You are the reason I had the courage to do my first night hike alone in the Smokies for a sunrise. It was AMAZING. I was so nervous at the trail head and my heart was pounding until I got out of the rhododendron bushes, but I just kept thinking of all the times I watched you night hike on the PCT. Seeing the stars and the moon and having the trail all to myself was so magical. I'll never forget it! Thank you for inspiring us all.
Night hiked recently on the longest day /shortest night to see both the sunset and the sunrise with just a few hours of darkness in between. Magical experience.
It takes a while to get used to hiking at night but you never stop thinking every sound is a cougar/bear/wolf/crazy-person. What happens is that you program your brain to not be afraid of those things. Took me a few years to finally do that. Bringing some form of protection can help with it, like a gun/spray/knife, but time alone can eventually desensitize you enough that you can feel comfortable with night hiking. I'm a big scaredy cat BTW. :)
TheWillRogers That would be horrible! I stressed over that for a bit in grizzly country (setting off spray), but I comforted myself by saying “at least it won’t kill me” 😂
I did an overnight hike 4 days ago (August 29 - 30). My purpose was to see and video a bit of the Pikes Peak Hill Climb (August 30). Because of COVID-19 this year there were to be no fan tickets and no fans allowed near the course. I would have liked to get to the site, The Devil's Playground, before 4:00 am, but didn't want to get there too early. So I started at 8:00pm, a bit after sunset. Stupidly, I picked a further away trailhead, Horsethief Park. Rather than a closer trailhead which I suspected would be closed or overcrowded, Craigs Campground. Started on a familiar trail with a 3/4 moon, but thin high-altitude clouds had rolled in. Clouds thickened and at 9:00 pm it started raining. Not heavy, just light sprinkles. The sprinkles continued on and off until about 11:00 pm. Found my proper turn, but the trail was steep, on a north slope in heavy trees, and with plenty of boulders. Somehow I ended up on the wrong side of the creek and got off trail. My sure-fire, "Keep the slope to my right and keep moving upward," went on and on. My cell-phone apps were next to useless. I kept seeing glimpses of lights to my north, which didn't make sense. Finally noticed I had a couple of bars of cell power so I opened a web browser and fired up Google Maps. The blue GPS dot on the map showed I was a full mile north of where I expected and close to treeline. Since my objective was NE of where I started, "too far north" was fine. Broke out of the trees about 1:00 am and had a boulder field to scramble up to ridge. Fortunately the moon made lights unnecessary. Took a tumble and lost my hat. Then on the ridge I got confused, thinking I was traveling NE I got to hiking south. The moon was right in front of me.... how had it swung back east? Oh yeah, it hadn't. Looong hike above treeline, exhausted, legs totally jellified, and avoiding boulder fields to give my legs a rest. As the moon sank in the west it turned yellow, then orange, red, and finally brown before it vanished-smoke from a fire west of me. Finally found the trail from the other trailhead and took that the rest of the way. Got to within sight of the parking lot at 5:00 am. People were there, which I avoided. I finally found a shallow cave to get out of the wind, and waited for the race to start. It was almost 9:00 am before the first car, and I was caught and kicked off the mountain at 10:00 am. *It was an amazing adventure. Nine hours nonstop, the majority of it off trail. Made me wonder if I had a death wish. There were places that if I'd busted an ankle good chance no one would find me for a couple of years. But oh God it was beautiful! The western flank of Pikes Peak is stunning. I've now got in my head several other off-trail approaches-probably during the day. I'd love to try the west fork of West Beaver Creek. Or try to find the proper trail I'd missed Saturday. Now I just need to find someone as nuts as I am so I don't have to die alone in the wilderness.*
Hiked at night for the first time yesterday. Saw a huge buck and a coyote on the road just before getting out of my car to start, so that was a great start to get the blood pumping! Was a great experience in the end.
One of the most beautiful experiences I've ever had in the wilderness occurred in the dead of night just to the east of Mt. Adams in Washington state. I had been hunting for 5 days and was lucky enough to take my first elk. I field dressed her and then went back to my truck, about 2 miles away. I drove closer to the kill sight and hiked back to start breaking down the animal. It was cold, in the 20's with about 8 inches of fresh snow covering an old clear cut with about five years of growth. As the sun went down, I knew there was a New Moon and would be completely dark soon. The night was completely clear, quiet and calm.What I didn't count on was the illumination provided by the stars, the snow covered ground and the mountain, which was pretty close. I had a small lantern and a good headlamp to guide my work, which took about 5 hours including multiple hikes back to the truck while packing out the meat. As I was working, bent over, I stood up to stretch my sore back. The immense beauty of the star filled night, the close proximity of this huge 10,000 foot mountain, and my absolute solitude, suddenly dawned on me. I was utterly alone, many miles from the closest town, out of cell range the entire week, and in the wilderness. It was beautiful and it gave me a new perspective on many things, on our planet, its beauty and vulnerability, of my place in the world and my small contribution to our society. I also thought of my vulnerability. There are many predators in the Cascade mountains; Black Bears, wolves, cougars, Bigfoot? It was a great experience, a first for me. I have repeated that same feeling many times since and I recommend it to anyone with a sense of adventure. Ancient societies used to have rights of passage for young men to go out into the wilderness alone and survive, learn and grow up a little. Can't wait to go night hiking. Great post.
I like hiking at night without a light. Your eyes adjust quickly and I can see better and farther. With a light it limits my sight to the illuminated area. I’m also not viewable from miles away by everything.
Few things in life are as magical as walking the forest by the light of a full moon (or any moon light for that matter). On moonless nights under a clear sky, it is amazing how much light the stars provide.
One of my favorite moments last year was a late night solo hike at Daniel Boone National Forest, in pouring rain and the most dense fog I've ever seen. Using a headlamp was really disorienting, with the fog becoming a million points of glimmer. My chosen trail was an old closed forest service road, an easy path amidst rugged terrain. Everything I needed for a return to comfort right on my back. On another night hike last year I saw my first copperhead. On another night I watched a very distant but spectacular thunderstorm. Last year was my first time out with a backpack in over 35 years, and I spent about ten weekends out enjoying DBNF. Thanks Dixie, your great content really helped get me out there! It all started when I thought "I wonder what backpacking gear is like these days..." And as a newbie, solo, and old, I make every choice the safer one, but LOVE night hiking on a familiar trail.
Nice video, have hiked over 100 miles at the Grand Canyon and probably 25% of that was in the dark. The Canyon is a special place after sunset, it is almost like hiking through an Ansel Adams photograph. I am glad that most people don't like to night hike since the feeling of having a trail all to oneself is pretty special. Happy trails!
I love night hiking The Canyon at night as well. We hiked from Clear Creek back to Phantom at night. There was a full moon and it was amazing. The only thing to be careful of was depth perception. Sometimes it was hard to tell if you needed to step up onto a rock or down off of the rock. It was one of the best hikes every though.
Here in Minnesota it gets dark very early in the winter, 4:30 - 5:00ish. So if you want to go for a walk after work it will be in the dark. Nothing better than throwing on the snowshoes and going for a walk by the full moon. The bright moonlight creates snow diamonds. Snow crystals sparkling like stars in the sky, changing with each step you take. No headlamps required. Awesome.
Dixie, I concur... Every January I lead a small group of hikers on a winter night hike (just after sunset) up to the AMC Lonesome Lake Hut in Franconia Notch NH. The hut is open 24/7/365 but we don't stay overnight but visit the hut for a while, cross the frozen lake and enjoy the dark stillness of night in the woods. They do light the wood stove on winter evenings which is welcoming. The years that we have snow falling during the hike make for an almost magical evening. It's a very popular trail in the daytime but mostly all to ourselves at night. Winter hiking gets us use to hiking in darkness due to the short day light hours. Not many animals on the trail on winter nights...no bugs either.
