🥾 Stuff Every Hiker Should Know: Training Guide

Trail Markers

Rock cairns are piles of rocks that often mark a route. If you see one, do not disturb it. Moving or building cairns can send later hikers the wrong way and cause erosion.

Trail blazes are paint marks on trees and rocks. The Appalachian Trail uses white rectangles about 2 by 6 inches. Never change painted blazes.

If You Are Lost

Use the STOP plan as soon as you think you are lost. Stop, stay calm, and stay put. Panic is your greatest enemy. If you are not very confident in the route, stay put.

Teach children to hug a tree and stay put if they get lost. A tree, park bench, or big rock is a good waiting spot. This idea came from the 1981 search for a lost southern California boy.

If you have a whistle, blow three quick blasts at a time. Pause, count to 30, then repeat. Only use a whistle in a real emergency, like when you are lost or need help.

Tools and Signals

Magnetic declination is the angle between magnetic north and true north. A compass points to magnetic north, but maps use true north. Check the current declination value for your area.

If the trail has poor cell signal, use airplane mode. A phone hunting for a tower drains its battery quickly. Keep the phone charged or off.

In backcountry areas with no cell service, a personal locator beacon can call for help. Consider carrying one because many backcountry areas have no cell service.

Carry a compass and a paper map even if you have a GPS. GPS devices can lose signal or run out of battery. Every Appalachian Trail hiker should carry a paper map for emergencies.

The Ten Essentials as Systems

The Ten Essentials is a packing system for hikers. The Mountaineers developed the idea. The National Park Service says these are ten systems, not ten exact items. That means you can choose gear that fits your own trip.

Carry a light that keeps your hands free. A headlamp is the best choice because you do not have to hold it. Bring extra batteries too. Your light can also help you signal for help if you need it.

Pack an extra day's supply of food. Plans change when you are delayed, lost, or stuck in bad weather. Choose no-cook items with good nutrition. The extra food can help someone else in your group too.

A repair kit and tools are part of the Ten Essentials. A knife belongs in this category with duct tape, scissors, and a multi-tool. These items help you fix broken gear on the trail. You can also put a trowel and toilet paper in this kit.

An emergency shelter can protect you if you must stay outside overnight. A tent, tarp, bivy sack, or emergency space blanket are all lightweight options. The National Park Service says shelter is one of the most important elements in a survival emergency.

Fire, First Aid, and Being Seen

Fire is not just for warmth and cooking. It can also signal for help in an emergency. Pack waterproof matches or a lighter plus fire starters. Check the park's fire rules before you make a fire.

Before a hike, check the expiration date on every item in your first aid kit. Start with a pre-made kit and fit it to your trip and your medical needs. Add personal medicines you take regularly. Tuck a small emergency guide in the kit for problems you have not seen before.

Your extra clothing layer should be brightly colored. Bright colors help searchers see you more easily if you need rescue. Pack a layer for the most extreme conditions you might meet, like rain, wind, or cold.

Leave a Plan and Set Turnaround Times

Write a trip plan before you hike. It says where you are going, who is with you, and when you will be back. Give it to a trusted person who is staying home. That person calls authorities if you do not return on time.

Know your turnaround time and stick to it. A turnaround time is a set time to turn back, no matter what. Late starts raise the chance of getting caught in the dark. Remember the trip back often takes longer than you expect.

Plan for an uphill stretch to take at least double the time it took to go downhill. Climbing is much slower than descending. Use the talk test: if you can talk while you walk, you are traveling at the perfect speed.

Lightning and Storms

If you can hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck. The rule is simple: when thunder roars, go indoors. There is no safe place outside during a thunderstorm.

Use the 30 30 rule. Count the seconds from the lightning flash to the thunder. If the sound follows within 30 seconds, get to shelter now. The second 30 means danger lasts 30 minutes after the last lightning or thunder.

Summer mountain thunderstorms often build in the early afternoon. Start hikes early and be down by noon. Storms can happen at any time.

Heat and Hydration

On a hot, hard hike you can lose one or two quarts of water through sweat in an hour. Drink about 1 cup every 15 to 20 minutes during moderate activity in heat. If you sweat for several hours, sports drinks with balanced electrolytes help.

Heat exhaustion signs include heavy sweating, weakness, dizziness, and cool, pale, clammy skin. Move to a cooler spot, loosen clothes, use cool wet cloths, and sip water. Get medical help if it lasts over an hour or gets worse.

Cold and Altitude

Hypothermia can happen in any season, even on sunny days. Rain, sweat-soaked clothes, wind, and mountain storms can chill you. Pack a rain layer and warm hat.

Watch for uncontrolled shivering, slow or slurred speech, memory lapses, fumbling hands, and stumbling. Get the person out of the weather, into dry clothes, off the cold ground, and get medical help. Give warm drinks but never alcohol.

At about 8,000 feet you risk altitude illness because each breath brings in less oxygen. Take extra days to get used to the height, sleep well, and drink water.

