Gas and holiday weekend hiking

[Solitary]

This morning in Keene, NH a gallon of regular is going for $3.92 (I always add that extra 1/10th of a cent) and $4.12 for the highest octane. I'll be hiking close to home this weekend (Monadnock) but I would have anyways. Is anyone changing their plans because of prices? If not, is there any price that would cause you to do so and what would it be?

 

[1ADAM12]

I live 5.5 hours from the Adirondacks and I am traveling up there this weekend. I figure it is going to cost me almost 200 bucks round trip At least I have someone going along to help cut that in half. If prices ever reached 5 bucks which I am sure they will in the next 6 months I might start riding my bike to work

 

[Quietman]

At these prices, I don't travel anywhere unless it's absolutely neccessary. I have to keep 4 cars on the road, mine-my wife's-son's-daughter's. So aside from them getting to school and work, there is no joy ridding for us. There are enough great hiking spots in SW New Hampshire that I can't justify driving 120 miles to hike something bigger. If we get up to my parent's cabin in Maine for a week in August, I'll try and do a few hikes then.

 

[rocksnrolls]

I'm planning to do alot of hiking in Mass and southern NH and VT this year to save on gas. Most of my trips up to NH will probably be for multiple days to get the most climbing in for my money

 

[MichaelJ]

Well, the ADK trips are planned, as are the Baxter trips, and they'll just be expensive to drive. Fortunately the lodging (camping) remains cheap to help counter that.

But I do foresee the long drives to day hikes being curtailed. We have a few on the schedule which we'll still do (things like list finishes), but I think my dream of hiking Saturdays in the far north and being at home to bike ride on Sundays may be shattered if we hit $5.

 

[mookie]

staying local.

luckily i live close by to some decent hiking so it will save me at least a hundred bucks a weekend!!! save the whites for the over night trips.

 

[bandana4me]

Stayin close to home

With the price of gas I cant afford to leave town to go hiking. Oh wait the gale river loop road is only 5 miles away. Guess I will have to stay with those local hikes! It will be less than a half a gallon of gas. Maybe I should take my motorcycle, and the bonus on the bike is they DO NOT require parking permits. I can save money on the parking passes as well.

I love living in the North Country!

 

[ADKdremn]

I just saw a headline that the analysts are saying it will hit 4 bucks by next week. Well, when the analysts predict it, then it'll happen. Seems to me like if the analysts are gonna say it's going to happen the gas companies just smile and see how fast they can get it up to the prediction!
For once I'd like to see an analyst say the prices are gonna fall to a buck a gallon and see if the gas companies follow suit then.
I know wishful thinking.
I get to spend my Memorial Day moving my in-laws, lucky me. To make matters worse....they're moving closer.

 

[rocket21]

I'm not travelling quite as much, but $4 gas doesn't really scare me. I did some calculations on how much a .$50/gallon and a $1.00/gallon increase over what I paid last year would cost me this year and it really isn't that bad in the scheme of things. I figure I'll cut back a bit for now until my eyes grow accustomed to upper 3s/lower 4s, then resume similar driving patterns.

 

[Jay H]

I live 5.5 hours from the Adirondacks and I am traveling up there this weekend. I figure it is going to cost me almost 200 bucks round trip At least I have someone going along to help cut that in half. If prices ever reached 5 bucks which I am sure they will in the next 6 months I might start riding my bike to work

I think you should start anyway, $4 gas, Free Gas, doesn't matter.. I love it, myself and have been bike commuting since 2001.

kayaking on the Hudson this weekend, gas doesn't affect me, I mostly drive on weekends and Wednesday when I go hiking after work. And I have to buy Premium fuel for my Subaru (turbo).

Jay

 

[erugs]

The high cost of fuel is frustrating and depressing me. Many of my friends live at a distance because we met while hiking. But it is more than the cost of gasoline -- the ripple effect is wide and just beginning, I'm afraid. One of the things that brought me into the hiking community was the feeling of wholeness and joy I felt while in the mountains. It is difficult to be forced into a lifestyle change without feeling resentful, though I recognize that on a scale of 1-10 for worldwide problems this (mine/ours of reduced travel) is miniscule.

