Backpacking Tips (page 3)
There are also different ways in which to tackle a trail. The most common type of trip I’ll call the out-and-back. This is where you simply start at the trailhead, hike to some destination or pre-planned endpoint, then turn around and hike back on the same trail. So if you were doing a three-night jaunt, you would camp the first night about halfway to your destination, the second night at your destination, and the third night halfway back to the trailhead, in about the same area as you camped the first night. The endpoint may be some interesting feature you would like to see—say, a big waterfall, a scenic lake, or a sweeping vista—or it may just be a point a chosen number of miles into the trail.
A variation of the out-and-back is a base camp trip. Here, you reach your intended destination the first day, and camp at the same site for the entire trip. An advantage of this is you don’t have to break camp every day; and trust me, it is a lot of work to set up and tear down your tent, sleeping bags, and cooking area on a daily basis. You can just leave your cozy little base camp carrying only a small day pack with snacks and water and do short day hikes, exploring side trails that look interesting, looking for good photo opportunities, or swimming and fishing in a lake if it’s allowed. If you are a beginner to backpacking or are not very physically fit, this is a great way to start out. But even if you are a seasoned backpacker, this may be a nice, relaxing variation to try once in awhile.
Probably the most difficult type of trip is a panoramic trail. You may want to try a couple out-and-backs before attempting a trip like this. It makes perfect sense, then, that this is exactly the type I did on my first-ever backpacking excursion. Did I ever learn my lesson on that one! A panoramic is basically a “loop” trail, where you will be hiking new terrain and camping somewhere different every night of the trail. Obviously, for scenic purposes, this type of trail is ideal, as you are constantly seeing something new. The trail will loop back to the same trailhead, if you are lucky. More likely, it will terminate at a different trailhead near your entry point.
Now keep in mind that “near” can mean several miles. If this is the case, you need to plan how to get back to your car, which will be parked by the first trailhead. This is easy if you are bringing two cars, but with the cost of gas these days, who wants to do that if it is not necessary? In many of the larger parks, there are shuttle services which can bring you back. In this case, you will need to find out the shuttle schedule, and make sure you are off the trail before you miss the last shuttle. I have found, however, that often the shuttles aren’t so good at following the schedule. On one of our panoramic trips, we busted our butts to get to the end of the trail on time (on very sore feet, I might add). We made it a little bit early, but two hours later, still no shuttle was to be seen. We started to get worried that we may have to walk back to our car. After already being on the trail half the day, this was a daunting prospect, especially considering our car was quite a few miles away—uphill on a paved road. Finally a group of day hikers gave us a ride after hearing our plight. And of course, on the way to our car, what should we see heading our way but our long-absent shuttle.
Please don’t let all this planning daunt you; it’s really much easier than it sounds! After you have done it once or twice and you know the ropes, it’s a piece of cake. If you are hiking often in the same general vicinity, you will already know the regulations, where to get trail information, and where the ranger stations are. And trust me, this little bit of prep work will make your entire trip a lot smoother, so while you are on the trail, the only thing you will have to worry about doing is enjoying the scenery.
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