Why the Hell do people keep giving this Outdated Backpacking Advice? 

I once lost the trail while hiking in an area that "I knew like the back of my hand", which is why I didn't bring a map. Turns out, the back of my hand was a bit unfamiliar to me. Since then I have always carried maps of where I am hiking even though I now download my route onto my phone. I have helped many hikers figure out where they are and where they needed to go because I had a map and they didn't, except for the one on their phone...their dead phone. I also had my phone die on me once, and I was happy to have some paper maps. Getting lost once in the wilderness is all it takes to make you wish you were carrying an extra 2 ounces of paper maps.

I'm a woman, 65, and I'm not afraid to hike and camp alone, nor have I ever been, even when I was young. And fyi you probably have more women enjoying your channel than you realize. I'm subscribed and I could be your grandma.

I don't think the map & compass advice is outdated. I actually started carrying extra maps on trail because I have had to help so many people find their way off the trail after getting lost following All Trails or other apps. Or their phone died and they had no idea how to find their way back.🤦‍♀

For all the women backpackers worried to go out by yourself I personally have never felt inadequate in the backcountry. The only thing I have ever gotten nervous about are human predators because they are out there. I make sure I always have a knife of some kind it doesn’t have to be big. I use a carabiner in the tent of my zipper. It obviously won’t help if someone really want in but it will buy you more time to protect yourself. Remembering who you pass and who is camping around you is important. Knowing where to run to for help and knowing what faces you’ve seen too many times is important. Women are more than capable to backpack solo. Don’t let people deter you.

This is a great episode and I have some "rules" in life for my kids (my son is 10 so we are starting these processes) - He can't have his own GPS device for our hikes until he can navigate an entire (challenging) hike using nothing but a map and compass (gotta know the basics first). He can't open water swim without me (ie - go with his friends) until he can swim 100 lengths of a pool. He can't go on a hike without me (with his friends) until he can hike a 50KM mountain hike unassisted. The list goes on. Same goes for me. You have no business relying on a "GPS" device if you have zero idea how to use a map and compass (if you had to). You never know what life is going to throw at you:)

I guess I break your demographic. I'm a 49 yr old female solo backpacker, and the only times I've felt somewhat creeped out are when I've met men (usually older than me) on trail who tell me I'm not safe by myself. I've enjoyed your content for years, but like so many others who've commented, I really think you've hit your stride since you've been back from the PCT. Thanks for fleshing your content out while staying the same Kyle we love!

I’ve been an outdoor educator for sneaking up on 20 years, and this is a really wonderful video. Everything here is on point, I will add. A few things. Yes! You don’t have to wear boots, but I do recommend that NEW hikers/backpackers wear a lightweight hiking boot for their first season because they haven’t yet built the calf, ankle and foot strength needed to prevent injury. No you don’t have to carry a map and compass, but you should no how to use one! It will give you an understanding of how to “stay found” if/when your cell phone dies - Personally I think people should carry them, but I get that most don’t. Lastly, NOLS did research on the skin to skin for rewarming a wet hypothermic patient. You don’t end up with two warm people, you end up with a cold person and just slightly warm person. There are better methods to warm someone who is hypothermic. Take a wilderness medicine class to find out. Thanks for a great video!

I'm a woman who backpacks alone in trail runners, and I leave the gun at home (because it's so heavy). However, I do like paper maps in case the phone battery runs out, and I bring a keychain compass, just in case.

Drives me crazy when people freak out because I go hike alone. I have a gps and make a plan/share it with my family but I’d never hike if I didn’t go alone! Thanks for addressing that!

I hiked the entire AT solo. I occasionally teamed up with other hikers, but over 90% I did solo and I felt completely safe. I did carry a Garmin mini but I only used it to communicate with my loved ones. I felt completely safe as a woman hiking the AT, no gun or weapon necessary. 💯

Kyle, I just have to say you have quickly become my favorite hiking channel. I don’t know you but I feel proud of you and the success you’ve achieved by working hard on your channel… through your creativity, humor, thoughtful videos and great editing skills. Very cool too that you are now getting sponsored by brands like Sawyer. I feel like some people would have let what happened to you out on the PCT just crush them (I let a hike-ending injury on the AT last year crush me), but you just came out on the other side absolutely crushing it instead. Anyway, keep up the great work, lots of us are enjoying it tremendously!

I conceal carry….but I also am a combat veteran who has been around guns most of my life and carry a judge ordered permit that I maintain. Concealing a gun is fine (in the states) on the trail but I feel it’s similar to driving….it’s not really yourself, it’s the idiots on the road that scare you. If you don’t know how to operate a gun like the back of your hand, it may just only going to make a situation worse. Learn, practice, maintain. Also, I have been a solo female backpacker for years and yes, that adage has been directed at women far more than men and IDGAF….I’m hiking. And I prefer solo because I can do what I want when I want….there’s real freedom in solo backpacking.

The compass alone is reasonable to take. You can get one that weighs nearly nothing. I never “needed” one, but i often liked to get a quick direction reference.

I don't carry a Compass but I almost always carry a map. Maps help me determine distance to resources. Also if I ever do end up off trail, "lost" I can use the map to Bushwick back to the trail or navigate to some other major landmark, like a road or river. Or a town. If you know where you started, which direction you were going and what direction you started, let or right, when you got off the trail you can navigate well enough from that small bit of information. Watching the sun for east west will help too.

Sawyer was hugely instrumental in getting water filters down to Puerto Rico after Maria. Love them!

Having done a lot of winter backpacking throughout the world, I can confidently say that sleeping nude does NOT keep you warmer. 🥶 A layer of dry, snug (but not tight) fitting fleece will keep you loads warmer than your birthday suit. But most importantly…WEAR SLEEPING SOCKS (fleece or down). In cold environments, my feet can take an hour to warm up in my bags, and a dry, loose fitting pair of fleece sleeping socks really help. 👍

I'm female and hike alone all the time. I tell people, I am more likely to be murdered in my city than I am out there. Criminals are too lazy to go where I go. 😯 The ones that piss me off I say, " so you're volunteering to go with me on my next hike?" That shuts them up.