I used to occasionally "day-hike" at night when I lived in Israel. The desert is beautiful at night. It makes you think that it might be like being on the moon. Even with a half moon, no flashlight or headlamp is needed. One of my friends came to visit from the US and I took him on a night hike. This particular friend has traveled all over the world for the past 20 years or so. Every single time I talk to him, he mentions how he will never forget our night hike and thanks me for taking him. FWIW, we were right outside Jericho, and once we got up the hill a bit, we could see the Dead Sea. And hey, what accent are y'all talkin' about? She sounds just like me and my freyunds.
I'll add one bit of night hiking advice: When you know the batteries in your headlamp are pretty low, change to your new batteries while it's still light BEFORE the old ones go dead. Turns out those little pluses and minuses inside the headlamp can be tinier than you thought!
Always remember this tip as well!! The flat side of the battery always goes against the spring. It’s just habit to do it like that nowadays, I don’t even read them.
I've hiked in the back-country every morning before daybreak for the past 30 years. It's magical and energizing. Early morning is the best time to see wildlife.
I love your videos Dixie. There are some obvious dangers to hiking at night, but I could get run over by a bus on my way across the city tomorrow as well. In the mid eighties I was a wilderness canoe ranger in Quetico provincial park in Ontario, Canada with five other people. Our boss contacted us and asked us to to make our way to another ranger station as soon as possible. While we knew he didn't mean that we should pack up and leave that night, we couldn't get the idea out of our heads, so we found ourselves packed an hour later and ready for a 60km (40 mile) paddle/ portage to Cache lake station by 11:00 pm that night. It was the end of June with a full moon, the longest day of the year, and a clear sky. We watched as the sun never quite set and then rose again. We navigated by silhouettes of shoreline and trees through some new territory and some familiar. By 07:00 we greeted our warden at Cache Lake, to his great surprise. Crazy, maybe, but I'd do it again. Awesome experience.
Very timely content, Dixie. I've been doing more night hikes lately for some of the very reasons you listed. Very relaxing ( for me ) , being out in a snowfall with a headlamp and the sound of crunching snow under your feet. I'll forgive you Southerners for failing to mention that particular benefit to night hikes.
When my son was 6 we hiked to Saint Mary peak in the Bitterroot mountains of western Montana. At the time his short legs didn't move so fast so we always started early in the morning. This hike we started well before sunrise. He didn't like the night hiking through the trees. Along the way we had to stop for an encouragement session. As we were sitting on a boulder a great-horned owl flew close to us. That perked him up a bit for the rest of the dark hike!
Hunter Archer I did the South Sister this past August for the same reason. Darn full moon though! I did it half way through circumnavigating the Three Sisters. Also nothing like a dawn on the top of a mountain! Mountain shadows are spectacular!
Haven't thru hiked, but have hiked 100's of night miles for the sake of photographing night scenes and think the views are as good or better than the day, and feel more safe from cougars since their eyes make giant reflections in your light, so they're actually easier to see then in the day. Just my $0.02 Great vid! Not enough people know night hiking rules!
I haven't done a lot of hiking at night, but I have done some. You hit the best points for doing so. I especially love stargazing and enjoying the cooler temps, as I am pretty hot natured. Nice video as usual. Thank for doing all these and inspiring folks to get outside.
Everything sounds huge at night. I used to kayak home from work by skylight from nearby Hartford. Wonderful. Keep that 1100 Lumen lamp handy and avoid cliffs, snake dens etc. Have fun. I stayed out till dusk last week. Saw a possum, looked right at me, and a cougar! They are occassionaly seen here. we had one road killed in Milford. I got it's scat, real deal. Remember to keep looking for blazes.
Interesting video. I've spent countless hours hiking at night: on my way to and from climbs, to and from hunts. I've had to start or finish in the dark, or walk all night, because of some exigency. I can't think of one time that I would not rather have been covering that ground in daylight. In the dark, you can't see much, photography is very difficult. If you're moving, your vision is confined to the limit of your headlamp. If you turn off your light to enjoy the stars and the ambience of darkness, you can't move efficiently. On long backpacks I often get up in the dark and hike at dawn. But I'm out there to SEE stuff.
You nailed it again on this topic. Nearly brought tears to my eyes at the memory of Northern Lights. I grew up where they were visible much of the year. It's been decades since I saw them. I first learned the magic of night hiking on search and rescue incidents. Since then I have hiked many miles at night in the Grand Canyon and mountain climbs that put me on the summit before sunrise. There is so much life that is visible only at night like the Ring Tailed cats in the G.C.
For 'peak bagging', and other activities, night hiking has advantages, especially if the ascent starts on a waning moon (few days to a week past a full moon). Selecting this time places the moon more overhead in the hours leading up to dawn, essentially lengthening the day. A hike starting at ~3 AM can get in 8 hours before lunchtime and the heat of the day sets in..
I've been know to go on hikes around my campsites for years. I find it an interesting activity to do while camping. Over also done a lot of approach trail hiking in the dark when climbing mountains in the summer. It always struck me as a good way to help the less interesting part of the climb pass a little quicker.....and you didn't have to look up and see all of the vertical you still had to hike! I once climbed a 14er in Colorado all in the dark with the moonlight, getting to the summit at midnight. I saw someone's campfire way down below me near a small lake, and later I watched lightning roll through South Park several miles to the southeast. It was truly a cool experience!
I worked at summer camps and educational camps and we'd take our campers on night hikes to introduce them to nature at night and build their confidence. Even a short 20-40min hike in the dark drastically changed our campers for the better. It's not for everyone, but totally worth giving it a shot!
Love night hiking. It's such a different vibe. I worked at Yosemite National Park and you'd see moonbows over the falls, and lots of animals roaming around at night. Another great place for night hikes is Death Valley National Park as the star show is spectacular. But you have to be aware that rattlesnakes like night slithering as well. I was night hiking along a river once, and got a intense warning from a big cat, along the river bank, and knew better than to take another step, and backed away from the area. If you haven't done it, put some excitement into your life, give it a try, for something different, but you have to be a tad more focused while doing it in the dark - happy night trails!
Just a few of my most favorite memories night hiking: Hiked out from the Bonds in winter once, via Lincoln Woods trail. No headlamp, just the moon overhead. It was magical. There were several others on the trail, mostly local residents out walking the dogs, or getting their exercise in before turning in for the night. Nobody was at all worried that it was dark, indeed it felt like we were all embracing it. Finished a one-day Wildcat-Carter-Moriah traverse by headlamp with an AT hiker; as we passed the last shelters, it was a change, seeing fellow hikers done for the night, instead of up and about. I was tired and thinking about getting back to the car. He was ordering a pizza, to be delivered to the hostel. I came out from Mt Isolation (just south of Mt Washington) via the Rocky Branch trail. It was a slog, for sure, but watching the moon rise over the brook was a treat. And I'll never forget a wintertime night hike of Mt Monadnock, enjoying a beer on the summit with friends, with endless stars overhead. Winter's probably my favorite, because a little light goes a long way, and everything glitters. It's magical. 10/10: Will do it again, for sure.
I rarely leave comments, but your videos are some of the best on youtube about thru-hiking/backpacking. The way you present the information and then layer your topics with experiences is amazing and very well done. I wish you the best in this new year!
A buddy of mine that ive done several river trips with would typically plan certain trips around a full moon. In desert areas of West Texas where limestone rock formations are weathered light gray with very light, almost white, spalled areas, the visibilty is very good with little or no need for a flashlight while hiking and exploring around. Fun times. Great memories
In desert areas we always hiked at night for the reasons you mentioned about heat and water consumption and the moon & stars. I’ve done a lot of night hikes in Big Bend National park in west Texas and it is beautiful.
