Worried about my hiking speed

I wouldn’t worry too much about speed.  Instead, start early.  Finish late.  Hike more hours.  You’ll probably speed up a bit after hiking 3-4 days too.

I’ll take a swing at this…(Haha. Ben beat me to it.)

So I feel strongly that the immediate response should be … don’t worry about your speed. You will find your pace gradually increases as you hike more often, but plan for your current slowest average pace and just enjoy a worry-free hike. Disconnecting yourself from worry and anxiety and hassle is a big part of the experience. Don’t deny yourself that enjoyment.

With that said, when I am specifically running or hiking for speed/time I try to limit my stop breaks to an absolute minimum. In my experience what might individually seem like innocuous little breaks, can cumulatively be a gigantic time-suck. I personally practice eating, drinking, and accessing the contents of my pack all while continuing to move, even if at a reduced speed. The primary components of any “hiking pace” equation are always going to be the number of minutes moving versus the number of minutes at rest.

But again, I think there is a really big difference between hiking for time and just hiking for enjoyment and I think as a beginner you first want to be certain the two are distinct in your mind.

Good Luck!

Speed has a lot to do with the terrain, elevation gain/loss, and of course your physical fitness.

I can do 3 mph on good trails no problem when I am in good shape in the Southern Appalachians, but run more around 2.25mph above 10K feet in the Sierras or Rockies.  Off Trail in Alaska, I only go about 1mph

I can only do ~6K elevation change in a day before I start to hit the wall, perhaps a little more if I am in great shape, and a little less if I am in not so good shape.

+1 on Ben and Christopher’s comments about hiking more hours per day, and taking less breaks if you need to cover more miles during the day, such as that 16 mile resupply day you mentioned. Maybe the following day you can make it less miles if needed to recuperate. And considering bringing anti-inflammatories for your ankles if they get inflamed (either OTC drugs or supplements). Your hiking speed, ankle stability, walking efficiency and foot dexterity on the trail will all increase over the coming months and few years.

You mentioned you’re a birder. 1-1.3 mph is about my top speed when birding. Are you carrying your binoculars?

Anyways, I agree with Ben, Christopher, and Lester: more hours, don’t worry about speed, it will come in time. Google “Anish Anderson” for an extreme example of how well that works. And great job lightening up!

Good advice all of it.  There tends to be an emphasis in backpacking circles, particularly UL, on speed and distance which, if taken to heart, will put you under performance pressure and cause you to miss a lot.  If you’re a birder, you already have the right mindset for venturing into the mountains, at least IMO.  As Ursula le Guin so eloquently put it, “It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”

Wise words for a beginning backpacker, and for experienced backpackers as well.

Happy trails to you!

As embarrassing as this is…1 -1.3 MPH is my average speed with no bins (I really need to get a lightweight pair to keep around my neck.) I don’t even get to see birds going that slow. And I missed some good looks at Harriman last weekend. Actually, I did get some good looks by accident like the Louisiana Waterthrush that flitted around while I refilled my water in the gully and a Hooded Warbler that nearly landed on my bag early in the morning. But I think I missed an Indigo Bunting and an Olive Sided Flycatcher…sigh. I don’t want to even think about what else I saw but didn’t see. (I didn’t see the Eastern Whip-poor-will who decided to sing near my camp… ALL.NIGHT.LONG. Literally from like 9:30 PM to 6 AM. I know it’s his habitat not mine…but omg that bird. Never camp with Whip-poor-wills in mating season.)

I think I am going to grab the  whole pack and go out to Long Island this weekend. Straight and flat grasslands at 300 feet and see what I can do in 12 hours. Just for calibration. If it really is me babying the ankle going that slow – at least I can be cognizant of that. I can do 12 hours a day – I just like to get to camp with a couple of hours until dark. And I like to dawdle in the morning and drink coffee. But if adding on a couple of hours can get me to my miles than I will do it. But If I really can’t walk more than 15 miles in a day…then maybe I shouldn’t be trying to thru hike anything.

