Lots of people give up on longer trips into the hills because they think they are not fit enough to walk those few, or few dozen, kilometres. They do not know how to walk in the mountains, and the mountains often scare them. When I started out, I was full of doubts too. I was neither particularly old nor in especially poor shape, yet I thought mountain trips were only for people with iron fitness.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
I realised this on a trip to the Canadian Rockies with a friend from Edmonton. He brought his whole family along, including his six-year-old son and three-year-old daughter, and… they managed. Granted, we were not conquering snow-capped peaks, just moving from one tourist attraction to the next. But these were still the vast, wild Rocky Mountains. That was when I understood that mountain walking is a sport for everyone, whatever their age and fitness.
Since then I have walked hundreds, maybe even thousands of kilometres out in the wild, and along the way I have worked out a few simple rules that let me move efficiently and without overdoing it, so that a trip to the mountains becomes pure pleasure.
How to prepare for a mountain trip
Every trip starts at home, when we make the necessary preparations. That way the whole adventure goes smoothly and is a pleasure. Let’s begin.
Boots for the mountains
I hardly need to convince anyone how important well-fitting, comfortable and durable footwear is for a walker. Everyone has their own opinion on which boots are best for a mountain trip, but a few universal rules apply whatever your personal preferences. Here are a few things that, in my view, are key when choosing footwear.
Do not set off on a long, hard route in boots you have not tried out. Test them on short walks first, and if you really must go in new boots, then just in case, throw a light spare pair into your rucksack. I once reached a summit in New Zealand, about 2,400 m above sea level, in sandals. My new boots turned out to be so uncomfortable that after a few kilometres I could not take a step in them without wincing. My salvation was two pairs of socks pulled over my sore feet, and sandals. I must have looked ridiculous, but I made it to the top.
Do not go overboard with “professional” footwear. Some people get the idea of taking boots on mountain trips that may well be solid and tough, but are also heavy and often simply too clumpy. I would put most military boots in this category, and they are, somewhat paradoxically, not always the best choice for a mountain walker.
Remember that every extra gram your boot weighs gets multiplied by the number of steps you take. Let’s do a simple calculation. If we assume that the average step length for a man is about 0.8 metres and we have 10 km to walk, we need to take about 12,500 steps. Let’s also assume that one boot weighs 0.5 kg and that each step lifts it 10 cm. To keep things simple, let’s also assume we are walking on flat ground. This is easy to work out from the energy formula:
E = m × g × h
which in our case gives:
E = 0.5 kg × 9.81 m/s2 × 1250 m
E = 6131.25 J
So it will cost us 6131 joules of energy. In the second case, let’s assume we have exactly the same distance to cover, only this time our boot is a mere 100 g heavier.
E = 0.6 kg × 9.81 m/s2 × 1250 m
E = 7357.5 J
This time our energy expenditure comes to 7357 joules, which is a full 20% more! A measly 100 grams, and what a colossal difference in the energy you burn.
A boot should have a hard, durable sole. Sometimes you can get away with trainers, and most of the time they will do the job, but in that case the route you are walking should be fairly even. If you are planning to leave the trail now and then, it is better to get something that will protect your feet well from protruding stones, rocks, sticks and other obstacles. The overly soft, flexible sole of a trainer means your foot will feel every bump, multiplied by the number of steps. Believe me, it is no fun at all.
If you wear leather boots, protect them well against moisture. There is a huge range of boot care products on the market, so you are sure to find something that suits you.
In winter especially, you should look after your boots properly so that they are water-resistant. If you do not, not only can you ruin them for good, but once they get soaked they also become much heavier, which makes walking harder. Besides, marching with wet feet is no fun. Good protection against moisture matters most on winter walks, because melting snow soaks into untreated leather very quickly, so the boots take on water and become much heavier. And it also matters that walking in soaking wet socks is no fun at all.
