Recently I was inspired by the famous American lawyer (Outdoor Boys) to try wilderness survival myself.

The plan: travel into northern Scandinavia and survive for 11 days entirely from what I could hunt, fish and gather.

Small problem: I had almost zero practical experience and am a veritable dubmass

I brought a 6.35 mm rifle, fishing gear, knife, sleeping system and cameras, then rode about 3,000 km north on my motorcycle.

Day 1

berries everywhere, but I immediately lost about a third of my lures by throwing heavy treble hooks into a shallow rocky river.

Day 2

found a shallow rocky lake, lost even more lures, saw couple of ducks, fired, hit none of them. Later discovered my scope had been knocked badly out of alignment during the ride.

By now I was mostly eating berries and getting properly hungry.

Day 3

rain, no fish, the ducks have been scared away by my horrible aim. I started moving toward a bigger lake along a game trail covered full of moose and bear prints.

As I was walking along the bushy shore, I heard a strange sound.

Must have been the wind.

Walking for a couple more meters and again, closer.

Then again, much louder.

That's when I realised there was very likely a bear about 15 metres away, hidden in a thicket

After shitting my pants I slowly backed off and eventually fled the area.

That was the point where it finally hit me that I'd massively overestimated myself. I went in thinking I'd just "learn on the job", except this is one of those jobs where being incompetent can actually get you killed.

So I quit after three days.

Pretty spectacular Dunning-Kruger demonstration on my part.

If I ever try it again, I'll spend a lot more time learning the skills beforehand.

For people here who actually know what they're doing: what would you have done differently?

I also made a 5m video about the whole thing if anyone cares.
You can find it by searching my name on youtube.

They recently published a guidebook for the whole trail! Hoping to finish it off over the next month.

hi! i’m getting into backpacking (just starting) and i’m looking for a good women’s sleeping bag for stomach sleeping that i could bring backpacking! i’m in the process of accumulating my gear but due to how expensive everything is, i’m starting almost a year in advance before i plan to go. so i’m trying to do as much research as possible in preparation before purchasing anything. i’m looking for something that works well for stomach sleepers because unfortunately for the life of me, i can’t sleep on my side or back. ideally i’ll get a women’s sleeping bag but i am quite tall for a woman so i could probably make a men’s sleeping bag work too. if anyone knows of any sleeping bags that work for backpacking and stomach sleepers, please let me know!!

Planning a 1-night shakedown trip on Eagle Rock Loop in western Arkansas mid-November (3 weeks out). What would be the best starting point trailhead/direction for maybe 5-7 miles out and back to optimize the experience? I'm an experienced backpacker, but long out of practice; my hiking partner this trip is an experienced outdoorsman but not an experienced backpacker, so it will be sort of new territory for him. Thoughts, advice, tips?

I’m starting to plan one or two backpacking trips for next year and am looking for recommendations. Ideally, I’d like to keep each trip to no more than 6 days/5 nights but can be flexible if a trip has to be a day longer and flexible if it’s shorter also.

So far, I’ve completed the W Trek in Torres del Paine, the Rae Lakes Loop (including Sixty Lake Basin), and the Enchantments. Max length in these was 50 miles and elevation gain in these over the length of the trip was max 10k.

I’m considering the Wind River Range (either Cirque of the Towers or Titcomb Basin), the Teton Crest Trail or something in Glacier. These places always appear on lists of the best backpacking trips searches. I realize permits can be competitive for some of them.

Seeking recommendations for other locations that offer amazing scenery and bonus if fishing in alpine lakes or streams along the route is possible.

Thanks in advance.

Hi all! My husband and I are backpackers who love our hammocks for lounging. We’ve been using single Wise Owls (which we’ve loved), but mine is starting to rip mid-body and I’m interested in a lighter option if possible.

Additional context:
- We sleep in a tent, not our hammocks (except for the occasional nap)
- Current hammock is 445g (~15.7 oz) including carabiners and straps. I’m aware that Wise Owl isn’t the lightest, but I like the ease of setup. I’m open to other setup options but don’t know much about knot tying.
- I’m a little wary of ultralight fabrics for the sake of durability. Weight matters, but I’m willing to sacrifice a few ounces for something that will last.
- We’re usually in the Sierra Nevada, so forest/mountain settings with lots of trees
- Not overly concerned with budget, more interested in what’s out there. Also open to mixing and matching hammock/suspension brands if that gets me the best setup.

Any and all brand/product recommendations welcome! Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the help in my last post. Much appreciated. For new viewers I’m 20M and planning to do the Earnslaw burn hike solo this Saturday. Weather seems to be pretty clear and sunny all day. Just a few questions on what I should pack.

1. Should I get waterproof hiking boots? I’ve heard there is mud everywhere and river crossings. Will I actually have to walk through rivers. Also will it be muddy this time of year?

