Posted by Sofia on March 8, 2008, 3:58 pm, in reply to "Re: Question about traveling while off days"
Hey Chris, what exactly do you consider a "great hiker"? I'm sitting here wondering if I'm cut out for hiking with A.C.E. You see, I'm not particularly strong or athletic, but I've been hiking with my family in the mountains in the north of Sweden for a week or two nearly every summer of my life. I've then walked rather long distances with a heavy backpack and we've set up a camp and from there I've gone on hikes with a daypack, sometimes climbing mountain tops (I love doing that!). I really enjoy walking long distances, but it's hardly a piece of cake for me if I have a heavy backpack on. I remember one hike that was especially exhausting where we walked 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) or so, in the bare mountain region where the ground was covered in heather, and I was beat and tripped and fell down and had a hard time getting up again because my backpack was so heavy, and I felt really miserable and shed a tear or two. But damn, it felt good when we reached the place where we were going to set up camp! Then came heavy rain and a thunderstorm that was really awesome to witness. That's the only time I can remember ever feeling miserable on a hike though. I usually really enjoy it, even if it's challenging for me. I mean, the challenge is part of the charm. And it helps that the mountain regions and the old growth forests in the north of Sweden are astonishingly beautiful. (An especially memorable hike was when we were accompanied by a somewhat tame reindeer who walked side by side with us for several kilometers. Here's a picture I took of him: http://img85.imageshack.us/my.php?image=096py6.jpg 
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So, I'm really used to hiking and camping out in the wilderness. But it's often really windy and quite cold up there in the north of Sweden and I've rarely gone on hikes in hot temperatures. Do you think I'm cut out for hiking with A.C.E? I hope I'll at least get to try to go on some projects that involve quite difficult and demanding hiking.
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