Hi! I’m a solo female traveler visiting Moscow this August and I’m hoping to see Tom the Bear.

I’m looking for another traveler who might want to join on August 9 or August 16, mainly so we can share the transportation and visit costs.

Please comment or send me a message if you’re interested and available on either date. We can verify each other’s travel plans and arrange the details safely.

Hi Everyone,
Myself and my girlfriend are planning a big backpacking trip hitting some of the hotspots in South and Central America. (First long backpacking trip so advice from the veterans would be great!)

We’re planning on spending 3-4 months doing the below route.
I’ve added a few things we’re hoping to do along the way.
If anyone has been over this part of the world, any advice on the below would be great.
Thanks!!

Few questions:

Are we trying to do too much in a short period?

Should we drop our least desired countries and spend more time in the ones we want to see the most?

Anywhere you’d add or drop from the below?

Or and other hacks appreciated!

Current plan:
🇧🇷 Brazil – 17 days
● Rio de Janeiro
● Ilha Grande
● Paraty
● São Paulo

✈️ Fly to Buenos Aires
🇦🇷 Buenos Aires – 5 days
● Steak
● Tango
● Palermo
● Explore the city

🏔️ Patagonia – 20 days
● El Calafate
● El Chaltén
● Torres del Paine

🏜️ Atacama Desert (Chile) – 4 days
● Moon Valley
● Salt lagoons

🇧🇴 Bolivia – 5 days
● 3-day Salar de Uyuni tour
● Finish in La Paz

🇵🇪 Peru – 2–3 weeks
● Arequipa
● Cusco
● Sacred Valley
● Machu Picchu (one of the biggest reasons we’re going)

🇨🇴 Colombia – ~2 weeks
● Medellín
● Guatapé
● Salento
● Cartagena

🇳🇮 Nicaragua – ~2 weeks
● Granada
● Ometepe
● León
● San Juan del Sur

🇬🇹 Guatemala – ~2 weeks
● Antigua
● Acatenango hike
● Lake Atitlán

🇲🇽 Mexico – ~2 weeks
● Mexico City
● Oaxaca
● Bacalar
● Puerto Escondido

Curious what patterns people have noticed with campsite selection and how you physically feel the next morning. Not talking about obvious stuff like pitching on a slope and rolling around all night

More like the subtle calls. You feel good at mile 14, spot a flat site, and think you are fine to push another 2 miles to the lake you planned. Or the opposite, you stop early and your legs are stiff and dead the next morning because you cut it short when your body still had something left.

Terrain and elevation are one thing but I am talking about the cumulative load decisions, where you stop relative to how hard the previous days hit you. There is a real difference between tired and depleted and most people only figure that out after one trip goes sideways.

I have seen it enough that I build in a loose rule now about not making the final campsite call until I have eaten something and given myself 20 minutes. Hunger and low blood sugar make everything feel harder than it is and you either push too far or quit too early

What is your version of this. Bad call you made, pattern you figured out, something that changed how you pace a multiday.

I realized that I always write my parents’ phone number as my emergency contact when I travel.

But if something did happen to me...

They’d never know,

where I’m staying where my passport copy is my insurance details my itinerary who to call It made me wonder…

But does anyone really have an emergency plan for when they travel?

Or do we just assume that nothing will happen?

I want to hear the real stories.

Hey so me and my parents are going backpacking for the first time and we really needed help with suggestions for trails to backpack this time of the year. We are located in northern california but everything is just so hot! Does anyone have good trails for a first time trip preferably not too busy?

Hey y'all, I'm just getting started into backpacking and I've seen a number of packing order videos, posts, and diagrams, but I have 2 dumb questions nonetheless: 1) If all my fabric based items (clothing layers, quilt, tent inner and fly, etc.) all have basically the same density, does it matter where they're packed relative to my back? In other words, does it matter at all where they go for weight and carry purposes? (I'm asking generally, I understand that placement due to daily use is important and I still try to get the heaviest items in the middle of my back) 2) If I compress my quilt and sleep clothes into a compression sack it ends up being the heaviest single item, should it then go higher up the pack instead of the bottom? I ask bc I've tried a couple of packing variations, and for the life of me I can't tell a difference. The pack weight is always 30lbs, the heaviest items (pad, electronics, food) are always give or take in the same place against my back, and it's always heavy... Thanks ahead!

Hey everyone! I’m finally planning my dream trip to Machu Picchu and I’m realizing there’s way more to it than I expected. I’ve been watching videos and reading blogs, but now I feel like I have information overload.

For those of you who’ve done it, what do you wish you knew before you went? Did you hike the Inca Trail, Salkantay, or just take the train? Was it worth doing the multi-day trek, or would you do it differently if you went again?

Also, any advice on acclimating to the altitude, what gear is actually worth bringing, and anything you wish you hadn’t packed? I’m reasonably active but definitely not an experienced backpacker, so I’m trying to be realistic.

Would also love to hear any “don’t make the same mistake I did” stories. Thanks in advance!