I lived in a cabin on the Long Trail from May-Oct one year, as a Caretaker. Had two incidents (one with a group of drunken guys building an illegal fire and the other with a creepy guy who was staying in the cabin with me.) I was nice to the drunken guys, just asking if they were ok and asking them to put out the fire when they left. I sent a day hiker down to civilization to call a friend to come up for the night, as a deterrent. I was trepidatious about the group of guys. I knew I was potentially in trouble with the creep. I had practiced ways out and honestly knew the trails and side trails by heart and could escape in the dark. I saw hundreds of people, almost all were great. I never feared bears (and there were bears) but I had to listen to my gut. Your gut can save you. And so can a gps!

Solo female backpacking thru hiker noob here. THANK YOU for knocking down that hiking alone scare tactic right off the bat. Some people will never know what they're missing.

I have been a solo day hiker for 15 years. I have never felt unsafe. I DO use street smarts and carry (very visibly) mace, Knife and whistle. I also know I can defend myself like a frigging ninja with my trekking poles as well. I am always aware of my surroundings, looking who is behind me etc. If I ever run into someone sketchy like a hiker named Kyle for instance...I find if I talk randomly and quite angrily to myself...no one comes near me cause they think I am Bat Sh*t crazy. Which is not too far off. My point being..Do not let be alone scare you! I prefer it. It is all about attitude. If you have confidence while hiking , it shows. If you hike like a scared rabbit , you look like prey.

For every scared of something happening to them on a thru hike just know that if you are in such a remote area most people won’t do anything because the fear of a stab wound or getting pepper sprayed can critically hurt them as well

Kyle, nice plug on Sawyer and their efforts around the globe to enable potable water, something most of us take for granted. I did not know about their work beyond the backpacking world until I dug into their site a year or so after beginning my hiking journey. Glad they sponsored you and you talked very positive about their products.

I solo thru hiked the AT one and a half times, along with a handful of short and longer section hikes. Plan to attempt the PCT next year. Hiking alone is the most liberating thing a woman can do and I highly recommend it! It's far, far safer than walking alone in civilization.

I am 60 and I go out alone all the time. I feel safer in the woods than I do in town. And your audience may be mostly male but I've been watching you for a while. Was going to buy you dinner at the timberline Lodge but my life kind of fell apart before your hike. Anyway one female here not afraid of the woods

Man I miss trail runners. I used them for like a year and a half and then when I was at sequoia I stepped off a curb and my ankle completely crumpled beneath me. It took 6 months of constant bandaging to bring down the swelling in my ankle and all the doctors I saw were pretty surprised that it didn't hurt based on how it looked. I've been condemned to a life of boots but they sure have saved my ankles again a few times since then. The tradeoff is obviously the weight.

I'm a 67 and hike alone all the time. No fear!! Sometimes others can be good company, other times > excess baggage. You and your hiking partner should be kindred souls! 😎👍

1. Hiking solo - it's a different hike than with someone else. Each way of hiking offers its own advantages and joys. But yes, I asked my facebook friends which they preferred. Almost universally, non-hikers said I should never hike alone and cited safety. That wasn't even my question, I only asked which type of hike they preferred, directing the question at hikers. 2. My great-nephew asked me if I brought a gun. I told him no, and I told him why: All the legalities, plus I'm not trained in gun safety. My brother, who considers the Bill of Rights to be 10 instances of the 2nd amendment listened to my answer and agreed with me completely. 3. I'm thinking of trying trail runners someday. I used relatively lighter weight boots but I've been thinking about trail runners. 4. I just use FarOut w/GPS and have an inReach tracker. 5. I bring night clothes, very light, so that I don't stink up my bag by sleeping either in my hiking clothes or naked. So I agree 4 out of 4, with the other I accept as probably correct.

The idea behind sleeping naked is you’ll sweat wearing clothes, which will make you colder. This is something I first heard back in the 80s, when polypro and other synthetic baselayers were very new, the same goes for merino wool, and we were pretty much stuck with thick, coarse, scratchy, itchy wool. When I was stationed in Korea 33 years ago while in the army one of my friends would sleep naked in his sleeping bag when we were in the field in winter, and if you’ve never experienced a Korean winter “brutal” doesn’t begin to describe it. I slept in my itchy, scratchy wool longjohns and vented with the bag zipper when necessary. I usually wasn’t cold, except when the temp dropped below the bag’s rating. That was when you brought your woobie in the bag with you. Boots? I’m generally more comfortable in boots, but I’ve hiked a lot in hiking shoes over the past 5 years or so. Not wimpy stuff, either, but rocky, muddy stuff in the Whites and mountains of NW Maine. Trail runners just aren’t very comfortable to me. I’m 54 now and I’ve worn either combat boots or steel toes at least 5 days a week for the past 36+ years. My feet are used to boots.

1) tell people close to you where you're going and the dates you expect to be gone, tell them exactly what to do if you're not in contact 2) have an emergency GPS device and/or if you have the means, make sure you buy a phone/watch that supports SOS messages (for example an iPhone 14) 3) carry a knife that is easily accessible at all times 4) be generous when packing food, cooking equipment, and water treatment items 5) where I go (in Australia) most parks have QR codes at the start of trails so you can download the relative maps or simply take a photo with your phone as a reference point. I find grabbing a map from a local hiking store is great for reference in terms of elevation and major lookouts, and also a great piece of memorabilia Even though I'm a guy, I have noted that it's very, very rare to find anybody that's suspicious on a hiking trail, especially multi day hikes. I find when doing multi day hikes, you'll meet multiple people who you will spend time with at each camping ground. Naturally, you'll keep check of each other. I've met the best people while solo hiking, and honestly feel safer out in the wilderness than I would walking around a city a night.

