People Place or fish?

So would you rather camp in a beautiful spot with some other backpackers around, or keep moving to perhaps less idyllic scenery in complete solitude?

We usually vote for the latter.

Then again, if the fish are biting, all bets are off!

How about you?

The fish seem to bite best where the people are fewest, so that's an easy vote.

To be perfectly honest, I don't usually have too much trouble finding "no people" even in "lots of people" beautiful spots.

Lets see...13 votes and 46 eligible voters. Worse than an off-year election!

On well marked easy to wade rivers. Like one of my favorite 8 ML sections of the chatooga a friend of mine"otter" and I camp and sleep during the day and fish all night. Avoiding most people and usually catching bigger fish especially the browns.
We always plan these night trips around the moon phases. Ie full Moon is best

^ps: don't tell anyone else though^

Balzaccom,

What is the point of backpacking where there are other people? It is easy in many places to car camp and boat camp with no one around.

Ppine

I think everyone hikes their own hike. Some people choose to hike the John Muir Trail even though there are lots of people along it. Others choose to go off-trail specifically to avoid said people.

Right now, based on the responses I've had from this board and others, somewhere between 50-75% of the backpackers who have responded say that prefer no people. But some have been quite outspoken about the wonderful people they've met, and their willingness to camp near others with the expectation that they will meet some really cool people.

Don't confuse preference with reality.

My preference is to camp alone. The reality, when you've only got a day or two to spend, and have to hike in the Ohio River valley, is that you'll probably end up camping near at least one other person or group. In such cases, you can maximize separation, but in areas where camping is only permitted in designated backcountry sites, "maximize" and "minimize" are sometimes synonymous. But it's still better than not going at all.

Also, there may be some interpretative differences as to what "camping alone" means. To me, it means not only solo camping, but camping with only one or two trusted and compatible hiking partners, as opposed to going out (as I did this weekend) with a more-or-less organized group of folks, most of whom I didn't know. It was enjoyable hiking with them, but when we camped, I set up my tent a couple hundred yards away from everyone else, and still turned in when it got dark, leaving them to their social gathering around their campfire. I don't consider that camping alone, of course, but it was an adequate compromise.

For me, solitude is one of the greatest benefits of backpacking. In most of my favorite places, I rarely have to consider sharing the scenery.

Fortunately I know of a place that combines all 3 of those.

Paulo,

thanks

Not exactly in your backyard unfortunately, but well worth the hike!