No matter how well you plan, there's always the possibility that something will go wrong. It's kind of inevitable. It's the universe's way of reminding us that we aren't in control and that there are still things you can in no way be prepared for.
This doesn't have to ruin your day. In fact, the pure absurdity of it might brighten up your day and leave you with a funny story to tell the kids.
Now just because something's funny, doesn't mean we should just let it happen. This post will point out some common hiking mishaps and give you a few tips on how to avoid these mistakes. We will be excluding things like floods and the like, seeing as we cover them already in our post on 'Braving the elements'.
Let's take a look at some hiking mishaps I've experienced:
Key related
Some of you might have cringed while reading this title, remembering a time in your life where you lost, misplaced or forgot a house or car key. Those of you wo didn't cringe are probably laughing at the memory of one of your friends having some key trouble. We've all been there.
Unfortunately, it's a lot harder to find a key you misplaced on a hike. In this case, it's the car key that causes most of the problems, because you can just leave the house key in the car. While hiking, jogging or cycling, you need to keep the car key on your person, but that might be harder than you think.
It could fall out of you pocket. It could fall out of your backpack if the bag is torn or the zips aren't closed properly. Hell, on rare occasion it might end up locked in the car. The possibilities are endless. It also doesn't help that you might not notice the moment that the key falls out of your bag, only missing it when you get back to the car.
Talk about a disaster.
Luckily, there are ways to prevent this from happening. If you do end up losing your keys, another hiker will probably pick it up and hand it in, or you'll be able to get a guide to help you retrace your steps. Let's hope you stayed on the path, or Bambi is gonna take your car out for a spin after the park closes.
Make sure that everyone in the hiking party knows who has the keys and where they are. Put the keys in a separate pocket of the hiking bag, where you can't risk it falling out when someone needs to grab their water or jacket.
Don't be afraid to check if the keys are there a few times during the hike. You may look like a lunatic, but at least you'll be able to get home.
That's what I do, anyways.
Overpacking
I'm not even going to deny it. On my first hike, I loaded my backpack up with everything I thought necessary (keep in mind, we barely hiked 3 kilometers). First aid kit, backup first aid kit, 6 bottles of water, granola bars, rain coat, tarp, multitool, flint and steel, pocket knife, and the list goes on.
Needless to say, all of that was totally unnecessary. It should have been the easiest hike of my life, but instead I barely made it a kilometer before my back started aching. My dad was red-faced, from laughing so hard.
While it's true that overpacking is better than forgetting something, the only thing you're going to get is a sore back and disappointing results.
If you don't want to make the same mistake I did, take a look at our very first blog post: A beginner's guide to hiking equipment.
Bathroom related
Just...bare with me. It's not as bad as it sounds.
Seeing as my dad and I usually drive about an hour for a hike, we get coffee for the road. The problem is, the coffee from the gas station is so hot that you need to wait nearly half an hour before you can actually drink it. So, we usually only drink it half an hour before starting the hike.
I honestly can't even count the amount of times I've started hiking, just to need the bathroom halfway through. Which is problematic seeing as there are very few hikes that have bathrooms throughout the hike. Most are at the starting or finishing point.
Honestly, the only thing I can say here is to remember to go to the bathroom beforehand, otherwise the hike is going to be rushed and you won't be able to really enjoy it.
There you have it, three hiking mishaps I've experienced and luckily conquered. It's all a part of life and it can turn a gloomy day into a day to really remeber.
Have some funny stories of your own mishaps? Let us know in the comments either here or on our Instagram or Twitter posts.
Enjoy the great outdoors, stay awesome and stay safe!
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