Solo “hiking”

[ApricotDanish83]

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

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

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.

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

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

I’ll have layers with me.

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

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.

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

And have fun !

from memory the Dartmoor paths are very confusing

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

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.

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

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.

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.

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

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.

As a regular solo walker (Lakes, Peak District, S Downs, Greek mountains, Canada) there are things that just stay in my rucksack
Little pack of Compeed plasters
Little pack of any bac wipes
Whistle
Tick remover
Foam mat to sit on
Foil blanket.

The foil blanket is about the size and weight of a pocket tissue pack. Thankfully I have never had an accident myself but I have used 2. Once when I came across a couple waiting for Mountain Rescue for an ankle injury and once when I stopped to help with a cyclist who had come off her bike on a mountain pass road, and as she was in cycling gear she was shivering while waiting for help.

I have one in the glove box in my car too.

It’s easy to get hung up on the ‘risks’. Walking / hiking is simply going for a walk away from roads and pavements. It’s highly unlikely that anyone who is fit enough for what they intend, knows where they are (navigation), has a normal level of common sense and adequate clothing will ever come any kind of cropper.

It is highly likely that they will have a great time and come back healthier, fitter, inspired, content, happier… and healthily tired.

But a few back pocket precautions can make things less bad if bad luck strikes.

Looks perfect, it's what I would call a bivvy shelter but perhaps for one person. Yep foil blankets are pretty disposable and you can at least sit on that for your lunch and then pack it up again. Have a fab time, Dartmoor is one of the places I haven't done any walking yet and now I want to go!

I’m so lucky to liver relatively close to it. I’ve just had a craving to get outside and figured I may as well go while the daylight is still okay

If you haven’t already, download OS Maps-the premium is around £25 a year but well worth it and powerbank. A flask of hot coffee. Buttered Bara Brith is wonderful on a hike. Obs appropriate clothes, shoes-I never bother with boots now if decent hiking shoes. Proper hiking socks-you’re going to be a bit footsore. I find hat and gloves make you feel far more comfortable than thick coats. Proper walking trousers which allow movement and dry off quickly. Layers, waterproof jacket in backpack. A tick remover might come in useful. And light trainers to change into when you’ve finished the hike-I can’t wait to get out of my hiking shoes and a change makes your feet feel refreshed. Also some blister plasters, painkillers foil blamket. Hope you enjoy it!

I’ve got the OS app, not sure I’ll use it enough to justify paying for it at the moment! I have really good shoes, from regatta, which are moulded to my feet by this point!

If you don’t have anyone in your life that enjoys walking, have you considered a walking group?

I don’t have regular access to a car and a lot of my local groups are really dependent on that, or they’re for 60+ :(

Actually it’s forecast to be showery which on Dartmoor due to the terrain and height can feel worse than lower ground. So definitely bring waterproofs , stout boots and other things mentioned above. Leave details with someone with arrangements to rigpng in at a certain time.

2-3 light showers with lots of sun in between!! Definitely not a fully rainy day

Met office which I rely on says light showers all day
Your comment about the os map app . The most useful thing on Dartmoor is the little red arrow that shows your exact location.