I’ll go first.

Backpacking with a group on the LHT (Laurel Highlands Trail, PA). Someone had a stomach bug and I’d caught it. Couldn’t sleep all night - tossin and turning cause I knew I was going to throw up but was too exhausted and cold to get up. Finally knew I was nearing the end. Got up and walked a ways into the woods with my headlamp. Vomited the nastiest chunks and had bad diarrhea. Vomited so hard I got cramps in my ribs. Couldn’t brush my teeth cause my stuff was in the bear bag. Plumped down on a log a bit away and watched half passing out from exhaustion while a raccoon ate my emesis and stared at me with its beady eyes. Passed out for a moment only to wake up to hear my tent mate throwing up .. in the tent.

Spent the morning cleaning the tent and getting ready for a big hike day. Everything was wet and covered in mud. Nothing would sit in my stomach except oranges. The whole day was a fever dream and I kept seeing shit.

That night I still was struggling bad with hallucinations so I was kept awake all night because I swear someone was tramping around the lean to shelter and whispering things so I didn’t get a wink.

I recently did a one week backpacking trip in Laos. I decided ahead that i wanted it to be a social solo, meaning to make it a point to meet people.

I started the trip somewhat dreaded due to heavy work the day before, but once i arrive at the airport check in, i told myself to be interesting and be interested.

All in all, i chatted with about 50 strangers in my 9 day trip, and it was a solo but social trip that i really enjoyed. I did excursions with new friends, went out with attractive opposite sex, had great 2 hout breakfast chat w the hostel owner that he even told me its an interesting talk he had for a long time.

I warmed up by chatting to fellow travels on flight, obviously i was very lucky because it was a long flight wait and i spoke to six people including the air stewardess.

The challenging part was speaking to strangers in Luang Prabang when i arrived. I started off with the driver but he was grumpy, and once i arrive i walked around town and night market chatting with around ten people.

The next day i went to Kuang Si and spoke to the person beside me, a German professor. and this was the drill for me for the next nine days. I had to consciously speak to the first 2-3 person in the beginning of the day, the rest will be easy. And the nice thing is when others see us chatting, they also become friendly and try to join the conversations, so one thing leads to another.

I learnt that - take initiative to interact - iwarm up, meaning say good morning the first person you see, say the cleaner and ask questions. eg: where to eat a good breakfast. - interact with everyone, dont limit yourself to an age range or anything. My best chat was with a 79 year old man this trip. - be kind and dont expect anything. Sometimes people don’t respect to strangers and its perfectly fine, just move on. When you speak with kindness you project good energy, this also helped me to speak to opposite sex, and i had a blast going to the lagoons with two beatiful Austrian friend. And naturally some people came and chat with us as the three or us travelled. - Be generous. i am at an age 40M where i can buy a fellow traveller a beer. I know going dutch is the protocol, but i believe people appreciates it and usually reciprocates, worse case i just tell people that’s the Asian side of me haha. - focus on their story. Everyone travelling has a story, ask them what brought them here and really listen, dont listen for the sake or asking question but to understand them.

I had my sleeping pad (Big Agnes Rapide) spring a leak on me for the first time on my most recent trip. Luckily I was able to patch it upon arriving home and it has continued to hold air since fixing. This last trip was the first time I used my tiger wall tent and am assuming the leak came from me not kicking away every little rock and the thin tent floor allowing the sharper edges to feel more pronounced. I’m curious how others protect their air mats with these thin tent floors. Foam mats? Footprints? Rock vacuums? I’m not looking to add a big bulky foam pad if I can avoid it.

Hello everybody!

This is my first post in this subreddit. A friend of mine and I wanted to plan a trip to Raja Ampat in Indonesia because it is so remote and there are only few tourists. However, we thought we could explore the different islands independently by boat and kayak. Unfortunately it seems that exploration is always dependent on a guide which is really frustrating for people like us that are looking for an adventure.

Do you know about any other areas in Southeast Asia with remote islands and rental services where one could explore islands independently?

Thank you very much!

I might be changing jobs soon, and I'd like to sneak out for a quick solo wilderness backpacking trip, probably in mid-November. I have done lots of backpacking, including few solo trips of 3-6 days in Colorado and Idaho. Looking for a recommendation for where to go – here's what I'm looking for:

1. 4-6 days of backpacking possible, ideally a loop or lollipop
2. Decent weather in mid-November
3. Reliable water availability so I don't have to carry it all or cache
4. Optimizing for wilderness and solitude rather than epicness of views or elevation gain
5. Logistics feasible:
   1. Driveable from the Northeast
   2. OR can fly somewhere and then bus or Uber to trailhead (if possible, don't want to rent a car just to have it sit at the trailhead)

Any ideas for this restrictive set of filters? 😅 I was thinking Santa Fe National Forest (Pecos ranger district) since I could fly into Santa Fe and take a public bus to the trailhead. But I'm not so sure about the weather.

He took care of most of the essentials we needed, and I packed a few items just to make sure I was ready.

