A little bit of preparation and planning enables you to stay organized even if this is your first multi-day backcountry adventure.
Before you hit the trail, make sure you are ready with a few handy beginner backpacking tips.
5 Essential Travel Tips for Beginner Backpackers
How to reserve wilderness permits
Every location has different restrictions, but it’s always important to look up if you will be needing to obtain a permit for the trip you are doing.
Certain locations also have permit quotas, which means you’ll have to be on top of it with knowing when permits are released during the year!
We always schedule notifications on our calendars for popular spots so we have a better chance of getting one.
For the USA, the https://recreation.gov website is a great spot to learn about the permit process!
How to go to the bathroom in the backcountry
It seems like an obvious topic, but a lot of people actually don’t know how to do this while following Leave No Trace! NEVER EVER relieve yourself in bodies of water, always move 200 feet away from a water source and choose a place that’s well away from your trail or campsite.
When going for toilet, make sure to dig a hole about 4 inches wide and 6-8 inches deep, cover it with the original dirt, and pack out your toilet paper/wipes in a waste bag.
LADIES if you’re on your time of the month, make sure to bring a waste bag to pack out all of your products.
Packing
It is inevitable that you over pack when you get started. Each trip, you’ll learn more and more what you actually use and need and can start shedding weight to make your pack lighter.
Every ounce literally makes a difference, especially if you’re doing a long trek or a trek with a lot of elevation gain.
Keep in mind, you’ll have to carry food, water, water filtration, clothes, sleeping equipment, a bear canister depending on where you are, the most essentials etc.
Leave no trace or garbage
Every backpackers understand what you take in will have to be completed out. It is highly sensible to bring a few ziplock baggies to store trash in.
They are easier to put in your pack in comparison with the full-sized trash bag which may wind up leaking in your pack; then nobody is a happy camper.
Go with someone with experience
Backpacking can be unsafe for those who don’t know what you are doing. And as you are in the wild, you may not have cell service or a way to contact anyone.
If someone gets hurt, then you won’t have the ability to jump into a car and drive him to the hospital. For your first trip, it helps you to go with a guide or a pal who has been before. It will help you to a better experience. Additionally, you can coordinate together while packing and share gear to lighten your loads.
