[Sowmi]

[Sowmi]

Hi all, though this question was specifically to women hiking along and challenges faced are a quite different, I will share my experience and tips as someone who has been solo hiker for many years and the reasons why I am changing my views on it now. Hope it helps some here. I have always been a solo hiker and love it. I find it therapeutic to be alone and away from the humanity that surrounds us every minute of every day. To that effect I not only hike solo but I choose hikes where I am least likely to encounter people. As other mentioned here, though it is highly rewarding, it is not without its risks. I always carry with me hiking poles (regardless of the hike needs it or not), a knife (defensive weapon), a whistle (for Bears), Bear spray (even in areas where there are no Bears, it is a defensive weapon), and my trusted Garmin InReach for remote hikes. The one suggestion or tip, I always tell people is to carry all these including the Garmin InReach on person, rather than inside or clipped to the backpack. I have heard of cases where people were separated from their pack during a fall and were unable to reach their GPS device. So I always carry them securely clamped to my clothing and try my best to ensure it won't come off in a fall.

In most hikes the most common risk I face is twist of an ankle on the steep downhill sections. There have been several instances where I have come close to twisting/breaking my ankle. If there is no one else on that trail, help is several hours away. When you are solo hiking on a remote trail, the best safety measure you can take is to go slow (esp. in the downhill sections and not rush it hoping get back sooner) and take pay attention to every step (where and how you place it).

Having said that, I am slowly changing my mind about hiking solo and starting to hike with one or two ppl for various safety reason. Couple of recent incidents where a marathon runner went missing on a hot day here in the Easy Bay (Pleasanton Ridge) and was found nearly a week later only a few hundred feet from the trail and most likely died of heat stroke. It was a rude awakening to think that a seasoned runner could die on such a well-used trail and certainly the outcome would have been very different if he had a running partner.

I agree it is a challenge to find the right hiking/running partners especially if you have been doing it solo for years. They need to be of the same mindset, pacing, tolerance for pain etc etc. and most important of all one needs to be comfortable hiking together in silence. Hiking is a long activity and you cannot expect to fill every minute of 8 – 12 hrs with conversation just because you are hiking with someone or feel the pressure to do so. I still find it challenging and it is the biggest hurdle in my mind to switch from Solo hiking to hiking with someone (BTW I will avoid large groups as it becomes more about socializing than hiking). I have not had any success using meetups for that reason.

Safe and happy trails