Hiking Gear You Need to Take on a Ramble Or Hike

OK so we are going to go hiking. Before you do you need to understand what hiking gear you will need to take with you. The camping stores are full of lots of hiking gear that they want to sell you and lets face it – you want to buy (just like me).
However some important things you will need with you and for you to consider when deciding what hiking gear you need.

1. Rucksack. Sounds obvious but you want a quality rucksack when hiking. There are different sizes of rucksack depending on the type of hiking you are planning. You also need to investigate how to pack a rucksack as this is also very important and has a big impact to your positive or not so positive hiking experience. This is really a subject of its own and this is just a quick note to guide you in the right direction. However you need to concentrate on packing the heavy items at the top with easy access to the things you may need first (such as waterproof clothing etc). Also I suggest you go to a camping store rather than buying on line unless you are confident on exactly what rucksack to buy. The camping store will guide you on a one to one basis as deal with all types of hiking gear.

2. Clothing and waterproof gear. You will need to take at least one pair of complete clothing depending on the number of days you are hiking for. Whilst your clothes can get wet they should be resistant to absorbing water (i.e not jeans) and it is better to take a number of thin jumpers than a thick jumper. Also please remember 80% of heat is lost through your head - so a hat to insulate your head from the cold is important. In addition most importantly buy some good quality waterproof gear. A good raincoat (not thin) and waterproof leggings is essential to keeping dry and safe on a hike – this is especially in England where I hike. This hiking gear is very important for a hike.

3. Hiking boots. Essential item to your hiking gear are hiking boots. You need strong boots for the tough trail ahead. Your boots should support your ankles as well as your feet. Make sure they are comfortable and fit well. Also make sure that you wear your hiking boots a number of times before you use them on the hike. This will help prevent blisters - not very nice. If there was one thing you had to concentrate your money on as part of your hiking gear I would say good quality hiking boots.

4. Map, Compass. It is obvious but you need to know where you are going and plan your route and have a map and compass. It is an essential aspect of your hiking gear. It is also very important you know how to use them

Go to my blog on links in this article for a free report on a compass

Get it here

You need to know how to read a map and how to set a map using your surroundings and a compass. Again important part of your hiking gear.
This is not a complete list of all the hiking gear you need to take on a hike however it is a start for the main essentials.

The above hiking gear will help you to prepare for a fantastic and memorable hike. Have a great time!

What to Wear When You Are Outdoor Hiking - From the Top Down

Well its great to go on an outdoor hiking experience. However like anything worthwhile there are problems to overcome. The problem I have seen many times is that people that are going on an outdoor hiking experience for the first time, do not wear the correct clothes. Or they just don’t know what to wear.

Wearing the right clothes does not mean you have to get the credit card out again every single time. However it is important for safety reasons and for comfort reasons for wearing the correct outdoor hiking gear. You just need to follow some simple steps. So I have out together something that I wish I had for the first time and I believe will be useful – what to wear on an outdoor hiking experience from the top down.

1. The top - your head. A lot of your body heat is lost through your head so wear a thick woolly hat to keep you warm.

2. Your torso. People believe they need a nice thick jumper when you are outdoor hiking. This is not the best idea. To insulate from the cold you need to wear a number of thin layers of tops. The reason for this is that you can have some form of heat control (take off or put on layers until you are at the right temperature).

Also and more importantly the air between the thin layers will act as a heat insulator and will keep you warmer when you are outdoor hiking. In summary a number of thin layers is better than 1 thick jumper.

3. Your trousers. Need to be light and strong and also need to be non absorbent in case they get wet from the rain or falling in a stream (not Corduroys or Jeans). I always wear army greens as they are very strong, dry very quickly and are light. In addition army greens have many pockets and handy to keep the small essential items when you are outdoor hiking. So look out for these at the camping stores. However jogging bottoms should be OK.

4. The bottom - your feet, most important. Of course you need good hiking boots but also 2 pairs of socks, one thick pair and one thin pair. This will help stop blisters as the socks rub together and not your skin. The thin pair should be worn first.

Of course make sure you have the right waterproof gear. So you need a waterproof top, trousers and gaiters for your feet. Also make sure this is very handy for the sudden downpour – not at the bottom of your rucksack when outdoor hiking

Finally when you are outdoor hiking make sure you have at least one change of extra clothing. If you are outdoor hiking for 2 days take clothes for 3 days and so on. You absolutely never know what Mother Nature has in store for you especially on the mountains which attracts the rain very easily and quickly

….. and - have a great outdoor hiking adventure.

How resolve a Kids hiking problem – mosquitoes

For those who love hiking - we of course want to pass this on to our kids and watch our kids hiking and get the buzz that we do. However before you do there are problems to resolve.

When you take kids hiking you sometimes need to tackle things in a different way to adults. One of these problems for kids hiking is mosquitoes.

During your hike you need to make sure your kids are fully protected by mosquito spray. I know I cannot trust my kids to put on the spray correctly themselves and fully so I always do this myself or I get an older child to do it for me.

So get them to stand still in their kids hiking gear, with their feet nicely apart and their arms stretched out to their sides. See the picture above to see the pose required.

Yes they would need to close their eyes. Now hold the spray about 12 inches from their body and spray all over - hands, arms and torso. Legs and feet are most important as this attracts the other bugs from the ground. Next you need to protect their necks and ears. So get your kids to put their hands out and spray into their cupped hands. You then need ask them to rub behind the ears and neck so that the solution in their hands are spread very well in these particular areas.

