Anyone battle fear on the trail?

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oldranger
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by oldranger »

Ska-T

I read the reference to "bear canister" as bear spray (such as Counter Assult), which, of course is silly in the Sierra but not in Glacier.

Mike
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AlmostThere
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by AlmostThere »

I was afraid once... I was hiking down a ridge in the middle of the night, couldn't see a thing beyond the headlamp because it was cloudy. I'd found out that I was the only backpacker in the park that night, and the staff wouldn't be in the office the following day at all. I wasn't in the Sierra but in Henry Coe State Park, which despite being low elevation gets remote and wild, and has plenty of mountain lions and some wild pigs. I'd been trying to sleep and the rain was keeping me awake, and I figured I was better off hiking. Until about the fiftieth pair of rabbit eyes in the headlight - then I thought about the mountain lions, and being alone.

So I put up my umbrella, starting singing at the top of my lungs, and started to swing that open umbrella around in ways that I'm pretty sure made me look a lot less like a critter and more like a ufo. Stopped being afraid, and didn't really think about it after that.

I get nervous once in a while when hiking by myself and thinking about things that *could* happen, but then the moment passes and it's not a big deal. I don't carry a SPOT and don't plan on ever getting one, either. I will never carry bear spray unless I am somehow magically able to travel into grizzly territory. I will always carry a bear canister in the Sierra.
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by RoguePhotonic »

I can't say I really have any fear on the trail. The closest is when I am on slopes that I figure I will probably die on or worse when the TP roll is getting lower then I would like!
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by Electra »

Before I was 35 = no fear. After 35, i wouldn't call it fear but more awareness of my physical limitations. Small nagging injuries would pop up more (calf strain and upper hammy issue) and sometimes in the back country which is no good. This would weigh on me as i hiked solo as l liked to push long, tough days and these tweaks could quickly become major issues. After 40 = wife and kids and a whole new perspective on the inherent dangers of the wilderness. Maybe my ego doesn't want to call it fear but rather 'perspective', but it's certainly there. I could go on and on. Great topic.
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sparky
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by sparky »

I can say I have never "battled" fears. When in sticky situations, I don't stop and get emotional until the crisis is solved. I have always looked foreward to trips, I have never experienced fear and anxiety about a trip beforehand, even when I push the envelope a bit.

My first long solo trip I do actually remember being anxious. It was pretty minor and the thought of not going or questioning myself never came into play
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by Wandering Daisy »

I agree with the concept of getting more fearful as we age. It really should be the opposite! We get more experienced and have lived more of our lives (therefore should fear it ending much less). However, I used to have lots of nightmares as a kid, now none. As I age, I am more aware of dangers so my level of anxiety goes up. Having experienced more "near misses" I am more aware that nobody is perfect. I definitely was a lot more scared, more often, when I did technical alpine rock climbing. Backpacking, even off trail, is pretty tame compared to that. Being alone or with someone makes little difference. In fact I have this "Jewish mother" aspect where I worry twice as much about everyone with me. Being alone is really less stress.

I do not battle fear of backpacking in general - just specific cases. I would more classify myself as a worry-wort than fearful. There have been REAL FEAR moments though. I have had too many close-up encounters with bears, and EVERY time I am scared out of my wits! I am totally in fear at big river crossings - very stressed by being pulled equally by fear and intense concentration on the task at hand. I have been stuck in snowstorm in a very remote area with no way out in poor weather and with grizzly bears to add to the edge. Really exposed passes (with a pack on my back) gets the fear going too. But I think I have come to be able to separate "good fear" from "bad fear". Good fear keeps you from doing stupid things; bad fear keeps you from doing what should be normal.

I took my kids backpacking when they were babies and did was not fearful or worried. I was relatively young and oblivious of dangers at the time. I taught a 3-week winter mountaineering NOLS course 5 months pregnant with my first child, carrying 65 pound pack. That kid is now an OB-GYN and says that it was very dangerous. I am definitely more worried when I take my grandchildren out nowadays.

