I'm trying to read "Hiking Has All the Benefits of Walking and More. Here’s How to Get Started. Exploring the great outdoors offers a host of mental and physical benefits. But there are a few things you need to know first" (NYT).
Hiking offers all the cardiovascular benefits of walking, but the uneven terrain does more to strengthen the leg and core muscles, which in turn boosts balance and stability, said Alicia Filley, a physical therapist outside Houston who helps train clients for outdoor excursions. It also generally burns more calories than walking.
I'm guessing there's no clear line between a walk and a hike, and it's more of a state of mind. Or does it all come down to whether you wear a backpack?
Every hiker should bring the 10 essentials, which include food and drink, first aid supplies, a map and compass and rain gear — all inside a supportive backpack with thick shoulder straps and a waist belt.
I thought I went hiking just about every day, but if it's all about the backpack, I never go hiking.
I liked this comment over there from Kjartan in Oslo:
I was born and raised in Norway, but have lived in Poland, the Netherlands and Tanzania. In these three countries, I was surprised that most people did not go on trips. Throughout my upbringing in Norway, it was a tradition on Sundays to pack a small lunch, dress appropriately (wool underwear in winter, hiking boots all year round), put on your rucksack and go for a walk, preferably in the mountains, but at least in nature. "Out for a walk, never sad", it said, and "There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes". In retrospect, I have thought about how good this tradition has been. We moved at least one day a week. We experienced nature and knew the difference between birch, oak and willow. We learned to identify hare tracks in the snow. And we heard a difference between the most common birds. And how nice it was! When we arrived at our destination, we sat down and ate slices of bread with salami, goat's cheese and eggs, and we drank blackcurrant juice or coffee. A little chocolate to raise the blood sugar was also included. And when we got home this delicious tired feeling in the body that guaranteed a good night's sleep.
My favorite phrases: "most people did not go on trips" and "we drank blackcurrant juice."
ADDED: Reading the OED, I'm going to say that all hikes are walks but not all walks are hikes. What distinguishes the hike from a non-hike walk is the energy: It's laborious or vigorous. It's like the way all strolls are walks but not all walks are strolls. There's a continuum of walking, with hiking at one end and strolling at the other.
And "hike" is a pretty recent word, both as a noun and as a verb. It's of "obscure origin" and began as U.S. dialect, first noted in the mid-19th century, when it was spelled "heik": "I ascended the Grand Pyramid, Lucretia got half-way..and Susie didn't try. It is a fearful heik."
"Hike" meaning an increase — e.g., a wage hike — wasn't observed until the 1930s.
The expression "take a hike" was first observed in writing in the NYT in 1944: "Anybody who doesn't believe it can take a hike." And I like this quote from Jim Bouton's "Ball Four" (1970): "I remember once leaning over the dugout trying to tell Al Dark how great he was..when he looked over at me and said, 'Take a hike, son. Take a hike.'"
Posts
59 comments:
Take a hike!
Walking occurs on paved roads or gravel. Hiking when some or all is off-road.
Both good, depending.
“Uneven terrain” seems to be the distinction, where hiking entails going off the paved or even the beaten path.
For me a hike is longer and more vigorous than a walk. A pack is needed with a hike for water, some food and perhaps extra clothing. A pack is optional for a walk.
Time wise, anything over 3 hours is usually a hike, though sometimes my walks end up being that long.
Oslo is a great city for both walks and hikes.
One of my preschool dads would tell his little son, who was kind of a delicate flower about cold rain, "What is it, buddy? No bad weather, just bad attitudes - right?"
I loved that family.
More on-topic: "hike" implies no pavement to the writer, it seems. Makes sense given the provenance of the article: where would you walk in the NYC area without being on pavement?
So I wonder if some of the other comments were about how classist the piece is, given that to "hike" requires getting all the way out of town (Central Park has some rocks to scramble around on, but that's about it, I think), probably by car since you're trying to go to a place where the sidewalk ends.
