I went on a 40 mile hike last summer and really enjoyed it. Droopy is right, if there are places with defined trails like government parks they are probably your best bet, and make sure people know what you're doing. If the weather and terrain (enough trees) permit it then sleeping in a hammock will save a lot of space and weight in you pack. I'm not sure what gear you have but if it's something you end up doing a lot then spending money for better/lighter gear will make it more enjoyable. And trekking poles really helped and can be used for other things around your campsite. Something else to consider is hiking to a campsite and setting up for a few days in one spot and doing day hikes to see different stuff, that way you don't have to carry all of your gear all of the time.
Surprised people are so confused by the term. Seemed fairly obvious, albeit not a commonly used term in the states. Have you never seen Crocodile Dundee!? He wants to go on a walkabout. But yeah, going alone is dangerous. At the very least, make sure you tell people where you are going exactly and when you will be back. Know your route. Water is key, Carry all you can and/or at least know where you can refill (granted it's winter so you might be able to take a little less). You can get water purification tablets that help you save space, as opposed to a pump. I'm sure you have a camel back but platypus' are also good. Try not to take canned food items. Again takes up space and it's easier to carry back trash that you can fold up. Mini stoves are awesome. You can find kits that take up minimal space. I always liked to have those uncle ben's flavored rice with some canned chicken (of bagged if you can find it)...or just tuna. Lighter and matches...keep the matches double bagged to keep dry. A little hatcket can be handy in addition to your normal knife and multi-tool. Bags for your trash...don't want it to leak in your backpack. Backup light and spare batteries. Weight and space are key so you really need to think it all out
Have to post in the bush walking thread don't i! I used to go bush walking when I was a kid. Spend a day walking in the blue mountains west of Sydney.
I always wanted to hike to a primitive camping spot and just reflect on my life and get things in order. Then, when I found myself calculating how to carry the alcohol I would need to get drunk by the camp fire each night, I realized I wasn't doing it right and scrapped the plan.
^ perfect advice Also buy a good pack, and make sure you pack it correctly to distribute the weight but as you have military training, im sure you know this the most important advice is always let people know where you are going and for how long I've had a few bushwalks, they were really rewarding. Never went alone though, consider bringing a friend or significant other (as long as they dont whine)
I've got a solid pack which can handle more than enough of the gear I'll be bringing and I know how to pack it correctly + it's got an inbuilt ALICE frame so the weight distribution isn't really a problem in the first place. I've got the waterproof matches that we used in the Army - although I found a pretty good weather-resistant lighter online... I'm sure for beginning though the matches will be fine. I have Water purification tablets. Not sure I'll need them since I have 4 x 3L hydration bladders. But better to be safe than sorry. Food is something I'd need to think about more if I'm thinking of going on treks longer than a couple of days. I'm completely fine with similar ration packs to what we had in the Army - but don't want to be seen as one of those civi people trying to hard to be 'war-y'. I have done a little preliminary research for some of the 30-40km hikes and you can hire out a distress beacon before starting your trek (you also have to sign in to starting the trek and give them a plan of the route so someone should know where you will be at roughly what time) so incase you injure yourself you can activate it. On that I've got an alright med kit but I think I'll need to add modifications to it specifically for snake bites. I've got good boots. But what shirts/pants do you wear when hiking? I'm not obviously going to be rocking around in Multicam.
Forgot to reply to this in the above post. That's why I asked if anyone had gone alone before - because I know my friends wouldn't be keen to do anything like this. And if by some strange event they did come - they would be the type of person to constantly complain the entire way. So taking someone isn't really going to be an option I don't think.
Every time I go bush walking I nearly step on a tiger snake, I swear the bastards wait for me. That's the excuse I now use to not go bush walking. Winner.
MISLEADING THREAD TITLE! i thought this was going to be a thread about how that wrinkly old coot barbara bush was up and walking after recently being hospitalized. hey yahoo serious, put down the fosters, turn off the midnight oil album and listen up! here in amer'ca we call it "hiking". funny cause its true! i know alot about it b/c i do it all the time and i would say you are safer hiking/camping alone in a state park than you are driving down your city streets. lol. no its not. to the OP, if you have never camped before than i would not recommend trying to do solo camping, unless you are doing car-camping, where you camp in campground next to car. you need proper gear to do the primitive camping where you hike in with all your gear. backpack/cold-weather sleeping bag & pad/small stove/ect - it can get expensive. there are plenty of state parks where you can camp and do miles and miles of day hikes. my two favorite in central texas are west of san antonio - lost maples and hill country state natural area. lost maples has a 15 mile loop trail and hill country has 40 miles of really primitive, mostly unmarked trails. that one is near bandera, about an hour west of san antonio and it is really nice and quiet out there. you could car camp and then do lots of day hiking. a great two day hike is the south rim loop trail at big bend - 15 miles thru the highest area of the park.