I really think anyone who says they have never had fear backpacking is in denial. It is not overwhelming or constant, but you bet I have been scared!
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by AlmostThere »

Perhaps there is a differentiation to be made. I get nervous, not terrified. I hear a noise and suspect a mouse, or a friend heading out to pee. Some of the noobs i've gone out with have been scared, didn't sleep a wink, because they convinced themselves my snoring was a bear... I know that bears in camp make little to no noise.

If I were to come face to face with a deer, or any large animal, close range, i'd be fearful due to the unusual nature of such an encounter. Animals that behave unusually should set off alarms in your head. Yosemite is one exception where you expect that. Anywhere they're supposed to be wild, all bets are off. Yet people will let animals walk up to them...

Fear is an expectation. Train your expectations well and make fear work in your favor.

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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by papasequoia »

Hikingfamily wrote:walking our 215 miles with our kids on the trail and the thread of my own fears, as a mom, outside of cell phone service, has surfaced a lot.

I really believe that fear keeps a lot of families home. Sure there are now technologies (we carry a SPOT) that will call the cavalry if an emergency happens, but it's not like the ER room is around the next bend.

If not actual fear, what are some internal struggles you might have to work through to get on the trail, or once in the backcountry?
I think that there are (at least) two kinds of fear: the one you seem to be referring to which is more of a dread about what can/could/might happen, and the fear that one can encounter when actually faced with a certain situation.

Fortunately, during 45 years of backpacking, I have never experienced the former. A little nervousness perhaps (first time hiking in grizzly country, for example) but nothing that really approached fear or dread. On the other hand, I have felt the adrenaline rush of fear or some related emotion many times: bear encounters, rattlesnakes, high water river crossings while solo, steep rock where it appears that I can't go forward or retreat, thunder and lightning storms when I am out in the open, etc. etc. However, I have never felt fear or dread about these beforehand such as while on the trail or getting ready for a trip. Rather, these are the momentary "fight or flight" reactions to a dangerous situation.

On the other hand, with age and the addition of a wife and kids, the types of things I do or the trips I attempt have definitely mellowed from the things I did when I was young. Not sure if that is wisdom (finally!), fear or just getting old. :D
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by dave54 »

Like Papa above, I have no dread.

I am quite at peace and comfortable with myself when hiking solo off trail. That is not to say I am blissfully unaware of the added risks, I just do not 'dread' them or let them dominate my emotions.

I have been backpacking solo since my early teens, and spent 32 years with the woods as my professional office. I am in my element when outdoors. I have a more heightened feeling of caution when walking the length of a mega-mall or driving to the trailhead.

With someone else, especially someone you have responsibility over like children, the feelings may be different. Since I do not share that experience yet (grandkids are still too young) I cannot comment on that situation.
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Re: Anyone battle fear on the trail?

Post by LMBSGV »

Like others have so eloquently said, I'm at peace when hiking in the wilderness. I never feel fear for myself in the wilderness. There's anxiety about the weather or finding a fantastic campsite, momentary “oh ****” (I noticed on the preview the word I used got switched here but you know what I actually wrote) moments, and lots of times on creek crossings and steep ascents and descents when my level of concentration to negotiate them leaves me momentarily exhausted afterwards. I haven’t had a bad bear encounter (though lots of humorous ones) since the 1970's at Cora Lakes (which in retrospect is also pretty funny-–my wife charged the bear and whacked it on the nose with a rock so it ran away).

As others have mentioned I find the drive to and from the trailhead more dangerous and possibly fearful than anything encountered in the wilderness. Someone crossing over into my lane on the Priest Grade or on the ascent or descent from Tioga Pass is downright scary. Once I get to the trailhead and hiking, I am in the transcendence of being in the wilderness, whether solo or with my wife. I do find there is more anxiety about certain things when I am with my wife since I’m the one who is the principal navigator, etc., and feel responsible for her having as much fun as I do.

The one time I did feel fear is recounted in this post. It’s not me I worry about as much as others I’m responsible for:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=7782&start=12" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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