A Sermon on Hiker Separation

I've taken a couple of weeks off from blogging, travelling to Oregon to Wallowa Lake State Park for an annual camping vacation with family and spending time getting ready for my first trail race which is taking place next weekend. I now feel prepared to run the Cutthroat Classic and put in a fairly respectable time. Even better though, my feet are prepared. A new pair of trail runners have eliminated my blister issues and I haven't had to tape my feet for several weeks. Life is good. And my CHS1 trip to Kendall Katwalk on Sunday was spectacular with a great group of folks who did an awesome job on a challenging hike! 

This week I'd like to discuss a safety issue that you might encounter while hiking either with CHS, The Mountaineers, or even with a private hiking group. This involves the voluntary separation of a hiker from the rest of the party. There are two situations I want to talk about. 

In the first situation, a member of a hiking party may feel unable or unwilling to make it to the final destination on a hike. This is not unexpected by hike leaders and we attempt to make plans to deal with these types of occurrences. If the weather is fine, then a hike leader might ask a participant to choose a nice place to sit and wait for the rest of the group to return, giving them an approximate time that they will return to that spot. If the weather is poor or the participant is moving slowly for some reason that day, then the hike leader might allow them to start moving back down the trail if there are no tricky junctions or dangerous trail sections. 

In the second situation, there is a hiker who wants to deviate a bit from the established plan and separate from the group for a short period of time but meet up at a later part in the trail. This can happen when a hiker wants to start off earlier from a rest or lunch break to either do a party separation or wants a little more time to move over a challenging section of terrain. Hike leaders anticipate that this will come up occasionally and are usually willing to accommodate the request if it is reasonable. In this instance, it is particularly important that the hiker communicate their plan directly with the hike leader and not with another member of the group before they head out. That way, the hike leader knows what the hiker's plan is and is not left guessing what it might be based on the other hiker's recollection of the plan should things not quite work out as expected.   

The important part for both situations described above is that once an agreement is made between the hike leader and participant on what will happen, then it is important to stick to the agreed-upon plan. The hike leader must be clear on what the participant will do (sit and wait at a particular spot, head down the trail slowly, or whatever), and the participant must adhere to that plan. Making changes to the plan such as waiting at a different point than the agreed upon one or starting to head back down the trail without telling the hike leader that you were going to do this causes a great deal of concern for the both the hike leader and the other participants. It can also lead to a great deal of unneeded effort to find the participant if they’re not where they said they were going to be. 

So if you find yourself in this type of situation, please have a clear conversation with your hike leader on what you you will do, and then be sure to stick to that plan once agreed upon. 

Hike Leaders: When needed, be sure to give clear instructions on what the hiker will do, so there is no misunderstanding. 

End of today's safety sermon! Stop looking at your computer and get out there and enjoy this awesome weather!

Dealing with Heat on a Hike

I recently spent a week in my hometown of Bend, Oregon. Temperatures soared into the 90s and 100s. It was hard to get out and run or hike as I'm not used to it being that hot. We made the most of it by walking more slowly and taking frequent rest breaks. But I'll admit that it sapped me for the most part. It’s very hard to hike uphill in the heat and our summer this year has been pretty warm so far. 

As we come to the later months of summer you will notice that our hike meet times are getting earlier. Many hike leaders like to do all of their gain in the cool of the morning and I am certainly one of them. It’s not uncommon to meet at 5:00 and 6:00 AM in August just so we can start hiking around 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning. On one hike I led a couple of years ago, the meet time was 4:30 so we could get on the trail by 7:00. Hiking uphill requires a lot of energy and having to counteract the heat as well can really tax your body. So while crawling out of bed in the wee hours of the morning may seem really yukky at the time, you’ll appreciate it later in the day. 

You’ll also find that your need for water really amps up on a hot day. It’s not uncommon to bring at least 4 liters of water on these hikes, along with the ability to purify more water if needed. I carry iodine tablets with me at all times as well as a 1 liter bottle so I can purify water without having to put the iodine tablets in my water bladder. You will want to be sure that you bring some sort of purification method with you as well. You never know when you’ll run out of water and need to use it. 

Be sure that you have some sort of plan for replacing electrolytes. Most people bring along an extra liter of Gatorade or some other sports drink with them. I usually find that most people who end up feeling really bad on a hot day have neglected to consume something like this during the day. I personally use Emergen-C or Nuun which I find not be as sweet as Gatorade and other sports drinks. So if you’re drinking lots of water and eating well but still feeling bad, then try drinking some sort of sports drink. As with water consumption, this is best done in frequent, but smaller amounts. Don’t guzzle a whole liter of sports drink at once or you’ll waste its benefits by inundating your body with more than it can use at once.  

Also be sure to use plenty of sunscreen and wear sunglasses. I often have to reapply sunscreen several times during a hike—especially to my face. Sometimes the best remedy against the sun is to cover up exposed skin, either with lightweight clothing or by wearing a hat to shield your face. I have been known to use my umbrella on really hot sunny days to shield myself from the heat and rays. 

Finally, bring a bandanna or towel along to dip in streams as you pass along them. I like to put a wet bandana around my neck on a hot day. It really helps cool me down. I also like to put my feet in water whenever possible. This really helps them deal with miles by reducing swelling.  

If you’ve got any other ideas, be sure to post them either in the comments of this blog or on the Facebook page. I’d love to know how others deal with heat.