 

[mookie]

biking

also started biking to work 3 weeks ago. been getting 4 days in per week its 25 miles (rt) per day so its been saving some money and helping me get in shape.
my vehicle is also a turbo high compression engine and requires premium fuel, but i love my car so i wont complain about an extra 15-20 cents per gallon.

 

[roadtripper]

Due to my frequent trips to the mountains I decided to trade in my Nissan Pathfinder (18mph) for a Nissan Altima (28mpg) last year. Due to the $4 gas I'm trying to find car or small suv of decent size that'll get me into the 35mpg range or so.

This summer, I'll probably skip all the day trips up north and only go for multiple-night trips. It just makes more sense....

 

[Viewseeker]

I Agree

I Have The Same Roadtripper...pathfinder.......i Have All The Same Thoughts As You On This Gas Crunch Coming From Syracuse...im Thinking A Suburu Wagon...least I Can Still Sleep In It Like My Pathfinder..not Sure What The Mpg Is But Its Better Than My 16-17 Right Now...and They Run Forever Like The Nissan...around $100.00 Without Eating From Here....so If Anyone Is Coming Thru Lets Split It Up And Double The Fun :d

 

[cbcbd]

I'm probably sticking semi local/local. Some family stuff and gotta visit some friends close by and have some coming over to visit. I've been driving a lot lately (for the spring months) and have a big drive coming up in a month (to WA), it has felt like I've been out on tour for the last month, so I'm kinda feeling conservative.
Plus, I despise traffic. I couldn't imagine immersing myself into Memorial day weekend traffic heading North.

 

[onestep]

Since the first of April, this weekend will be my 7th trip driving from Maine to Vermont in pursuit of 3000 footers. Rollie and I take turns driving. This weekend we're using his vehicle.
Gas is getting expensive for sure, but it's not at the point YET that it's slowed me down.
My plan was to replace the off-road Taurus with another when it finally decides to quit. It's been such a reliable / inexpensive vehicle to own (226,000 miles and counting). I get 28 MPG on a long trip but I'd sure like to do better...

 

[DrewKnight]

Upgrading fleet and staying closer to home

We've taking both tactics to heart... A couple years ago, when we were traveling from the South Shore of Boston to the Whites almost every weekend, I swapped out my commuter car (a Mini Cooper that was great fun but too small for a family of four for a weekend) for a small Volvo wagon (V50 T-5) that gets an average of about 29mpg on the highway. This was a vast improvement over our 2000 Land Rover Discovery, which was, even at the time, costing us $75/wkend in gas back and forth.

This year, when the Disco reached end-of-life (we drive cars into the ground, typically), we went nuts and replaced it with a Toyota Highlander Hybrid (getting about 25mpg highway so far). We still wanted the ability to carry 7 people, and at least modest "soft-road" capability, and we calculated the pay-back for the hybrid was well within our ownership cycle -- at $3.25/gallon. So far, it seems like a good choice for our needs.

We're also perfectly happy staying closer to home (now that home is in the mountains)... our kids love open ledges and waterfalls, but 5-mile-out-and-back is a good range for them right now, and there are no shortage of great hikes within an $8 round-trip.

 

[eddie]

I'm still hiking when I want to. It's the cost of doing my hiking business. Maybe I'll skimp a little on the apres-hiking lodging and entertainment. Then again, maybe not.

 

[Neil]

RT from Montreal to the Dacks comes in at about $50. I go 2-3 times /month. I now drive 60 mph. instead of 75, and have removed my enclosed ski rack for better mileage.

I usually spend less than 10 bucks (and sometimes no more than a cup of coffee) when I go hiking.

For me, $150 a month ain't bad at all. I know people who spend that on cell phone service. But, at $200 per RT I would get a tiny vehicle and try to carpool.

 

[daxs]

I have 2 ADK trips and 1 Maine trip planned for this summer/fall. The trip to Maine is for 2 weeks and most of it will be spent camping. I can't imagine how much money Jim and I will spend on gas for the Maine trip. Esp since we will be taking kayaks and bikes with us. Other than that it will be mountain bike riding and kayaking close to home for the rest of the summer. Regular gas is between 3.69 and 3.85 down here in south jersey depending on where you buy it. It usually goes up in the summer because of summer tourists. I expect the gas prices to be 4.00 at the stations when I leave work today; I work on Cape May Island and gas is always more expensive here. I am going to start riding my bike to work to next week, at least for a few days a week.