Pre-Hike Communication

Are you excited to start your thru-hike?  Maybe a little nervous?  Well bubble season is quickly approaching, and everyone is stressing out for their hike.  You are debating gear choices, reading too many Trek posts, and scouring the internet for any extra tips before you head out on a journey of a lifetime.

Well let me pitch an idea: start discussing communication now!  And I don’t mean communicating with other hikers, I mean communicating with your loved ones and friends.  Below are some tricks and tactics to keep your home front as happy as possible.

Satellite Communications

Satellite devices, such as a Garmin InReach or Spot, are ubiquitous on long trails these days.  Its not a requirement to carry one, but the SOS features give a lot of people peace of mind.  These devices can also be used to communicate your location and short messages with your family and friends.

Tips for utilizing this technology:

1. Test your device before you leave – figure out the functionality
2. Discuss with your family, partner, and close friends if they want to get messages (keep this group small)
3. Decide on a communication plan – I would send a message every night that had my location and a pre-set message of “All good”
4. If you want additional messaging capabilities, purchase the correct plan through your device. I had unlimited custom messaging this past year to help communicate.  My first thru-hike I only sent the nightly pre-set message
5. Explain to your communication group that messages will NOT always come through. Tree cover, cloud cover, being in a valley/ravine, and a multitude of factors can prevent a message from sending.  They need to understand this and not freak out all night.  Give them a window – start a search process after three days (etc).
6. If you use the constant tracking features, understand that it will drain battery quickly and potentially lead to misunderstandings. I knew a hiker whose communication group freaked out because it appeared he was at an urgent care in town when he was next door in a restaurant.
7. If your friend/family sends you a long message, the message will get broken up into smaller pieces and you will get them in random orders.  And sometimes one part of the message doesn’t come through.  So be prepared for a puzzle!  And maybe encourage your friends not to use it for story-length messages.

Phone Communication

Unless you are one of the very unique few, you will be carrying a phone, probably a smart phone.   Cell service comes and goes quickly in the mountains.  There is quite a bit of service on the AT depending on the section and your provider.  Service is sparser on the PCT.  You will learn when to expect service – most often up on ridges or the tops of mountains.

1. Prepare your partner, family, and friends for very limited service. And prepare them for service to drop if you’re walking and talking
2. Don’t assume that all small towns will have cell service. Many of these tiny towns have horrible cell service – so you will need to find wifi to communicate.
3. Download any maps or app data so it can be used with no cell service. (FarOut is the best example)
4. Determine how often you expect to use your phone and carry a battery pack if needed. My first thru-hike I kept my phone on airplane mode and only charged in towns.  My most recent hike I used my phone for podcasts, music, and making calls when possible, so I carried a battery pack.
5. Keep your phone, battery pack, gps device, and any other electronics in your sleeping bag footbox when its really cold to prevent batteries from quickly draining.

Communication Tips for Maintaining Relationships

Thru-hiking is difficult, and being away from your partner, family, and friends is one of the tough components for many.  Remember that you being away is also difficult for them.  They may want to support your dreams, but you still owe it to them to give them updates and make them feel loved and appreciated.

Communication is difficult on trail, but some pre-work and some discussions before you leave can really save you some hassle.

1. Let them be involved! If your mom wants to send you goodie boxes, let her.  If your partner wants posts updates about your hike, let them.  It helps when your family and friends feel connected to your hike through whatever small way makes them happy.
2. Try to call them on your town days! You may think this is a no-brainer, but town days go by quickly.  And you’re exhausted.  Sometimes you may end up sending a few pictures and some updates but do it.
3. Give them a way to follow along. For the AT, the AWOL Guide (AT Guide) is an inexpensive gift for your partner and family.  You can teach them how to read it (which helps you better understand your guide) and they can follow along and make notes as you send them mile markers.  The large NatGeo maps are also a fun way for your friends back home to keep up with your journey.
4. Have discussions with your loved ones on how they imagine the communication experience. Do they expect texts?  What is important to them?  There is a whole lot more to dig into here, and I hope that my fiancée will be willing to post in the future a deeper dive into pre-hike communication with your partner.
5. Let your family and partner come visit you! They will need to be flexible on the time or the location, but you can discuss this beforehand.  Note: it will be awesome to see your favorite people for a day or two, but trust me, hiking away from them will be painful.  Consider this a fair warning.  Trust me though, the visits are totally worth it.
6. Daily or weekly updates on social media can be a pain, but I have found them to be a lot of fun. You don’t need to be famous, but your friends can hear fun stories, see beautiful pictures, and support you along the way.  You will be amazed who comments on your posts and gives you encouragement.  This also gave me a little extra boost at night to write in my daily journal – because the journals would eventually turn into a weekly update (my first hike), or a daily update (my second hike).

Now take these tips and start talking with your inner circle!  And share your excitement for your upcoming hike.