Nothing beats a nice hike with friends. Hiking trails and crossing mountains requires as much preparation as motivation. Here are some tips for making your hike a success without missteps.
No need to go to the Maldives to recharge your batteries and recharge your batteries. In France alone, we have 11 national parks, each as beautiful as the last. Hiking remains one of the French's favorite activities, and for good reason, it is a moment of escape for the body and mind. A moment of sharing too, as a couple or between friends.Before venturing out on winding paths, it is essential to prepare well. Here is a list of the basics for a successful hike.
Preparing for your hike: questions to ask yourself.
Before any hike, you must assess the level of the group and avoid leaving without preparation.
What is the experience and physical condition of the group? Is there someone capable of managing the hike and able to provide emergency care, such as bandages? Namely, the more the merrier, but the larger the group, the more likely it is to encounter incidents and the less easy it will be to make decisions. Provide a leader to avoid tensions.
A few days before leaving, don't hesitate to organize a little aperitif between participants. The opportunity to organize equipment and joint purchases. A time also to see if certain people need to acquire knowledge before departure (practices, techniques, etc.).
Choose a route.
It makes sense, you don't go hiking, whether for a day or a week, without planning your route. We forget the phone and the iPhone map, it is better to bring a paper map, without battery or network concerns.
Then, the internet is full of useful information to prepare for your adventure. remember to seek feedback from other hikers who have already done your route. You can also visit the sites of regional and national parks, associations and federations to refine your searches.
Please note, we always adapt the difficulty of the route to the physical condition and individual experience. Don't overestimate yourself or your hiking partners. There are sumptuous landscapes for courses of all difficulties.
Organize your hike and plan the stages.
On a journey, there are often places where the group absolutely wants to pass. It is important to think about the route in the circumstances. Obviously, if the route is not a loop but goes from point A to point B, you must provide a means of transportation upon arrival.
One of your priorities should be the bivouac or refuge where you will spend the night. Are you going to camp or sleep in a shelter? If you choose the refuge, you often have to make reservations when it comes to guarded refuges. Namely, most shelters only accept cash.
Before departure, we avoid neglecting the timing. Without getting stressed, it is better to leave early than to finish the walk at night. Even more so if you are inexperienced, plan widely.
We don't leave with our hands in our pockets.
There's a happy medium between taking your wardrobe and pantry and heading off leisurely with your hands in your pockets. It is essential not to neglect water and food resources.
For water, between hydration when walking and preparing meals, we plan a lot. It is advisable to plan refueling locations in advance. In any case, it is possible that the water point is dry and that the village shops are closed, so always bring more water than necessary. If you have the means to filter or purify non-potable water, this is still ideal.
Regarding food, we can only advise you to bring a few Feed bars. They will be practical in many ways: rich in nutrients and proteins for an energy boost or for breakfast, easy to transport and responsible for your waste.
It's always good to also plan a hot meal for the evening. Some prepare meals in advance before dehydrating or freeze-drying them. Don't skimp on portions, when hiking our body consumes more food.
Finally, think about transporting your waste in advance. Nature is not a trash can, we leave nothing behind.
On behalf of the entire Feed team, we wish you great adventures this summer!
