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Post by Deleted on Oct 6, 2015 13:26:52 GMT -8
Hey guys, and gals!
My Name is Jenny Flavin, I'm an anthropology student at SUNY New Paltz. and I've chosen to mix my love of hiking with my research project this semester. I'm doing a research paper about hiking stereotypes and how they relate to food people bring on the trail. Nothing about this paper will be published.
Can you guys list as many hiking / backpacking stereotypes you can think of?
I’m looking for “types of people” (the newbie, the ultralight etc…)
Thanks!
Feel free to contact me with further questions. Newpaltz.Flavin@gmail.com
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Post by rwtb123 on Oct 6, 2015 14:54:34 GMT -8
Glad to see you made it over!Check the thread below about fresh food on the trail for examples of the extreme differences in the amount and type of food even experienced backpackers bring based on the amount of time they want to spend in camp and on food preparation versus being on the trail exploring.And there is a timely thread currently in the trailhead register where people are discussing their mealtime routine.You have to guess what stereotype each is but they are all pretty much experienced backpackers.And as some have said it doesn't have to be one set routine as hiking solo I usually just carry dry food and with others enough for a one pot meals or cooking over a fire.As for the stereotypes you mentioned you can usually spot the newbie by their sterno and ravioli cans and the ultralighter by their minimal dry food comprised mostly of snickers bars and their habit of yogiing food off of everyone else in camp(said all in fun of course)...
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markskor
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Post by markskor on Oct 6, 2015 15:26:58 GMT -8
hiking stereotypes...
newbie - whatever
Dirt Bag - Honest, true hiker - term of great respect - wise, well-used experienced gear...real.
Dirt Bag Fisherman - same as above but a lil better
True Thru Hiker - obsessed with long trail miles... nothing else matters - seldom gets more than 100 feet off trail...gear savvy and a beast hiker. Usually the best minimalist gear
Pseudo Thru hiker - Hikes a few miles, parties at some Trail Angels abode for free, drinks a lot, hitch hikes to next party/repeats...but has a PCT permit...borrowed gear of which they are clueless about.
JMT Hiker - well read, some experience (or not), usually seen carrying a backpack of 50+ pounds
Ultralight hiker - In shape, experienced, expensive, lightest gear, and willing to talk about it for hours.
Know it all Douche - Talks constantly and has an opinion on everything... not afraid to let you know it...usually seen on crowded, freeway trails or in large campgrounds...will gladly tell you why your gear is all wrong.
Ultralight douche - Knows it all too, has some great gear, and will beg for food.
Peak Bagger - off trail specialist - usually younger/unmarried
Photographer hiker - usually bent over from all the extra gear carried...will wait forever for that "shot."
Rowdy male hikers - young, loud, drunk and entitled
Swedish Bikini team - sigh, never where I am
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Post by rwtb123 on Oct 6, 2015 18:46:43 GMT -8
Not Swedish or in bikinis ,but I did encounter a group of 10-12 friendly, enthusiastic female college students backpacking on spring break in the Juniper Wilderness in the Ocala NF along with a male and female chaperon/leader.They were all smiles but unfortunately going the opposite direction I was.So I might add a springbreaker stereotype and note you might even find them doing a backpacking/trail maintenance type active/worthwhile type break.
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rebeccad
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Post by rebeccad on Oct 7, 2015 7:03:07 GMT -8
Just thinking about some of the stereotyped hikers I've been over the years....
Newbie
Peak-bagger
Photographer
Family backpacker (can be found carrying a heavy pack and herding a couple of small children along the trail. Short miles and long afternoons in camp)
Aging Ambler (I just made this up, but it begins to describe us; the kids are grown now but we're hooked on the shorter days and an afternoon nap) (this does not preclude occasional trips designed to prove that we can still cover the miles if necessary).
Eventually, I hope to be an Old Mountain Lady, carrying whatever the heck I want to and wandering wherever I want, looking like a hunk of the mountain that broke off and went walkabout.
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Post by cweston on Oct 7, 2015 8:09:33 GMT -8
Exactly, Rebecca--I hope to be that guy that others are impressed/inspired by when they encounter me. They'll leave saying "I hope I'm still going strong like that at his age." Hell, for all I know, they may already be saying that.
Using Jer's categories, I guess I'm part Dirt Bag, part Peak Bagger.
I think I also fit into another category that hasn't been mentioned: solitude freak. I'm always a bit disappointed when I encounter others in some remote place that I thought I would have to myself.
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swmtnbackpacker
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Post by swmtnbackpacker on Oct 7, 2015 8:10:40 GMT -8
Just to add
"Pack Mule Dad" - carrying the family stuff on a big pack with lots strapped on it hobo-style (subset - pack mule boyfriend or husband)
Paramilitary "Tacticool" type - carries heavier gear which mostly top of the line aftermarket stuff tailored for special forces .. Or those who want to be equipped like them .. tacticool ball cap
"Desert rat" - external frame for carrying all their water, old milk jug strapped to side with hole carved into the top for settling any found water.
