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Original poster

Solo “hiking”

190 replies

ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 07:58

Posting here mainly for traffic to be honest.

I’m planning a day out to Dartmoor this weekend to go on a pretty long walk up a couple of the tors. Going by myself because I have nobody to go with but I’m craving being outside 😂

the route is set to be about three and a half hours back, two hours in, and about 12 miles all together. I’m relatively fit but wha do I need to take with me??? I know I’ll need some snacks but that’s about all I can think of

OP posts:
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Betteroutdoors · 22/10/2025 11:50

As someone who has walked a lot solo, with a dog, in the UK and bits of Europe my daypack contains;

  • Waterproof jacket and trousers
  • Hat and gloves or cap and sunscreen depending on season
  • Food for me
  • Food for dog
  • Small dog bowl
  • 2l water
  • Small first aid kit with pain relief, plasters, antihistamines
  • Emergency head torch
  • Extra layer
  • Map
  • Compass
  • Phone charger
  • Microspikes (only if needed for the weather or mountain terrain)
  • Small picnic type blanket by pacmat
  • Chapstick

I can read a paper map and take bearings but to be honest I use OS maps on my phone. Usually that all fits in a 16l day pack and I'm carrying extra water and food because of the hound. My pack isn't necessarily "right" but thought it might be useful to share.

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 11:49

Betteroutdoors · 22/10/2025 11:39

A bivvy bag? Or a bivvy shelter? A bivvy bag is usually a waterproof sleeping sack that goes over your sleeping back for you to sleep in instead of a tent. I'm supper safety conscious in the outdoors and even I think that might be a little overkill for this walk 😀

A bivvy shelter is often an orange group shelter that you all sit inside if the weather turns, again super useful but might be overkill on this walk. I was more thinking of a a simple foil blanket for a couple of quid which would be small and light and perfect for one person in extremis.

That said I actually want a 4 person bivvy shelter for us and the dogs so if you've found a bargain please let me know.

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It’s this, it came up when I searched for foil blankets and it’s reusable as opposed to the foil blankets which seem to be designed to be thrown out

Solo “hiking”
OP posts:
GasPanic · 22/10/2025 11:39

ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:38

Again I think you’ve read Dartmoor and assumed I’ll be miles from help. At most I will be about 3 miles from civilisation

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It can still take the emergency services hours to get to you if you are trapped in your own home, let alone lost on a dark moor.

I tend to think in terms of things that would take little/zero effort to carry, but would have most impact in an emergency. So something waterproof to protect me from the rain/wind, torch (LED super bright one) which will help people find you if it is dark, blister plasters and energy tablets.

Betteroutdoors · 22/10/2025 11:39

ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:51

I’ve ordered a BIVVY bag, I’m assuming that’s a similar thing to a foil blanket???

A bivvy bag? Or a bivvy shelter? A bivvy bag is usually a waterproof sleeping sack that goes over your sleeping back for you to sleep in instead of a tent. I'm supper safety conscious in the outdoors and even I think that might be a little overkill for this walk 😀

A bivvy shelter is often an orange group shelter that you all sit inside if the weather turns, again super useful but might be overkill on this walk. I was more thinking of a a simple foil blanket for a couple of quid which would be small and light and perfect for one person in extremis.

That said I actually want a 4 person bivvy shelter for us and the dogs so if you've found a bargain please let me know.

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 11:35

rainbowunicorn · 22/10/2025 11:20

Letting someone know where you are isn't anything to do with men. It is to do with the chances of falling and injuring yourself, getting lost bad weather coming in.
We dont need to make everything an anti man rant.

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I think I’m more likely to get myself turned around than encounter some sort of mad man, lol

OP posts:
rainbowunicorn · 22/10/2025 11:20

Goodadvice1980 · 22/10/2025 08:24

Was going to suggest life360 or something similar and telling someone where you are and if you haven’t sent a text at the end by X time they’ll call you.

Great having to think of personal safety 😩 no wonder we always choose the bear 🐻

Have a lovely hike!

Letting someone know where you are isn't anything to do with men. It is to do with the chances of falling and injuring yourself, getting lost bad weather coming in.
We dont need to make everything an anti man rant.

OneKhakiFish · 22/10/2025 10:58

Travel mug cos I love my tea and a bum bag, have a great time OP

childofthe607080s · 22/10/2025 10:51

And have fun !

from memory the Dartmoor paths are very confusing

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:51

I’ve ordered a BIVVY bag, I’m assuming that’s a similar thing to a foil blanket???

OP posts:
helpfulperson · 22/10/2025 10:48

Pharazon · 22/10/2025 09:25

Mountain rescue would much prefer a grid reference (which the OS app will give you.) There are problems with w3w - it's positively dangerous in some places. Mainly the issue is that locations with very similar sounding w3w names can be close together. For example likely.stages.sock and likely.stage.sock are a mile apart from each other, but on opposite banks of the River Clyde...

I was involved in a rescue that got badly affected by this - the location was either misspoken or misheard and rescuers ended up going to a nearby, but incorrect location.

In theory w3w locations that sound similar should be very distant from each other, so that it is obvious that the location was reported incorrectly, but this is not the case due to a fundamental flaw with the way w3w assigned location names.

