Hiking }Camping

Leah

Leah

Member
Location
Mi
My husband and I are planning a hiking trip together in July This is our first time and we are both excited to get out in nature and enjoy our time together.We love to camp so this will give us another new thing to do besides just going to the usual camp grounds.Have any of you been out on the trails hiking ?We are just starting out with a weekend hike and seeing how we do till get more adventurous with it .Leah
 

I used to do some hiking when I was more able to get around. Just through local parks and walking trails. I have never camped, so that should be fun. Remember your insect repellant, and watch for ticks/ LOL
 
We have a pop up camper on our truck and usually go to out of the way areas like national forest or BLM land, and we do a lot of hiking also. We either walk on dirt roads that have little traffic or trails that go along rivers or through woods, etc. We don't go on many established trails because we like to get away from people, also, the dog can run loose. I love getting out in nature, have some photo albums here with my pictures of past camping trips. Hope you and hubby have lots of fun! We used to do a lot of tent camping back in the day, but crawling in and out of a tent on the ground in my 60s just isn't that appealing anymore. :p
 

What area are you going into? I've hiked on the Florida Trail, on the AT up to Virginia in California, and in Canada. On the Foothills Trail and the AT in '14/'15. Coming back to hiking and backpacking with retirement around the corner. Ask your questions I've always got an opinion😊

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Leah said:
My husband and I are planning a hiking trip together in July This is our first time and we are both excited to get out in nature and enjoy our time together.We love to camp so this will give us another new thing to do besides just going to the usual camp grounds.Have any of you been out on the trails hiking ?We are just starting out with a weekend hike and seeing how we do till get more adventurous with it .Leah
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Be conservative starting out. Some trails may be harder than you think. It is better to wish you had done a little longer hike than to have taken on more than you should have. If a particular hike is hard for you, then it is hard for you. If it isn't, it isn't... it doesn't matter whether it was for Joe or Sally, etc. You kind of have to get calibrated on what your abilities are and if you do it often enough without over doing it, you will build up your hiking muscles and endurance so you can do a little more each time and enjoy it a little more.

And you have to figure out the gear that works for you, particularly socks and shoes. I found out that cotton socks were bad news for me. Same with boots or waterproof foot wear. Those were blister city for me if I hiked over a certain distance. I went with synthetic socks and trail runners or light weight, breathable, low cut hiking shoes that are about a size too large. I hiked in the mountains and had to do that to save my toe nails on long, steep descends... your feet slide forward more in that type of footwear than they do with boots.
 
dpwspringer said:
Be conservative starting out. Some trails may be harder than you think. It is better to wish you had done a little longer hike than to have taken on more than you should have. If a particular hike is hard for you, then it is hard for you. If it isn't, it isn't... it doesn't matter whether it was for Joe or Sally, etc. You kind of have to get calibrated on what your abilities are and if you do it often enough without over doing it, you will build up your hiking muscles and endurance so you can do a little more each time and enjoy it a little more.

And you have to figure out the gear that works for you, particularly socks and shoes. I found out that cotton socks were bad news for me. Same with boots or waterproof foot wear. Those were blister city for me if I hiked over a certain distance. I went with synthetic socks and trail runners or light weight, breathable, low cut hiking shoes that are about a size too large. I hiked in the mountains and had to do that to save my toe nails on long, steep descends... your feet slide forward more in that type of footwear than they do with boots.
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Oh, man, the dreaded "boot bang". The nails on your big toe feels like someone has been pounding them with a hammer and you're not sure you can take another step. I pad my toes very well by wearing a pair of socks and then putting another cut-off pair (just mid-foot down) on top of those. It seems to pad my toes quite sufficiently.
 
When we were younger we camped all the time.
It's a beautiful experience.

Cooking on an open fire, sitting around a campfire, waking up in the morning to the sound of birds, frogs, and always the sound of woodpeckers somewhere in the distance banging away at trees.

Depending on you're personal preferences it can very light and adventurous or a heavy duty planed event.

You can backpack a trail into the wilderness with the minimum, or do what I did, bring in the stove, chairs, all the food and all the comforts like an air mattress.

Whether you camp, backpack, or just get out of the car for the day and hit a trail, it's a wonderful experience you shouldn't pass up.

Where are you located, what state?
I've done part of the Appellation Trail being from New Jersey.
 
SeaBreeze said:
We have a pop up camper on our truck and usually go to out of the way areas like national forest or BLM land, and we do a lot of hiking also. We either walk on dirt roads that have little traffic or trails that go along rivers or through woods, etc. We don't go on many established trails because we like to get away from people, also, the dog can run loose. I love getting out in nature, have some photo albums here with my pictures of past camping trips. Hope you and hubby have lots of fun! We used to do a lot of tent camping back in the day, but crawling in and out of a tent on the ground in my 60s just isn't that appealing anymore. :p
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Thank you it will;l be a new adventure for us both .
 