My distinction between hiking and walking is in the equipment required. If you should be wearing hiking boots, esp for ankle support, it is hiking, and if some sort of sneakers or walking shoes is appropriate, then it is walking. Around here in NW NT, my partner has us up to hour walks every day. Because of her current physical issues, we stay level, on roads, and walking shoes are appropriate. We take the dog along to give her exercise. When I take the dog out by myself, I wear high topped hiking boots for ankle support, and a collapsible hiking stick for the same, and usually start by taking off down the steep trail a couple houses down, to the main trail maybe 1/8 mile below. Steep enough that I take a mountain bike down, but not up it. For me, spending much of my life around the mountains, the big things to distinguish between walking and hiking is the smoothness and levelness of the surface, which in turn, drives choice of footwear, as well as whether any additional equipment is advised, such as a backpack. Thus in the nature preserve by our house in PHX, most of those using it on foot are walking orb jogging, because they stay on the trails, but we typically cut cross country, I use a hiking boots and stick for added stability, and consider that more hiking. That means that I hike midday there with the dog, but walk her late at night, when the coyotes are out.
Just my definition.
Regarding Norway, Knut Hamsun more than once wrote of how men walking the countryside -- usually, but not always, looking for work -- would carry their shoes and only put them on when they reached the outskirts of a town. Thrift by necessity.
One surprise to me in the country has been that I am more reluctant to walk at 4 a.m. than I used to be back in a wooded, natural section of the city. Out here, the area belongs to the animals at that time. So only if there is a good moon out will I go in the dark. There is also a degree or two less protection from that one crazy depraved character who lurks out there somewhere, we all know it. Fewer houses equals less help, and less restraint on the boogey man.
Comment from the Norwegian made me nostalgic.
Went to college in Montana during the 80s. At least once a week threw on a backpack and hiked. Sometimes in the valleys, sometimes in the mountains. Summer or winter. Always someone new along, a friend of a friend. It was all carefree and a wonderful way to spend one's 20s.
I do miss those days.
Lions and tigers and bears and sometimes people having secret sex in the woods, oh my.
Love the idea of a weekly family hike and picnic, especially if it were in Norway.
Love Kjartan's comments. I confess to have spent too much of my life working. And though I typically do a morning walk, it's not a hike. I reserve 'hikes' for my vacations. We choose a place where we can do some hefty city walking sometimes, but mostly we look for places that will have wooded areas, or mountainous areas for hikes. But...never on bad weather days.
Norwegians seem to put this to shame- easily. Based on his comment it seems to be built into their way of life. I love that the idea of taking a day out of their week to do this. I wonder if it's culture-wide or just something Kjartan grew up with?
One thing my wife and I clearly noted when we moved from Atlanta a few years ago to the Gulf Coast of Florida, is that now, in Florida, we're definitely at sea level. And, the entire peninsula south of I-10 is pretty much flat. There are few, if any, deviations in topography. Atlanta was a hilly and woods-filled city. Lots of places to get in a good hike. Here we simply get in walks. Gets me thinking about the Western Carolina area...again...
On the other hand, Florida is so flat, then when Elon Musk's SpaceX has a night launch from the other side of the state at Cape Canaveral, we gather with some neighbors on our driveway, watch the SpaceX launch countdown on our phones, and look up at the horizon just above our neighbor's house facing east. About 45 seconds into the launch, we can watch the rocket going up, showing a large, brightly colored red/yellow flame going, up, up, up. We can even watch, from our driveway in Sarasota, the separation of the first stage, and the two stages moving in separate directions. At night this looks pretty cool. Clear skies, flat land.
When I walk/hike my usual trails around here after snowfall, I'm always surprised at how much my legs ache in different places, from the extra challenge of staying balanced in icy spots. That's what she's getting at.