How to walk: a few tips
The right walking technique is key. You might think that something like walking is intuitive and that everyone has mastered it, after all we have been walking since early childhood. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Good walking technique, meaning how you put your foot down, how you hold your body and how long your steps are, makes all the difference to how comfortably you move. Here are a few tips that will help you enjoy physical activity in the mountains and elsewhere.
- Lift your feet as little as physically possible. When I am on the trail, I almost shuffle along the ground. Almost, because I lift my foot only as high as is absolutely necessary to take a step. I have already shown how much the weight of a boot matters, and the same goes for how high we lift our feet. Every unnecessary extra centimetre is multiplied by the number of steps, which in turn means more energy used and, in the end, more fatigue.
- Walk at “your own pace”. What is your own pace? It is a walking speed that lets you keep going for a long time without getting overly tired or stopping to catch your breath. The best way to measure your pace is not by the length or speed of your steps, but by how often and how deeply you breathe. If you are puffing like a steam engine and have to stop every few minutes to get your breath back, you are setting yourself too ambitious a pace.
We often think that walking faster gets us there sooner, but that is not always true. This matters most when going uphill. When I started out, I often caught myself not changing my pace at all on the way up, ambitiously believing I would “manage”. Every time, though, I had to give in and stop to catch my breath. I have never checked it, but I am almost certain that by walking more slowly, but steadily and without stopping, you will get there faster and more safely than by rushing and stopping every few minutes.
Sometimes (especially in winter, when I was wading through snowdrifts) I found myself almost shuffling on the spot, taking tiny steps of a few dozen centimetres. But I could keep that pace up for at least several dozen minutes, and thanks to that I overtook almost everyone I met on the trail. Of course, when you are travelling in a group, you should match your pace to its slowest member. - Put your foot down loosely, without tensing your muscles unnecessarily. Without overdoing it, of course: the point is not to “drag yourself along”, but, once again, not to waste precious energy. Every unnecessary muscle tension is an equally unnecessary loss of energy, and it adds up with every step. So put your foot down loosely but firmly, without tensing your whole leg, only the parts you need to take the step. I know this may sound hard to master, but over time you will be able to control your body so well that you will apply all of the tips above more or less automatically.
- Fewer, longer steps are better than many short ones, but keep a sense of proportion here too and do not start taking two-metre bounds.
Getting your walking technique right can take quite a while, but believe me, it pays off. When I started out in the mountains, I was very often so tired after a trip, or even during it, that I thought I would never make it home. It was a combination of poor fitness and setting the bar too high. Now, when I hit the trail, I sometimes feel as if I am not walking but floating above the ground. My legs know what to do by themselves.
Hydration and food
I have already written about this in my article on food in the mountains, so here I will just repeat the most important points: drink more water than you think you need, and do not be afraid of high-calorie food. You will burn off all those extra calories, no doubt about it, because your body needs far more energy on a mountain trip than it does sitting in front of the telly or even walking on flat ground.
You can also give yourself a boost with energy drinks, just remember that they are not harmless to your health. Good alternatives are sweet coffee or yerba mate.
Space in your rucksack
I have already mentioned how much every gram of extra weight you carry with you or on you matters. So think hard about whether you really need to take 5 tins of food, a propane-butane gas bottle and a laptop. Or perhaps you carry things in your rucksack that you have “always” taken but never actually used? Maybe it would be a good idea to find lighter replacements for them, or to leave them behind altogether?
Don’t worry: with every trip you will have a much better idea of what you need. Practice makes perfect.
Time to get off the sofa
I hope the tips I have shared will help you plan your trips better and motivate you to get off the sofa and out of the house. It goes without saying that the physical fitness you will inevitably build up through frequent trips into the wild is hugely important for your physical and mental health, so it is well worth the effort.
What is more, contact with nature also has a very positive effect on the human mind, and physical exercise releases endorphins, a natural drug produced by our own brains.
Perhaps that is where the feeling of floating I mentioned earlier comes from? For me, this state of mild euphoria kicks in after about half an hour of walking. The first half hour is always harder, and then, once I settle into the right pace, my legs carry me along by themselves.
Head for the mountains and see for yourself.
Leave a comment