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Main Boards => General Walking Discussion => Topic started by: gunwharfman on 09:56:04, 03/03/20

Title: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: gunwharfman on 09:56:04, 03/03/20
As a camper, my daily routine changes a lot. At home, I get up around 7 am, shower, shave and then have breakfast, it's also the time of day when I put on fresh clothes.

When I'm camping, my fresh clothes change/shower time is the evening before. In the morning, I'm usually up around or just after dawn, I just pack all of my stuff and start hiking. I usually stop around 9 am to have my breakfast and attend to all of my hygiene needs, shave and so on. Its this time as well, whilst doing all this I will also lay out my tent (weather permitting) and any other damp or wet items to dry. From time to time if its a nice morning I sometimes have a short nap as well. Once I'm personally sorted I will then pack my rucksack properly. I used to try to do all of this first thing in the morning but hated it, especially when the morning is cold, damp or wet, maybe a chilly wind, my fingers are freezing and my brain isn't functioning properly yet!

It takes me a couple of days but I then lose all of my other home routines, eating, for example, I soon eat when I fancy rather than planning it to be around 12 or 1 pm. Its another time of the day, if the weather is right, where I might doze off for a while. I try to arrive where I want or hope to be before 6 pm and try not to eat after 8 pm. Those one to two hours for me tend to be rather busy as I sort myself out for the next days walk.
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: sussamb on 12:02:34, 03/03/20
Must say I don't think about it much, just get on and do it  O0
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: jimbob on 12:07:41, 03/03/20
Must say I don't think about it much, just get on and do it  O0
O0
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: fernman on 18:35:31, 03/03/20
Yes. my routine changes when I'm hiking - I get up around 8 am at home, even later on some of these winter mornings, but when I'm wild camping I'm up at 7 which is not like me at all. It's partly to do with being in my sleeping bag for up to 10 hours, and to do with wanting to get ready and get on the move again.

I do sit about sometimes or have a snooze because, I have to keep reminding myself, I'm "on holiday".

However, I've done my trips so many times over the years that it's become like a set timetable: one day dashing 235 miles to north Wales on motorways, a night on a campsite, three or four days walking, then up to three days in a big tent, followed by a leisurely drive homewards, always the same. When I'm in the big tent it's even worse: I keep looking at my watch, thinking It's 5 o'clock now, I'll read till 6, then I'll have a shower, I'll go to the pub at 7:30, I'll eat at 8. Oh dear, I'm making myself sound like a crashing bore, aren't I.
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: BuzyG on 20:04:28, 03/03/20
When doing anything outside the weather effects my routine.  O0
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: Yorci on 16:39:05, 04/03/20
I must admit, it's something I've never thought about, these days I'm a creature of habit. Being a shift worker, when on days I get up at 5 a.m. to have breakfast early and get ready for work, and dine later about 8 p.m.

To get to the Peak District, Lake District or the North Yorks Moors from my home, it takes about 2 hours or so.

So in winter I'll probably get up about the same time, to get to my start point at dawn. Less daylight often means an early start, so I don't need to finish a walk in the dark. My breakfast lunch and dinner are about the same.

In summer where there are longer daylight hours, I'll often get disturbed about 4 a.m. by the dawn chorus, but often have a lie in until about 7 a.m. and I tend to set out around 8 or 9ish.

When camping I still get woken by dawns chorus, but usually manage to get another couple of hours kip, before getting up.
At a campsite with facilities, I still shower twice a day, brush my teeth after meals, though I wear most of my same clothes for a couple or three days, change underwear daily, and technical tee shirt and walking socks every couple of days.

Wild camping - I have only ever camped out for one night, so whatever I start the walk in, I usually finish wearing the same, unless I get 'bleaklow'ed. Still brush my teeth before I bed down. When I get up, I'll have breakfast, wash and shave in a cup, though I'll sometimes miss the shave, if I'm feeling lazy.
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: fernman on 17:01:54, 04/03/20
When camping I still get woken by dawns chorus, but usually manage to get another couple of hours kip, before getting up.

The worst thing about summer camping is when the sun hits you early in the morning and you're forced to get up because you're baking.
Actually I only do campsite camping in my big tent in the summer months and I've learnt to avoid this by pitching it with the porch facing east and the sleeping compartment aka bedroom to the west. Also the material of the latter is black, it takes a bit of getting used to but it helps a good deal with the morning light levels.
When I'm wild camping in spring and autumn I always try and pitch my little one man tent with the porch facing east so that I will get any morning warmth if the sun is out.
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: forgotmyoldpassword on 19:41:02, 04/03/20
The worst thing about summer camping is when the sun hits you early in the morning and you're forced to get up because you're baking.
Actually I only do campsite camping in my big tent in the summer months and I've learnt to avoid this by pitching it with the porch facing east and the sleeping compartment aka bedroom to the west. Also the material of the latter is black, it takes a bit of getting used to but it helps a good deal with the morning light levels.
When I'm wild camping in spring and autumn I always try and pitch my little one man tent with the porch facing east so that I will get any morning warmth if the sun is out.


I've learned from experience when I was summer camping with my Trailstar that an inner isn't just 'nice to have', it's bloody necessary once the army of insects roll in.


As to the OP - I used to be all about getting up super early and crushing the maximum miles I could, going to bed exhausted and falling asleep like a light.  You wake up, do your camp 'tasks' quickly then head off - not too dissimilar to home really.   But a lot of the time, now at least, I just feel like a leisurely morning, forget about jumping out of bed and just let the day figure itself out without putting another goal ahead of you - enjoy making your morning brew, if you leave camp at 6am or 10am so what. 


I've thought about this a few times whilst hiking, how as people we seem to prefer a routine, a set series of tasks to do - and truly having a choice of 'whatever you feel like' seems to cause some people to short circuit.  You just keep creating a rigid structure in your mind instead,  'No, I've got to get up and start those miles to x destination' or 'I want to climb this hill, then this one'. 


I've been terribly guilty of it in the past, you have a holiday but you're constantly putting things in front of yourself.  I've decided to try and shake it up this spring and focus on 'an area to explore', just pitch up, make camp and put the map away - see where curiosity takes me and what features I'm drawn towards.  Perhaps being more present in the outdoors rather than bombing along a trail like I'm doing the M25 isn't what I want to do all the time, but it seems to take some mental effort to 'de-couple' that mode, at least for myself.
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: Yorci on 22:37:31, 04/03/20

I've learned from experience when I was summer camping with my Trailstar that an inner isn't just 'nice to have', it's bloody necessary once the army of insects roll in.

I've been using the Lifesystems Portable Insect Killer Unit, I've found it to be a great little accessory.
(https://i.postimg.cc/QCV69Sfh/Lifesystems-insect-killer.jpg) (https://postimages.org/)
For a campsite tent, I use to use a Vango Galaxy 300 but it use to get a bit draughty, so a couple of years ago moved to the Outwell Birdland 3 though is a bit heavier, it is fully sealed with good mesh doors and windows. No nite bites and no longer sharing my meals with some beasty. 
Title: Re: When hiking, do you change your daily routine?
Post by: ninthace on 22:58:27, 04/03/20
Hiking days tend to finish with a beer and a pub meal, non-hiking days tend to finish with a glass of wine and me cooking the dinner.