Regarding a map and compass, simply going 25 yards off trail to use the bathroom can easily render the trail invisible and cause you to walk literally in the opposite direction which just makes things worse.

The incidents of NON-backpackers in a situation where having and knowing how to use a gun in OFF-trail incidents being beneficial is SO much higher than incidents where a backpacker might have wanted to have a gun for a situation that it’s not even funny. Being on trail is SO much safer than being anywhere in any city it’s not even comparable…

Tbh I feel more safer hiking by myself then walking to the grocery store in my current location Los Angeles (this is what I have said to some people who hate on me for hiking solo and they still don’t buy my excuse even though I’ve shown proof of how dangerous LA has gotten).

I have a funny story from my last backpacking trip, which would make a great topic for a video. "Funniest comments you have gotten from non-backpackers" In April I went on my second backpacking trip, 5 months pregnant with our third. When I dropped off my two boys with my Mother-in-law, she asked me if my husband and I were staying in an BNB or something. I reminded her that we were going backpacking. So we were going to hike out, then camp. She freaked out. "Oh, it's so cold this weekend. It's supposed to snow. Do you need an extra comforter?" This comment had me laughing the entire weekend. I just kept imagining myself walking down the trail with my backpack on, carrying a queen size comforter. 😂 She was very well meaning. And I let her know that we had lots of layers and warm sleeping bags. Also, reassured her that if we felt unprepared for the weather while on the trail that we would turn around.

In the military we were told to take our heavy clothes off but keep our base layer on when crawling in our sleeping bags, never to strip naked and about the maps, I guess I've just grown used to having it with me along with a compass. I've had my phone die on me once but it was on a piece of trail where there were many other people and everything was marked so it would be quite a task to get lost. Great content this Kyle makes, hmm - Yoda

Solo hiking is especially great if you're just gone a day. I live in the South-West of England, and so any nearby paths, not only are pretty close to people, are also safe. I can be alone, but I can get to any people pretty easily. (Like a mile max)

Always carry a compass. Know what direction a main road is. Always.

"Did you carry a gun for bears?" Number one question asked by family and friends when I solo hiked the JMT nobo. You just have to laugh, as it's understandable to think that if you don't have any hiking experience. Also, I'm pretty sure solo women out numbered solo men on my JMT thru hike. Not one creepy person on trial, although that's what I experienced, they're out there for sure.

Best weapon for backpacking is a sling. First ammo is everywhere and two it’s basically a leather strap. Practice is a must

learned that trick in the military to sleep in the buff . heres a tip though ., leave your socks on when in a cold environment and wool hat , . i always stuff my clothes down to the bottom of the sleeping bag . in the morning i pull on my warm clothes that were in the sleeping bag

I agree for everything except.....the map and compass. It does help, more so if you don't have any cell signal and are hiking in cooler weather where there is ongoing snow falling, maybe even under a heavy fall brush/leaves bed covering the trail. Sometimes the markers are even covered by snow.

If you're not hiking with at least half a dozen other armed people with boots and a compass, it's clearly not safe. You should also make sure you have a tent with really strong (ironically named) bugnetting to keep bears and attackers out. If you cannot carry a firearm for whatever reason, you can carry a piece of cotton fabric. As everyone knows, cotton kills...and it doesn't require a background check.

Dude I’ve got a solid ten years on you (37) and I’ve learned a lot. And you admit the shit lots of dudes wouldn’t. I also couldn’t hack the PCT and I live to hike.. I’m naturally a good hiker. 100miles of it kicked my ass into a bad depression.. a literal depression. You made it far further than I did. Totally agree on hiking in groups. You can totally hike alone, always act like you know where you’re going and don’t be all smiles and look like a target.. same advice I’d give to a small women walking a city alone too. If you’re able to conceal carry, just do it. Not for animals but for humans.. it’s a sad fact. A gunshot lost can also save your life. I don’t own not will I ever own a gun though. I’ll take my chances with my knives, which I’m good with. If I had to get up close and personal to fend someone off me, I think I could. Pray that never ever happens tho obviously.

Thank you, great video. Very much seen from an American perspective, I would add. Where I live (Norway), going out hiking without a map and compass, and not knowing how to use those, is not sensible as you would not have cell phone reception and the battery on your gps will run out. And for me, I don't even have a smart phone. The gun thing is laughable, to be honest, so thanks for bringing that up. I would add the stupid advice to bring almost everything, which I often hear. Carry light and hike longer, I say. Also, it will save your knees and back so that you can continue hiking for your entire life.

I was totally lost today while winter hiking. A map and compass was totally useless as the terrain is different when covered in snow. My GPS and backup GPS saved me. As an old school map user, I have to say GPS is great, but always have a backup navigation system.

I always hike with Kyle's mom.

I’ve had some cold nights in my quilt and have never thought to myself: “I could really take off some clothes to feel warmer right now”.

Another solo female hiker here - the comments and questions I get when people find out I go out on multi-day trips alone is frustrating at times. As long as you're confident in your gear and your skill, there's no reason not to! I feel safer in the woods than in the city as a female, actually. I did get a zoleo this past summer, which is nice when doing more remote trails with no cell service, like the Quehanna Trail here in PA. And while I do have a concealed carry permit, I've never carried on trail - I could never figure out a way that would be comfortable and have it be easily accessible. So every time I get asked that question, I always tell them I have bear spray, mace and 2 pointy trekking poles, as well as my pocket knife. That's plenty good enough. And I always say the chances that some weirdo is sitting in the middle of the woods waiting for a victim to stroll by is probably much less than one waiting in a Walmart parking lot, so yeah, I don't feel the need to carry on trail.