Plus without a car at the trailhead – one has to be very cognizant of distance and hiking speed. If you miss the last bus/ train back to the city from the station on a Sunday night, you basically have to some place you can stealth camp, then get up for the earliest train/bus, which is generally around 4:30 or 5 AM, and try to get home and shower before work. I did that on my second trip (not because of my slowness but more because of my lack of literacy.) It wasn’t pretty.

If it weren’t for the logistics I’d say don’t sweat it. And absolutely don’t push your ankle too hard.

For awhile before I went solo I had a hard time searching for partners. I knew they were out there, but none of the online resources really connected me. There’s a local FB group for women here in the pacific northwest that has tons of potential partners on it — of all speed ranges. Poke around online more — i hope there’s something similar for the NYC area.

I think you should keep to your plan. I betcha can do 16 miles a day.

Sorry my hammock suggestion didn’t work out for you!

Step 1: don’t worry about your hiking speed.

Step 2: if you want to cover more miles in a day, remember the words of “Flyin’ Brian” Robinson, the first person to complete the triple crown of long distance hiking in one year ( PCT, AT, CDT). “I don’t walk much faster than anyone else – I just don’t stop walking”

Just plan your trips to suit your speed. Who cares how many miles – it’s how many hours of enjoyment that matters.

And I like to dawdle in the morning and drink coffee.

Aha!  Morning dawdling is a thru-hike killer.  One of the key things I had to change about my backpacking style when I started thru-hiking was exactly that.  The answer for me was to wake up early, throw a double-dose of Via (or other instant coffee) into my water bottle, pack up as quickly as I can, and sip my (cold) coffee as I hike.  By the time I’ve finished my coffee, I’ve gone several miles already, and I’m well-set for the day.

But If I really can’t walk more than 15 miles in a day…then maybe I shouldn’t be trying to thru hike anything.

I beg to differ!  Lots of folks have done thru-hikes at 15 miles per day.  You probably wouldn’t make it through the PCT before the snows, but that might not be what you’re aiming for.

Plus, with a still-healing ankle, slower is better.  I once had a stress fracture in my foot, and I swear it took 2 full years before that foot felt “normal” again.  Cut yourself some slack.

Finally, on the day you have to catch a bus at a specific time/place — just get up obscenely early that one time, and you can nap once you get onto the bus.  Or yeah, stealth-camp nearby and do it that way…

First do the distance, then the speed, then with weight.

If you are going to “test” just take food, water, socks and blister kit. That will be enough weight.

Don’t stop to eat. Learn to guzzle 4 ounces of water on the move. (4+ ounces will promote rapid emptying of the stomach.) 12 hours at 200 to 300 calories per hour is a lot of eating.  Eat and drink on a set schedule so you don’t get behind.

No binocs. (Learn to bird by ear.)  Build a “pace chart” so you can note your distance and time at  6 or so checkpoints to see how you are doing.

If you’re making 2 mph, just keep it steady and be happy.  Twelve hours at that pace would be commendable.

If you are slower, see what you can do to increase your cadence. Focus on posture and good body mechanics for efficiency.  (Be aware that extending your stride unprepared can lead to Iliotibial Band Syndrome.  Don’t go there.)  If you are using poles, try a pole-plant on every 3rd or 4th step versus every step. Alternate your pace at every checkpoint – push for an hour, relax for an hour.

Keep a log of your day, making entries at each check point while eating and drinking.   (Don’t rely on memory ’cause things are going to be blurry.)

Regardless of your speed you will learn and you will improve. Believe it.

And I’m not suggesting this should be your hiking style. That will develop with time on the trail.  This is  just another way to get a handle on things.

Good Luck. Have Fun.

Agree with all above but if your goal is to increase mileage then you may find it helpful to track moving vs. stopped time.  That is the single biggest improvement that I saw when I started pushing the daily mileage.  When I was prepping for my PCT hike I used to do training hikes and would see how far I could push before taking any breaks.  Then I started hiking earlier in the day.  I got my tear down and setup down to a few minutes which also increased the time spent walking. Another big help is going as light as possible.  I know in my case I ended up doing mileage in excess of double what I ever thought was possible.