Some combinations: On an old hiking group trip 13 yrs back we were joined by a 30-ish former German army officer who had a top of the line arcteryx with precisely the amount of water needed for the overnight. We laughed (why carry heavy water as filters allow using wilderness water) until we had to settle for a stagnating trickle... Also seen a bunch of pack-dads with their kids and canteens of hard liquor dangling from their packs going up a serious water fork - "hey there's plenty water in the river fork - this ain't water its scotch, whiskey, rum, etc.."
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reuben
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Post by reuben on Oct 9, 2015 9:40:33 GMT -8
I have met the UL douche and been irritated. They prattle on and on about how little gear they have, how many functions each piece can perform, how light each piece is, and yet come without food, expecting others to essentially feed them. Or they want to borrow gear. I hate that. Generally speaking, a Chipotle spoon and a Walmart tarp aren't enough to last a week. If you want it, bring it. |
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markskor
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Post by markskor on Oct 9, 2015 11:59:32 GMT -8
Reuben,
Sorry to hear that the UL Douche has made it out to your neck of the woods too...does get around.
Three additional categories of backpackers not yet mentioned:
Sherpa Dad - self explanatory
Locked in the 80's hiker - or the ol' "It was good enough then/ still works" hiker - indicators may include an old Kelty Tioga external, Eureka tent, and Svea stove.
The full attic backpacker - easy to spot as loaded backpack easily extends a foot above their head.
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reuben
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Gonna need more Camels at the next refugio...
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Post by reuben on Oct 9, 2015 15:02:39 GMT -8
Tigger once posted a sort of "full attic backpacker" image of himself with his kids when they were younger. He had an enormous external frame pack which both scared and impressed the heck out of me. Hey, we all learn. Equipment improves. When I was a kid in Cub Scouts we were all pretty much full attic backpackers, even though we only had what our parents bought/borrowed/scavenged for us.
When our parents faced a choice between a used Sears external frame pack, a used Montgomery Ward external frame pack, and a used (but official) Boy Scouts external frame pack, guess what we took camping? Right. A big honkin' external frame pack. It was either that or Sunny's Surplus, the local outlet for used military equipment/clothing, all of which was way too big for me.
Gawd knows I ain't too bright sometimes, backpacking or otherwise. So I try to temper my thoughts - or at least what I say - which I didn't do a very good job of in my previous post.
We should just HOOH.
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Westy
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Post by Westy on Oct 12, 2015 20:37:01 GMT -8
Touron - Any one who carries a pack like Reese Witherspoon in the motion picture, Wild, also Yellowstone National Park Employee term for visitors.
Trudgling - Snowshoe Users, inefficient snow technique and subsequent trail breaking misery causes them to intentionally stomp and destroy pre-existing ski tracks.
Campfire People - Those who do not follow LNT guidelines, identifiable by leaving new campfire rings wherever they camp.
Dawn Patrol - Those who get a wee early morning start for backcountry skiing or peak bagging.
Randonee - French for can't telemark
Dog People - Discourteous dog owners disregarding trail rules and/or having untrained obnoxious canines.
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markskor
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Post by markskor on Oct 14, 2015 9:28:32 GMT -8
A few more -
Llama packers - (never understood the attraction, too much trauma/drama)...Sure they can carry 60+ pounds but the constant attention needed too demanding...(One trip with three crazy llamas, they played "king of the hill"...well-defined pecking order...lead llama/winner wound up biting the other one's testicles.)
Geared-up dog people - canine backpacks and boots..."usually" intelligent, well behaved companions...sometimes the owners are too...regardless, still do not like dogs off leashes in the wilderness.
Space cadets - Out there individuals... feathers and dream catchers, sandals and brown rice, (Humboldt stink bud?) - . Don't know why, but they always seem to find/ camp right next to me.
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Post by rwtb123 on Oct 14, 2015 10:23:23 GMT -8
This is one of the more entertaining threads I've read in awhile.The OP has certainly gotten her question answered and no one has even gotten offended yet.Space cadets,now that is funny.When I lived out in the mountains one of my neighbors was Andy of the rock band "Earth to Andy" at the time the house band for the club Dave Mathews Band got their start at.My current town has more than it's fair share of these types and they all seem to be hanging around ready to greet me when I get back tired from a long bike ride.If there was a bypass around the main beach I would certainly take it...
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Post by 1camper on Oct 14, 2015 16:16:06 GMT -8
Whenever you run across a die hard ultralighter, you should try slipping a few rocks in their pack every chance you get just to see if they notice..
Nobody mentioned hammock hikers! The hammock police will be along soon to "enlighten" you, lol.
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rebeccad
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Post by rebeccad on Oct 15, 2015 12:42:37 GMT -8
Nobody mentioned hammock hikers! The hammock police will be along soon to "enlighten" you, lol. I dunno. Hammock hikers can be a sub-group of almost any of the others (maybe not of the family packer. Hard to fit the whole family in a hammock). And while I don't do feathers, sandals, or bud (don't do Bud, either), I do eat brown rice and have been known to be spaced out without the intervention of any substances. Maybe the Earth Mother? |
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