Steve LS said:
When we were younger we camped all the time.
It's a beautiful experience.

Cooking on an open fire, sitting around a campfire, waking up in the morning to the sound of birds, frogs, and always the sound of woodpeckers somewhere in the distance banging away at trees.

Depending on you're personal preferences it can very light and adventurous or a heavy duty planed event.

You can backpack a trail into the wilderness with the minimum, or do what I did, bring in the stove, chairs, all the food and all the comforts like an air mattress.

Whether you camp, backpack, or just get out of the car for the day and hit a trail, it's a wonderful experience you shouldn't pass up.

Where are you located, what state?
I've done part of the Appellation Trail being from New Jersey.
Click to expand...

We are in Michigan.There are a few trails here that we have found that should not be to bad for us to hike .The one trail that I know my husband and I would love to do is the A.T .But I know at my age there's no way that I could complete​t one but for him I would certainly give it my best shot ...Leah
 
Steve LS said:
When we were younger we camped all the time.
It's a beautiful experience.

Cooking on an open fire, sitting around a campfire, waking up in the morning to the sound of birds, frogs, and always the sound of woodpeckers somewhere in the distance banging away at trees.

Depending on you're personal preferences it can very light and adventurous or a heavy duty planed event.

You can backpack a trail into the wilderness with the minimum, or do what I did, bring in the stove, chairs, all the food and all the comforts like an air mattress.

Whether you camp, backpack, or just get out of the car for the day and hit a trail, it's a wonderful experience you shouldn't pass up.

Where are you located, what state?
I've done part of the Appellation Trail being from New Jersey.
Click to expand...
There are basically two types of backpacking trips where one revolves around camping and the other revolves around hiking. On a camping trip you hike and carry your gear on a relatively shorter hike to go camping at some destination spot. On the other you are doing a longer distance hike and need to camp out along the way to get there. You are more conscious of the volume and weight of the gear you carry on the latter because it will wear you down if you don't. It is two different styles of backpacking.
 
dpwspringer said:
There are basically two types of backpacking trips where one revolves around camping and the other revolves around hiking. On a camping trip you hike and carry your gear on a relatively shorter hike to go camping at some destination spot. On the other you are doing a longer distance hike and need to camp out along the way to get there. You are more conscious of the volume and weight of the gear you carry on the latter because it will wear you down if you don't. It is two different styles of backpacking.
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yes we have did the regular camping many times before but want to try the hiking to get outdoors be around nature and am now getting gear for what we will need while we are out My husband is very excited about going and is reading and learning what is needed to do a trip like this ..Leah
 
How long of a hike are you planning Leah, do you have a pedometer? I just wear comfortable sneakers or my light weight Gore Tex hiking boots for our hikes. We usually make sure we have something in the back pack in case there's a change in weather during our walks, always water and sometimes a snack. My husband made a walking stick years ago from a tree limb, he like to use that on hikes. I like my hands free.
 
SeaBreeze said:
How long of a hike are you planning Leah, do you have a pedometer? I just wear comfortable sneakers or my light weight Gore Tex hiking boots for our hikes. We usually make sure we have something in the back pack in case there's a change in weather during our walks, always water and sometimes a snack. My husband made a walking stick years ago from a tree limb, he like to use that on hikes. I like my hands free.
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We are going on a weekend hike and pretty much have all the gear that we will need .Just need to get our food that we will need .Have pretty much everything else that we are to need . Excited to see how it goes.leah
 
Have fun Leah, good that you're planning early!

travel-tourism-out_of_doors-outdoors-environment-forest-wood-lfin80_low.jpg
 
My idea of the perfect camping trip is to go deep into the wild, enjoying the flower & fauna, birds & animals, streams and water falls and take long walks through it all and then check into a nice Marriott or Sheraton, take a hot SPA. have a great meal and sleep that night 0n clean crisp sheets. I had enough of the RUFFING IT. In my case, I am one hour away from Yosemite and would stay at the Ahwahnee Hotel.
 
Leah said:
We are in Michigan.There are a few trails here that we have found that should not be to bad for us to hike .The one trail that I know my husband and I would love to do is the A.T .But I know at my age there's no way that I could complete​t one but for him I would certainly give it my best shot ...Leah
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OMG, what beautiful country.
I'll bet there are tons of easy, short, trails to camp on or just hike for a few miles.
I was on the U.P. last summer and was blown away by the beauty of the area.
Before that when I thought Michigan I thought Detroit.

Boy was I wrong about your state.
 
dpwspringer said:
Be conservative starting out. Some trails may be harder than you think. It is better to wish you had done a little longer hike than to have taken on more than you should have. If a particular hike is hard for you, then it is hard for you. If it isn't, it isn't... it doesn't matter whether it was for Joe or Sally, etc. You kind of have to get calibrated on what your abilities are and if you do it often enough without over doing it, you will build up your hiking muscles and endurance so you can do a little more each time and enjoy it a little more.

