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Consider the Camino de Santiago. I've done the last 300 km. The distance between places to stay is manageable, lots of infrastructure, lots of friendly people w

Consider the Camino de Santiago. I've done the last 300 km. The distance between places to stay is manageable, lots of infrastructure, lots of friendly people who could help you if you get stuck. You don't need to carry much because you sleep indoors and there is food available along the way. The next step would be doing a hut/refuge to hut/refuge hike in the Alps. A hut/refuge is a hotel with a restaurant, private rooms, dorm rooms. They are hundreds (thousands) of them throughout the Alps. You can arrange them yourself for multiday hikes. There are an infinite number of routes, but a good starting place would be this publisher of guidebooks: https://www.cicerone.co.uk/ https://www.cicerone.co.uk/. Likewise, you only need to carry your lunch, but you do need more clothes because mountain weather can be unpredictable and dangerous. I've personally done the "Tour de Vanoise" which I think is easy enough for novices and the "Stubai Hohenweg" which was definitely harder and scarier. Actual backpacking (tent/sleeping bag, etc) is harder because you need more equipment but a good way to start in the United States might be by doing a group trip with The Sierra Club or a local club (meeetup.com) or commercial trip (REI?). I've done many Sierra Club trips.

ctrager 6y ago
I just want to add, for actual American-style backpacking, I think the best place for somebody who wants a managable challenge is the Sierra Nevada mountains in California, maybe a trip that would have you enter the mountains via Bishop or Kearsarge passes. Here are things that can make a backpacking trip easier or harder: * Grizzly Bears - Some great backpacking places - the Winds, Alaska - have grizzly bears which require more discipline about food. In the Sierra, there are bears but no history of them eating people. * Lightening - Not as likely to make you shit in your pants as the Rockies in Colorado or Wyoming. * Water - Some great backpacking places - the Grand Canyon - you MUST get from point A to point B that day because you need that water at point B, there's no water along the route. Water sources are plentiful in the Sierra * Where to camp - Some great backpacking places - the Grand Canyon, the Tetons - are tightly regulated by permit as to where you can camp each night, so you have to know your pace beforehand and then stick to the plan. The permit system in the Sierra is easier - you pretty much just say where you are entering and exiting * People - if you are a novice, it's good to have other people around, not too many and not too few. There will be more or less the right number of people around in the Sierra * Logistics - Getting to the trailheads from Bishop, CA, not so hard. * Reward - So beautiful. You have long distance views. You aren't just in the trees. * Lyme Disease, etc - Not so bad.
- carabiner 6y ago
  The Sierra really has the most challenging terrain of the entire trail, and is hard to get to from most major cities. Better would be to enter the trail near Mt. Baden-Powell / Wrightwood / Big Bear from Los Angeles. It also has a longer viable season than the Sierra. Other options are Mt. Hood (near Portland), and Stevens Pass (near Seattle).
  - ghaff 6y ago
    Yeah, there are a ton of good backpacks in the Cascades generally. The Mountaineers books are probably the best source of info. The only downside is you're probably (mostly) not going to be doing summits because.the higher peaks are technical climbs. (Though there are some old volcanic cores and lower peaks.)
- jointpdf 6y ago
  +1 on the Sierra recommendation generally, but a couple things: - Bears: You still need to be disciplined about food/smellables. Bear canisters are required for most of the Sierra—not bringing one is a recipe for a fine or getting escorted out by a ranger. Also, other critters are a problem. I had a raccoon steal my unguarded shorts (they had a bag of weed in the pocket) while I was sleeping, and I had to walk back to town with no pants. - Logistics: Bishop/Kearsarge passes are quite remote and rugged, and then you’re on the PCT/JMT superhighway which is increasingly over-stressed by people. You can enter via Duck Pass or Red’s Meadow from Mammoth Lakes via public transit. The friendliest place for beginners would probably be further north in the Lake Tahoe region (e.g. Tahoe Rim Trail). Vermillion Valley Resort is a (rugged) ~1 hour drive from Fresno, and is one of the most classic congregation spots for PCT/JMT hikers and would make a great entry point. Angeles National Forest / the PCT would be a good choice for the LA area. - Lightning/weather: The weather doesn’t care if it intimidates you or not, so you need to be prepared for anything. I didn’t bring rain pants to the desert section of the PCT and got slammed by freezing rain and had to run to avoid hypothermia. Also, please don’t do something batshit insane like go over a pass in inclement weather (I see it all the time). Here’s a document on lightning safety: https://www.nols.edu/media/filer_public/fa/96/fa96d71d-df6b-487f-9e48-6b5a84de50b9/outdoor_lightning_risk_management-gookin.pdf https://www.nols.edu/media/filer_public/fa/96/fa96d71d-df6b-... - Leave no trace: The Sierra is heavily impacted, so please tread lightly! In particular, don’t camp <100ft of the trail or a body of water, use Bluetooth speakers, or leave toilet paper blooms (packing it out is recommended but has low compliance, so at least mash up the TP and waste with a stick and some water to make a soupy mixture—critters like to dig up the lightly used paper). Being a wilderness ninja is cool, so read more LNT guidelines here: https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/leave-no-trace.html https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/leave-no-trace.html
gkfasdfasdf 6y ago
Wow this comment is gold, thank you! I did not know group trips were a thing.
- ghaff 6y ago
  In the east, the Appalachian Mountain Club (I'm a leader with them but don't generally do group backpacks) and the Adirondack Mountain Club also do trips. The AMC (like the Sierra Club) also does longer "adventure travel" trips which probably include backpacks.

