How do you guys do this???

[Trainwreck]

I am so impressed by the users of this forum. I sit here reading trip reports of leaving home in the wee hours, driving several hours from MA, CT, NY VT Canada, etc...doing a traverse, or bagging several peaks, and then driving home way past hiker midnite.
How do you accomplish this?
The monotony of driving would put me right to sleep after such a grueling day!
Please tell! Maybe I can learn something so I can get out there too!
Sandy

 

[Tom Rankin]

I am so impressed by the users of this forum. I sit here reading trip reports of leaving home in the wee hours, driving several hours from MA, CT, NY VT Canada, etc...doing a traverse, or bagging several peaks, and then driving home way past hiker midnite.
How do you accomplish this?
The monotony of driving would put me right to sleep after such a grueling day!
Please tell! Maybe I can learn something so I can get out there too!
Sandy

I cured Laurie of this! We almost never drive more than 2 hours to hike without staying somewhere.

 

[NewHampshire]

You are asking the wrong person. I enjoy driving! It is just one more fun part of the experience for me. And when you add caffine products to the mix......oooohhhhhh yeah!

Brian

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I kind of have a "rule" - whatever I drive to must take as long, or longer, than the combined to-from driving time.

Tim

 

[adktyler]

Haha, I have someone else drive I really do have a terrible time driving when I'm tired, so if I HAVE to drive I'll drink some mountain dew or red bull and that usually keeps me awake long enough to get home.
There have been several times when I've had to pull off the road and take a nap just because I can't stay awake.
Some people are just gifted for staying awake for long periods of time and after long periods of hard work! I'm just as impressed as you are!

 

[the_swede]

I know exactly how you feel. I sort of have a rule that if I'm going to the Adirondacks or New England, it has to be a multi-day trip. If I'm going to the Catskills, it usually has to be an all-day trek, or else it's not worth it. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy driving. But if I'm going to spend 10 hours round trip in a car, I better spend more hours than that on the trail.

 

[carla]

rule...

I used to have that rule too, but it ran out pretty fast. From where I live in Cambridge (MA) it is just a given that you need to make that drive. After I finished up my 48 the first time, years ago, I have mellowed though. Now I sometimes look for hikes as close as I can get them and focus on that, rather than always peak bagging. For me that means 120 miles (to Lincoln Woods area) is ideal.

That said, I agree that driving can be part of the fun. Bring a friend or just listen to the radio and your CDs that you never have time to listen to. Best done in summer when the roads are good. I;m so glad I wasn;t in that 60-car pileup on 93 yesterday!

I kind of have a "rule" - whatever I drive to must take as long, or longer, than the combined to-from driving time.

Tim

 

[LRiz]

I enjoy driving! It is just one more fun part of the experience for me. And when you add caffine products to the mix......oooohhhhhh yeah!

Haha, me too... 4am start? No problem. Throw in a few SF Red Bulls, 7 or so shots of espresso, a cup of coffee (or three), some good beats, and I'm having a blast.

Hiking = the biggest contributor to my caffeine addiction. I love it.

On a more serious note - While caffeine certainly does help with the early mornings/late nights, I find that, by the end of the work week, I am so ridiculously excited to head north that it kind of overwhelms me... to the point where I'm up all night thinking of mountains and can barely sleep. It's kind of strange, I know... but I guess that's what happens when you're really passionate about something.

 

[cushetunk]

Not everyone does.

The internet is deceptive; you might only see one facet of people here. While I am sure almost everyone here is a wonderful person, you have no idea what every other aspect of that wonderful person's life is like. Sure, some people may devote crazy energy to undertaking trips and achieve remarkable hiking milestones, but maybe they never cook dinner for themselves. Or go out to listen to live music. Or see their friends outside of the woods. Or visit museums. Or go bowling. Maybe their house is left messy in a way you could never tolerate.

It is important to keep things in perspective. I keep in mind that hiking is not a moral imperative -- it's just one of the many things I enjoy doing and find value in.

 

[Peakbagr]

Tom,

Nice tag. Is it real or virtual license plate?
Sure to be a cop magnet even on the plushmobile you drive.

 

[adktyler]

On a more serious note - While caffeine certainly does help with the early mornings/late nights, I find that, by the end of the work week, I am so ridiculously excited to head north that it kind of overwhelms me... to the point where I'm up all night thinking of mountains and can barely sleep. It's kind of strange, I know... but I guess that's what happens when you're really passionate about something.