And you have to figure out the gear that works for you, particularly socks and shoes. I found out that cotton socks were bad news for me. Same with boots or waterproof foot wear. Those were blister city for me if I hiked over a certain distance. I went with synthetic socks and trail runners or light weight, breathable, low cut hiking shoes that are about a size too large. I hiked in the mountains and had to do that to save my toe nails on long, steep descends... your feet slide forward more in that type of footwear than they do with boots.
Click to expand...

Anything mostly cotton should be avoided at all cost, it's the worst fabric for campers/hickers and is least recommended as it retains sweat and for cold weather doesn't retain heat very well. Stick with synthetics and silk liners are good for a variety of things. Of course for colder seasons, wool is good also for layering. Layering is best, so you may pair down or up and avoid big and bulky wear if possible.

I made all the mistakes in the beginning, cotton, cotton, cotton. Jeans, bad, but many people still wear them, they're just not the best hiking/camping material, soooo not breathable, some of the newer stretch blends are pretty good. I can't say enough good things about layering. Your base layer should be something that will keep moister from sticking to you, this is so important, polyesters and silks works well here, middle layer, fleece or natural fiber is good, I like merino wool, this to keep you warm. Your outer layer should be a material that's water repellent and breathable it's all going to depend on time of season as well, you want something wind resistant. You will modify all according to budget. You don't need to break the bank and can be quite economical, but, for those where money isn't an object, they make all kinds of clothing to suit the purpose just for these purposes, seasons be damned, all accompanied by sticker shock for some of us. LOL!
 
AprilT said:
Anything mostly cotton should be avoided at all cost, it's the worst fabric for campers/hickers and is least recommended as it retains sweat and for cold weather doesn't retain heat very well. Stick with synthetics and silk liners are good for a variety of things. Of course for colder seasons, wool is good also for layering. Layering is best, so you may pair down or up and avoid big and bulky wear if possible.

I made all the mistakes in the beginning, cotton, cotton, cotton. Jeans, bad, but many people still wear them, they're just not the best hiking/camping material, soooo not breathable, some of the newer stretch blends are pretty good. I can't say enough good things about layering. Your base layer should be something that will keep moister from sticking to you, this is so important, polyesters and silks works well here, middle layer, fleece or natural fiber is good, I like merino wool, this to keep you warm. Your outer layer should be a material that's water repellent and breathable it's all going to depend on time of season as well, you want something wind resistant. You will modify all according to budget. You don't need to break the bank and can be quite economical, but, for those where money isn't an object, they make all kinds of clothing to suit the purpose just for these purposes, seasons be damned, all accompanied by sticker shock for some of us. LOL!
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Thank you for all of the wonderful information I will certainly keep all of this in mind ..Leah
 
Just found some good articles

Oh and something I highly recommend, some clothing bug repellent spray at the very least spray for the skin. There are dozens of other things I'm sure I could come up with. How I miss my camping days, of course I wasn't far from amenities and take out if I truly just had to have some Chinese food before night hours. :D

http://www.thehikinglife.com/gear/clothing-2/

This one covers the different seasons

http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/a/11070/How-to-Layer-Clothing-for-Each-Season
 
AprilT said:
Just found some good articles

Oh and something I highly recommend, some clothing bug repellent spray at the very least spray for the skin. There are dozens of other things I'm sure I could come up with. How I miss my camping days, of course I wasn't far from amenities and take out if I truly just had to have some Chinese food before night hours. :D

http://www.thehikinglife.com/gear/clothing-2/

This one covers the different seasons

http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/a/11070/How-to-Layer-Clothing-for-Each-Season
Click to expand...

I hear you on the Chinese food lol my husband has been researching everything he can get his hands on about gear needed etc .Thank you so much for the information and links ..Leah
 
Leah said:
I hear you on the Chinese food lol my husband has been researching everything he can get his hands on about gear needed etc .Thank you so much for the information and links ..Leah
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You are very welcome. :) So hope you both have a great time, I always did, except the time I almost froze to death, nah, I even had a great time then.
 
All kinds of good advice concerning clothing and footwear. You mentioned age as a concern which should be a concern. You also said in July which depending on the thumb or lower Mich. the temp can be high 70's to mid 80's on average. That kind of temp combined with humidity understanding body water loss vs. distance is something that should be known. The weight of a U S gallon of water is about 10lbs. Accounting for that weight while hiking can make a differance. Age does have it's disadvantage especially when it comes to trips & falls. Knowing if there is communication possible "cell phone reception" a must & closest medical facility if you don't have to be assisted out for an injury.

Hiking marked trails instead of being adventurous and exploring the unknown recommended. Might sound silly but if there are bears where you plan to try hiking be aware that they have a great sense of smell and do go after easy food sources.

One of the best experiences a couple can have is hiking to enjoy your time together and see America up close & personal.
 


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