I enjoy night hiking. Besides everything you said, a benefit that I find from night hiking is that I always seem to go further than I think, even though I am not walking as fast as I do during the day. I believe this is because I cannot see how far I have to go and how far I have gone. It is a psychological thing.
That takes truly impressive courage. Here in Southern California I am already freaked out reading about bear encounters. I hike solo and I certainly don’t have the courage you do, nor the experience.
Nailed it! All the reasons why I love night hiking as well! Also, viewing lightning and thunderstorms (from afar of course) is really spectacular. And night hiking in the snow is just beautiful!
Night hiking is the beeeeeest. Especially on a full moon. But my probably all time high of hiking through Virginia on the AT was walking into a pasture at about 11pm and suddenly seeing millions of fire flies across the pasture and off into the tree line across from me where the fire flies mingled with the start of a clear and star filled sky. I saw my first bear in the Shenandoah who came up to have a curiosity visit before he bolted upon realizing I was a human haha. Aside from that I had to night hike through New Jersey and through New York because it was just tooooo hot and I was too fatigued with high mile days trying to make up time to finish according to a set day. I would encourage people to hike at every hour of the day and in every aspect of the elements rain or shine. I hate the 9-5 hiking mentality which deprives you of the full immersive experience that is right at your feet literally.
My brother, one of our friends and I hiked Mount Washington at night. Well more like 2 a.m. but in the dark anyway. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life so far. We didn't make it to the summit before sunrise like we planned but it was still an amazing experience. Love the channel, keep on hiking!
Mnt. Whitney under a full moon is awesome! You don't need a headlamp, and the moonlight reflecting off the granite walls is amazing. Hiking down on a non-moonlit night, I passed what I can only assume was a bear. I had my flash lite on and heard a loud 'snort' not far off the trail. I looked around and kept walking.
I love to night hike, especially the first night out. I have trouble sleeping that first night, so if I’m feeling good I just keep going and stop the next day when I want. I eat breakfast and dinner on the trail, not in camp, so my standard schedule is stopping around 9 or 10 pm and back on the trail at 4 or 5 am, so always a little night hiking on both ends. But there’s a lot to be said for sleeping during the day, when it’s warmer, less bugs, if day forecast is for clear skies, less worry about bears and critters going after your food (I sleep with my food when day-napping).
The Chihuahuan desert at night looks like a coral reef in black and white. The various cactus look like various corals. There are eyes everywhere! Really love it!
While it has been some years since I've done extensive night hiking, the only big change is the advent of LED headlamps, which provide continuous light for a long time without burning through a pound of expensive batteries (unlike the incandescent ones of old). Frankly walking with a minimum amount of artificial light is feasible in all but the most rugged areas if you have a near full moon, which really makes you feel part of nature and less of an intruder. Night hiking with a light snow cover is even more special. At night all of your senses are more attuned, even the sense of touch as your feet touch the ground or a light breeze brushes your face. Your mind craves input and when you can see less, it draws on your other senses. One other advantage on crowded trails is that the big slug of hikers move from shelter to shelter during the day.....leaving the shelters empty and available for a quiet nap for night hikers.
I don't have a lot of experience with night hiking but the last time my family hiked the Grand Canyon--something we do every 10 years--the only time we could all do it was in August. The daytime highs were about 120 degrees F so we hiked at night a couple of times. We'd sleep and leave the campground about 1 AM. The heat was much more manageable. To save a few ounces I left my spare batteries at home, never having needed them ever before. That was a mistake. Fortunately, my niece was willing to share. As time when on one night, we were fairly well spread out. My then 15 year old was totally freaked out by a pair of green eyes off to the side of the trail. He told me that he started praying and every horror movie he'd ever seen flashed through his mind. Turned out it was an elk, munching on leaves and minding it's own business. As we came closer to the canyon rim, the sun rose so we had the best of both worlds--a peaceful night hike and great views without the midday heat.
Hi Dixie, thanks for the great advice and comments about hiking in the dark. I personally have only hiked in the dark during a day hike once. I hiked in and out on a 22-mile hike and ran out of daylight during the last 30 minutes getting back to my car. It is amazing how much your senses are heightened in the dark on a trail all by yourself! A pretty exciting thing to experience!
I hiked/climbed Mt Shasta and summited at 2:30 am. Incredible night sky full of stars at over 14,000 ft. The late evening start afforded a view of Shasta’s shadow cast on the atmosphere above the distant east horizon - something I had never even heard of.
It's taken me a couple of years to get used to it but I finally have. I work with owls for my profession, normally in the PNW, so I've done it quite a bit. Honestly it has its advantages, especially heat, so I plan on doing it a lot in the SoCal sections of the PCT if I ever get to do it because I am one of those people who just utterly can't stand high temps especially since my body uses so much water when hiking. BIG NOTE: She's so incredibly right on the night sky being an amazing part of night hiking. It's honestly sad that SO many people take it for granted and don't realize if it wasn't for light pollution that the sky directly above their heads would look like those amazing pictures you see in National Geographic. Seriously folks, it's right there but you don't realize it! Not to mention seeing shooting stars. Also I recommend learning owl calls if you hike the PCT. There aren't that many species you need to learn and it's really rewarding knowing what you're hearing.
thanks for talking about Confidence when walking at night. Shut off the "electric torch" and, aided by starlight, my eyes amazingly saw the trail roots & trip hazards, etc. Fireflies and hearing night birds is great but best was meeting the brujo in southern Belize who liked night transits too. thx Dixie
You know im glad you brought this topic to light Jessica, because I totally agree hiking at night is great, as a person who plans to do a Thru-hike Nobo on the AT soon, I definitely plan on doing both day and night hiking because I don't have the time, money, or patience to be out on trail for 4-6 months. When I start my hike on the AT I plan to get as far as I can during the day, rest a bit and then continue on during the night. Also word of advice for people who have never night hiked. REMEMBER A BLACK BEAR'S EYES WILL TURN UP BROWN IN A FLASHLIGHT (LED)
Fully agree with all you say in this video. I use the headlamp (or any lamp) as little as possible and once used to the darkness you kinda adjust to it. Like to feel that the shape on the ground is not right and it turns out to be a rattler. It's fun to rely on more senses than just vision.
The greatest part about being out at night is often the exhilaration that you often get from experiencing things that you don't get to otherwise. Outstanding points on this one!!! I love the shots you've taken of the night sky! 👊👍🇺🇸
Fantastic!!!! Inspiring!!! I was in Morocco a few years ago and I was blown away by how bright the night sky was. You could easily see the Milky way with your own eyes!!! You've inspired me to go back!!!😊
Thanks for the good vibes! I think would like to night hike, probably with a friend or two so I don't get all paranoid lol. I absolutely love looking at the stars. I use to know most of the constellations but that was a while ago lol.
Excellent video Dixie! I love night hiking and I’ve probably hiked 1,000 miles while wearing a headlamp. It’s magical. And for all those interested let me suggest the Nitecore NU 25 headlamp. It’s one of my favorite pieces of gear.
I night hiked 8 miles through the Everglades last year and it was great. Night hiking is Florida is almost a must because even in the winter it can still be quite warm and exposed during the day.
I night hiked in the grand canyon once. The moon was so bright you could see better with it than the head lamps. It was amazing and magical, seeing the canyon form the inside looking up with the starry sky for a backdrop. It was the best part of the hike.
I have been riding my horse at night for years. As an Equestrian Docent I asked riders not to use any flashlights since it blinds their horse. A much more rewarding experience seeing the stars and spotting deer at night.
I once camped out w/ my gf near the South Rim of the Grand Canyon during the Perseid meteor shower. We had a shared a bottle of cheap wine, a portable radio, and the most spectacular display of nature that I've ever witnessed. This was back in the mid 90s... that girl is only a distant memory now, but I'll never forget the firey streaks across that midnight sky!