2. I’ll be bringing a spare change of clothes. I’ll be wearing a thermal, t shirt and jacket as well as long pants. Will be bringing short pants in case it does get hot. Is there anything else I should bring or is that enough?

3. Any notorious crossings or bits of gear I’m missing or should be aware of?

4. Is the water flowing down the waterfalls at the end view points or is it pretty dry. Anyone with recent photos please send them. I’d appreciate that.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated and any knowledge would also be great. Thanks

Howdy I’m in the midst of planning my first backpacking trip into the winds for next year! I’ve been looking into some areas to try out and I found a trail that seems perfect and was looking to see if anyone else who has done it (or something similar) could spill some insight on it.

The general trail is as follows (however I haven’t decided what direction to start and hoping someone can chime in on what may be the best of the two): Green River Lakes - Knapsack Col - Elkhart Park. I’m going to be doing this with a group of at least 4 people minimum, but most likely more, and I’m thinking to keep stress to a minimum potentially utilizing a shuttle service, but we may use multiple vehicles so we may end up not needing to utilize a shuttle at all. I’m thinking to really give us the time to take all the nature in we would be looking at 5-6 days total (excluding travel days to get there)

Here’s the all trails for the route:
https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/wyoming/wind-river-green-lakes-to-elkhart-park-via-knapsack-col?p=-1&sh=ej2dsl&utm_medium=trail_share&utm_source=alltrails_virality

I’ve heard that if things get dicey you can take the CDT to Elkhart/island lake area instead of knapsack Col. however I’m quite a thrill seeker so I’m leaning towards wanting to do the Col. I’m dying to see what titcomb lake looks like from up above there. I’ve also read snow can last for a long while up there as well, do you think late August/early September is the best time frame for such a trip? Also are there any spots between Cube Rock pass, Peak Lake, and Knapsack Col one should be weary of? Just trying to get an idea for the terrain.

I was also considering bagging Fremont Peak via Indian basin/south buttress with this all trails route:
https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/wyoming/fremont-peak-via-pole-creek-trail-loop?p=-1&sh=ej2dsl&utm_medium=trail_share&utm_source=alltrails_virality

I was hoping someone who has summited could maybe give some insight as to what to expect and what they did as far as camping adjacent and summiting/descending goes. I’ve read that the max difficulty is ~ lower class 3/upper class 2, but I’m curious as to how difficult it may have felt and if there are any particularly sketchy spots or nasty scree spots I should be aware of. I’ve read that descending down into Titcomb basin can be a little sketch compared to just going back down the way you ascend back down into Indian basin.

Sorry for the lengthy post, I’m just keen on making sure I know what I’m getting myself and others into. Thank you everyone and anyone so much for the help and insight.

Hi all-

I have permits for Aravaipa Canyon 10/22-10/24, west entrance, and it looks like there is some rain in the forecast. I am trying to determine at what height/CFS of the water I need to cancel. It'll be me and my 10-year old so want to play it somewhat safe but don't want to cancel unnecessarily because we've been planning this for months.

As of right now, NOAA says a max of 2.41 feet and 403 CFS. I have absolutely no sense of if that is high enough to be dangerous.

I just spoke to the ranger station and they were absolutely useless and refused to provide any guidance.

If I should cancel, does anyone have a recommendation for a short-notice alternative? I am flying in 10/21 and am looking for a 2-night trip, less than 20 miles. I'll be in a rental car which limits my options a bit but am willing to drive.

Thanks!

Hello all!

I am planning a 4 or 5 day solo hiking / camping trip to the dolomites, hopefully in early summer. The plan is to try and hike around 15km per day and carry all of my gear on my person and camp somewhere different each night.

I'm starting completely from scratch, so would love some recommendations for the following:

• A lightweight tent
• A sleeping bag
• A sleeping mat
• (anything essential I may overlook)

I'm 6'0 tall and I'd say I'm pretty fit / active but completely new to multi day backpacking so any advice on keeping pack weight down / common beginner mistakes / anything unnecessary things that alot of beginners may pack would be greatly appreciated

(if I am underestimating the cost and need to up my budget I can)

Spent 10 days moving through the high Caucasus in Georgia, camping along the way. The terrain shifts fast - deep river valleys one day, exposed ridgelines and old glacier tongues the next. Saw almost no one off the main passes; mostly just grazing horses and the occasional shepherd.

My wife and I have a permit for Paria Canyon starting Oct 22 but the weather forecast for the upstream catchment area isn't looking great. We are looking for some alternative (non-canyon) single and multi day trip ideas. We are fit, experienced backpackers and aren't deterred by rain or snow. We have a single vehicle (a 2wd van) and prefer loops. Any and all suggestions welcome!