c/backpacking-routes

Spent $60 on a water filter that died on day two of a week-long trip

I was hiking the Eagle Creek Trail in Oregon last summer and bought a Katadyn BeFree filter for $60 at the last minute. Worked fine the first day, but on day two it clogged up so bad I couldn't get a drop through. Had to boil water over a fire for the rest of the trip, which added an hour to every meal stop. Anyone else had a filter crap out on them mid-route?

2 comments

henderson.kim•2d ago

Changed my whole approach after a ranger chewed me out on the JMT last summer

He told me my bear canister technique was trash - I was leaving it too far from camp. Now I keep it 100 feet downwind and it's way less hassle. Anybody else get schooled by a ranger?

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eva_garcia56•3d ago

Just learned the PCT loses about 3 feet of trail each year to erosion

I was reading a trail maintenance blog and found out the Pacific Crest Trail loses roughly 3 feet of tread annually from weather and hiker use. That really surprised me considering how many people hike it every season. Has anyone else come across stats about trail wear on long distance routes?

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troy_ross•4d ago

Hit 500 trail miles this year and I'm actually pissed about it

I just crossed 500 miles on the Appalachian Trail this past weekend near the Grayson Highlands and I'm honestly frustrated. Not because of the milestone itself, but because I didn't plan my route better and missed the section around Mt. Rogers where the wild ponies hang out. I was so focused on hitting that number that I rushed through three days of boring ridge walking instead of taking a detour to see something cool. Now I'm sitting here thinking about those 500 miles and half of them feel like a blur of blisters and bad campsites. Did anyone else blow past a cool landmark or side trail while chasing a mileage goal? Should I just go back and redo that part next season or is that a waste of time?

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susan_ward•5d ago

The one trail marker that sent me half a mile off course last weekend

I was hiking the Rattlesnake Creek loop near Missoula and someone had turned the sign at the fork to point the wrong way, so I ended up following it into a dead-end wash for 45 minutes before I realized. Has anyone else run into fake or tampered trail signs out there, or was this just some weird prank?

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nina_hall•9d ago

Took a wrong turn on the Salkantay route and ended up in a landslide area

Three years ago I was doing the Salkantay Trek in Peru and missed the cutoff to Mollepata. The trail I ended up on was narrow and loose rock, and I hit a section where the whole hillside had slid out maybe 20 feet wide. I had to backtrack an hour to find the real path, but the detour added two extra days to my trip. Anyone else ever misread trail markers on that section and get into a jam?

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luna_green•12d ago

Wasted $60 on a so-called 'ultralight' sleeping bag that weighed as much as my regular one

Bought it from some online deal after a late night search and it showed up at 4.2 pounds instead of the 1.5 they claimed. Anyone else get burned by sketchy gear specs on Amazon?

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johnh82•12d ago

Hit 500 trail miles in a single season and my feet nearly quit on me

I was hiking the Laurel Highlands Trail in Pennsylvania last October and hit the 500 mile mark for the year. Didn't even realize I was close until I pulled up my app at a shelter. That number just snuck up on me because I never track too close. My boots were falling apart, I had blisters on top of blisters, but I just kept moving. Honestly it felt more like a relief than a celebration when I saw it. Anybody else hit a random milestone that caught them off guard?

2 comments

park.adam•14d ago

Drove 6 hours to a trailhead and found the parking lot FULL at 5 AM

I planned this hike on the Long Trail for weeks. Checked the AllTrails app the night before and it said the lot had 40 spots. Got there at 4:45 AM and every single spot was taken. Turns out the data on the app was from 2020 and they paved over half the lot since then. I ended up parking a mile down a dirt road and walking in. Has anyone else run into trailhead parking data that's totally outdated?

3 comments

jade_hernandez•17d ago

I finally had a perfect day on the Long Trail in Vermont

Last August I was on day 6 of the Long Trail near Mount Mansfield and everything just clicked. No rain, no bugs (like, zero black flies for once), and I found a swimming hole off the side trail to Butler Lodge around 2pm. The next morning I woke up and my stove wouldn't light, which kind of killed the vibe. Has anyone else had that one magical day where nothing goes wrong, followed by a total gear fail?

2 comments

charlesowens•18d ago

Wasted $60 on a cheap bear canister... learned the hard way

I bought a no-name bear canister off Amazon for $60 last spring before a trip in the Sierra. First night out, a raccoon popped the lid off in about 20 minutes and scattered my food across the campsite. Ended up having to hike out a day early with nothing to eat. Has anyone else had a budget piece of gear fail at the worst time?

2 comments

wren652•18d ago

The first time I used a GPS watch on a trail vs my phone

I ran the Eagle Creek trail in Oregon for years with just my phone for navigation. This summer I finally grabbed a Garmin Instinct off a friend's recommendation. The difference was wild - my phone died 4 hours in because of cold temps and rain, but the watch lasted the whole 12 mile loop. No more stopping to fumble with a wet screen every switchback either. What kind of battery life do you guys actually get out on multi day trips?

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abby_scott•20d ago

Serious question, is the 'take the high route to avoid crowds' advice always bad?

My buddy Hank swore up and down that the North Fork Trail near Ouray would be empty if we went Friday at 4 PM, and we ended up stuck behind a group of 20 scouts for 3 miles, so has anyone else had a supposedly 'secret' route totally blow up on them?