Going in the opposite direction really changes up a 'regular' hike. I did rt 2 NH to Grafton Notch the 1st time through and went Grafton to rt 2 a few years later. It was vastly different. Not only in direction, but also in terms of weather. The 1st time I was completely clouded over and could only see 10 feet around myself. The 2nd time the sky was crystal clear.
With limited daylight I’ve started taking my 7 and 9 year old daughters night hiking. They LOVE IT, more so than daytime hiking. My hope is that with them getting comfortable with this now that it will be a benefit on longer backpacking trips when we hike late.
So cool. I've never done this (yet) but the difference in scuba diving in the day & night is major as well as kayaking at night. Once I hit a sand island area in kayak & had to get off in boggy alligator area. Never again kaya without a good light.
Great topic. As a teen and in college in the US desert southwest, we frequently night hiked to both avoid the heat, and in the cooler months, starting off after class on a Friday to get some distance from the roads and development, setting up for a great launch into the wild places the next morning. Most of the travel was often off the trail, and instead was along the broad arroyos and washes leading to the mountains or canyons. Easy to navigate in starlight. This was also in an era before long before LED lamps and batteries were at a premium. No, we didn't carry paleo-nalgene's of acid and copper rods for lighting but LED's and packable inflatable mattresses are the great triumphs for hikers of the 20th Century. As a WY-MT hiker later life, no in Griz country I do not night hike but do try to camp where there might be some great views in parks, meadows for eastern folks, cienegas for my NM friends, to spot the changing shift in wildlife at dusk.
I love night hiking because it is so peaceful. It’s quiet and also adds a bit of a challenge. As you said, it does spruce up trails I am familiar with. Good stuff Dixie!
We night hike all the time! We live in San Diego so the summer heat is BRUTAL! We use head lamps and I hang a little lantern on my pack ♡ We actually just hiked Garnet Peak by Mt Laguna at sunset; the whole hike down was in pitch darkness, the stars were breathtaking!
My 2 brothers and I hiked 40 miles of the Georgia portion of the AT. Our last night we hiked in the dark and it was the best time we had that whole trip!
Hahahaha Lots of great reasons to night hike, and then twice as many reasons not to!! I was hiking home one night, pitch black, no light, and literally nearly fell over someone coming the other way. Love this channel 👍
One of my favorite memories was when friends and I hiked to the top of Teton Pass in Jackson Hole, WY at midnight in under a full moon in waste deep snow. It was so bright because of the snow, we skied of the cornice and jumped off cliffs on the way down at wee hours in the morning. It was exhilarating.
Great video! I always wanted to try night hiking, but just would get nervous about bears and cougars. But in reality, your tent isn’t exactly bear/cougar proof. Just because you’re inside a thin cocoon of nylon or dynema doesn’t mean you’re “safe” from animals (tho sometimes it feels that way). So I should just do it and stop worrying. Lol!
I night hiked in southern Sierra madre in the 70's. I was amazed at the sounds the wind in the mountains made as the wind fronts crashed with each other. Recently my son and I night hiked in SoCal. A coyote came out in front of us, growled and took off. The eyes of birds sitting on the trail.
I love the night and amateur astronomy. It´s nice combine the hike with the stars. Also, in my country, in Spain Europe, is the only way to hike in the hot days of summer. But my first solo hike at night was a bit scary, i was alone and i had to stay focus to follow the marks and waipoints of the trail . A single mistake is more dangerous and you can being lost in the mountain.
I took a night hike recently just to try out some of my gear. I am glad I did because I had several fails. Two of those fails included both headlamps I had with me. They both had been working just fine even days before. I am glad as d I did this because now I know that I need a better quality as lity headlamp. I got both of mine working again, but I dont trust them, and one of the lights, which seemed adequate a close distances really sucked at lightning up anything over 20 feet away. Basically I am just saying put your gear to the test. Better to have a fail now than to have it happen when you really need something.
Last week I "night hiked" in Joshua Tree in the full moon. I was too scared of getting lost after sundown so I left just before dawn. It was wonderful. I figured I could find my way back after the sun came out. It was amazing!
In Switzerland at the moment you have daylight from 7:30 - 16:30. Doing 50 miles in 9 hours is possible, but then you run at a higher pace, something I can't do given my poor training. So I took shelter behind a giant heap of tree trunks, well secluded for the night. Hunters were shooting boars much closer to me than I would have liked. I got up at 6:30 in the morning and hiked till 23:15. There is no danger whatsoever, the temperatures were warmish. You need to watch your step because of the tree roots, but you better do this also during the day.
Love your vids of the night sky. Esp the heart of the Milky Way and what I believe were meteors. Can't see that stuff during the day. Mixing things up (day v night hikes) sounds healthy. Not a through hiker, but can relate to a bit of solitude on a popular through hike. You have such perspective re: your journeys. Thx!
"gnat hackin" lol Man I love that. Wife and I look forward to your videos. Keep up the good work. We are REALLY looking forward to the NZ series. We were hard core 'Xena' and 'Hercules' fans back in the 90s, The country north of Auckland where it was filmed surely is beautiful.
I was night hiking under a full moon when I felt the urge to step off the trail and do my business. With my business completed, I started to walk back to the trail when a cloud covered the moon. A few steps further in total darkness and not wanting to rune my night vision I chose not to turn on a light. Suddenly I stepped into a stump-hole where my entire leg crashed into the hole up to my crouch. Instantly my hair stood up as my hand grabbed ahold of what I thought was a large rock. In my panic, I turned on my headlamp and to my horror, my leg was in an old unattended too grave and my hand was on a tombstone. Thank God I had a pair of flip-flops. Reckon my size 11 boot is still in that grave. To make this a short story, and as luck had it there was a size 12 hiking boot of a different color and kind that fit perfectly in the next Hiker-box on down the trail.
whoo hoo! I had to night hike out of Whitney Portal. This was my first backpacking trip ever and I was alone! I was so proud of myself for handling so many different elements. I got to see a baby skunk while night hiking. Thank you for all your good advice. I used a lot of your tips during my first hike into the Sierra! I can't wait to go back.
Night hiking through a forest is a lot of fun! Even if it is a trail you're familiar with, when you hike it at night it's a completely different experience.
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You are the reason I had the courage to do my first night hike alone in the Smokies for a sunrise. It was AMAZING. I was so nervous at the trail head and my heart was pounding until I got out of the rhododendron bushes, but I just kept thinking of all the times I watched you night hike on the PCT. Seeing the stars and the moon and having the trail all to myself was so magical. I'll never forget it! Thank you for inspiring us all.
Same girl!!!!
This reminds me of the Nathaniel Hawthorne quote: "Moonlight is sculpture, sunlight is painting"
@@billyjoeboomboom Never heard that one before but I like it.
Night hiked recently on the longest day /shortest night to see both the sunset and the sunrise with just a few hours of darkness in between. Magical experience.
I hiked at night once. Every sound was a cougar.
TheWillRogers - You would encounter the same thing at a nightclub 😬
I'm more afraid of mice because mice will try and get in your tent haha
It takes a while to get used to hiking at night but you never stop thinking every sound is a cougar/bear/wolf/crazy-person. What happens is that you program your brain to not be afraid of those things. Took me a few years to finally do that. Bringing some form of protection can help with it, like a gun/spray/knife, but time alone can eventually desensitize you enough that you can feel comfortable with night hiking. I'm a big scaredy cat BTW. :)
@@shadowprince4482 Yea, i'm packing bear spray from now on, but now i'm afraid of accidentally setting the can off...
