Solo hikers how did you manage being alone at nighttime. I do not mean a solo hiker among 20 other hikers, I mean being totally alone with no one else around for miles. Also any advice for if a bear comes up to your tent at night? I especially would like to hear from the girls, how they managed being completely alone. Daytime not really an issue for me, just nighttime. And It does not bother me unless I am deep in the woods and alone. Tenting alone on balds or fields does not bother me either.
Solo, totally alone hiking
I’m not a “girl”, but I’d like to say, very rarely are you ever alone at night. Granted you may be alone in your tent, but more times than not, there are other campers around you sometimes to the point of being overcrowded. I’ve heard you can make a “barking noise” like a dog, as bears are hunted with dogs, and this will send them running, don’t know how much truth there is to this. As long as there isn’t any food or anything that might smell good to a bear, in your tent at night, the bears are most likely not going to bother you, to a bear, we humans stick pretty bad, especially hikers that haven’t showered for a few days, lol.
mouldsfn
#3
What you have hear is an unreasonable fear. Attacked while sleeping in your tent? Sure it’s possible. Boy is it ever rare. Right up there with being hit by a meteor. If you want overcome this fear you could try “systematic De-sensitivity” training, You could start on your back porch then when you feel ok after sleeping there you could move to the back yard. If you can sleep ok there perhaps to a state park campground. All this to be accomplished by yourself. Then on the trail camp away from others perhaps a hundred yards within yelling distance. Then you can go into the deep woods and sleep like a baby. I do. Keep a flash light handy for what goes bump in the night. I have been doing this a long time. Good luck.
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wolfy
#4
Attacked, probably not. What I really want to know is if a nosy bear is snooping around at night do I lie very still and be very quiet or do I make noise from within my tent and scare it off. I usually hike long after the thru hikers are gone and as far as away from shelters as possible due to things like last year when someone left uneaten chicken in the wise shelter.
mouldsfn
#5
Sorry I dis-understood the question. There you are sleeping away, food safely hung in a tree 75 yards away. You hear a bear so close as to hear him breath. Light on, get out of the tent, start yelling. Under no circumstances are you to freeze. Throw those 3 rocks you collected earlier of just such an instance. Then, still yelling your head off, go over next to that climbable tree with the low hanging branches that you selected before going to bed and get ready to climb. If that bear comes after you up that tree you are ready with your little knife to fight to the death because this bear is cra cra, rabies or perhaps wounded. Either that or his sniffer is all stopped up because he normally would have pin-pointed your exact location long ago and given you a wide berth. That’s why I don’t put out my campfire, I let it burn itself out and smolder all night. I’m sending a message that a human is here and a normal bear will stay away. A starving bear might go after that food bag well away from you. Hope this helps.
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Jen, I know a few hikers that like to hike alone and camp alone and feel comfortable and safe with it. Last Fall, during two of my section hikes, I never saw a hiker for a couple days. Since I was hiking in TN/NC at that time, the thru hikers were probably in Maine. I miss having someone to talk at camp when I am alone, but I feel safe. As stated by others, if you secure your food bag the proper way to a tree limb or by any Cables at a shelter, you normally won’t see a bear in camp. So far, I haven’t had a problem with my food bag. When a bear does happen to stop by to say hello, usually making loud noise and telling the bear to leave, it leaves.
BLUE
#7
Hi Jen I hike alone and prefer to stay stealth sites away from the shelters. Although I don’t sleep in a tent on the ground I sleep in a hybrid hammock 8 feet up in the trees so I sleep quite comfortable food about 75 feet away from me and what I will do is cook at a shelter or site near by and then sleep about a hundred yards from where I cook. Pretty much the only thing you got to worry about is mice they get into everything if you are worried take a perimeter alarm along Google it it can be purchased online relatively inexpensive along with some fishing line nothing could get into your campsite without you knowing it and the sound will likely scare anything away if trigger. Sleep well and have a great hike
I guess I’ve been fortunate in that I never had any problems with bears and I’ve always kept my food in my pack with me unless I was at a shelter where cables were already put up. Like others have said, mice are more apt to give you problems in shelters but most shelters have strings hanging with an inverted can just above a stick for attaching your pack to. The mouse will come down the string but once he gets to the inverted can he’s usually stopped there unless he drops onto your pack. Now that bears are getting more uncustomed to people, I wouldn’t advise keeping your food with you. If hanging a Bear Bag is an issue, I would suggest going with an Ursack, I think this is something I’ll look into.