When you go hiking at night you enter a whole new world. You hear new sounds and see new things out and about that you may not have encountered before. If you thought safety was important when you go hiking during the day, nighttime hikes need to be focuses on safety even more. Here are some practical tips for hiking at night.
1. First you need to find out if night hikes are even allowed where you want to go. Dedicated wilderness areas should be fine (i.e. where camping is allowed). Many public-owned parks and facilities will have daylight hours only. You will need to thoroughly research the place you are going before you decide to hiking at night.
2. Go in a group. Never hike alone at night as there are too many safety risks. Take at least one person with you but a group of three should be the minimum. I say three because it takes two people to carry one other person effectively for long distances should someone get hurt. Further, you can send one person to get help while the other stays with the injured person.
3. Flashlights are a must even if the moon is full. Take two sets of spare batteries and make sure the flashlight works before you leave your house. You don't have to take ultra-bright flashlights with huge lantern batteries as they will wear out your hand. Make sure you take plenty of extra batteries.
4. Check the weather before you go and dress appropriately. If it is winter time the temperatures may plunge at night. If the temps are cold dress in layers and shed the outer ones if you get hot.
5. Food and water are necessities even if it is cooler at night. Pack out your trash and eat trail food that is quick and simple. Animals will be out at night and can smell food easily so you want to keep the snack simple and eat it expediently so as to give any wild animals less of a chance to smell it and think you're holding their dinner.
6. Take a map with you and if you are savvy take a compass as well. Stay on marked trails and know where you are going and how long it should take you. Allow a little extra time for hiking at night since humans don't see well at night and it probably would take longer to walk.
7. OR, Pay to go with a group. http://www.meetup.com/www-welove2hike-com/
By going on a hiking trail Day or Night with “We Love 2 Hike” you won’t have to worry about maps or mental assumption.
Raven Cliff Falls by: Malaika Cooper
ReplyDeleteWe ate boil-in-a-bag Indian food and Japanese sticky rice and drank Chardonnay chilled in the riverbed. After building up the fire so we’d be able to find the campsite by it’s glow, we headed up the trail for a night hike. I rarely get to hike at night, so being on the trail after dark was exhilarating. It reminded me of being a kid and being allowed to play outside after dark. Awesome!
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