TheWillRogers That would be horrible! I stressed over that for a bit in grizzly country (setting off spray), but I comforted myself by saying “at least it won’t kill me” 😂
I did an overnight hike 4 days ago (August 29 - 30). My purpose was to see and video a bit of the Pikes Peak Hill Climb (August 30). Because of COVID-19 this year there were to be no fan tickets and no fans allowed near the course. I would have liked to get to the site, The Devil's Playground, before 4:00 am, but didn't want to get there too early. So I started at 8:00pm, a bit after sunset. Stupidly, I picked a further away trailhead, Horsethief Park. Rather than a closer trailhead which I suspected would be closed or overcrowded, Craigs Campground.
Started on a familiar trail with a 3/4 moon, but thin high-altitude clouds had rolled in. Clouds thickened and at 9:00 pm it started raining. Not heavy, just light sprinkles. The sprinkles continued on and off until about 11:00 pm. Found my proper turn, but the trail was steep, on a north slope in heavy trees, and with plenty of boulders. Somehow I ended up on the wrong side of the creek and got off trail. My sure-fire, "Keep the slope to my right and keep moving upward," went on and on. My cell-phone apps were next to useless. I kept seeing glimpses of lights to my north, which didn't make sense. Finally noticed I had a couple of bars of cell power so I opened a web browser and fired up Google Maps. The blue GPS dot on the map showed I was a full mile north of where I expected and close to treeline. Since my objective was NE of where I started, "too far north" was fine.
Broke out of the trees about 1:00 am and had a boulder field to scramble up to ridge. Fortunately the moon made lights unnecessary. Took a tumble and lost my hat. Then on the ridge I got confused, thinking I was traveling NE I got to hiking south. The moon was right in front of me.... how had it swung back east? Oh yeah, it hadn't. Looong hike above treeline, exhausted, legs totally jellified, and avoiding boulder fields to give my legs a rest. As the moon sank in the west it turned yellow, then orange, red, and finally brown before it vanished-smoke from a fire west of me. Finally found the trail from the other trailhead and took that the rest of the way.
Got to within sight of the parking lot at 5:00 am. People were there, which I avoided. I finally found a shallow cave to get out of the wind, and waited for the race to start. It was almost 9:00 am before the first car, and I was caught and kicked off the mountain at 10:00 am.
*It was an amazing adventure. Nine hours nonstop, the majority of it off trail. Made me wonder if I had a death wish. There were places that if I'd busted an ankle good chance no one would find me for a couple of years. But oh God it was beautiful! The western flank of Pikes Peak is stunning. I've now got in my head several other off-trail approaches-probably during the day. I'd love to try the west fork of West Beaver Creek. Or try to find the proper trail I'd missed Saturday. Now I just need to find someone as nuts as I am so I don't have to die alone in the wilderness.*
♥️🙂
Hiked at night for the first time yesterday. Saw a huge buck and a coyote on the road just before getting out of my car to start, so that was a great start to get the blood pumping! Was a great experience in the end.
One of the most beautiful experiences I've ever had in the wilderness occurred in the dead of night just to the east of Mt. Adams in Washington state. I had been hunting for 5 days and was lucky enough to take my first elk. I field dressed her and then went back to my truck, about 2 miles away. I drove closer to the kill sight and hiked back to start breaking down the animal. It was cold, in the 20's with about 8 inches of fresh snow covering an old clear cut with about five years of growth. As the sun went down, I knew there was a New Moon and would be completely dark soon. The night was completely clear, quiet and calm.What I didn't count on was the illumination provided by the stars, the snow covered ground and the mountain, which was pretty close. I had a small lantern and a good headlamp to guide my work, which took about 5 hours including multiple hikes back to the truck while packing out the meat. As I was working, bent over, I stood up to stretch my sore back. The immense beauty of the star filled night, the close proximity of this huge 10,000 foot mountain, and my absolute solitude, suddenly dawned on me. I was utterly alone, many miles from the closest town, out of cell range the entire week, and in the wilderness. It was beautiful and it gave me a new perspective on many things, on our planet, its beauty and vulnerability, of my place in the world and my small contribution to our society. I also thought of my vulnerability. There are many predators in the Cascade mountains; Black Bears, wolves, cougars, Bigfoot? It was a great experience, a first for me. I have repeated that same feeling many times since and I recommend it to anyone with a sense of adventure. Ancient societies used to have rights of passage for young men to go out into the wilderness alone and survive, learn and grow up a little. Can't wait to go night hiking. Great post.
I like hiking at night without a light. Your eyes adjust quickly and I can see better and farther. With a light it limits my sight to the illuminated area. I’m also not viewable from miles away by everything.
I just came back from a short walk in the dark, just in my neighborhood. I heard an owl and this alone was worth walking in the dark!
Few things in life are as magical as walking the forest by the light of a full moon (or any moon light for that matter). On moonless nights under a clear sky, it is amazing how much light the stars provide.
One of my favorite moments last year was a late night solo hike at Daniel Boone National Forest, in pouring rain and the most dense fog I've ever seen. Using a headlamp was really disorienting, with the fog becoming a million points of glimmer. My chosen trail was an old closed forest service road, an easy path amidst rugged terrain. Everything I needed for a return to comfort right on my back. On another night hike last year I saw my first copperhead. On another night I watched a very distant but spectacular thunderstorm. Last year was my first time out with a backpack in over 35 years, and I spent about ten weekends out enjoying DBNF. Thanks Dixie, your great content really helped get me out there! It all started when I thought "I wonder what backpacking gear is like these days..." And as a newbie, solo, and old, I make every choice the safer one, but LOVE night hiking on a familiar trail.
The absence of sound on a warm night in the wilderness is somethin else. Like a deep meditation
Nice video, have hiked over 100 miles at the Grand Canyon and probably 25% of that was in the dark. The Canyon is a special place after sunset, it is almost like hiking through an Ansel Adams photograph. I am glad that most people don't like to night hike since the feeling of having a trail all to oneself is pretty special. Happy trails!
I love night hiking The Canyon at night as well. We hiked from Clear Creek back to Phantom at night. There was a full moon and it was amazing. The only thing to be careful of was depth perception. Sometimes it was hard to tell if you needed to step up onto a rock or down off of the rock. It was one of the best hikes every though.
Tahoe2002Md . Hiking the GC this year at night. Tips? I hiked four hours last year down BAT. Comfortable with hiking at night. Wild life safety tips?
Here in Minnesota it gets dark very early in the winter, 4:30 - 5:00ish. So if you want to go for a walk after work it will be in the dark. Nothing better than throwing on the snowshoes and going for a walk by the full moon. The bright moonlight creates snow diamonds. Snow crystals sparkling like stars in the sky, changing with each step you take. No headlamps required. Awesome.
Dixie,
I concur...
Every January I lead a small group of hikers on a winter night hike (just after sunset) up to the AMC Lonesome Lake Hut in Franconia Notch NH. The hut is open 24/7/365 but we don't stay overnight but visit the hut for a while, cross the frozen lake and enjoy the dark stillness of night in the woods. They do light the wood stove on winter evenings which is welcoming. The years that we have snow falling during the hike make for an almost magical evening. It's a very popular trail in the daytime but mostly all to ourselves at night. Winter hiking gets us use to hiking in darkness due to the short day light hours. Not many animals on the trail on winter nights...no bugs either.
I used to occasionally "day-hike" at night when I lived in Israel. The desert is beautiful at night. It makes you think that it might be like being on the moon. Even with a half moon, no flashlight or headlamp is needed. One of my friends came to visit from the US and I took him on a night hike. This particular friend has traveled all over the world for the past 20 years or so. Every single time I talk to him, he mentions how he will never forget our night hike and thanks me for taking him. FWIW, we were right outside Jericho, and once we got up the hill a bit, we could see the Dead Sea.
And hey, what accent are y'all talkin' about? She sounds just like me and my freyunds.
I'll add one bit of night hiking advice: When you know the batteries in your headlamp are pretty low, change to your new batteries while it's still light BEFORE the old ones go dead. Turns out those little pluses and minuses inside the headlamp can be tinier than you thought!
