You have been inspired by long-distance hiking and would now like to dare your first hike? But you are still unsure how to find your first, perfect trekking tour? A tour that doesn’t overwhelm you, but you still enjoy?!?
Then let’s take a look at what you – from our point of view – should pay attention to:
Start small / short!
Obviously a 300 km trail through the Alaskan wilderness has its charms! However, we would still recommend choosing a trek that is no more than 150 km long for your first trail. You can hike a tour like this (of course depending on your fitness and the difficulty of the path) in about a week. This is a manageable time frame and requires less experience and preparation time than a much longer long distance hike!
Once you have gained your first experiences, you will be ready for longer treks and can tackle them with confidence.
Plan enough time!
Nothing is worse than having to rush through the trail because you timed it too tight.
I can still remember my first trail. We didn’t make the planned 25 km per day at the beginning. We got up too late, took too many breaks and just frittered away the days a bit. When it became clear to us that this could not continue like that, we regain time by walking even more than planned, which was doubly unfortunate. We then often did not have the opportunity to enjoy the scenery and had to continue where we would have liked to stop.
Don’t make the same mistake and plan for break days, or at least enough of a buffer. That way you have time when you need it.
Don’t rush into the wilderness right away!
Even if the thought is tempting to fight through the wilderness alone! Don’t do it on the first tour! Wait until you have a few treks under your belt and have gained some experience. For starters, we can recommend two different types of long-distance hikes:
- Take a tour that takes you to villages or small towns on a regular basis. This way you can be sure that you will get support if you have any problems. This gives a certain security and support, especially during the first treks, and it’s not quite as bad if something breaks, you forget something, or you plan something wrong.
- Alternatively, you can choose a hike that is far from civilization but is walked by “many” people. That way, if the worst happens, you at least have the high probability of getting help from other people. An example here would be a section of the Kungsleden in Sweden or some other trails in Scotland or Scandinavia.
Avoid dry areas!
If there is not enough water on the trail, it complicates the whole hike significantly. Not only you have to filter and carry large amounts of drinking water, but you also have to plan ahead for where to fill up your water supply next. Therefore, our advice would be that for the first trekking tour you choose a hike where this is not a problem. Again, Scotland and most of Scandinavia would be a good bet!
Tour suggestions for a first trekking tour or long-distance hike would be:
A part of the Kungsleden in Sweden. Possibly even the annual Fjällräven Classic? The West Highland Way or Tjustleden? Of course, you can easily find your next trekking trail or long-distance hike with our trail search.
