Hello everyone, I am new here....Total of three minutes now. I am a forum junkie, but mostly related to scuba and cave diving. A friend of mine who lives in Washington State has inspired me to make a long-term commitment and goal to reaching a point of overall health fitness, conditioning and skill sets to come visit her area.

Sadly, I'm 42 years old, out of shape and quite a few pounds overweight. As humiliating as it is, it is what it is. The scales yells one foot at a time please, the feet cries for mercy and the wallet cringes with the thought of yet another expensive hobby.

I am a 25 year career Paramedic. Have hobbies in scale model railroading, photography and scuba and cave diving. The efforts to achieve this goal will be very enduring, but I hope to overcome those challenges which lay ahead.

Anyway, I wanted to step in and say hello. In time, there obviously will be many questions, but for now I will dwell in the search feature and try to gain as much knowledge as I can.

Thanks for allowing me into your forum,

Kenny Taylor
Cullman, Alabama

Welcome, Kenny - feel free to ask questions as you go, and contribute information you learn as you develop your skills. We'll help however we can - just be aware that, even after 30 or 40 years at this (like some here have), we're all still learning, too.

A good (and inexpensive) start is with dayhikes, to make sure you enjoy hiking, before shelling out for a tent, sleeping bag, etc. After a few dayhikes, if this still appeals, we'll start talking gear (it's a long and, for some of us, obsessive conversation.)

And remember: there are no stupid questions.

Welcome!

Welcome aboard.

On the whole, hiking is an inexpensive hobby. Day hikes don't require very much gear at all. Once you get into backpacking there are some obvious initial costs for a pack, a sleeping bag and a shelter, plus various odds and ends, but if you really like backpacking those costs are spread over many, many days and nights of use. Compare it to the cost of staying at motels and it starts looking pretty cheap.

Anyway, if hiking and backpacking are a good fit for you, you can enjoy this hobby for another several decades.

Welcome from another short timer here. Hiking has an added benefit that far outweighs any other economic consideration- it's one of the most enjoyable ways to lose pounds without feeling like you are being forced to. It makes me want to eat foods that are of benefit to my health, not to my (much lessened) cravings for sweets and empty calories. As I quickly approach my 6th decade, my blood pressure, sugar and cholesterol remain at the numbers they were in my very active 20's. The beauty that you'll find on your hikes and the sense of adventure that's stimulated, will just be a huge added blessing. Enjoy .

Been there, done that, still fighting the "battle of the bulge." If it weren't for hiking and backpacking, I'd be wider than I am tall!

"I'm not overweight - I'm undertall!"

Thanks guys for each of your warm welcomes.

I have a friend who lives in Washington State who has been posting pictures for a year or so. Like many Facebooker's, I would "like" them and leave a comment. Each one I would mention the beauty of the land of what she captured. One day, she was like, when are you going to quite liking other peoples pictures and start "experiencing" what we see. She made a good point and so what was once a small impossible idea suddenly made sense. While I don't exactly live a sedentary lifestyle, the one I do have would not support such a hobby.

One particular picture she posted leaves me wanting to board the plane today. So, I use this picture as a reminder of what my goal is. At the present time I don't have a exact plan how to get there other than knowing the first thing to do is shed a few pant sizes. I've been hitting the treadmill near every day and have dropped one size thus far.

I do have some good hiking here in north central Alabama to check out, so I'm about to hit those trails up as soon as the chiggers thin out. lol.

Still many questions, but many have been answered by digging through forums like this one. Like any, it just takes doing some reading to sort the fluff out.

I wish there was a way I could start establishing some benchmarks for where I need to be. I'm not exactly sure how to go about starting such a plan, but I'll work something out.

The overall goal is to get myself into a position where I will be able to enjoy a 8-12 mile per day hike for perhaps a 4day/3nighter or something without heaving lung and tummy contents all over the trails. My friend tells me to plan for 1-4k elevation over 4 miles or so. Having never actually done any extended hikes like this, I really don't have a clue how to envision what a 1000' per/mile increase is like. No better way than to hit the trail though.