Dont put too much pressure on the mileage.  Go out enjoy yourself and the mileage will come. I have done some very enjoyable hikes in Harriman so I know you have a nice training ground.

Are you talking about Harriman this past weekend?  It was 95 and humid out there.  We were moving like slugs.  Though the guy we met doing the AT flew past us on an uphill section…. So let your body acclimate.  The speed will come when your body knows what to expect.

Are you walking during the week? My hiking speed improves greatly if I am also walking regularly. I live in a hilly neighborhood and just take the dogs out on the roads and we walk and I’ve found it helps me hike faster because my general fitness is better.

Your balance and stability can be greatly improved with yoga, balance boards, etc. and you can do those things while watching tv if you want.

I shoot for 3MPH on flat wide trails, 2MPH on rooty, narrow trails or on hilly terrain, and will slow down to 1MPH or less on technical, rocky (ankle breaker type rocks), or very steep terrain.

Tons of good advice here.

Definitely get started early.  Best hours of the day in the summer, and you can get in significant miles before it gets oppressively hot. It is actually kinda cool walking past camps where people are still snoozing or just getting up and you’ve already done 6 or 7 miles. And you see a lot more wildlife in those hours, and the photo ops are better because the light is more dramatic.

As Valerie and Malto advise, learn to break camp quickly. The first ritual of the day for me is to open the valve on my air mat while still lying on it, which certainly motivates me to get going. I gather up all my stuff and put it outside the tent, so I don’t have to keep going back and forth to retrieve stuff. I also like my coffee and oatmeal, so I get the alky stove going not long after exiting the tent/tarp, and water is heating while I pack up other stuff.

I realize there are people who say ‘whoa, what’s the rush?’ but it puts me in a positive frame of mind knowing that all the morning chores are done quickly and efficiently.

For those birds that seem to squawk and hoot all night long, and frogs and cicadas and fighting coyotes, etc… use some ear plugs. Also great if you’re camping with someone who snores.

One disadvantage of being first on the trail is that you will be clearing the spider webs that were strung across the trail while you were asleep. If it isn’t too warm, I will wear a mosquito headnet and a long-sleeved shirt to keep the strands of web off my face and arms, and waving trekking poles in front occasionally to try to knock some of them out of the way.

One more thought.  I have done a lot of hiking in Harriman and I have done the NPT.  The NPT is very cruise trail, especially the northern half.

Chris, can you post a little more information about your physical shape, that is, how good of shape are you in, plus your height? Do you exercise?  And can you expand on how you feel when you hike and your hiking traits?  Do you like to look around quite a bit, do you get winded easily, do you take numerous breaks, are you sore at the end of the day? Are you using poles?  If you are using poles, do you know how to use them?  I’m not trying to be flippant on the pole question, lots of people don’t know how to use them, so please honestly respond.  Also, how fast do you walk without gear on sidewalks?  Finally, what are you wearing for shoes?

Lots of questions, but I’m  trying to get a better perspective before I make any recommendations.

Yes Harriman this past weekend! The granite balds on Ramapo Dunderburg were pretty brutal. And that is a fairly dry trail in some parts so I carried 4 liters of water. And drank every single sip before the next stream. It was pretty hot.

But even if it had been cool I would have been going slow. Rocky terrain particularly  really slows me up. I do use poles, but honestly I use them more on down hills than uphills. I find on uphills there is a tendency to hunch over poles to push yourself. I try to avoid that. Not just because I have a suspect rotator cuff as well but because I used to snowboard a lot and I know my lower body is stronger and more efficient than my upper body (which often seems functionally  useless.) Sometimes on uphills I just carry the poles. But the down hills kill me because I am paranoid my ankle will give way even though that has supposedly been fixed.

