.

 

[funkyfreddy]

speaking of psychiatric emergencies.....

...for psychiatric emergencies of my patients, I do have the need to be reached, wherever I am.......A necessary evil.

I personally don't own a cell phone...... my CIA handlers put an implant in my cerebral cortex a long time ago when I was abducted by their gray alien allies....

My implant works much better than a conventional cell phone... instead of ring tones I get body shocks or premonitions..... it is rather irritating when my handlers call me or try to beam me up during a hike, though.....

I try not to talk to my implant when I'm hiking, although sometimes I've been known to speak out loud when slipping between multiple dimensions..... often I'll cry out "No, No", tell a bad joke or start singing/whistling some oldie I know the aliens hate.... Hey, I didn't ask for the job, you know, but because I'm such a space case the US government drafted me, told me I was one of the best candidates they had for their mission of building bridges to other galaxies...... but this is a story for another forum, of course, as it has nothing to do with hiking.....

Nothing like having a phone in your brain for convenience, though...... the battery never goes dead as it's solar powered through my ear lobes..... as long as FF gets enough sun and fluids the phone is always working!

The downside of this unique technology is that sometimes the uplink gets scrambled..... like all new technology sometimes there are software issues or worse..... sometimes I get gospel broadcasts through my teeth! Now the unitiated might think in this case that God was speaking to them, but I asked her and she told me "No, Freddy, I didn't call you...... you're just having another driver issue! Please don't waste any more of my time!"

 

[Neil]

Now I know where FF is coming from.

In some cases, having a cell phone is what permits the person to be out hiking.

 

[Skyclimber]

I hate cell phones period! I don't own one and never will. But I said, I hate computers and that I would never own one too!

 

[Jay H]

The only reason I have a cell phone is because I bike commute and like to also bike tour. I would think that if some yahoo ever decides to hit me, that if I'm still ticking, I'd be able to at least hopefully be able to use it and call the cops and ambulance and stuff. And if you ever run into the rednecks and stuff, the act of pretending to call the cops has a strange way of making cagers obey the law.

But hiking, I would only use it for emergencies and typically, there is no reception in the woods where I hike anyway.

Jay

 

[Jasonst]

Why not carry a laptop and a fax machine too?

I tried the fax machine but it was a little cumbersome in my pack.

If I had the type of job where I could hike and work at the same time - I most certainly wouldn't have a problem breaking out the laptop on a warm, sunny summit and working (quietly, that is.) I would imagine I would be the envy of the crowd!

 

[forestgnome]

It never ceases to amaze me how many people, supposedly out on the trail to get away from civilization, spend half the day either making or receiving calls on their cell phones!

While I agree about yaking while hiking through the forest, your premise about hikers' motivation to hike is faulty. You may hike to get away from civilization, but others might be there to check off a peak on some list. They would hike to that peak if it was in the middle of New York City. People hike for different reasons, all valid.

Frosty's post is excellent.

I was enjoying lunch on Mt Lafayette, listening to ravens and wind, when a hiker appeared and was soon discussing shopping with his wife, who was in an outlet somewhere. I quickly packed up and left. It would be no different if his wife was there; it was the loud conversation.

They aren't wrong to talk, and I'm free to leave. I hike solo because I immerse myself in the forest, but that's just me. I'll chat with nice folks I see along the way, while being conscious of others.

I keep a cell phone in my pack, turned off. It might save a life one day by shortening the time it takes for a rescue, of myself or someone else.

 

[Adk_dib]

don't own one. tried it a few years ago and couldn't get reception in the mountains so i figure why pay the rent?

 

[smitty77]

I carry one, and I leave it on. With a baby on the way, I stay close to home and always within earshot.

That said, I never expect to escape from civilization when I'm hiking. Maybe it comes from all of those years hiking and doing trail work on Monadnock - you're bound to run into a few people, if not hundreds, and a certain percentage will be annoying. Even before cell phones were common, there was always the dad/mom yelling for a group of kids from some ledge high on the mountain. Sure it ruins the moment, but I'm not going to let a 30 second hiccup spoil my entire day hiking. It is unreasonable to expect total serenity at any time in the mountains because they are public places open to folks from all walks of life, including some who believe the great outdoors is just an extension of their busy lives in the city.

I've found the best way to "escape it all" is to wander through your local conservation area early on a Saturday morning. Heck, even Wachusett is mostly empty before 8 am.

 

[Camper58]

I bring one on every hike because I hike solo. My wife likes to be called when I reach a summit, just for peace of mind. My calls last less than 2 minutes and I would never call if others were at the summit too. In fact, more than one call has ended with "Oops, someones coming, gotta go".
I usually don't see too many people when hiking and I honestly don't recall anyone else using a cell, so I can't say whether I'd be annoyed by it or not.

 

[Stan]

A: If the person is using a cell phone, you only hear half the conversation. Youi actually get more peace and quiet if they are using a cell phone!

Well, that's what bugs me ... only hearing half of what is typically a louder conversation than two people would normally carry on. Can't stand not knowing what the other party is saying.

Seriously, there are lot's of modern technology that I haven't adopted simply because their most useful utility is the commercial success of others. Count me with those who carry one in the off position for possible use in either an emergency or similar situation though I did use it once in a conversation that started like this, "You'll never guess where I am."

In addition to utility, there's a little fun to be had but I'm only annoyed when the serenity and ambience of a peaceful place is broken by poor manners that happen to include a cell phone.

 

[giggy]

I usually don't - but I would

on rainier I tried to use my phone but it didn't work, so i borrowed SLI74's. I could care less what people do on the trail.

I could even care less what people think of me on the trail I am in the woods for some fun and if I wanted to get away from it all - I wouldn't be hiking in the whites.

as soon as my son was born - the phone comes with me and stays on for the most part. I don't think I am a yuppie, cuz I am not urban, not professional and not really that young anymore.