What is your opinon on...

I've been extremely interested in backpacking for the past couple years. I'm not sure how I even got into it, but I've devoured countless online articles, I'm a backpacker magazine subscriber, and I go camping with friends or family as much as I can. Even being the proverbial poor college student, I have a special fund set up and I put away money every pay check for one day accomplishing my goal of hiking the Appalachian Trail. I've also been slowly building up my gear, but I've ran into a problem which I imagine a lot of people might have had.

I have no one to backpack with.

Camping is easy, it's easy to gather friends up for a weekend camping trip, but my friends, nor anyone I know for that matter has any gear whatsoever for backpacking, or even a desire for all I know. It's really hard reading about all these great hikes, and wanting to go out but my gear sitting unused.

What are some ways to meet fellow backpackers? I've searched for hiking clubs and what not in my state, but none fit what I'm looking for. It's just frustrating. Anyways, thank you guys for any advice or stories.

If your goal is to hike the Appalachian Trail any time in the near future, you need to get started gaining experience. If you truly are unable to locate hiking partners, despite your best efforts (...your college has no outdoor activities club?), then you will need to go solo.

I know this subject has come up before in the past few years, so do some searching on it if you can.

Basically, though, the way to pick up backpacking experience by starting solo is to:

a) read up as much as you can, and

b) start small, with short hikes on relatively popular trails, in order to gain familiarity with your equipment and how things like weather affect your gear and clothing needs.

It is often a good idea to make your first couple of hikes within a few miles of your car, so you can bail out easily, if need be. Also, make sure before you leave that someone knows where you are going, and when you plan to return. When you get back safely, contact them so they know you are safe.

You'll make mistakes at first. Everyone does. You'll take too much and not always the right stuff. You may experience some inconveniences and some discomfort. This is normal. Just do it in such a way it has little chance of escalating into a genuine survival situation. That's not hard to do, even for a relative novice, so long as you put some effort into planning and don't overreach at the beginning.

Edit: Oh, and it is an excellent idea to test your gear before you ever take it to the woods. Set up your stove and light it. Set up your tent - more than once. Wear your rain gear in the rain (or in the shower, if necessary).

What Aimless said!!!

You could try googling "hiking clubs" plus your area to see what happens.

Filling out your profile to show your general location (we don't want your address but something like my "NW Oregon") may turn up someone on this forum from your area.

I agree with the other two responses. i would also add to check with yours and nearby colleges for outdoors/backpacking clubs. They are usually not very large so you won't see posters hanging up in the student union. Check with the clubs/activities director of the school(s). A more specific online source is meetup.com, but do tell us your approx geographical location and many here can give you some other ideas.

I've already went over the list of my college's clubs and what not, no club similar sadly. I know I need lots of experience before I attempt the AT (Which is thankfully a long way off, so I have many years to gain the experience). While it looks like hiking solo might be my only option, it doesn't thrill me. I'm a social person, and I like having people around when hiking or camping, to share the adventure with and to talk to and just be with. Though, I guess if I have to. I'll start searching the boards for similar posts like that. Also, I live in the midwest/Indiana.

http://www.theindybackpackers.com/

http://www.ciwclub.org/

I live in western Ohio - I sent you a private mail (PM) - click on the flashing message icon at the top of the page.

Glenn do you belong to neohbackpacking club by chance?

Hiking alone ain't so bad. I'll bet if a poll were taken on this forum, we'd find that most of us do our hiking solo.
The problem is always matching schedules and skill levels. 90% of my backpacking is solo and the other 10% requires twice the planning and prep. So...don't let not having a partner/group slow you down. Get out there and you'll eventually meet folks that share your passion.

Oddly, I won't go on trips with more than a total of 4 folks, unless it's a scout or church thing.

I'm a social person, and I like having people around when hiking or camping, to share the adventure with and to talk to and just be with.

Very understandable. But in the last analysis, it must be your love of the outdoors that makes it all happen. The social aspects are always possible, but they cannot be at the center of things. What you'd have then is just another party, but in a more exotic locale.

Moreover, there will always be simpler, easier and more convenient places to enjoy the company of your friends than 10 miles up a trail. So, if the social aspect rules the roost, you'll inevitably end up favoring the easier path to get there.

Hiking can be fun for many people, especially when it's a rare treat or a change of pace, but backpacking costs more effort than most people are willing to pay for their fun. What gets most of us here in this forum out there is a passion for the outdoors we cannot easily explain to others.

Have you checked meetup.com? In my metro area they have several very active hiking and backpacking groups, which I've heard positive things about from other local hikers. They range from easy to quite challenging in their focus.

I don't mind solo hiking but will probably try participating in one or two of these hikes to get a feel for the folks and the organizing.

We also have very active traditional groups like the Sierra Club, etc.

Cheers,

Perhaps a suitable compromise would be to hike with a dog. They're always ready to go, not fussy on where, adapt to any pace you choose, and always agree with your opinions on political/religous/controversial topics.

When I was a student a pet just wasn't practical, but maybe your situation is different.

perry said,
" a dog. They're always ready to go, not fussy on where, adapt to any pace you choose, and always agree with your opinions on political/religous/controversial topics."

Hah - maybe your dog agrees with all that you say. Do you hold out its food unless it shakes its head in agreement? BTW I have noticed that my dog is more like a horse in that it shakes its head back and forth for "yes".

I have to go solo mostly. I guess its part of the price that I pay for being too extreme. I've picked up about 4x 20-somethings and taught them to backpack and rock climb, but generally when they turn 30 - 35 I get the call "Jim I have a family now and I can't risk my life anymore." So anyway you'll always have yourself.

So what I like about solo. I can go where ever I choose and I can change my mind at any time and I can climb or descend most anything I want. I can stop and camp in exposed high altitude spots in the wind or do any other crazy thing I want. This is how I learned REASONABLE LIMITS.

You can get a card made with your name, stateing your outdoor activities of interest etc. Mine read "jimshawoutdoorsman" kayak, canoe, climb, hike,backpack. and a phone number and it stateing the area I live in. You can give this you people that you run into on the trail, especially girls. Maybe they'll call you!!!!
Jim

Thanks everyone for all your advice! Also a big thanks to those links that were supplied, one of those was for the backpacking meetup group in Indiana and I joined. It looks like a pretty active and good group, and hopefully I'll get out to one of their events soon and meet some of them.

Also, Jimshaw, any idea that promotes giving my number to girls is a good idea

Thanks again guys!

No, I don't - I assume "neohio" means northeast Ohio; I'm way down in southwest Ohio. Walking to the meetings would be a bit inconvenient.

Check out Sierra Club outings in your area - you don't have to be a member to go, generally, and you can meet a lot of people who might want to hike with you on trips NOT organized by the Sierra Club. It's a great way to socialize with others interested in backpacking. Haven't done any SC hikes in quite a while, but I enjoyed the ones I did go on. Some leaders are more fun than others, you can get a feel for which ones you want to keep hiking with. You might even decide to become a leader yourself, if you enjoy the social aspects of backpacking as you say.

http://www.indiana.sierraclub.org/groups.html