Hills and no pavement.
my old walk was a old railroad track/now nature trail.. It's very pretty, and VERY flat
my new walking trails take me up and down the Turkey river hillsides, which seems Much more exercisy
But, the new trail (though a smooth walking path) is not mowed as often it could, which means TICKS
I think Actual hiking is more cross country, maybe still on "trails", but Not on paths; so that you have to think about Every foot placement (or sprain your ankle).
The combination of
hills
tricky surfaces
make what i think of as "hiking". Oh, and you're not just walking around your neighborhood
add a 40 lb pack, and make it a couple of (several?) days long, and Now you're no longer talking "hiking".. you're talking Backpacking
If you don't like "camping" in a Truck, with cold beverages and hot water..
You'll LOVE backpacking.. There's Nothing like seeing a muddy creek as a bathing spa!
A walk is four balls as judged by an umpire.
A hike is a walk in the woods.
"Wait only for my boot heels to be wanderin’
I’m ready to go anywhere, I’m ready for to fade
Into my own parade,......"
I’ve always thought the difference between hiking and walking was the terrain or surface you were trodding. A paved surface is walking, unpaved is hiking. However it is true that in baseball a walk is over unpaved ground and when the umpire says “Take a hike” he usually means into the paved locker room. So it’s complicated.
Hiking poles (or a monopod without the camera attached) for stability in rough terrain...
I live in central Arkansas. There are wonderful hiking trails in abundance. My wife & I, both well seasoned citizens, hike at least 5 miles every day. The difference between a walk & a hike is that a walk involves shopping.
I assume hiking involves some climbing and descending. It's easier to fall or twist your ankle that way.
I'd like to go hiking but there are more bears about these days than when I first came to Montana.
I wholeheartedly agree with these sentiments. Hiking is substantially different to walking. The energizing effects of hill / mountain ascents on a hike, of moving through different geographies on a dirt path, well that just is a completely different thing. I do both, but hiking, that's a soul cleanse for me.
From the post:
"I liked this comment over there from Kjartan in Oslo:"
Nobody knows hiking...like a Viking.
The ten essentials left off two very critical items (so should be twelve):
(11) If going where you have a nonzero chance of meeting a bear, then a good quality bear spray and/or a sufficiently powerful handgun (not a piddling 9 mm — .357 mag, 10 mm, or “starts with 4”). If the chance of meeting a bear is close to zero but there are mountain lions or wolves, a high capacity 9 mm is okay.
(12) A personal locator beacon
I maintain a mile and three quarter trail on our farm (mainly woods and along a creek). We say, "I'm going for a walk" around the pond (several hundred yards).When we use the trail, we say, "I'm going for a hike". Difference of distance and scenery.
I walk 18 holes of golf three days a week. One of my playing partners has a pedometer which puts it at about 6 miles in total per round. I prefer to walk instead of taking a motorized cart, but I push a walking cart instead of carrying the bag.
Some call golf a good walk spoiled. Some days it is.
It's footwear-based:
Running or walking shoes - walk
Boots - hike
Uneven terrain also increases injuries for clumsy people. Me, for example. And like, just yesterday, for example. Walking is fine. I recommend rail trails.
I get nervous whenever people start telling me how good something is for me. I wonder if health people evangelise more than Christians.
Walking occurs on paved roads or gravel. Hiking when some or all is off-road.
Often, but not always. I wouldn't call ambling 20-30 minutes along a forest path a hike.
At a minimum, hiking involves some elevation changes beyond, let's say, 500 feet. To give an example, you can walk tour the Grand Canyon by staying on the rim, but can also hike down into it.
My distinction between hiking and walking is in the equipment required.
Hiking is vanity walking.
Look how hard people are trying to separate the "hikers" from the mere "walkers", with the implication that hiking is clearly superior.
Since I moved to an 8 story condo several years ago I decided to run/walk the fire stairs up and down average 5 times. It was funny at first because I had semi Schwarzenegger legs and a bit of a gut. Now, thankfully, uniform after adding some push-ups.
