Day: January 6, 2007

When the days are scorching and the nights are cool, I find it a good strategy to hike at night, especially when there is a long way between water sources.

At first, I tried walking all night long and found that to be torture. Half way through the night, I started to hallucinate, and by 5:30 am, I threw my pack down on the trail, flopped over it and went to sleep. What I found worked best was to hike until about midnight, sleep until about 4am, hike until 10:30 am, and then sleep again and start hiking about 3:30pm.

I like to carry a little Photon Light, in addition to my LED headlamp, just in case something happens to my headlamp and I need to make camp. It’s also good for a light if I need to change the batteries, in the dark.

Tip: If you lose the trail, try shining your flashlight low, right over the surface of the ground. This way you can often pick up the footprints of the hiker who went before you. If I still can’t find the trail, I just go to sleep and find it when it gets daylight

Related post: Backpacking Lights

1. Find a cheap ticket. I found my cheap tickets in the very tiny adds in the travel section of the Sunday paper.
2. Buy a travel guide for the country that you will be going to. Read it before you leave, paying particular attention to the “visas required” section, and pack it. I recommend Moon travel guides. 
3. Pack- Go light-under 20lbs. Make sure it will fit in the overhead so you don’t have to check anything. Clothes motto: wear one, wash one. (only 2 sets of clothes) There is often a very stingy weight limit for carry on, so it’s good idea to carry a very lightweight day pack to split your load up.
4. Go. Keep your self open to new adventures. Remember, whatever doesn’t kill you will make for a good story.