Do you envy the beautiful pictures on your Instagram feed from summits near and abroad? Are you a wanderluster at heart? But do you find the act of hiking to be exhausting and boring?
I used to hate hiking too, the sweat, the bugs, sore feet and slippery rocks. I always asked myself “What’s the point?” But this was because I wasn’t doing it right, so here are my tips that turned me into a hike-a-holic.
1. Be Prepared
A huge part of hiking is having the right gear with you. Sometimes a backpack stuffed with the following can make our break a hike for you.
- Bug Spray
- Sunscreen
- First Aid Kit
- Matches
- Baseball Cap
- Portable Charger
- Mints
- Plenty of Cold Water
- Snacks
2. Dress Correctly
In order to have a successful hike, you must dress correctly. The weather can change suddenly when you are changing elevation. Whenever I hike, I like to wear cropped leggings and a T-shirt, but I always bring a sweatshirt and a rain coat.
3. Hike with Friends
For safety and fun, it always makes sense to hike with a buddy. When you hike alone, you run a major risk. There is always a chance for a rolled ankle or cuts and scrapes, so it’s always smart to hike with someone, because when worse comes to worse, at least you’ll have a friend by your side.
4. Have Great Music
At some point during your hike, there is a chance your moral will be low. Hikes are often an all day, physically draining experience, so I always like to have a fairly long playlist on hand (I am a huge fan of this mellow playlist).
5. Hike to Your Level
The most important part of hiking, is to not stretch yourself too far. You increase your chance for injury and you won’t have as much fun if you try to hike to far above your level. And you will be less likely to go hiking again, causing you never to improve. To finds hikes around you at every level use the All Trails app. It’s a great resource for getting directions, reviews, and trail maps for all sorts of hikes.
What are your hiking tips? Lets us know in the comments below!