And you get to meet new friends walking floor to floor in bath robes.
Assistant Village Idiot said, "Uneven terrain also increases injuries for clumsy people." This seems to apply to me more as I get older. I carry a walking stick on a trail where the only up/downhill part is the descent from the parking lot. I have found myself involuntarily "running" down that slope a time or two and it is unnerving!
I hike along the trails... but I walk when I hike. I slow down cause I like to see what is around me. The objective for me is to enjoy the hike, not to hurry to the destination.
“(11) If going where you have a nonzero chance of meeting a bear, then a good quality bear spray and/or a sufficiently powerful handgun (not a piddling 9 mm — .357 mag, 10 mm, or “starts with 4”). If the chance of meeting a bear is close to zero but there are mountain lions or wolves, a high capacity 9 mm is okay.”
We have both brown and black bears in the county her in NW MT. Luckily, the brown bears mostly stick to the ridge to the north (and wolves to the ridge to the south). I often carry both bear spray and a handgun - 10 mm G20 with bear loads (don’t forget the bear loads - some guide emptied his 15+1 round G20 into a black bear a couple years ago and barely survived. He had switched from bear loads (that penetrate) to SD rounds (that mushroom instead) a couple weeks earlier because it was supposed to no longer be beat season). Last year, at the bottom of the hill I mentioned above, the dog alerted and pulled back. I followed her lead. Then I heard the distinctive Whoof of a bear, on the other side of a big bush, maybe 10 feet away.
“(12) A personal locator beacon”
We don’t get out that far. But my next brother hikes, alone, a lot in the CO mountains. Not pansy hikes, but 3-4K elevation gain, over maybe 5 hours. Maybe more. I talked my mother into buying him a FindMeSpot satellite locator nearing 20 years ago. He still uses it, and another brother and I get a text message every Wed, Sat, and some Sundays, when he takes off from his “approach vehicle”, and then when he gets back. We worry when we don’t get the second message. Happened last year. I panicked that other brother, and we tried to find him. Had the county sheriff ready to mount a search and rescue, and then he finally responded to one of our frantic messages - he had forgotten, come down, did errands, and finally got home a couple hours later, to find his answering machine full of frantic messages from us.
And, yes, I know several people who have died in the CO mountains, including our youngest brother - though that was a climbing, and not hiking accident.
A weekly hike in the mountains sounds wonderful, but when you live in a big city in a topologically boring part of the country, it’s hard to make it a habit. How many Sundays in a row can you spend an hour or more driving to a park where you walk along a flat path in the woods?
Love hiking. Got ten miles in yesterday, finally feel like I'm getting back in hiking shape after not doing it all winter.
It's amazing how your feet learn to instinctively find the most level ground on the trails once you've been doing it a little while.
Dunno about a backpack with a belt lol, I just have a regular backpack with some water bottles and food. And maps of the trails, indispensable. Google maps has a lot of trails marked but not all in any particular place, and lots of places no signal of course.
--- I wouldn't call ambling 20-30 minutes along a forest path a hike.
Maybe a very short hike. An hors d'oeuvre hike.
For rhyming purposes, “Ut på tur, aldri sur» Out for a walk, never mad! “
Once on a hike to Capitol Peak we came across a camp of New Yorkers. They had maybe five tents set up in a circle. And in the middle of the circle stood a portable toilet, like a totem. They clearly had read a how-to-hike article in the NYT. Every article of clothing and gear down to their all wrong boots were spanking new. They were about two miles from the trail head.
walk >>> path already charted by others?
hike >>> no-man-has gone before?
"Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” is often incorrectly credited to Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), but Emerson never wrote it.
Muriel Strode (1875-1964) wrote in 1903: “I will not follow where the path may lead, but I will go where there is no path, and I will leave a trail.”
I run on trails around here, what does that count as?
Exertion.
The difference is that you don't get blisters on a walk.