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grantl94•20d ago

Changed my mind about water filters after that creek in the Sierra

Changed my mind about water filters after that creek in the Sierra. For years I always carried iodine tablets because they're light and cheap. Then last summer on the Rae Lakes Loop I ran out of tablets on day four and had to borrow a friend's squeeze filter from Sawyer. I was SO sure it was pointless weight but after using it I realized I drink WAY more water when it tastes good and comes out fast. It's not just about safety it's about actually wanting to hydrate. Now I see people on forums arguing about filters vs chemicals but I think the real thing nobody says is how much your water intake goes up with a filter. Has anyone else had that moment where they switched and never looked back?

2 comments

mark731•21d ago

Hit 500 miles on the PCT this season and my feet barely hurt, but my friend quit at 200 with tendonitis. What gives?

I started from Campo in April and pushed through the desert. By mile 400 I was averaging 20 mile days without blisters. My buddy started the same week, same gear, and he had to bail at Kennedy Meadows because his Achilles flared up. I think it's about how you ease into the mileage, not just the boots. Has anyone else had two people on the same route end up with totally different outcomes?

2 comments

jamieperez•22d ago

That seasoned hiker who told me to skip the water filter on the PCT - bad call

Met a guy named Dave at a hostel in Mazama who swore the water in the North Cascades was so clean you didn't need a filter. Said he'd been hiking 20 years and never bothered with one. I decided to trust him and left my Sawyer behind to save weight. By day 4 I was sick as a dog with giardia, stuck in my tent for 24 hours puking my guts out near a creek. Has anyone else ever blindly followed advice from a stranger on trail and regretted it?

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nathan_webb•23d ago

Overheard a dude at REI say he plans routes by elevation gain per mile, not just total miles

That clicked for me after I tried it on a 14 mile loop near Asheville last weekend and actually felt less wrecked at the end, what's your go to metric for planning a hard day?

2 comments

susan_ward•24d ago

Figured out why my pack was killing my shoulders after 3 trips

I kept getting these weird pressure points on my collarbone and thought it was just a bad fit. Turns out I was cranking the load lifters way too tight, basically pulling the top of the pack into my shoulders instead of letting it sit on my hips. My buddy Dave at the REI parking lot in Asheville pointed it out after day one of the Art Loeb trail. Loosened them up and suddenly my 35 pound load felt like 20. Anyone else do something dumb with their straps for way too long?

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lily394•1mo ago

Overheard a ranger at Glacier say the Highline Trail is getting rerouted next summer

I was grabbing a map at the Apgar visitor center last week and caught two rangers talking about how the section near the Haystack Creek crossing keeps washing out. They said the new route will add about 2 miles and avoid the steep scree slope that's been getting worse every year. Has anyone else heard about this or seen official trail updates from the park?

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park.troy•1mo ago

My water filter broke 12 miles into the Rae Lakes Loop... argued with myself about turning around for 20 minutes

So I'm hiking the Rae Lakes Loop in Kings Canyon last month and my Sawyer Squeeze cracks right where the bag connects. Water everywhere. I'm 12 miles in, no backup filter besides some iodine tabs I brought as an afterthought. My buddy says just push through, use the iodine and boil water at camp. But I'm thinking about that giardia risk and how much that sucks to deal with on the trail. I ended up turning back alone while he kept going. Felt like a quitter at the time but now I'm not sure. What would you have done? Stick it out with the backups or bail like I did?

3 comments

iris_mason88•1mo ago

Finally finished the JMT section from Tuolumne to Whitney last weekend

Took me 3 years of weekend trips to piece it together, but I knocked out the last 40 miles near Bishop. Anyone else done it in chunks like that?

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the_lisa•1mo ago

Wasted $400 on a 'guided' group hike in Yosemite

The guide didn't know the trail past the first mile and we spent 2 hours lost near Nevada Fall. I could've just downloaded AllTrails and done it myself for free. Has anyone else had a guided trip that was totally useless?

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paige_martin•1mo ago

Had to choose between the John Muir Trail and the Sierra High Route last summer

I went with the JMT because I was solo and wanted more established campsites. Honestly the trail was packed with people near Red's Meadow and I kinda regret not pushing myself on the High Route. Has anyone else picked the popular route and wished they'd gone harder?

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barbarahill•1mo ago

I used to plan every backpacking route down to the mile, now I just carry a map and go

For about 5 years I would spend hours on AllTrails plotting every turn and campsite for trips in the Sierra Nevada. Then last summer on the Rae Lakes Loop I missed a turn because my phone died and I had no backup. Now I just bring a paper map and a compass, and I figure out the route as I walk. It feels more free and I actually notice more things like side trails and good water spots. Has anyone else ditched the GPS and gone back to paper maps for multi-day trips?

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ninal91•1mo ago

My Pacific Crest Trail section hike totally changed after Washington's Goat Rocks

I hiked the Washington section of the PCT last August, and the first 40 miles through forest were just okay, but once I hit Goat Rocks everything shifted. The alpine views of Mount Rainier and Adams came out of nowhere, and the trail got way more technical with all the loose scree and snow patches. Did anyone else have a specific section of a long trail that completely flipped your opinion of the whole route?

3 comments