Going hiking is a wonderful way to spend the weekend, or as an activity to do on holidays. Hiking for a day can be an excellent way to get some serious exercise as well as getting to see all sorts of sites and enjoy nature. You will be surprised by how much you are able to achieve in a day’s hike as well, with the proper preparation.

Hiking presents some hazards as well as the enjoyment factor, therefore it’s important to remember to prepare properly. So, without further ado, let’s take a look at ten ways to make sure you are ready to go.

1. Research your route

Setting out without any sense of where the open road will take you is a nice, romantic idea in theory, but the practicality is that it will likely end up being very tedious and maybe even dangerous. If you don’t know where you’re going, you don’t know what hazards you might encounter or how long it will take for you to get back.

You need to have a prepared route and well-researched road. Think about all of the plants that are on the route, animals you may encounter, sights you can see, different dangers that may happen to you, weather that can happen and so on. You shouldn’t steer too far away from your route, or not at all. Always have a system that can get you out of a bad situation like GPS or maps.

2. Start small

It’s important that you don’t jump in with some long hike that requires real fitness and endurance. Even if you are at the top of your fitness game, hiking requires different skills from running on a treadmill, so start small and go from there. Go on smaller hikes at first, just to get an idea of how it feels and what needs to be done.

Always have a guide on your first few trips, it will help you get accustomed to best practices when hiking and it will allow you to feel more comfortable. Then you can move on to longer hikes and more difficult terrains. Just keep in mind that you need to exercise a lot in the meantime.

3. Get a detailed weather forecast

Knowing what the weather is going to be doing is critical for your hike. If you have all of the gear and a detail route planned out but fail to account for the fact that there is going to be torrential rain, you won’t have a good time.

Keep checking the weather and adjusting your plans accordingly. You need to bring appropriate clothing and gear for the weather that’s going to happen on the day of your hike. Alternatively, track the weather and pick a day with really good weather for your hike.

4. Explain your plan in detail to a friend

Having someone know your route and the time you are expected to be back is a great safety net. “Hiking has risks associated with it that you may not even understand, so having a friend who will know if something has gone wrong, and knows roughly where you are is a good idea, on the off chance something happened”, says Charlie Hoskins, travel writer at Assignment Help and EliteAssignmentHelp.

5. Pick the best shoes and socks

Hiking is tiring for your feet, that goes without saying. Regardless of what shoes you wear, this will always be the case. But, get the shoes and socks wrong and it could be a lot worse. Think foot cramps and huge blisters. Make sure you have wool or synthetic socks and proper hiking shoes that match the terrain and duration of your hike. This will help you be comfortable and safe during your hike and it will prevent numerous health issues.

6. Don’t carry too much

Focus on the essentials in this area. “It can be tempting to want to bring all sorts of different things on a hike. Maybe there’ll be down time when you could read a book? I’d say skip out on weighing yourself down with the complete works of Shakespeare and opt for essential supplies: food, water, sun cream, a change of socks, mosquito spray”, advises Tiffany Cheng, lifestyle blogger at Academized and Thesis Australia.

Pick only the essentials that you will need. Planning your day in detail can help you pack properly.

7. Bring a friend

Hiking with someone is a good way to spend some time together. Plus, it makes it far less likely that you’ll forget something or that either of you gets into any serious trouble. Hiking with a group of people can also be a fun thing to do since you can talk and have fun together and keep an eye on each other.

8. Bring a portable charger

Having your phone may seem like a distraction, but it’s always much better to have it in case of emergencies. Having a way to charge it ensures that if it dies unexpectedly or you have to keep it alive for a long period, you have a backup plan.

9. Stay hydrated

I can’t emphasise this enough. Hydration is vital since you’ll likely be sweating a lot and being dehydrated can be really dangerous.

10. Know when to give up

It’s a bit disheartening but losing your way, sustaining a serious injury, developing intense blisters, can be a good reason to pack it in.

Stay safe!

Hopefully, this list will give you a good place to start when preparing for your hike. Hiking can be fun and rewarding, but it’s vital that you stay safe. This checklist ensures that you don’t miss a trick when it comes to safely preparing for a hike!