I would think since we say "it was quite a hike" but not "It was quite a walk" a big difference is exertion. But I think also intention. A walk might be more of a wander, such as the Australian "walk-about". A hike to me alway seems to have a goal, even if you are to hike a trail.
In addition, I would go on a walk around the ship or facility, which was more of a wandering to see things, often surprisingly finding things that needed fixing but for a long time. But one might do the hike from one building to another, even though the lunch time walk along the lake trail down to the end of the park next door was always a walk, even when done with speed for the exercise benefits.
This for a great short story, "Unchanging Love" gives insight as we'd never say the hiked amid his fellows.
So he lived and died, a shiftless, improvident fellow whose name was synonymous with indolence and worthlessness. Yet I have wondered if he was not worthy to be accounted a success, since his life evidently brought to himself no sense of failure; and he walked amid his fellows with unimpaired self-respect, for all his laziness, "a gentleman unafraid."
FIELD-PATH AND HIGHWAY, E.E. Miller, 1912
https://archive.org/details/fieldpathhighway00mill
BTW, I find that story, so calming and peaceful. Just about a couple of different people who had a good relationship with nature. The kind would would walk in the woods, but rarely hike through them except in emergency.
If I’m packing water and I drove more than 45 minutes to get there and I’m surrounded by trees and/or rock formations and I can’t see any pavement or buildings or farmland from where I’m walking and I’ve outdistanced the Asian tourists and the White Trash, then it’s a hike.
My favorite book title: " I May Be Some Time: Ice and the English Imagination," about British Arctic explorers whose letters were found on their frozen bodies.
As to where you hike...
I like starting out on the trails and ending up on back back country roads. You meet some very interesting people lol.
And yes, when you're 4 hours in and it's another 2 hours back to your car, it doesn't matter if you're on a trail, a paved road, a gravel road, or a dirt road. It is a hike.
Temujin: many years ago, I was a college student in Sarasota at the currently stupid school called New College. May the new Trustees save it from S&M clubs run by librarians, and so on.
Yes, it's flat. But the bridges aren't, and the beaches are sand: very challenging.
Hike from downtown to Longboat or Siesta Key. Then hike on the sand beaches, in the soft part of the sand. I used to run and walk sand ten miles a day. Before dawn or after sunset, because of the heat.
Or go north to Bradenton and hike through the difficult terrain left by the catastrophic hurricane of 1920, which literally salted the crop fields permanently. But bring bug spray.
Also bring a gun. I learned that the hard way.
If you're lost it's a hike.
Circa 1920s, a stronger version of "take a hike":
"Take a long walk on a short pier".
Circa 1920s, a stronger version ... "take a long walk on a short pier".
Circa 1920s, a stronger version: "take a long walk on a short pier."
Circa 1920s, a stronger version was popular: "take a long walk on a short pier".
Sigh. I live in South Louisiana where the difference between walking and "hiking" might be no sidewalks and watching out for alligators.
Sadly, I belong to that age cohort that is more likely wander in the shady nuances between a walk and a stroll than more challenging exertions. I admire those who consider a good long walk a wimpy substitute for a hike along wilderness trails where you sometimes have to fight off bears and subsist on blackberries for three days....My aim is to be more a boulevardier than a hiker, but I do take long walks in Central Park. The Great Lawn is a fine place. There are designers dogs with expensive haircuts. They're intoxicated by squirrels and the presence of other designer dogs and strain against the leash. There are toddlers who have almost mastered walking and they're flush with joy at how good it is to walk on grass under an open sky. It's a half mile around, and there are benches every few feet. Not a bad place to grow old. Someday I may even feed the pigeons.
I live in South Louisiana where the difference between walking and "hiking" might be no sidewalks and watching out for alligators.
We've got half of that at the golf course behind our house. They remove the alligators when they exceed 5ft.
“Not a bad place to grow old. Someday I may even feed the pigeons.”
https://youtu.be/nCM8sI1RRDI
Hiking includes a change of elevation.
Post a Comment