Anyway, thanks again for taking the time to reply. I have a few question which are gear specific and trying to decide which forum threads are most appropriate to ask them in. I recognize that my size will dictate and limit what type of gear I might have available to me. You can outfit a slim to large person with your eyes closed. Put a XXXL behind it and your options start to get pretty limited.

All the best,

Ken

I'm living in Alabama at the moment. I been living in Tennessee for awhile and backpacked the Smokies, southwest Virgina, and western North Carolina. I'm planning a vacation to Seattle or Colorado next spring. Small world. I'm waiting for fall and winter before I do my first backpacking trip here in Alabama.

Good to hear we didn't scare you off!

As far as the elevation gain and loss (1-4K over 4 miles), you have to realize that you probably won't be doing that all at once (at least not in Alabama.) You may walk on flat ground for a quarter mile, then gain 200 feet, go a hundred yards over the top of the ridge, then drop 250 feet into the next valley, walk along a creek for a half mile, then gain 300 feet, etc., ending up with a total of only 2000 feet total of gain AND loss over 3 miles of trail, which isn't nearly as strenuous as going uphill for a mile to gain 1,000 feet.

The amount of elevation gain and loss is something to factor into your planning. For now, you may want to rule out any trail that has a lot of up and down to it (say, more than one steady 500 foot climb per day, or half a dozen 200 foot climbs and descents.) Or, you simply reduce the number of miles you'll plan to cover in a day over that kind of territory. While I usually plan for 8-10 miles a day, there is no rule that says I must do so many miles a day. I've spent all day (leading beginner groups) and covered only 4 miles, and I've decided to keep going even though we hit our planned 8 miles at 2pm. Just keep your goals reasonable, and plan routes with options (bail-out points or loops with cutoff options) that let you adjust the length of your trip as you go. Weather conditions are another factor besides elevation that can make you change plans mid-trip. If you're out in October, planning on 60-degree days, and you suddenly get a burst of 85-degree weather, you may not want to hike at a pace that would let you cover the ten miles you had planned.

As far as gear, I would think your (temporary?) size would only become a real factor in sleeping bag selection, and a minor factor, maybe, in sleeping pad, tent, and cookware selection. (I'm a former XL who became a L after a Type II diabetes diagnosis.) Girth is a critical part of sleeping bag fit, but there's a workaround that would seem to be perfect for you: a quilt instead of a bag. Not only would a quilt fit your current girth but, if you do lose those pants sizes, it would continue to be a perfect fit, eliminating the need to replace bags as you lose weight. (If you do want a bag, I'd suggest something like the hoodless Western Mountaineering Mitylite, which zips open into an oversized quilt - which is how I usually use mine. They won't leave you a lot of money for eating, "so you got that going for you." to paraphrase Caddy Shack.)

The only effect on tent selection is that you might be more comfortable in a two-person tent than a one person tent (but many of us who aren't fighting major weight issues still choose two person tents for comfort.) You may want a 25" wide sleeping pad instead of a 20" pad. And, if you aren't cooking in a freezer bag, and are eating larger meals, you may choose a 2-quart pot instead of a 1-quart or smaller pot.

Packs shouldn't be too big an issue - you'll be fitting your torso length, which isn't affected by any excess weight you're carrying. Overall size could affect how the shoulder straps and hipbelt fit, but most packs allow enough webbing length that it isn't a problem. Those straps may become more comfortable as you shrink, but they shouldn't be uncomfortable even at the beginning.

You'll have some challenges with XXXL, but don't let them intimidate you into putting off trips - I think the challenges will be fewer than you think, and I think a good local outfitter will be very creative (and willing) to help you find solutions. "Baby steps." (Yes, I do like Bill Murray movies.)

I should have added what Glenn said... The tallest mountain in Alabama is 2,411 feet. I don't see any hiking 4,000 feet in elevation gain in this state in a day... 4,000 feet elevation gain over 6 miles exist in the Smoky, but not down here. Least I'm assuming so. In Washington, I'm sure it exist.