My background is fire, EMS, and wilderness search and rescue (specifically, mantracking). My best piece of advice is to go out there PREPARED. Seems obvious but you'd be surprised at just how many people go out there unprepared for the terrain or the weather. That comprises the highest percentage of SAR calls where I live.

Oh, also: Most commercial trail runners come with crap for insoles. Throw out the factory ones and put in Superfeet or something. Your ankle support comes from below, so having your shoe and insole cradle your heel properly is critical. Once I made that switch, I found that my ankles did better, my knees did MUCH better, and I fell down a lot less.

I’ve hiked alone for decades and never had any issues! I’ve never come into contact with anyone creepy or that gave me bad vibes while out hiking.

The stock footage of the two disoriented old people with brand new Walmart gear got me good haha😂😂

As a 72-year-old who has been hiking in the mountains for more than 60 years, I can honestly say you are spot on in every point. I swore by boots until I was in my mid-60s. Switching to light-weight shoes let me up my daily mileage about 50 percent. As to maps and compasses, I can tell you that very few people have any idea how to use a compass if they have one, and probably can't read a map, either.

Even though trails like the AT are 'pretend wilderness', I always have a compass just because I like playing with it and navigating some short trails just to give me the feeling that I could actually survive if I really got lost. (I'd probably fail and die anyway). I live in the U.S., I have a global compass and it goes where I go including Australia and Japan to visit relatives. I just think it's cool that it can work when magnetic north is in the Northern Hemisphere and depending where you are you have to compensate for declination. For me it's fun to play with. As for the maps, years ago I purchase a set of topographical maps at a garage sale that has PA, NJ, NY for various places. I'm sure the declinations are outdated, but I have use them just for fun a couple of times. Thanks for the video.

Good points, all! I do hike solo. I carry a PLB, leave a safety plan, and I didn't hike solo until after my daughter was grown. I still don't bushwhack solo, or go solo in deep winter in anything tougher than the local park. We all have our own level of risk tolerance. "Never hike alone!" is fine advice for an eleven-year-old boy scout, which is when a lot of us first heard it. Do I carry on the trail? If I were carrying, I'd be a fool to tell you. If I weren't carrying, I'd be a fool to tell you. I've given advice on pack lists betore. It always ends 'and a couple of pounds of none-of-your-business'. That isn't about carrying nearly as much as it's about it's none of your business whether I've brought my nylon pail, my camp chair* or my teddy bear. But wait a minute, I don't even own a camp chair. Do I wear boots? Yes, in winter. Even on a horribly wet trail, I do better in trail runners with mesh uppers that might eventually get dry again. But I bring more extra socks, so that I can keep washing the grit out of the pair I'm wearing and putting on whichever pair is driest. (No, NOT the sleeping socks!) And I wax my feet on a trail like that. Got me through NPT in a year of insane beaver activity. Do I carry a map and compass? Always. But relatively little of my hiking is on superhighways like the AT - and about a third of it is out-and-out bushwhack. I'm really not comfortable without my compass even if I'm just stepping off the trail to make camp or [Deuteronomy 23:13]. Do I sleep naked? If I'm naked in bed, it probably isn't to sleep. But don't sleep in your puffy jacket, you'll be warmer spreading it on top of your bag.

I always worry that sleeping naked will add more body oils and sweat to my down bag and get it dirty faster. But yeah don't put all your layers on if you're cold. It's amazing how much a layer of dead air can insulate. I once forgot my sleeping bag on an overnighter. My feet stayed warm inside my emptied out pack. I threw my pack cover over my knees and they stayed amazingly warm. Then ultimately my upper body was warmest when I draped my puffy jacket over me like a blanket. If I ever get cold I find that using my coat like a blanket on the outside of my bag is warmest. If I'm cowboy camping and get cold and have a tent with me,(and it's not windy) then I just pull the tent over me like a sheet and the air it traps around me makes all the difference.

Eagle Boy Scout here. lots of cold camping experience. The reason we strip day clothes off before sleeping bag, is due to sweating in those clothes. Damp clothes make you colder. Strip. I use dry socks and loose comfortable silk or cotton sweats, to trap body heat.

But it’s definitely a good idea to carry a map and compass. A good video you could make is outdated advice that’s actually good advice and people should definitely still take.

Great advise about the gun. I carry a gun daily, but I backpack in some states where I can’t, so I don’t in those states. I certainly wouldn’t go out of my way to carry a gun if I didn’t already. Fortunately, I can legally carry in all the places where I hear banjo music in the woods.

There are Personal Locator Beacons, satellite messengers, and I'm sure new tech right around the corner. Lots of reasons to hike solo and do it safe. GPS and phones allow you to navigate, especially on day hikes. Learning to use map and compass definitely won't hurt. Regarding shoes, I had really bad feet as I got into the outdoors, boots saved my feet. Boots have also drastically dropped in weight over the last couple years, still not trail runner light, but way lighter than a decade ago in many cases. Also like you said in the snow, definitely get good waterproof boots, you do not want cold wet feet in the snow. But I have used some trail runners for common trails and they are growing on me. I think your rule may hold true for most people, but also know yourself and your feet. Love your stuff. Keep at it!

I bike-pack (not backpack) solo often. I make sure I’m prepared for gear/bike mechanical failures, first aid, sudden weather changes (Texas weather y’all), carry reasonable non-leather defense (mace/bear spray, whistle, etc), power bank, an emergency fire/water kit, etc. I ALWAYS carry a map of some sort of my area, compass, pencil and a small note pad. I grew up navigating by maps and compasses before the invention of smart phones and GPS devices - even for just driving. The last thing you want is for your tech to either get lost, broken, or run out of juice and not be able to find your way for the sake of saving a few ounces. And PS - always wear clothes when camping. If you have to high-tail it for any reason, you don’t want to waste time getting dressed first.