It's not strange at all!!!! I am the same way. I went to bed extra early for my second to last trip, but barely slept at all the whole night, because I was so excited to hike and kept running though what the trip was going to be like in my head.
It happens now for every trip...and the bigger the excursion, the more excited I am and the less sleep I get, haha.

 

[--M.]

It is important to keep things in perspective. I keep in mind that hiking is not a moral imperative -- it's just one of the many things I enjoy doing and find value in.

Wow. Deep and startlingly balanced.

I have found that adequately resting up before a hike is a real problem for me. There is so much logistical STUFF to get done, not to mention the pre-dawn driving, that having a full charge at the trailhead is a challenge.

I also try to stay overnight if it's a big hike. Two big drives and a hike in one day is pretty risky behavior.

Some people only need a few hours a night. I'm not one of them.

 

[ferrisjrf]

The internet is deceptive; you might only see one facet of people here. While I am sure almost everyone here is a wonderful person, you have no idea what every other aspect of that wonderful person's life is like. Sure, some people may devote crazy energy to undertaking trips and achieve remarkable hiking milestones, but maybe they never cook dinner for themselves. Or go out to listen to live music. Or see their friends outside of the woods. Or visit museums. Or go bowling...

The internet is definitely deceptive. All the people on my bowling forum think that I just spend my free time bowling.

 

[the_swede]

The internet is definitely deceptive. All the people on my bowling forum think that I just spend my free time bowling.

Jeeze. The internet really is deceptive. Everyone here on VFTT thinks that you spend your free time forum surfing!

 

[spider solo]

Must admit I've pretty well burned out driving up to the mnts for day hikes...but on the same hand it took me about 8 or so years to max out on it. (and the speeding tickets didn't help either).

These days for my hikes I look for overnights, either in the woods or some place to stay indoors. Of course there are always special occasions and exceptions for friends and family.

.... nothng is constant but change..or so I heard.

Go for it !

 

[Bob Kittredge]

In the summer I can get up at 5AM without resenting it particularly. Winters are harder, especially when the first two hours of driving are in the dark.

Staying over on Saturday night is great move too. Spread the driving over two days and get in two days of hiking. But I won't make the 7 hour drive up to Baxter State Park for anything less than a four night stay and three full days of hiking.

After the hike, I'm pretty mellow, and the drive home isn't too onerous (provided I am well-dosed with coffee and get home before my normal 10PM bedtime).

 

[dentonfabrics]

Add me to the caffiene, gasoline and iPod crew. I enjoy the ride to/from the mountains. But that part about waking up at 4am? -- fuggetaboutit!!! I'm seldom on the trail before 9am.

 

[una_dogger]

I am so impressed by the users of this forum. I sit here reading trip reports of leaving home in the wee hours, driving several hours from MA, CT, NY VT Canada, etc...doing a traverse, or bagging several peaks, and then driving home way past hiker midnite.
How do you accomplish this?
The monotony of driving would put me right to sleep after such a grueling day!
Please tell! Maybe I can learn something so I can get out there too!
Sandy

You just get used to it.

My limit was climbing all four Sewards in the Daks in a grueling 13.5 hour 20 something mile hike with a ridiculous amount of gain and then driving the 6 hours and 345 miles back to home.

It makes driving 3 hours - hiking ten - driving three back seem easy in comparison.

So, Bruised..you just aren't challenging youself enough!!!

My Secret -- plenty of sleep beforehand. Plenty of water to sip on the long ride home.

For a really long day like a Bonds Traverse, I opt to camp near the trailhead, start super early -- so I'm driving back around suppertime. Sleeping over early and getting a super early start works best for me in terms of bagging high numbers of peaks in a day.

 

[BlackBuffalo]

I do a couple of these long roadtrips each year. I find it fun and an adventure. Drive up in the dark, watch the sun come up. Be the first at the trailhead, the mountain all to yourself for an hour or more.

..And after a strenuous day of hiking, a stop at the corner store for a Redbull.
The drive home is rather adrenilized.

DaveG.

 

[wardsgirl]

When I first started hiking, I would take a Benadryl before I went to sleep the night before a hike. It cured the 'trip excitement insomnia' and kept the thoughts of 'what I forgot to pack' away. Now, I don't bother to set an alarm at all. If I'm going to hike, I just start the trip when I wake up. If we descend by headlamp, so be it. (That's how my family got the name "Alpine Finish!") Fortunately, we live in NH, so most trips don't require more than a couple hours. Still, I can't wait until my kid gets his learner's permit so he can get plenty of practice driving to the Dacks!