You have now given the best mosquito protection for kids hiking during the hiking day. Of course do not forget to spray yourselves as well – and other adults.

Once your hiking day is completed – you have come off the mountains and you are ready for camp you will need to ensure you are all protected during the night by a mosquito net. This is really important for all of your hiking team but especially for your kids hiking protection.

There are many types of net you can buy however I normally use a Dome or Self supporting net as I find these the best for camping for kids hiking.

One thing of consideration here is to consider the mesh size. This will depend on the where you are hiking in the whole and the size of mosquitoes in the area. So look this up to buy the correct net

So always protect you and your kids from mosquitoes by spraying correctly and using mosquito nets when taking your kids hiking

Hiking Camp Organisation and Pitching Hiking Tents on Bad Surfaces

So hopefully you are planning a hike over the next few days of weeks. You may be hiking as a group and so at least one of you will be carrying your hiking tents – for a maximum group of 4.

After a long day of hiking you have progress off the mountains into the valley and are ready to set up camp for the evening. No doubt the group will be quite and hungry and ready to settle for the night.

You may be tempted at the time to start chilling out and slowly end the day – however this is the very time to continue to work as a group and get yourself organised. It is most important at this time for the group leader to set some tasks for some individuals to cook the evening meal and others to put up the hiking tents. The reason for this is that you may be getting cold as you have stopped and you want to chill out slowly. Also you need food as quickly as possible – do not delay these activities.

Other group members can be collecting water etc. You always need a group leader and it is ideal to take it in turns to be group leader. Its good for the group morale to change your leadership and of course the individuals

Practise at home putting up your hiking tents and therefore you will know how to do this without reading the instructions on the hike. You can also make this fun by putting up your hiking tents blind folded or in the dark - either way it is great practise for putting up hiking tents.

However you may find that the surfaces you are putting up your hiking tents may vary from camp to camp as it will not always be the same type of soil when you are hiking. For surfaces that are hard you will need to use Needle tent pegs. These are strong, light in weight and very thin. They are ideal for staking in very hard and rocky ground.

However for surfaces that are very soft then an Angled tent peg is needed for putting up hiking tents. These type of tent pegs have V shaped ridges that help grip the ground for a much better grip in soft conditions. However for either hard or soft surfaces if you are really stuck and you just do not have the correct hiking tent peg (for the surface required) you can do other things and here is an example.

What you can do to support your guy line is use a big rock or boulder. Also you can tie the guy line to a tree or anything solid connected to the ground. There are always many ways to secure your hiking tents

So work as a team when you stop for camp by sharing out the tasks but make sure you have a group leader and change this person over the hike. When putting up your hiking tents make sure you know how to put it up and take different types of tent pegs for different pitching surfaces. Above all have a great hike and a relaxing camp at each night stop.

Yosemite Hiking Up Half Dome Mountain - The Yosemite Hiking Challenges and how Prepare For them

Yosemite National Park is situated within the central Sierra Nevada of California. The Yosemite Valley is a large glacial area and is about 8 miles (13km) long and up to 8,000 feet (2,400 m) deep and forms a great hiking venue. Yosemite hiking is an adventurous pastime however one of the more adventurous and most exhausting and of course rewarding is the climb up Half Dome Mountain.

Firstly lets talk about the rewards first. To put it simply the climb is fantastic and has every hiking element you can expect to experience when you are Yosemite Hiking including great waterfalls and steeping climbs than you can probably walk. However without getting too carried away there are some problems and some challenges that you will need to prepare for to complete this epic journey.

This actual climb involves a 5000ft climb and takes over 16 hours to complete – so maybe an overnight stop is in order. You start in the Yosemite Valley. There is more than one route up but the recommendation is to hike the John Muir trail.

One of the reasons this hike is so great is that it takes you through great mountainous views over the Yosemite Valley. This Yosemite hiking trip takes you past a vast waterfall that could quite literary be out of this world. The final stages of the hike is bare rock and appears to be a 90 degree climb (it is not - but steep). However the climb up the rock does require man made steel cables to use as hand rails to pull yourself up. Many hikers have stated that this Yosemite hiking experience up Half Dome Mountain is a once in a lifetime hike.

Well that’s the glossy “lets do this bit” Now the problem areas you need to take notice of and prepare for.

1. It is a long strong hike and going to take at least 16 hours. So you should be aware how fit you are and act accordingly (i.e get hiking fit). Make sure you are fit so you do not put yourself and others at risk. Apart from normal fitness one of the best ways is to measure yourself on smaller hikes. It is only going on hikes you can really measure yourself as youuse difference muscles in your body and they need to be exercised.

2. Take lots of food especially when going Yosemite hiking. This is true for any hike in the Yosemite valley. This will of course keep you hydrated and keep energy levels up

3. Make sure you have adequate footwear and clothing. Ensure your boots are supported by an ankle support with a sewn in tongue.

4. The cables on the last stretch can be a problem for hand blisters. So take some gloves to prevent hand blisters

5. There is sometimes a problem at high season around the cables getting congested with long waits to get on them. So maybe Yosemite hiking up half dome should be tackled at off peak times.

6. Another big problem is that the natural water from the mountain contains Giardia, which will cause diarrhoea so take a water filter pump and sterilising tablets or just boil the water on this Yosemite hiking trip.

So hiking the Yosemite Valley and up Half Dome Mountain is a real lifetime experience filled with wonders of nature. However be prepared and use the 6 steps above to ensure your Yosemite Hiking experience is fantastic and safe.