Basic navigation skills are never unimportant even though technology has helped simplify them. The confidence created by knowing navigation skills will make hiking more comfortable. I always carry my Suunto compass and practice with it even in areas I know well. It’s a skill that doesn’t need batteries or a cell / satellite signal.

In cold weather I always sleep in a base layer to keep my sleeping bag clean. My clothing always comes off and I lay it under my sleeping bag, this does two things keeps my clothes warm and helps insulate from the ground therefore keeping me warmer.

Never rinse your toothbrush in unfiltered water. Never apply 100% DEET on your balls. Never hike naked in bare country.

Thank you for popping into my search option lol. I’m going to the Grand Canyon with someone in two weeks and I’ve never hiked he has but not I lol. And I had to educate myself and thank you because I now want to pack light and smart. Work smarter not harder xD

Most people who carry a compass don't know how to use it. I had a friend who carried 3 (!) compasses to break the tie if 2 compasses disagreed on polarity.

If your feet are older, have a many, many miles on them and have been injured in the past, the support from boots can make hiking more comfortable, so please be easy on us. Also, when off-trail they can protect your feet and ankles from bad steps when your foot might get scrunched between rocks. I've had it happen. The ankle protection from a boot is really just helping the outsides of your ankle. Having said that, for trails, trail runners are clearly the way to go. I wish we'd had them (waaay back) when I started. The ultralight movement is revolutionary.

A little off topic but do you suggest the AT or the PCT especially for a newb?

Hey Kyle, happy new year!I agree with pretty much all of this. I do still take a map and compass bc when I was first starting out backpacking, technology wasn't as prevalent. I do use Far Out these days, but I still keep the ole map and compass just in case. As a female who mostly backpacks solo, in years of trips I only felt nervous once...on the Art Loeb trail several years ago. And that was definitely due to the assholery of a group of people hiking near me...not a fear of being alone in the woods. I just stepped on it and got away from them. Dunno if it was follow bigfoot or Dixie.... someone who brought up guns on thru hikes made the statement that most criminals are lazy and it's kinda true. You can usually get away. I have used Sawyer filters for years, didn't know about their charitable work so thanks for the info. Very cool and congrats on the sponsorship. I'm a female who enjoys your content...then again, I have the sense of humor or a 7th grade boy lol keep up the great work!

One thought on sleeping in the buff. In theory, if you sleep with too many layers in a warm bag, you may overheat and start sweating. Once you start sweating, you can get cold as your sweat cools.

I was a total total beginner from Ohio. I flew to Colorado and hiked 104 miles of the CT for my first trip. It was a little scary at night but it was great. I wouldn't recommend that for everyone but if you're a country boy who is pretty comfortable with your outdoor skills, go for it!

If I don't bring a gun, and I run out of money... How will I get the money I need, and I am entitled to, from your pocket, into mine? There are no large retail stores I can just shoplift less than $1,000 from and not be prosecuted out there, ya know? Sarcasm.

As someone from Europe the section about guns seems like something from a parallel universe

If your options are hiking alone or hiking with people you've just met or don't know well you are probably much safer alone. You don't need boots, you need grip. Don't hike in cheap sneakers that will be smooth plastic after a mile. Hike with something with a decent sole. What is above that sole is not that relevant, whatever is comfortable and works for you, works for you. And if you need a map you KNOW you need a map. The kind of situations where a map is vital aren't the kind of situations you get into accidentally, really. If you do you won't know how to use it anyway and just get lost. If you're doing that kind of stuff you know what you are doing and know that you need a map to do it. The sleeping bag thing is mostly 2 things. 1. You FEEL warm faster if you get out of your cold clothes and into the bag, but overall you'll be colder and 2. Lots of people have bags that are too small so if you wear too much in it, you barely fit in and flatten out all the air layers, which will make you colder than only a sleeping bag that has properly fluffy layers. But then the issue is that your bag is wrong for you, not the clothes.

Regarding firearms, there's an exception in the US and that is Alaska, or really anywhere with brown bears or polar bears. In those places you should probably carry a firearm as default, especially in places with polar bears. Otherwise, it is extra weight, and can change your gait which can cause other annoyances. Firearms should be ready to be drawn if carrying for self defense which limits places it can be stowed on you balance-wise. Also, a person needs to practice shooting under stress. Otherwise, it's just extra weight and a liability. That said, I carry legally concealed 80% of the time (in the Northeast US) when hiking, and have only put my hand on the pistol ready to draw once out in the woods. Was very glad at that time I did have the sidearm with me.

Generally speaking, there are some good points in your video, but I have some issues with it. Point 1: "Hiking alone" - OK Point 2: "Carrying a gun" - OK. Being from an European country with one of the more prohibiting gun laws even by EU standards, it is a big no for me (albeit I own long guns, I am just not allowed to carry them around beyond hunting or range activities), and I do not think that I ever got into a situation when I needed a gun in the areas where I usually do hikes. BUT. If I would hike in the wilder parts of Northern Europe, the Northern and Transuralic Asia, or the wild areas of the Americas or Australia or Africa, and the laws would allow me to carry, I would probably carry some form of firearm. Point 3: "No need for hiking boots" - Here I have some thoughts. A) It can be bulky and heavy (not neccessarily), but if you use them regularly, in a few months you will eventually build up the strength in your legs, and it will not affect your hike negatively. B) The extra protection for your feet, sole and ankle can be much needed if you have to leave the trail for some reason. Running around in a flipflop is fun, until you have to smash through thick and thorny bushes. I am not saying that they are a must in every scenario, and in hot climate areas it has definetly downsides, but saying, that they are outdated and a thing of the past is just BS, by all my respect. Point 4: "Not carrying a map and compass" - Ugh. I use my phone and tracking apps too, but I think that having a map and compass with you (and the knowledge and experience to use them) is essential even on well threaded paths. GPS tracking can be difficult in some areas, you can encounter problems with the batteries, the charging, it can break by a stumble, anything. Imagine planning the next section of the trail - if you have a print, you can do the planning on that and you do not use the battery of your device. Having a backup in the form of a map and compass is essential. It is like saying, "I do not pack any matches, because I have a lighter to build a fire" (or vice versa). Navigation is one of the essential things you do while hiking, so having a redundant analog system with you (that you can use) is paramount in my opinion. Point 5: With this I do not have any experience. I usually wear a t-shirt and shorts (sometimes socks too) while sleeping, never slept naked in a sleeping bag.