I am wearing the Merrill Moab 2 mids now. With superfeet. They are nice and soft and seem to have decent ankle support and grip. I always always hike with my soft cast like a security blanket. In case I need to limp out of somewhere.

I try to keep in reasonable enough shape to keep the PCP happy (though I still have about 10 lbs to lose to get back to last summer’s more normal weight.) My training during the week is 2 or 3 nights at the gym running 5ks. And maybe a 4th or 5th night on the elliptical for something easier. But not super fast, 10 1/2 minute miles and I usually set the incline at 1 to try to mimic outdoor running. And I know I have a short gait, my sometimes running buddy (who is 6’3″) told me that. I am all of 5’3″ rounding up and will never have a long gait.  I do some free weight exercises to warm up for legs, core and back. But I don’t do any real lifting. I have thought about walking during the week. Like maybe I should walk home from work tonight. It’s 6 miles.

Amazingly enough I don’t take a lot of breaks during the day. When I find a water spot and need to camel up. Or in the case of this past weekend in 95 degree heat on a dry-ish, granite bald heavy trail…treat 3 or 4 liters of stream water. Water kind of serves as my break. I usually don’t even eat during the day honestly. Maybe some protein bars while walking but I don’t like digging out lunch.

I know I could extract more hours from the day. I always like to make camp a little early. I get really paranoid when I can’t really see where I am putting my feet. After 6 weeks of hard  recovery if I blow this ankle ligament again I will be devastated. I usually get up at sunrise. And I can be 90% packed except for my water pot and stove in 10 minutes. The hanging about drinking coffee in the morning is kind of bad. I know. But it’s so much fun. I am going to look for a happy medium and say I will be moving by 6:30 – 7 AM at the latest from now on. I usually move by 8:30 -9.

I am going to try to time myself this weekend with a day pack. It turns out you can’t camp anywhere on Paumanok Path on Long Island anyway. But it’s flat and low and soft and grassy. At least I can find out if I am just plain slow.

Good to hear the NPT is kinda cruise. I have a special attachment to that trail so doing this hike is important to me. But if I can do 16-20 miles tomorrow, I can most likely do the NPT in 13 days.

Thanks everyone for the responses. I feel better about being the slowest person out there. I will keep shaving ounces too. See if I can speed it up!

I plan my days on the AT at 1.5 mph, this seems to work out about right and I am not a slow hiker. I probably hike at about 3 mph along ridges and gaps and other flat areas. Up hills and steep decents probably 1 mph to 2 mph. I like to start by daybreak and aim for 10 miles by lunch and then I can sort of coast for the rest of the day, aiming for 15 to 18 miles most days. I take several 5 minute or so breaks and a 30 minute lunch. I just try to pace myself and if I can’t talk without gasping while hiking then I know I am going too fast.

Now if I am headed into town the pace picks up as I switch into beer gear or coffee gear depending on whether it’s morning or afternoon.

You might be interested to see what other backpackers do.  John Ladd’s survey of JMT hikers has speed and miles per day vs. BMI at https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B9Fz_vc-zml_cTJnZGhtNHBVd1E .

Holy crap. This is some incredible data! Thanks for posting.

When I’m out of shape I hike about 2mph for 8 hours a day, so with a break in there I make 15 miles.  I quit around 4:00 pm, but I’m beat, anyway.  When I’m in shape I don’t really hike (much) faster, but my endurance is better and I hike as long as there’s daylight.  I’ve done 25-mile days, and really feel no need to push for more.  So I have to agree that hiking more hours per day is really the “secret”.  Build endurance; don’t worry about hiking faster, yet.

All bases covered in the responses, save one.  It sounds like you just started backpacking, and have perhaps gone on one or two trips ever?  If so, slow down and give yourself time to adapt physically and mentally.  All the good advice you’ve gotten won’t fall into place overnight.

Sounds like you had a good time, which is all that matters. Sometimes we place too much emphasis on numbers of all sorts. Dave’s comment above should be taken as the best advice.

You might find this blog post I wrote a few years ago helpful; How many miles did you hike?