Stats for nerds
2recommend
2mentions
2people
2019–2026years
100% recommend
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- Highly recommend the book Fixing Your Feet if you found this useful, it is a gold mine of helpful info. I used to get really awful blisters even on short hikes but after applying some of the lacing techniques from this book I don't get blisters at all.
- TLDW version:
1) Didn't get familiar with hiking / camping on broken / rough terrain.
2) Didn't plan on how to deal with hypothermia inducing temperatures.
3) Didn't replace shoes quickly enough
4) Not taking black bears seriously enough.
5) Careless / casual with river crossings
She doesn't give great rules of thumb on each point. Here are some based on my experience:
1) Go out with your pack at night and practice moving quickly up and down some stairs. If it rains, even better.
2) Have a layer (usually a wind/rain shell) at the top of your pack. When you stop that layer automatically goes on. When you start walking again that layer goes back in the pack.
3) Replace your shoes when mileage equals 500 - your loaded weight (bodyweight + pack). Do not risk your foot health for a hundred bucks.
4) No RoTs. Bears aren't inherently hostile (usually) but they're not inherently friendly either. Self-education required.
5) No RoTs here, water crossing are dangerous. If you are going to cross you have to have a plan for what happens if you lose your pack or get swept downstream. The force of water can be shocking.
EDIT: If you plan to do any kind of movement over long distance _please_ invest in the book "Fixing Your Feet". Foot problems end more adventures than anything else. Foot care and foot health is the primary predictor IMO of how successful and how non-miserable a movement will be. https://www.amazon.com/Fixing-Your-Feet-Prevention-Treatment...