I agree 100 percent about alone in 2020 i hiked the pct and i did the seirra section alone it was amazing

As for sleeping bag and what to wear. There are several considerations. First, the goal is to create a tropical environment inside the bag. That means an inside bag temperature in the mid 70s F 22.2 C degree range. If you are under the hide of an arctic mammal with hollow fur fibers, you probably will not want much beside your skivvies.. All the spaces between the hairs are dead air space and hold your body heat. If using a down bag the secret is buying the right size bag. The more space inside the bad the more heat that will be required to fill the space. Since your furnace only has one temperature of 97.5 find a bag that fits your body with just enough wiggle room but not too big or too small. The question you did not mention was What is the temperature range expected. If you know the temperature, bring a bag rated for that range and you will be comfortable in your skivvies. In any bag, you never want to overheat. In a bag, it is better to be cool and never hot. The system called MSS developed in the 1990's by all the cold countries militaries use the Modular Sleep System. The modals allow the sleeper to find the right number for the expected temperature. Start with a one pound bivy bag to enclose the system, Second wear a base layer to keep the bag clean, which pulls moisture off your body. The third layer is the bag liner , the fourth layer which adds about 8 degrees of warmth. The fifth layer is a light weight down sleeping bag. The sixth layer is a mid weight down sleeping bag. Experiment until you find out what combinations create the tropical environment at the outside temps you are experiencing. A light weight plus a mid-weight sleeping bag nested for extreme conditions. The whole system has to be able to breath to allow the two cups of body vapor to exit. As for guns. In all my years as a wilderness guide and solo trips I have never had the need to kill anyone.

Hiking Alone: I've hiked alone about 80% of the time. It's not that I mind hiking with others. It's nice. But usually people are either WAY too slow or WAY too fast. It's hard to get people to take the same Zero's as me. I've never felt it's "dangerous" to hike alone, just that it's unpractical. Maybe I'll catch up with someone. Maybe they'll catch me. Maybe I'll never see them again. Maybe an idea for a future video--- "Never sleep with your food. Never, ever." To get you started: from “Yogi’s PCT Handbook”: (mind you these are triple crowners. Anish is a triple-triple crowner.) Yogi: "I put my food bag into my pack with all my other gear. Then I put my pack under my feet as I sleep.” Anish: “Bear canister in the Sierra, otherwise it’s in an OPSAK under my feet.” Bink: “Outside of bear canister required areas, I sleep with it next to me.” Hiker Box Special: “Bear can in the Sierra. Slept with it everywhere else, no ploblemo.” Scrub: “At night my food always went in an Ursack Minor…I put the bag right next to me (when cowboy camping) or right outside my tent door (when tenting). If I had hung my food in a tree or stashed it far from me every night, I would have had problems all the time.” Bart Smith has logged 35,000 backpacking miles, states he always sleeps with his food. Me: I have about 10,000 backpacking miles. If there are bear box/cables/etc I'll use that, OTW I sleep with my food in my pack, in my tent, by my side. I have NEVER had a problem, even with rodents. BUT...I follow the 2 articles below to the letter. Two articles for folks to read: "Andrew Skurka: Admission: Yes, I sleep with my food" "Bears:The Hiking Life" (I don't know how many miles Cam "Swami" Honan has under his belt right now, but it's gotta be like 40,000) (yes, I'm bored during the winter...waiting for Spring to come)

In 20 years of backpacking I have only ever seen one person carrying a firearm that wasn't hunting. Granted I don't regularly hike in griz country either, but the utility just seems like such an extreme outlier where one would actually be needed during a hike it's hard to justify the weight carried. Anything big enough to protect you from a bear or cougar is going to weigh 3-4 lbs, making it heavier than any other piece of gear I'm carrying. And if you're worried about people, you meet like 10-20 people a day maximum, who have also had to hike into the backcountry to potentially victimize you. I know there have been a few cases of people being robbed or murdered, but that's a few cases in many decades of millions of people hiking, whereas every day in the city you live in someone is robbed or murdered.

It is absolutly possable that I got a little bit paranoid during millitary but I never would sleep nacked in a sleeping bag, if my clothes are not wet. If there is something and you have to leav the tent or a anchor break in at night in an storm, you are naked and you have to peel on first and this can take a while. But I get it comfort is a thing and means less dirt in the sleeping bag. It may get warm quicker but for the most time colder at night.

Okay, and yes I have subscribed. 1. Firearms, there are places on the AT, CDT and PCT where you cannot carry a firearm. Plus, you need to carry one big enough to stop a bear, so at least a 45. 2. Leather boots, I have bad ankles and need the support. If you are going to wear leather boots on trail, you need to break them in. By wearing them for at least a year before you hit the trail, plus find the right socks and insoles. And Leather boots can be water proofed easy enough. 3. Map and Compass, I will always carry them for the area I will be in. Why, because GPS on a cell phone relies on Cell Phone Towers and having a cell signal. No Signal, no GPS. I live in Wyoming and there are places that are so remote, there is no cell service. I think that about covers it. Nice channel by the way.