ctrager 6y ago

I just want to add, for actual American-style backpacking, I think the best place for somebody who wants a managable challenge is the Sierra Nevada mountains in California, maybe a trip that would have you enter the mountains via Bishop or Kearsarge passes. Here are things that can make a backpacking trip easier or harder: * Grizzly Bears - Some great backpacking places - the Winds, Alaska - have grizzly bears which require more discipline about food. In the Sierra, there are bears but no history of them eating people. * Lightening - Not as likely to make you shit in your pants as the Rockies in Colorado or Wyoming. * Water - Some great backpacking places - the Grand Canyon - you MUST get from point A to point B that day because you need that water at point B, there's no water along the route. Water sources are plentiful in the Sierra * Where to camp - Some great backpacking places - the Grand Canyon, the Tetons - are tightly regulated by permit as to where you can camp each night, so you have to know your pace beforehand and then stick to the plan. The permit system in the Sierra is easier - you pretty much just say where you are entering and exiting * People - if you are a novice, it's good to have other people around, not too many and not too few. There will be more or less the right number of people around in the Sierra * Logistics - Getting to the trailheads from Bishop, CA, not so hard. * Reward - So beautiful. You have long distance views. You aren't just in the trees. * Lyme Disease, etc - Not so bad.

carabiner 6y ago
The Sierra really has the most challenging terrain of the entire trail, and is hard to get to from most major cities. Better would be to enter the trail near Mt. Baden-Powell / Wrightwood / Big Bear from Los Angeles. It also has a longer viable season than the Sierra. Other options are Mt. Hood (near Portland), and Stevens Pass (near Seattle).
- ghaff 6y ago
  Yeah, there are a ton of good backpacks in the Cascades generally. The Mountaineers books are probably the best source of info. The only downside is you're probably (mostly) not going to be doing summits because.the higher peaks are technical climbs. (Though there are some old volcanic cores and lower peaks.)
jointpdf 6y ago
+1 on the Sierra recommendation generally, but a couple things: - Bears: You still need to be disciplined about food/smellables. Bear canisters are required for most of the Sierra—not bringing one is a recipe for a fine or getting escorted out by a ranger. Also, other critters are a problem. I had a raccoon steal my unguarded shorts (they had a bag of weed in the pocket) while I was sleeping, and I had to walk back to town with no pants. - Logistics: Bishop/Kearsarge passes are quite remote and rugged, and then you’re on the PCT/JMT superhighway which is increasingly over-stressed by people. You can enter via Duck Pass or Red’s Meadow from Mammoth Lakes via public transit. The friendliest place for beginners would probably be further north in the Lake Tahoe region (e.g. Tahoe Rim Trail). Vermillion Valley Resort is a (rugged) ~1 hour drive from Fresno, and is one of the most classic congregation spots for PCT/JMT hikers and would make a great entry point. Angeles National Forest / the PCT would be a good choice for the LA area. - Lightning/weather: The weather doesn’t care if it intimidates you or not, so you need to be prepared for anything. I didn’t bring rain pants to the desert section of the PCT and got slammed by freezing rain and had to run to avoid hypothermia. Also, please don’t do something batshit insane like go over a pass in inclement weather (I see it all the time). Here’s a document on lightning safety: https://www.nols.edu/media/filer_public/fa/96/fa96d71d-df6b-487f-9e48-6b5a84de50b9/outdoor_lightning_risk_management-gookin.pdf https://www.nols.edu/media/filer_public/fa/96/fa96d71d-df6b-... - Leave no trace: The Sierra is heavily impacted, so please tread lightly! In particular, don’t camp <100ft of the trail or a body of water, use Bluetooth speakers, or leave toilet paper blooms (packing it out is recommended but has low compliance, so at least mash up the TP and waste with a stick and some water to make a soupy mixture—critters like to dig up the lightly used paper). Being a wilderness ninja is cool, so read more LNT guidelines here: https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/leave-no-trace.html https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/leave-no-trace.html

gkfasdfasdf 6y ago

Wow this comment is gold, thank you! I did not know group trips were a thing.

ghaff 6y ago
In the east, the Appalachian Mountain Club (I'm a leader with them but don't generally do group backpacks) and the Adirondack Mountain Club also do trips. The AMC (like the Sierra Club) also does longer "adventure travel" trips which probably include backpacks.