Blisters and Foot Care

A hot spot is red, tender skin before a blister forms. Stop right away and protect it. Change into dry socks if yours are damp.

On a blister, use a donut-shaped piece of moleskin so your boot presses on the pad, not the sore spot. A popped blister can get infected.

Sun and Clothing Layers

Sun protection is part of the Ten Essentials. Wear sunglasses, sunscreen, and a hat to block UV rays. Long sleeves and long pants help too. High elevation raises your chance of getting sunburned.

When you dress for a hike, think of three layers in order: the layer next to your skin, the warm middle layer, and the outer layer. Each layer has a separate job: moving sweat away, holding in body heat, and blocking wind and rain. Take all the layers with you even if you start without some on, because you can remove layers but you cannot put on clothes you left at home.

Avoid cotton clothing for hiking. Cotton soaks up sweat and rain and stays wet. Wet cotton can chill you fast in cool weather. Choose polyester or other synthetic layers instead. Cotton might be okay only on a very dry, very hot summer day.

Safe Drinking Water

Backcountry water may look clean but still contain germs. A clear mountain stream is generally not safe to drink without treatment. Treat water before drinking.

Boiling is one safe method. At elevations no higher than 6,500 feet, bring clear water to a rolling boil for 1 minute. Above 6,500 feet, boil for 3 minutes.

A filter with an absolute pore size of 1 micron or smaller removes parasites like Giardia but not viruses or all bacteria. A 0.3 micron or smaller filter also removes bacteria, but still not viruses.

Unscented chlorine bleach can disinfect clear water in an emergency. Bleach kills bacteria and viruses but does not work well on parasites like Giardia, so filter first. Iodine and chlorine dioxide tablets are other options.

Leave No Trace and Waste

Leave No Trace has seven principles. They cover planning, durable surfaces, waste, natural objects, campfires, wildlife, and courtesy.

Pack it in, pack it out means carry out all trash, leftover food, and litter. Even a banana peel counts because it harms wildlife and spoils the trail.

For human waste, dig a cat hole 6 to 8 inches deep and at least 200 feet from water. Bury it downstream from where you or others collect water.

Pick up your dog's waste in a bag and carry it out. Pack extra bags on every hike with a dog.

Trail Etiquette

When two hikers meet on a steep trail, the hiker going uphill has the right of way. The downhill hiker steps aside. If you hike in a group, do not take up the whole width.

When you meet horses or pack mules, step to the downhill side of the trail. Hikers yield to pack animals.

Do not cut switchbacks. Shortcutting causes rapid erosion and can cause injuries. Staying on the zigzag trail protects it.

Dogs and Trekking Poles

National parks allow a dog only if it is on a leash no longer than six feet, or otherwise physically confined. Some trails ban pets completely. Check the park rules before you bring a dog.

Trekking poles help you stay steady on rough ground. They add stability and reduce the force on your knees. For general hiking, adjust the pole length so your elbow bends about 90 degrees when the pole tip touches the ground.

Ticks and Poison Ivy

Check your whole body for ticks as soon as possible after hiking. Look under the arms, behind the knees, around the waist, and in the hair.

To remove an attached tick, use clean, fine-tipped tweezers. Grasp close to the skin and pull steadily upward. Twisting or jerking can leave mouthparts in the skin. Clean the bite and your hands afterward.

Showering within two hours of coming indoors can lower your chance of Lyme disease. It may wash off ticks before they attach. Tumble drying dry clothes on high heat for 10 minutes kills ticks.

Poison ivy often has three leaflets, so leaves of three, let it be. The rash comes from urushiol oil, which sticks to skin, clothes, tools, and pets.

Wash your skin with soap and cool water as soon as possible after touching poison ivy. This helps remove urushiol oil before it causes a rash.

Bears and Food

Make noise while hiking in bear country to avoid surprising bears. Most bears avoid people if they hear them coming.

Store food, garbage, and scented items in a bear locker or canister away from your tent. Never keep food in your tent.

Bear spray is for stopping a charging or attacking bear. It is not a repellent, so never put it on your body or equipment. Bear pepper spray and human pepper spray are not the same.

If a black bear attacks, do not play dead. Escape to a car or building, or fight back with any object, aiming at the face.

If a grizzly bear charges and contacts you, leave your pack on, lie flat on your stomach, clasp your hands behind your neck, and spread your legs to make it harder to turn you over. Stay still until the bear leaves.

Snakes and Mountain Lions

Stay away from tall grass, leaf piles, rocks, and woodpiles to avoid snake bites. Wear boots and long pants. Snakes are more active at dawn and dusk and in warm weather.

A rattlesnake may shake its rattle when it feels threatened. If you hear it, back away. A rattlesnake may not always rattle before striking.

For a venomous snake bite, stay calm, rest, and get medical help fast. Sit or lie with the bite comfortable, remove rings and watches, and never cut, suck, or ice the bite.

If you meet a mountain lion, stand tall, face it, and speak loudly. Do not run. Pick up small children without bending over. If it attacks, fight back.