Always remember this tip as well!! The flat side of the battery always goes against the spring. It’s just habit to do it like that nowadays, I don’t even read them.
I've hiked in the back-country every morning before daybreak for the past 30 years. It's magical and energizing. Early morning is the best time to see wildlife.
I love your videos Dixie. There are some obvious dangers to hiking at night, but I could get run over by a bus on my way across the city tomorrow as well. In the mid eighties I was a wilderness canoe ranger in Quetico provincial park in Ontario, Canada with five other people. Our boss contacted us and asked us to to make our way to another ranger station as soon as possible. While we knew he didn't mean that we should pack up and leave that night, we couldn't get the idea out of our heads, so we found ourselves packed an hour later and ready for a 60km (40 mile) paddle/ portage to Cache lake station by 11:00 pm that night. It was the end of June with a full moon, the longest day of the year, and a clear sky. We watched as the sun never quite set and then rose again. We navigated by silhouettes of shoreline and trees through some new territory and some familiar. By 07:00 we greeted our warden at Cache Lake, to his great surprise. Crazy, maybe, but I'd do it again. Awesome experience.
Very timely content, Dixie. I've been doing more night hikes lately for some of the very reasons you listed. Very relaxing ( for me ) , being out in a snowfall with a headlamp and the sound of crunching snow under your feet. I'll forgive you Southerners for failing to mention that particular benefit to night hikes.
When my son was 6 we hiked to Saint Mary peak in the Bitterroot mountains of western Montana. At the time his short legs didn't move so fast so we always started early in the morning. This hike we started well before sunrise. He didn't like the night hiking through the trees. Along the way we had to stop for an encouragement session. As we were sitting on a boulder a great-horned owl flew close to us. That perked him up a bit for the rest of the dark hike!
Night hiked for my first time and it was pretty cool!
I love night hiking up the Middle Sister (Central Oregon Cascade Mountains) in August to watch the Persid Meteor shower.
Hunter Archer I did the South Sister this past August for the same reason. Darn full moon though! I did it half way through circumnavigating the Three Sisters. Also nothing like a dawn on the top of a mountain! Mountain shadows are spectacular!
Great idea!
Haven't thru hiked, but have hiked 100's of night miles for the sake of photographing night scenes and think the views are as good or better than the day, and feel more safe from cougars since their eyes make giant reflections in your light, so they're actually easier to see then in the day. Just my $0.02 Great vid! Not enough people know night hiking rules!
Dixie, I love hiking during a full moon. Everything looks so different.
I haven't done a lot of hiking at night, but I have done some. You hit the best points for doing so. I especially love stargazing and enjoying the cooler temps, as I am pretty hot natured. Nice video as usual. Thank for doing all these and inspiring folks to get outside.
Everything sounds huge at night. I used to kayak home from work by skylight from nearby Hartford. Wonderful. Keep that 1100 Lumen lamp handy and avoid cliffs, snake dens etc. Have fun. I stayed out till dusk last week. Saw a possum, looked right at me, and a cougar! They are occassionaly seen here. we had one road killed in Milford. I got it's scat, real deal. Remember to keep looking for blazes.
Does anyone else love how Dixie says Night Hike?
Neigh-hi-kin" I love it too. So sweet.
Interesting video. I've spent countless hours hiking at night: on my way to and from climbs, to and from hunts. I've had to start or finish in the dark, or walk all night, because of some exigency.
I can't think of one time that I would not rather have been covering that ground in daylight. In the dark, you can't see much, photography is very difficult. If you're moving, your vision is confined to the limit of your headlamp. If you turn off your light to enjoy the stars and the ambience of darkness, you can't move efficiently.
On long backpacks I often get up in the dark and hike at dawn. But I'm out there to SEE stuff.
You nailed it again on this topic. Nearly brought tears to my eyes at the memory of Northern Lights. I grew up where they were visible much of the year. It's been decades since I saw them. I first learned the magic of night hiking on search and rescue incidents. Since then I have hiked many miles at night in the Grand Canyon and mountain climbs that put me on the summit before sunrise. There is so much life that is visible only at night like the Ring Tailed cats in the G.C.
You rock. Keep it up. Toppling fears makes us all better. I;ve crushed most of mine in the dark, in the woods, and solo.
For 'peak bagging', and other activities, night hiking has advantages, especially if the ascent starts on a waning moon (few days to a week past a full moon). Selecting this time places the moon more overhead in the hours leading up to dawn, essentially lengthening the day. A hike starting at ~3 AM can get in 8 hours before lunchtime and the heat of the day sets in..
Going out for my first night hike in Northern Wisconsin this weekend.
I've been know to go on hikes around my campsites for years. I find it an interesting activity to do while camping. Over also done a lot of approach trail hiking in the dark when climbing mountains in the summer. It always struck me as a good way to help the less interesting part of the climb pass a little quicker.....and you didn't have to look up and see all of the vertical you still had to hike! I once climbed a 14er in Colorado all in the dark with the moonlight, getting to the summit at midnight. I saw someone's campfire way down below me near a small lake, and later I watched lightning roll through South Park several miles to the southeast. It was truly a cool experience!
Why I like to night hike: THE FRICKIN STARS
I worked at summer camps and educational camps and we'd take our campers on night hikes to introduce them to nature at night and build their confidence. Even a short 20-40min hike in the dark drastically changed our campers for the better. It's not for everyone, but totally worth giving it a shot!
Love night hiking. It's such a different vibe. I worked at Yosemite National Park and you'd see moonbows over the falls, and lots of animals roaming around at night. Another great place for night hikes is Death Valley National Park as the star show is spectacular. But you have to be aware that rattlesnakes like night slithering as well. I was night hiking along a river once, and got a intense warning from a big cat, along the river bank, and knew better than to take another step, and backed away from the area. If you haven't done it, put some excitement into your life, give it a try, for something different, but you have to be a tad more focused while doing it in the dark - happy night trails!
Just a few of my most favorite memories night hiking: Hiked out from the Bonds in winter once, via Lincoln Woods trail. No headlamp, just the moon overhead. It was magical. There were several others on the trail, mostly local residents out walking the dogs, or getting their exercise in before turning in for the night. Nobody was at all worried that it was dark, indeed it felt like we were all embracing it. Finished a one-day Wildcat-Carter-Moriah traverse by headlamp with an AT hiker; as we passed the last shelters, it was a change, seeing fellow hikers done for the night, instead of up and about. I was tired and thinking about getting back to the car. He was ordering a pizza, to be delivered to the hostel. I came out from Mt Isolation (just south of Mt Washington) via the Rocky Branch trail. It was a slog, for sure, but watching the moon rise over the brook was a treat. And I'll never forget a wintertime night hike of Mt Monadnock, enjoying a beer on the summit with friends, with endless stars overhead. Winter's probably my favorite, because a little light goes a long way, and everything glitters. It's magical. 10/10: Will do it again, for sure.
I rarely leave comments, but your videos are some of the best on youtube about thru-hiking/backpacking. The way you present the information and then layer your topics with experiences is amazing and very well done. I wish you the best in this new year!
Twisted Absidean Thank you so much! HAPPY NEW YEAR!
A buddy of mine that ive done several river trips with would typically plan certain trips around a full moon. In desert areas of West Texas where limestone rock formations are weathered light gray with very light, almost white, spalled areas, the visibilty is very good with little or no need for a flashlight while hiking and exploring around. Fun times. Great memories
Great topic and video! Nicely done. “Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!”
A recommended night hike gear video would be cool.
In desert areas we always hiked at night for the reasons you mentioned about heat and water consumption and the moon & stars. I’ve done a lot of night hikes in Big Bend National park in west Texas and it is beautiful.
