Etiquette, for hiking? If you thought etiquette was just for fancy dinners and ceremonies and such well, I’m sorry to disappoint. There are certain rules for hiking as well, rules that are easy to follow and are designed to make the hiking experience enjoyable for all.
If you hike in out of the way places you may go the entire day, or even longer without running into another hiker, let alone a horse or bicyclist. However, most people tend to hike in more populated places, such as parks or state forests, where they’re likely to run into a number of people and knowing what to do in each given situation is very important.
Yielding
Everyone Yields to Horses! Horses are large animals that are easily spooked. Horses and their riders should be treated with respect. Always stop if you see a horse coming and move yourself to the downhill side of the trail. Horses most often spook uphill and humans standing uphill can look like predators to horses. Stand quietly as the horse passes and if the horse rider asks you to do something other than what you’re doing to accommodate their passage, do it.
Bikes Yield to Hikers. In my experience as a hiker though Bikes rarely yield to us. Typically bikes are coming fairly quickly and we hear them before they see us. We usually end up moving out of the way before the bike even knows we’re there. I find it safer to just err on the side of caution. When passing hikers on wider trails bikers should make themselves known by calling out which side they intend to pass you on…for example “on your left”.
Downhill hikers Yield to Uphill hikers. Again, this is something you don’t see as much in practice. A lot of the time the uphill hiker will just step aside and let the downhill hiker go because they want to stop and take a breather. Always let the uphill hiker make the call here because they’re the one working hard.
On wider trails follow the general rules of walking in a hallway. Keep right, pass on the left, announcing yourself before you pass.
Motorized Vehicles. In the state of CT you should only rarely have to worry about motorized vehicles on the trail with you. Aside from the Pachaug State Forest motorcycle trail there are no public trails for motorized vehicles. This doesn’t mean they aren’t out there though. Sometimes when trails cross private property you’ll find yourself meeting a good number of motorized vehicles and occasionally you run into them riding illegally on trails they aren’t supposed to be on. When dealing with motorized bikes & ATV’s on trails it just seems safest for the hiker to yield to the vehicle. You can hear the vehicle long before the rider could see you, and there’s no way a rider would ever hear you. On rocky trails be sure to move well away from the trail when moving aside for dirt bikes & ATV’s, they tend to kick up rocks and getting hit by them is unpleasant, trust me.
Other rules for hiking
Pack it in pack it out: Food, food wrappers, tissues, or anything else you might bring into the woods with you, you bring it in, you make sure you have a trash bag to put it in to pack it back out. How annoying is it to find discarded wrappers on the trail and empty containers stuffed into holes in tree’s.
Leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures: If everyone took one of the pretty flowers there would be no more pretty flowers for other people to enjoy. If you like something, take a picture of it, do not take it.
Resting: All hikers need to take a break once in awhile. If you decide to stop for a snack, to rest your feet, or just to enjoy a view move off the trail so that others may pass unimpeded. Take your break on a durable surface such as a large rock. Don’t trample grass and other non-durable surfaces. This kind of goes against the don’t block the trail rule but on out of the way trails with no views we’ll occasionally stop and hang our feet off a bridge in order to take a rest on a durable surface. When doing that though be prepared to pick up and move yourself in an instant if other hikers need to use the bridge.
Groups: Groups of hikers should travel single file, or at the very least merge into a single file line when encountering other hikers.
Travel on durable surfaces: Stay on the trail. Also, when hiking in fragile area’s be sure to use board-walks, bridges, etc, when they’re provided. They’re there to protect delicate plants and prevent erosion. If you come to a really muddy area try to rock hop and don’t add to the mess any more than you absolutely have to.
A good trailsman leaves the trail better than he found it: Move fallen branches to the side of the trail, pick up litter and pack it out. These things make the trail a better place for hikers behind you.
Keep your dogs leashed: This just makes the trail a better place for everyone. Not everyone loves dogs, and even people who do love dogs don’t always enjoy an invasion of their space by another person’s dog. Just a few days ago I was resting on a rock and having a snack when 2 dogs came out of nowhere, trampled my pack and my food bag, tried to take my energy bar and slobbered all over my pack. This left me very annoyed. I’m one of the biggest animal lovers you’ll ever meet but I still do not appreciate being jumped on or having my stuff trampled by an out of control dog.
Pack out or bury dog poo: I totally understand that dogs have to go on the trail. Dog poo needs to be packed out or buried in a cat-hole well away from the trail and well away from any water sources. Our dog carries her own waste in her own pack, we keep plastic baggies in her pack, when she goes we pick it up and put the baggie in her pack. When we get home, or to a trash can we toss the baggies. No, we don’t enjoy it but it’s part of hiking with a dog. I’ve hiked on trails that were really popular and all we smelled, all day, was dog poop, I kid you not, it was disgusting.
Report problems and vandalism: If you see something going on that isn’t supposed to be take the time to report it to the proper authorities. In most cases a call to the DEP, or to the CT Forest & Park Association will do. Occasionally you will find notices to call the local police department in certain instances in problem area’s. These signs will be posted at trailheads, or border crossings.
Take the time to read signs you find at trailheads or along the trail: They may contain rules or important information, trail relocations, problem animals, etc.
Be Prepared: Dress appropriately for the weather and wear sturdy shoes. Know where you’re going, hike with a map. Have adequate water, food, and supplies for the length of time you plan to be out.
Know when hunting season is & if hunting is allowed where you’re hiking: Wear blaze orange when hiking during hunting season. If you see a hunter, call out to them to make sure they know you are there. Attach a bear bell to your dog’s collar and don’t wear colors like tan, brown, black or white as they can look like deer or bear. Also, know that it is unlawful to interfere with hunters as long as they are hunting lawfully. They are an important part of the conservation system.
Educate yourself as to what to do if you run into a wild animal on the trail: Do you know what to do if you run into a Skunk, Coyote, Bear, or even a Moose on the trail? Knowing what to do in each situation can save your life, especially when dealing with Moose or Grizzlies. Also, ignorance can cause bigger problems & habituate animals to humans, particularly if they end up winning a food reward when they run into you.
Be polite: Be courteous to others on the trail, remember, these people are nature lovers just like you.
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