Well it’s that time of year again folks.
That’s right, it’s the perfect time of year for hiking. It’s not too hot and it’s not too cold. We have had a lot of rain this spring in Kentucky but that’s not stopping me. In April I hosted my first ever event as Chapter Leader and it was a blast.
On Saturday the 27th I was joined by for amazing ladies to embark on a three-hour hike at the wonderful Big Bone Lick State Park. We started with the Bison Trail and followed that up with the Salt Lick Loop. We were blessed to have run into the Bison caretaker who engaged us in an in-depth conversation. He answered any questions we had about the Bison, their habitat, the native and prairie grasses they graze on, and also told us all about herd mentality. The ladder was especially interesting because there were two adorable babies to oogle at. After that we all headed over to see the salt lick. On this Trail however we only made it two-thirds of the way around the loop and got rained out in two different ways. The first was a small yet unpossible flooded area and the second was it begin to rain so we all turned around and headed back to our vehicles.
All in all everyone enjoyed their hike. Before the hike I had conducted a short seminar on the basics of hiking. I’ll share those with you all in hopes it helps encourage someone to go out and take a hike this year.
Hiking Tips for Beginners
1. Start small and choose the right Trail for you and your abilities
2. Familiarize yourself with the trail. Pick up a map if you have one.
3. Check the weather
4. Tell someone your plan, that way if something happens people will know to look for you
5. Pack Essentials for the trail- navigation stuff, sun protection, clothing, elimination, first aid, Fire, Water, Shelter, food
6. & 7. Choose the right Footwear & the right clothing
8. Keep it light
9. Pace yourself
10. Please remember leave no Trace
Recently Jennifer Pharr Davis completed the Appalachian Trail faster than any other woman and now holds that record and she also recommends these things.
Test drive your gear, let your cell phone help you not harm you, always pack extra food, learn from other people’s mistakes, remember mother nature makes her own weather, personalize your hike ( this is my favorite because she goes on to explain that if you like to read bring a book if you want to make a picnic bring a picnic lunch if you like birding bring your binoculars if you want to explore the nature do that if you want to find fossils find fossils if you want to take pictures take pictures, basically do anything you want that’s going to personalize the hike for), get in shape for the trail that you’re doing, carrying out save a life for example don’t skip on matches don’t skip on a whistle, let someone know your plan, consider taking a Wilderness first aid class. She also goes on to say everyone can enjoy hiking if you do it in a way that works for you.
I hope these tips and tricks help you on your next hike, and if you need more inspiration I would highly suggest reading Bill Bryson’s book A Walk in the Woods or you can just watch the movie with Robert Redford.