I enjoy night hiking. Besides everything you said, a benefit that I find from night hiking is that I always seem to go further than I think, even though I am not walking as fast as I do during the day. I believe this is because I cannot see how far I have to go and how far I have gone. It is a psychological thing.
I love it... but I really do miss the views I know I can’t see.
I really enjoy starting at 4-5am and enjoying a few hours before sun rises.
But you can just use the moonlight/starlight & a flashlight, or is it that it’s just different?
That takes truly impressive courage. Here in Southern California I am already freaked out reading about bear encounters. I hike solo and I certainly don’t have the courage you do, nor the experience.
Nailed it! All the reasons why I love night hiking as well! Also, viewing lightning and thunderstorms (from afar of course) is really spectacular. And night hiking in the snow is just beautiful!
Night hiking is the beeeeeest. Especially on a full moon. But my probably all time high of hiking through Virginia on the AT was walking into a pasture at about 11pm and suddenly seeing millions of fire flies across the pasture and off into the tree line across from me where the fire flies mingled with the start of a clear and star filled sky. I saw my first bear in the Shenandoah who came up to have a curiosity visit before he bolted upon realizing I was a human haha.
Aside from that I had to night hike through New Jersey and through New York because it was just tooooo hot and I was too fatigued with high mile days trying to make up time to finish according to a set day. I would encourage people to hike at every hour of the day and in every aspect of the elements rain or shine. I hate the 9-5 hiking mentality which deprives you of the full immersive experience that is right at your feet literally.
My brother, one of our friends and I hiked Mount Washington at night. Well more like 2 a.m. but in the dark anyway. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life so far. We didn't make it to the summit before sunrise like we planned but it was still an amazing experience. Love the channel, keep on hiking!
I was watching this shocking scene of a coyote behind you, and shortly afterward found out you named him Hank.
Mnt. Whitney under a full moon is awesome! You don't need a headlamp, and the moonlight reflecting off the granite walls is amazing. Hiking down on a non-moonlit night, I passed what I can only assume was a bear. I had my flash lite on and heard a loud 'snort' not far off the trail. I looked around and kept walking.
I love to night hike, especially the first night out. I have trouble sleeping that first night, so if I’m feeling good I just keep going and stop the next day when I want. I eat breakfast and dinner on the trail, not in camp, so my standard schedule is stopping around 9 or 10 pm and back on the trail at 4 or 5 am, so always a little night hiking on both ends. But there’s a lot to be said for sleeping during the day, when it’s warmer, less bugs, if day forecast is for clear skies, less worry about bears and critters going after your food (I sleep with my food when day-napping).
The Chihuahuan desert at night looks like a coral reef in black and white. The various cactus look like various corals. There are eyes everywhere! Really love it!
If you get a chance to night hike White Sands National Park in New Mexico you won't regret it. 👍
It really allows you to have the trail to yourself. I enjoy it, especially with a full moon.
While it has been some years since I've done extensive night hiking, the only big change is the advent of LED headlamps, which provide continuous light for a long time without burning through a pound of expensive batteries (unlike the incandescent ones of old). Frankly walking with a minimum amount of artificial light is feasible in all but the most rugged areas if you have a near full moon, which really makes you feel part of nature and less of an intruder. Night hiking with a light snow cover is even more special. At night all of your senses are more attuned, even the sense of touch as your feet touch the ground or a light breeze brushes your face. Your mind craves input and when you can see less, it draws on your other senses. One other advantage on crowded trails is that the big slug of hikers move from shelter to shelter during the day.....leaving the shelters empty and available for a quiet nap for night hikers.
I don't have a lot of experience with night hiking but the last time my family hiked the Grand Canyon--something we do every 10 years--the only time we could all do it was in August. The daytime highs were about 120 degrees F so we hiked at night a couple of times. We'd sleep and leave the campground about 1 AM. The heat was much more manageable. To save a few ounces I left my spare batteries at home, never having needed them ever before. That was a mistake. Fortunately, my niece was willing to share.
As time when on one night, we were fairly well spread out. My then 15 year old was totally freaked out by a pair of green eyes off to the side of the trail. He told me that he started praying and every horror movie he'd ever seen flashed through his mind. Turned out it was an elk, munching on leaves and minding it's own business.
As we came closer to the canyon rim, the sun rose so we had the best of both worlds--a peaceful night hike and great views without the midday heat.
Hi Dixie, thanks for the great advice and comments about hiking in the dark. I personally have only hiked in the dark during a day hike once. I hiked in and out on a 22-mile hike and ran out of daylight during the last 30 minutes getting back to my car. It is amazing how much your senses are heightened in the dark on a trail all by yourself! A pretty exciting thing to experience!
I hiked/climbed Mt Shasta and summited at 2:30 am. Incredible night sky full of stars at over 14,000 ft. The late evening start afforded a view of Shasta’s shadow cast on the atmosphere above the distant east horizon - something I had never even heard of.
It's taken me a couple of years to get used to it but I finally have. I work with owls for my profession, normally in the PNW, so I've done it quite a bit. Honestly it has its advantages, especially heat, so I plan on doing it a lot in the SoCal sections of the PCT if I ever get to do it because I am one of those people who just utterly can't stand high temps especially since my body uses so much water when hiking. BIG NOTE: She's so incredibly right on the night sky being an amazing part of night hiking. It's honestly sad that SO many people take it for granted and don't realize if it wasn't for light pollution that the sky directly above their heads would look like those amazing pictures you see in National Geographic. Seriously folks, it's right there but you don't realize it! Not to mention seeing shooting stars.
Also I recommend learning owl calls if you hike the PCT. There aren't that many species you need to learn and it's really rewarding knowing what you're hearing.
thanks for talking about Confidence when walking at night. Shut off the "electric torch" and, aided by starlight, my eyes amazingly saw the trail roots & trip hazards, etc. Fireflies and hearing night birds is great but best was meeting the brujo in southern Belize who liked night transits too. thx Dixie
You know im glad you brought this topic to light Jessica, because I totally agree hiking at night is great, as a person who plans to do a Thru-hike Nobo on the AT soon, I definitely plan on doing both day and night hiking because I don't have the time, money, or patience to be out on trail for 4-6 months. When I start my hike on the AT I plan to get as far as I can during the day, rest a bit and then continue on during the night. Also word of advice for people who have never night hiked. REMEMBER A BLACK BEAR'S EYES WILL TURN UP BROWN IN A FLASHLIGHT (LED)
Fully agree with all you say in this video. I use the headlamp (or any lamp) as little as possible and once used to the darkness you kinda adjust to it. Like to feel that the shape on the ground is not right and it turns out to be a rattler. It's fun to rely on more senses than just vision.
The greatest part about being out at night is often the exhilaration that you often get from experiencing things that you don't get to otherwise. Outstanding points on this one!!! I love the shots you've taken of the night sky! 👊👍🇺🇸
I am kinda addicted to your videos. Thanks for sharing
Fantastic!!!! Inspiring!!!
I was in Morocco a few years ago and I was blown away by how bright the night sky was. You could easily see the Milky way with your own eyes!!! You've inspired me to go back!!!😊
It helps that I live in Ireland, so not all that hard to get to. Plus we're on the same time zone!!!
Thanks for the good vibes! I think would like to night hike, probably with a friend or two so I don't get all paranoid lol. I absolutely love looking at the stars. I use to know most of the constellations but that was a while ago lol.
Excellent video Dixie! I love night hiking and I’ve probably hiked 1,000 miles while wearing a headlamp. It’s magical. And for all those interested let me suggest the Nitecore NU 25 headlamp. It’s one of my favorite pieces of gear.
I night hiked 8 miles through the Everglades last year and it was great. Night hiking is Florida is almost a must because even in the winter it can still be quite warm and exposed during the day.
I night hiked in the grand canyon once. The moon was so bright you could see better with it than the head lamps. It was amazing and magical, seeing the canyon form the inside looking up with the starry sky for a backdrop. It was the best part of the hike.
