Five Kinds Of People You’ll Meet On A Hiking Trip
Hiking involves long, vigorous, and sometimes adventurous walks — from plain ground to elevated climbs. It stretches your bones and rejuvenates your being. Hiking trips, especially those requiring backpacking, are always transformative for me.
But as much as I love hiking, there have been a few invitations that I’ve had to decline. During a July 4th holiday, I received a text message from an old hiking buddy. It was an invitation to a five-day hiking trip in West Virginia. As exciting as the invitation sounded, I had to turn it down because of a lack of resources (I gave away my tent last Fall) and the stamina needed to have a well-balanced trip.
Aside from exploring a new trail, the most exciting aspect of any backpacking trip is the people you’ll meet. A bunch of strangers who become good acquaintances while you are all out in the middle of nowhere, bushwhacking your way through the forest. In the four to six hiking adventures I’ve been on since I moved to D.C., I’ve never met the same person on more than one trip. But on every trip, I’ve met the same kinds of people.
In a non-judgemental view, here are the 5 kinds I’ve met, and if you love hiking, you might have a different list, but one or two would match:
1. The Leader. He/She is a strong mobilizer with social skills and a love for the outdoors and humans. He/She makes whatever hiking plan so exciting that you’ll sign up as quickly as the call goes out. Blessed with a contagious enthusiasm but never claims to know it all. The leader is outspoken about not knowing what he/she is doing, ensuring the whole team takes responsibility for safety and security. Our leader suddenly declared during one of our trips, “I think we’re lost. But let’s keep going…” We did. And eventually found our way back to the right trail.
2. The world traveler, I mean hiker. This person is the most equipped of the hikers. He/She has all the hiking gear but not in an oversourced way. Always ready to share a wide range of experiences, trekking across some African countries, mountain climbing, road-tripping across the US, hillwalking in the UK, fallwalking in Northern England, bushwalking in Australia, and tramping in New Zealand. They have stories to tell and a long list of places yet to explore.
3. The Brother’s Keeper. Also, sometimes the life of the party or the fearmonger. Call him or her the security captain who reminds you to use your bug spray and sunscreen and stick close to the group or get eaten by a bear. He is often also generous and would have extra hiking boots for anyone who underdresses their feet for the trip: he usually takes on the unassuming persona.
4. The personal storyteller. This person is the one with deep thoughts and emotions. Your interaction with them will leave you with a life lesson or two to mule over for days or weeks after the trip. My one big takeaway from a female hiker cum personal storyteller is that the people who don’t understand your private battles are often quick to prescribe a solution. She narrated her personal struggle with conceiving and how she was judged by others who felt she was prioritizing her career over her family/raising children. She overcompensated and gave them too much power over her private life. Now, she tells young folks at every opportunity: don’t allow the world to dictate your tune.
5. The newbie/active listener — The newbie and overly cautious one. I probably fall within this category. I enjoy walking along and observing everyone and everything….while doing what I enjoy most—actively listening to those with something meaningful to share, enjoying the serenity of the forest, and taking a handful of photos to retell the story long after the experience.
How about you? Do you enjoy hiking? If yes, do you have any hiking goals for 2024? It is often spontaneous. Isn’t it? Whatever you decide, may you travel safe, always.