Female in my 40's here. I'd say about 90% of the time I hike and trail run, I'm alone. I'd say about 99% of the people who learn this tell me I shouldn't go alone, and if I do, I should carry a gun. I have even heard people ask my husband why he would let me go out alone. It's so annoying.

The real reason for sleeping in the buff is cause you will sweat in clothes, thus the sweat will cool you off too much. This is how it was explained to me in the army.

Thank you. As a solo woman backpacker the first question I always get is, "who is going with you?" and the second I get is, "what kind of protection are you bringing?" I'm SOOOO tired of hearing these questions. I told a family member who gets it that I am much more concerned with food storage options than who (assumed male and more "experienced" person) is demanding my attention while I'm hiking. I spent two months of 2022 on the PCT in WA hiking SOBO. I probably passed you at some point this summer. I've never felt the need for protection or a partner. Hikers are a community who help each other if needed plus GPS tools like Garmin InReach mini make things safer than ever. I'll be exploring winter backpacking this year for the first time after about 20 years of experience. I definitely don't recommend going out solo your very first time backpacking. But if you are confident in your kit and navigation skills there's no reason to wait for someone else to go outside with you. At least now I can be ready to stomp with my heavy winter boots. Yeah!

Map and compass: at least one of the videos you have shown recently has highlighted a tragedy where a hiker got lost and wasn't found for months. Years. Even though they were

I feel like a physical map is necessary, its a solid backup option at little to no weight. A firearm is also something i dont leave the house without so backpacking wouldn't be any different. Folks are crazy now days and not like im going to leave it in my vehicle while i hike for multiple days.

I am female and have been back packing for >40 years. I have never brought a gun and I have been out solo. I feel more safe in a wilderness area vs a regular camp ground. I have never had any issue with wild life. I always practice safe food storage and handling (ex. hang food). The only critters I had an issue with are mice. One trip they chewed one of my backpack straps. Luckily I had a spare strap. Since I am old school I do take a compass and topo maps. My friends do have GPS devices and one guy brings an emergency GPS device. BUT it is a hoot to see the old guys squinting at their phones trying to read the itty bitty maps. Love my topos!

on the sleeping naked part (i'm nit picking on the hypothermic bit)..the whole strip down and spoon in a bag is also outdated. SAR teams heat water and load up 4-5 water bottles. Place them in the pits and crotch for rapid rewarming of someone in medium to mild hypothermia..

On the topic of sleeping naked keeps you warmer... Have you ever been fully dressed in a sleeping bag or quilt system, and felt like your legs and feet were kind of chicken skin cold, and it wasn't getting better? Maybe your head and hands followed. I think this is where the naked sleeping advice shines. I've found that when my core can share heat with my legs and feet, things warm up quickly enough, but maybe more importantly, if my legs can share heat, they can start to avoid getting colder and colder going further down into the sleeping bag. If you think about it, there's less thermal mass, hip down, so, it kind of makes sense that if you partition those parts away from what has more thermal mass, and blood flow significantly slows down, there's going to be less heat available. Then there's the cotton t-shirt sleepshirt dilemma. As long as conditions aren't that cold, sometimes it makes sense, but in my experience, it's a pretty finicky border between being cool with cotton, and suddenly absolutely requiring something wicking, or simply warm, and that dance does not get easier under a sleeping bag or quilt. But, to each their own, and on a hot summer night, I love some cotton. We're very moisture producing creatures (was it a gallon I heard, of water we respirate out per night?), and moisture control plus insulation are the two big things that determine heat and homeostasis. For myself, I've always had wet feet, and been a cold sleeper, so when I got a nice 0° down bag, thinking 'Now I'll never be too cold again,' it was kind of awful. I was warm alright, but the foot box of my otherwise comfortable lay was a slightly steamy moisture trap. The fabric puckered, and the down wiggled it's way out from what amounted to the entire foot box in later taping repairs. Not only did I switch from down, I switched to synthetic puffle quilts, after that repair job. (Also a huge fan of hammocking.) Anyway, that brings me to what has worked. I favor the pants-less approach. Tops and socks have some play, but I've generally found that instead of wearing some tight underlayer or shirt, the way to go has been wearing a wool or polar fleece layer. I have a duckworth, wool fleece pullover that I love (felted, mid-weight). I've also worn heavy irish sweaters, and I've now got a heavy polar fleece layer I think will work well. (Definitely gets used as an outer layer, with the option of putting a poncho on top for rain, and a sweater underneath for even more warmth.) From a comfort standpoint, and as a side sleeper, I think having drawcords and zippers can sometimes be irritating. What you wear is probably going to ride up. Lots of layers moving against each other + your own movements sleeping = lots of fabric twisting, and catching, and rucking up. I'd go for something simple and spacious, where you don't end up putting unusual stress on zippers, in a hardy, heavier weight fabric, so it doesn't naturally want to slip around, and it can take some seriously irregular movement. For example, I'm psyched that my polar fleece jacket is a longer cut, with snaps up the front. That way there a few ways it can navigate twisting about my hips without making a problem I have to manually solve. And that brings me to the fact that when I sleep, I want to sleep hard. I know a lot of people don't, especially out on the trail, but personally, sleep for me is the foundation I've got to have to heal and function. Everything else is second, so I'm serious about comfortable deep sleep. If I think I'm going to have to keep waking up to adjust things, that's a big problem. It's one thing to organically wake up at two or three, and go back to sleep an hour or two later for a quality morning snooze. It's quite another to wake up in the twister version of your sleep system, too hot, or too cold, maybe even both at the same time, stressed, only to have to plan exit, adjustment, and re-entry with half a brain. Then to feel stupid and alone until the sun comes up. Preferably, I favor the system that conks me right out, so comfortable, that my unconscious mind doesn't think to move, no geisha training required. If that takes some weight, then that's worth it. So, I'd say, in this case, I'd simply test the coats I'd be packing anyway, and the socks I think I might earmark for sleep, for comfort overnight. Underwear, would also be on the list, if that's how you want to play it. I'm not a fan of bras, so I really don't know if there's such a thing as a comfortable enough bra to sleep in. My immediate reaction is 'Urgh, no, can't be good for the lymph system,' so... 😈