I have been riding my horse at night for years. As an Equestrian Docent I asked riders not to use any flashlights since it blinds their horse. A much more rewarding experience seeing the stars and spotting deer at night.
While out one night, in a foreign desert, I counted 121 falling stars. There were more, I just got tired of counting. Texas
How many wishes came true? Lol
I once camped out w/ my gf near the South Rim of the Grand Canyon during the Perseid meteor shower. We had a shared a bottle of cheap wine, a portable radio, and the most spectacular display of nature that I've ever witnessed. This was back in the mid 90s... that girl is only a distant memory now, but I'll never forget the firey streaks across that midnight sky!
Thank you so much for all of your wonderful videos!
Going in the opposite direction really changes up a 'regular' hike. I did rt 2 NH to Grafton Notch the 1st time through and went Grafton to rt 2 a few years later. It was vastly different. Not only in direction, but also in terms of weather. The 1st time I was completely clouded over and could only see 10 feet around myself. The 2nd time the sky was crystal clear.
With limited daylight I’ve started taking my 7 and 9 year old daughters night hiking. They LOVE IT, more so than daytime hiking. My hope is that with them getting comfortable with this now that it will be a benefit on longer backpacking trips when we hike late.
So cool. I've never done this (yet) but the difference in scuba diving in the day & night is major as well as kayaking at night. Once I hit a sand island area in kayak & had to get off in boggy alligator area. Never again kaya without a good light.
Great topic. As a teen and in college in the US desert southwest, we frequently night hiked to both avoid the heat, and in the cooler months, starting off after class on a Friday to get some distance from the roads and development, setting up for a great launch into the wild places the next morning. Most of the travel was often off the trail, and instead was along the broad arroyos and washes leading to the mountains or canyons. Easy to navigate in starlight. This was also in an era before long before LED lamps and batteries were at a premium. No, we didn't carry paleo-nalgene's of acid and copper rods for lighting but LED's and packable inflatable mattresses are the great triumphs for hikers of the 20th Century. As a WY-MT hiker later life, no in Griz country I do not night hike but do try to camp where there might be some great views in parks, meadows for eastern folks, cienegas for my NM friends, to spot the changing shift in wildlife at dusk.
I love night hiking because it is so peaceful. It’s quiet and also adds a bit of a challenge. As you said, it does spruce up trails I am familiar with. Good stuff Dixie!
We night hike all the time! We live in San Diego so the summer heat is BRUTAL! We use head lamps and I hang a little lantern on my pack ♡
We actually just hiked Garnet Peak by Mt Laguna at sunset; the whole hike down was in pitch darkness, the stars were breathtaking!
My 2 brothers and I hiked 40 miles of the Georgia portion of the AT. Our last night we hiked in the dark and it was the best time we had that whole trip!
Hahahaha Lots of great reasons to night hike, and then twice as many reasons not to!! I was hiking home one night, pitch black, no light, and literally nearly fell over someone coming the other way. Love this channel 👍
I'm planning my first ever night hike. Thanks for the great video and reassuring me I wasn't crazy in thinking about such an adventure.
I flew freights in the attic, and let me tell you how amazingly, unbelievably awesome the Northern Lights are!!! It STUNNED me!
One of my favorite memories was when friends and I hiked to the top of Teton Pass in Jackson Hole, WY at midnight in under a full moon in waste deep snow. It was so bright because of the snow, we skied of the cornice and jumped off cliffs on the way down at wee hours in the morning. It was exhilarating.
I love walking in the dark but never really thought about night hiking on purpose, I like that idea! A lot!!!
Great video! I always wanted to try night hiking, but just would get nervous about bears and cougars. But in reality, your tent isn’t exactly bear/cougar proof. Just because you’re inside a thin cocoon of nylon or dynema doesn’t mean you’re “safe” from animals (tho sometimes it feels that way). So I should just do it and stop worrying. Lol!
Sarah LaRue Haha Yes! The illusion of safety/false sense of security. I know exactly what you mean :)
Great video, again. The confidence factor is important. If in an emergency one had to hike at night, you would be emotionally better equipped.
I am going on my very first overnight hike this spring. Only 2 nights in a national park about 3-4 hours away, but I am so excited!
Well put Dixie. I've been night hiking for years, normally due to getting started late in the day. Truly is a different feel.
I night hiked in southern Sierra madre in the 70's. I was amazed at the sounds the wind in the mountains made as the wind fronts crashed with each other. Recently my son and I night hiked in SoCal. A coyote came out in front of us, growled and took off. The eyes of birds sitting on the trail.
Night hiking up Mount Batur in Bali to watch the sunrise was pretty fun, steep! Beautiful.
I love the night and amateur astronomy. It´s nice combine the hike with the stars. Also, in my country, in Spain Europe, is the only way to hike in the hot days of summer. But my first solo hike at night was a bit scary, i was alone and i had to stay focus to follow the marks and waipoints of the trail . A single mistake is more dangerous and you can being lost in the mountain.
I took a night hike recently just to try out some of my gear. I am glad I did because I had several fails. Two of those fails included both headlamps I had with me. They both had been working just fine even days before.
I am glad as d I did this because now I know that I need a better quality as lity headlamp. I got both of mine working again, but I dont trust them, and one of the lights, which seemed adequate a close distances really sucked at lightning up anything over 20 feet away.
Basically I am just saying put your gear to the test. Better to have a fail now than to have it happen when you really need something.
Last week I "night hiked" in Joshua Tree in the full moon. I was too scared of getting lost after sundown so I left just before dawn. It was wonderful. I figured I could find my way back after the sun came out. It was amazing!
In Switzerland at the moment you have daylight from 7:30 - 16:30. Doing 50 miles in 9 hours is possible, but then you run at a higher pace, something I can't do given my poor training. So I took shelter behind a giant heap of tree trunks, well secluded for the night. Hunters were shooting boars much closer to me than I would have liked. I got up at 6:30 in the morning and hiked till 23:15. There is no danger whatsoever, the temperatures were warmish. You need to watch your step because of the tree roots, but you better do this also during the day.
Love your vids of the night sky. Esp the heart of the Milky Way and what I believe were meteors. Can't see that stuff during the day. Mixing things up (day v night hikes) sounds healthy. Not a through hiker, but can relate to a bit of solitude on a popular through hike. You have such perspective re: your journeys. Thx!
"gnat hackin" lol Man I love that. Wife and I look forward to your videos. Keep up the good work. We are REALLY looking forward to the NZ series. We were hard core 'Xena' and 'Hercules' fans back in the 90s, The country north of Auckland where it was filmed surely is beautiful.
I was night hiking under a full moon when I felt the urge to step off the trail and do my business. With my business completed, I started to walk back to the trail when a cloud covered the moon. A few steps further in total darkness and not wanting to rune my night vision I chose not to turn on a light. Suddenly I stepped into a stump-hole where my entire leg crashed into the hole up to my crouch. Instantly my hair stood up as my hand grabbed ahold of what I thought was a large rock. In my panic, I turned on my headlamp and to my horror, my leg was in an old unattended too grave and my hand was on a tombstone. Thank God I had a pair of flip-flops. Reckon my size 11 boot is still in that grave. To make this a short story, and as luck had it there was a size 12 hiking boot of a different color and kind that fit perfectly in the next Hiker-box on down the trail.
whoo hoo! I had to night hike out of Whitney Portal. This was my first backpacking trip ever and I was alone! I was so proud of myself for handling so many different elements. I got to see a baby skunk while night hiking. Thank you for all your good advice. I used a lot of your tips during my first hike into the Sierra! I can't wait to go back.
Night hiking through a forest is a lot of fun! Even if it is a trail you're familiar with, when you hike it at night it's a completely different experience.