Look – see how I’ve got plenty of water on this hike with my daughter.
I made a hiking gear mistake once when I was young that really taught me a lesson. Of all the essential pieces of hiking gear, I wish I hadn’t forgotten this one.
As I’ve talked about I love hiking and do it as often as I can. My passion for hiking began back in my college days at UC Santa Barbara. There weren’t a lot of trails right in the area, but we would take road trips. In those early days hiking I didn’t have much of a clue as to what to bring on a hike. Over time and many mistakes I’ve learned what are essential items to bring on a hike. I want to share one major hiking gear mistake that I made so that you don’t make it too.
It is important to always have the right hiking gear so that you’r prepared for anything. We always bring along rain gear.
Essential Hiking Gear
I’ve written several posts in the past about hiking gear. One post listed off 11 essential pieces of hiking gear. These items are not just things that I chose haphazardly. Rather, they are tried and tested items that I’ve learned over the years are necessary.
One obvious item on the list is one that I (and many others I’m sure) have learned the hard way. Water. In hindsight I’m not sure how I was so stupid or naive to not bring enough water on a hike.
I Wish I Hadn’t Made This Hiking Gear Mistake – Not Enough Water!
After college at UCSB I moved to Boulder, Colorado for the sole purpose to be in and near the Rocky Mountains. I wanted to take advantage of my freedom and explore those mountains.
At that time I was a young guy who suffered from the common ailment of young people throughout history – feeling invincible. I was young, felt strong, and thought I could do anything.
One of the trails that I hiked was South Boulder Peak. I first did the hike in the spring when the temperatures were low and it was a long, but fun hike. The low temps and few other hikers meant I could do it quickly and I didn’t get too hot and need much water.
Well, I decided to give it a go again in the middle of summer. Summertime in the area can get very hot. I remembered hiking the peak before and naively assumed I could do it super fast again and wouldn’t need more than one small water bottle. DUMB.
The South Boulder Peak Trail, as I just researched to remember, is a 7.5 mile trail that climbs 3,000 feet.
Needless to say, my water bottle quickly ran out on my hike. I resorted to a technique I had read about where you put a stone in your mouth to suck on. It generated saliva, but didn’t really help quench my thirst.
All I could think about was a nice, refreshing sip of water.
That hike turned into me suffering miserably as I gained the peak and then descended. I was so pathetic and resorted to asking other hikers if I could drink some of their water. I felt bad mooching water from others, but if I didn’t I may have had some serious problems.
Eventually, I made it to the trailhead and drank loads of water and cooled off in a stream. I felt so dumb to have thought I could do that long trail with only one small water bottle in the middle of summer.
Now, I make sure that I always bring loads of water with me when I go hiking with my kids. I would much prefer to bring too much water than not have enough after that miserable experience. I think of the extra weight as another way to get good exercise when I go hiking:)