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Agree with this. I remember one of the MR teams asking on line for people to search w3w because the three words they thought they heard were 100s of miles away from the hikers start point and they needed to find out if there was something similar locally.

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:43

childofthe607080s · 22/10/2025 10:42

Yes but if you TWIST an ankle you can’t walk 3 miles and it takes the rescue service a couple of hours to gather and reach you

i wojld never bother with a foil blanket but I always carry a spare very warm layer to add - I have a lightweight puffer jacket for this time of year

Edited

I’ll have layers with me.

there’s a lot of roads as well, it’s not up a mountain!

OP posts:
childofthe607080s · 22/10/2025 10:42

Yes but if you TWIST an ankle you can’t walk 3 miles and it takes the rescue service a couple of hours to gather and reach you

i wojld never bother with a foil blanket but I always carry a spare very warm layer to add - I have a lightweight puffer jacket for this time of year

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:38

helpfulperson · 22/10/2025 10:36

An injury like a broken ankle may mean waiting 2 or 3 hours for rescue. At this time of year you will get very cold very quickly sitting. For the cost/weight of a foil blanket it is well worth carrying.

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Again I think you’ve read Dartmoor and assumed I’ll be miles from help. At most I will be about 3 miles from civilisation

OP posts:
helpfulperson · 22/10/2025 10:36

Purplerocket · 22/10/2025 10:07

I live not far from here and you'll be fine. It's a well walked area so you can't get lost. There are stone tracks in parts that are in use by MOD vehicles and are even part of a circular cycle route. The ranges are very rarely closed to the public on weekends so you'll won't have any problems there.

The only thing to bear in mind is the weather hasn't been great this week and more rain is forecast so make sure you have good boots and steer clear of any boggy areas.

You definitely don't need a foil blanket 😂 and a day pack will be fine for any rubbish you have from lunch.

An injury like a broken ankle may mean waiting 2 or 3 hours for rescue. At this time of year you will get very cold very quickly sitting. For the cost/weight of a foil blanket it is well worth carrying.

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:24

lljkk · 22/10/2025 10:21

When my teen son did a long solo hike earlier this year, I asked him to send a screenshot of his map location every 45 minutes or so to the adults in charge of his group, so we'd know where to start looking if he didn't get back. I feel this is more useful than planned route information.

I use lfe360 so if I ever get lost my parents would have live info!

OP posts:
TheSandgroper · 22/10/2025 10:22

We had a death on one of the most popular trails in the country.

For the sake of a foil blanket - just take it.

lljkk · 22/10/2025 10:21

When my teen son did a long solo hike earlier this year, I asked him to send a screenshot of his map location every 45 minutes or so to the adults in charge of his group, so we'd know where to start looking if he didn't get back. I feel this is more useful than planned route information.

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:21

Oooh now I’m thinking I might take a couple bags full of the M&S mix that’s gone viral as some nice snacks along the way 😂

OP posts:
Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:18

faffadoodledo · 22/10/2025 10:15

As someone who found her way onto a hummock bog on Dartmoor and struggled to find a safe way off I’d say take collapsable
walking poles. They were a godsend! Also if you were to injure yourself they’re v handy.
oh also handy for a bit of confidence if you encounter cows!
they’ll last years so an excellent t investment to o

Ah the cows has just reminded me of the time I came across a cow in a field and fought it off with a golf umbrella 🤣

OP posts:
Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:17

TheSandgroper · 22/10/2025 10:15

The foil blanket is not OTT.

It’s light, it’s small and it might be the one thing that saves your life.

Australia has lost four hikers in the past month.

I think a Dartmoor trail that’s well used is a little different to Australia

OP posts:
ticktickticktickBOOM · 22/10/2025 10:15

ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:13

They don’t know the time I’ll be going or if I’m even being truthful about the date, I also don’t think they’d really care.

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Fair enough.

faffadoodledo · 22/10/2025 10:15

As someone who found her way onto a hummock bog on Dartmoor and struggled to find a safe way off I’d say take collapsable
walking poles. They were a godsend! Also if you were to injure yourself they’re v handy.
oh also handy for a bit of confidence if you encounter cows!
they’ll last years so an excellent t investment to o

TheSandgroper · 22/10/2025 10:15

The foil blanket is not OTT.

It’s light, it’s small and it might be the one thing that saves your life.

Australia has lost four hikers in the past month.

Original poster
ApricotDanish83 · 22/10/2025 10:13

ticktickticktickBOOM · 22/10/2025 10:11

I honestly don't think it's wise to publicise your exact walking route, the date you are going and that you will be alone.

I'd feel very vulnerable if a few million people had access to my exact whereabouts in a desolate area like that.

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They don’t know the time I’ll be going or if I’m even being truthful about the date, I also don’t think they’d really care.

OP posts:
kermes · 22/10/2025 10:11

This sounds amazing, have fun OP. I went to Dartmoor this time last year and it was stunning, I'm really jealous! Not much advice beyond what has been suggested here. Avoid valley floors if you can, they will be very boggy. And I definitely second having 'what3words' on your phone.

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