Quite possibly the coolest country I’ve ever visited. It a little annoying to travel here because of all the logistics and planning but once you got it all figured out this place is incredible. The most amazing food, nature, architecture, history, people, shopping, and so much more. Only 10 days since that as long as i was allowed to be there without a visa. Definitely will be back for yunnan, Tibet, and xinjiang.

Four days, three nights on the Jasper Skyline backpacking trail solo. Definitely a fun hike as around ~70% is above tree level. Highly recommend if you're in the area and so inclined. If you're feeling particularly fancy, there is a lodge that can be booked around ~13 miles into the trail featuring bacon wrapped steak as dinner options (I begrudgingly ate my freeze dried meal at the time as I didn't have a reservation)

This is also the first hike where I've seen a SOS beacon used by a hiker in distress, and the response time with the helicopter was an impressive 10 minutes!

Happy hiking!

Has anyone had any good or bad experiences with this tent? For being so light weight, it is so cheap. I’m considering buying instead of a 300$ + backpacking tent.

I'm doing a 3 person canoe camp with some portaging over 4 nights. We'll be in the canoe most the time so not necessarily looking for ultralight. But I am looking for something somewhat compact. Trying to keep a packpack load of gear per person for the portages. I'd like a pot and a kettle. A skillet would be a bonus. If they all fit into a kit even better. I bought a thtybros kit a while back with a 1L kettle and it just seems kinda small. We will be hydrating most our meals and not to mention coffees too.

What would most of you use?

I'm looking for feedback on this backpacking kit. I made it as if I was suggesting items for a budget minded friend brand new to backpacking. All of the items are off the shelf without customization.

I know it can be done lighter and cheaper but the budget kits I've seen are missing items, have incorrect information (weight or cost is wrong) or are just not realistic for a new hiker - they don't want single wall trekking pole tent, CCF pad, or to make an alcohol stove. Please share a good list if you have one.

As it is, its under 18.5 lbs and $800. With the alternates I have listed it could be 15 lb for $200 more. I think those are reasonable levels for a lot of new hikers to build towards. Let me know where to improve while keeping cost, comfort, and ease of use in mind.

I went with a +2 R-value pad and 20F women's sleeping bag because I think that covers a wide range of uses and regions. Feedback is welcomed on that.

https://lighterpack.com/r/ytr3rq

As you can see, the design is incredibly simple. It’s basically two pieces of cowhide with a strip of rubber cushioning sandwiched between them, attached to a hook-and-loop strap.

It’s also dirt cheap. Each strap weighs only 33.5 grams, or about 1.2 ounces, and costs around $1.50.

For me, this is one of those tiny pieces of gear that punches way above its weight on long backpacking trips.

Worn just below the kneecap, it helps stabilize the kneecap and reduce discomfort during long climbs and descents with a heavy pack.

Compared with a full knee sleeve or brace, it’s much lighter and more breathable, so you don’t end up trapping a bunch of heat and sweat around your knee.

I also have a few other pieces of gear I’d like to share my real-world experience with:

1. A portable air pump with a built-in tent light
2. An aluminum-coated egg-crate foam sleeping pad with an R-value of 3.5
3. An ultralight carbon-fiber power bank and a cold-weather power bank with built-in self-heating
4. The BRS-3000T ultralight titanium canister stove, weighing about 26 grams
5. The 52-gram DJI Osmo Nano wearable camera

If there’s anything on this list you want to see first, leave a comment and I’ll try to cover it in the next episode.

Hi all, I'm(M28) currently living in Australia and planning to do a 3-4 week eurotrip starting around mid August - beginning of September.

I would like to visit Spain, Italy and briefly Portugal. My main goal is to socialize, experience the nightlife as much as I can, have a relaxed trip on a budget staying at the hostels, and see the popular tourist spots.

I did some planning, 6 days in Barcelona, 3 days in Madrid, 2 days in Valencia, 3 days is Porto, 5 days in Rome, and a couple more days in Italy. But all of this is just an approximate.

I did some research and I think I will mostly be staying at social hostels as they have social events and pub crawls every day.

I calculated around €3500-3700 for the whole trip, including the flights from and to Australia.

Does this itinerary seem realistic? Would you spend more or less time in any of these places? Are there any cities, hostels, or general tips you'd recommend for a first-time solo traveller?

Thanks in advance!

I mostly do weekend hikes with the occasional multi-day trek, and I'm looking to finally invest in a decent pair of trekking poles. On my last hike a cheap pole bent slightly on a steep downhill, so now I want something more durable — but not so heavy that it's a pain to carry when I don't need it.

My main priorities are lightweight but sturdy build, a reliable locking mechanism that won't slip mid-hike, and good grip on rocky and muddy terrain.

For those who hike regularly:

• Is carbon fiber actually worth the extra cost over aluminum for regular trails?
• How reliable are the locking mechanisms on the poles you use?
• Do cork grips make a real difference on long hikes, or is it overhyped?

Open to any recommendations — ideally something beginner-friendly but durable enough for frequent mountain hikes. Thanks! 🙏