The "naked sleeping" thing does have a very limited kernal of truth. Or rather, the proper way to express it is, depending on the circumstances, don't OVER -dress for sleeping. The reason is as follows: if you over-dress, in the belief that you might get cold at night, you MIGHT end up actually being TOO warm. Thus, you might sweat into your clothes. Then, because the moisture will not be able to readily escape, you can end up being colder than if you dressed much more lightly. This, of course, ignores the idea that you can open your bag and vent, if you get too warm. However, I have known cold-natured people to bundle up, then sweat like crazy while ASLEEP, then wake up very cold. Obviously, if you are asleep, you won't be aware of being overly warm (so you won't be able to do anything about it before you begin to perspire). There is ONE circumstance in which sleeping with minimal clothing actually does help. A lot. If using a HEAT-REFLECTIVE sleeping bag, akin to a "space blanket". Almost no one does this (I am one of the few weirdos that embrace this system). Using such a bag WILL cause you to overheat, in most cases, if you are over-dressed. Yes, I know this from experience. So, only light clothes, if any, in such a bag. I personally do not ever sleep naked, but only wear minimal clothes. The exception being whatever is exposed outside of the bag (my head). I do wear a beany for that, if it is cool enough to warrant it.

Only time I ever went hiking was in Wales, and it was messed up, I took too much stuff inc. water. I felt like I was carrying Gibraltar. But first night I'm in a wood alongside the Menia Straits, it's not urban but there's homes here & there. I'd basically stopped on a flat bit of grass on the path as darkness had come, my bed was a tarp, a huge plastic 'survival' bag & sleeping bag. Every time I scratched my nose it sounded like someone had opened a huge crisp packet (crinkling) I started hearing broken twigs getting closer as if someone was walking down the path in the dark and stepping on branches. So I wake Europe up trying to get out of this bag as silently as I can. I'm looking for a torch beam. Nothing. I then gauge that the walker has walked past me far to one side and then he was behind me. I'd got to this place when it was getting dark so didn't know what was around me. But sleep is impossible and I'm laying on my S bag, knife in hand, ready to rock'n roll. I could see orange Street lamps thru the trees and as I moved my head looking, I thought one moved. Like if someone had a LED on a baseball cap looking ahead towards me and then turning the head to walk away. This was on the path I'd walked up, it was the 'behind me' direction I'd last heard this thing going. I don't know if that 'light' appeared to move as I was moving my head, or if someone was using night-vision to look at me in my clearing, and seeing me with knife, etc, decided to go just as I looked in their direction? The next day I looked at what was on this route at the side of me. Someone walking up this path thru the wood, heard me and detoured thru a dip/valley and will have rejoined the path beyond (behind) me. Did he have night vision? No idea but whoever he was walked thru a seldom travelled woods in pitch black stepping on branches & twigs every so often. I saw some of them! 🙂 Couple of years later they announced there was a serial killer in North Wales killing men. It makes you think. Now it coulda been a guy coming home from the pub & taking a short cut and, hearing me ahead and was maybe wary of blundering into someone sleeping rough? Or he coulda been up to no good? But he did take the road less travelled to avoid me. (I think it was a overgrown path) This was late 90s/before 04.

When we were kids backpacking high in the cascades you have to file an itinerary and turn it into the first service so if anything goes wrong they have an idea where to look.

I backpack by myself (with my dog) all the time and I have a Zoleo in case of emergencies. Regarding the guns I realize it's not for everyone and it wasn't for me for a long time either but now I carry a small 9mm with me. that being said the gun is not to protect myself from bears or other wild animals it's the bipedal creatures that I carry it for haha. For the bears I carry bear spray and I am perfectly fine using that as animal defense. My reason for carrying a pistol comes from a bad experience I had in the desert a few years back where a guy didn't like my dog and he pulled a gun on me and was threatening to kill my dog. Keep in mind my dog is a very friendly golden retriever so the guy was obviously mentally ill. That experience was enough for me to start carrying while backpacking. Regarding shoes I totally agree about trail runners and I dig zero drop trail runners! For the map and compass I just load maps on my phone and have a small light GPS as well so for me two devices is enough contingency.

Good vid. Thanks for the tips.

About sleeping nude. It also depends on whether you have clean clothes designated for sleep. Dirty clothes loose it´s insulating quialities and when paired with inactivity it can be very dangerous in cold climates. The best option is to have a base layer that you sleep in only.

Yay I agree that women should be just as comfortable hiking alone as men. I've had people be concerned with me traveling alone. I can get hurt home just as I can anywhere. No gun. Thanks for sharing Sawyer clean water around the world. Didn't know that. Keep trekking. Dude

I carry a 40 mm quad mount with me. Protects me from random weirdos and I can bring down aircraft with it for my afternoon amusement.

I don't have backpacker friends, have almost always hiked alone. I sleep in a tshirt and shorts. I do feel warmer.

The sleeping while naked isn't exactly right. It is best to strip down to your immediate skin contact clothing i.e. long johns. The manufacturers of sleeping bags did not take into account someone also wearing a thick jacket when designing their sleep systems. As the Backpacker article states, it can compress the fibers of the insulation reducing the thermal efficiency. Also, loose clothing becoming constrictive can reduce blood circulation putting areas of the body at more risk. This was something that was repeatedly explained while I was in the military when using the ECWS sleeping bag.

Compass no, garmin yes. Plus you get a HR and blood oxygen reader. And an instant lat long. And an mp3 library.