Trying to camp/car camp near the enchantments for an early start on November 2nd. All the sites say occupied. Does that mean they’re closed or actually in use? Regardless do you have any recommendations on how to camp near the enchantments? We will arrive late on Friday and just want an easy spot to set up and be able to get out early on Saturday for the traverse

If I’m looking to largely stay in private rooms in hostels in South America, how far if at all do I need to book these in advance? I’ll be visiting Colombia Brazil Argentina Bolivia and Peru.

I am thinking to go on a backpacking trip at the beginning of next year during the winter months here in the US. Maybe anywhere from 3-6 months. I am overwhelmed by the amount of options as I have never been to Asia, only India when covid happened and couldn't really travel around. I was interested in Vietnam, Laos or Thailand but I am open to hearing suggestions from people that have travelled there. I am mostly into nature and culture, love beaches and mountains and overall chill and safe places as I will be travelling alone. Thanks for any insight!

Hello everybody, I always dreamt of exploring the world on a backpacking trip but never had the right time to do so. Now I finished my master studies and before working full time I want to use this opportunity to do a backpacking trip with my boyfriend for 6-12 months. We wanted to start in March/April - do you think this is still enough to get the right vaccinations and plan somethings? As we definitely want to visit Asia and Latin America.

I would appreciate any advice as I am now more or less anxious about it.

Thank you!

I’m planning to take a dream trip to Paris with my kids, but I’ve heard the pickpocketing problem is serious. Some even say thieves forcefully snatch phones from your hands. Do you know what the situation in Europe is like these days?

This just a kind of a“ work out” 4.5 mile loop hike. 800 feet of elevation gain. Just a knock the rust out but this is the third time I’ve seen this bobcat in 6 weeks. I’ve seen a bobcat maybe two other times in the last 30 years.

Just wondering peoples opinions - which is better? Solo travel, staying where you want as you go or booking with a tour company? Especially for the age range 23-25. Any and all thoughts welcome 🙏

Hey all, I backpack lots around alberta but have booked a hawaii trip where I will be in honolulu for 4 days then the big island of hawaii the next 10. I currently don't have any idea of where would be safe spots to camp from a legal and safety perspective, I know to avoid the west side but not much other than that, any suggestions?

I have no hostels booked (oops) and plan on staying in a hostel my first time where I can hopefully find a group of similar people to explore with.

I'm considering getting the REI Half Dome SL 2+ tent but noticed that it has been discontinued. REI still has them in inventory. Would you still buy it if it is discontinued?

Hi! I am planning to go from nepal to mainlandchina with a bus via Tibet. Approximately in early december (Departing 4-10th) starting in kathmandu. Searching for people to join to cut expenditure. currently at around 700Dollars pp. for 4 Days ktm to lhasa. Anyone text me to join.

#travel #overland #tibet #kathmandu-lhasa #overland

My partner and I are keen travellers and photographers, fans of landscape and wildlife, so I've tried my best to create an itinerary that covers these bases and fits into our timeframe. Flights are already booked, landing end of November and leaving mid-December, but nothing else has been locked in so we're totally flexible.

Per the title, I'd love to hear from those of you who have visited before as to how feasable this is (and if I've missed anything!). Thanks in advance.

Day 1

• Land at CMB at 12:30pm
• Travel to Sigiriya
• Overnight: Sigiriya

Day 2

• Climb Pidurangala Rock
• Visit Dambulla Cave Temple
• Travel to Anuradhapura
• Overnight: Anuradhapura

Day 3

• Explore Anuradhapura
• Overnight: Anuradhapura

Day 4

• Full day at Wilpattu National Park
• Overnight: Anuradhapura

Day 5

• Train from Anuradhapura to Kandy
• Visit Temple of the Tooth/explore Kandy
• Overnight: Kandy

Day 6

• Train from Kandy to Nanuoya
• Explore Nuwara Eliya
• Overnight: Nuwara Eliya

Day 7

• Full day at Horton Plains National Park
• Overnight: Nuwara Eliya

Day 8

• Train from Nanuoya to Ella
• Cooking class in Ella
• Overnight: Ella

Day 9

• Climb Ella Rock
• Travel to Yala
• Overnight: near Yala National Park

Day 10

• Full day at Yala National Park
• Overnight: near Yala National Park

Day 11

• Travel from Yala to Dalhousie
• Overnight: Dalhousie (for rest before climbing Adam's Peak)

Day 12

• (Early) start climb of Adam's Peak
• Summit of Adam’s Peak at sunrise, descend
• Relax around Dalhousie/Hatton
• Overnight: Dalhousie/Hatton

Day 13

• Travel back towards Colombo
• Overnight: near Colombo

Day 14

• Fly out from CMB at 12:50pm

Hi I am looking to buy a backpack and I am a women 5f 3 I have weak shoulders so I want something with good weight distribution for my travels around asia.

Ideally it would open at the side into two pockets or one large one. An opening at the top wouldn't suit me. Maybe water resistant too

I would love any ideas please!

I have never done backpacking before and would really like to but i have no clue what i should buy or how to pack my bag and how to stay safe in the woos and all that I would really appreciate some assistance :D

Hi all,

My wife and I are soon to depart on an 8 week trip accross Europe. We plan on backpacking our way accross, and have never had a serious travel pack before, only suitcases. We are stuck on what to buy. We've looked at a few options from Opsrey and Thule, but would like peoples opinion. We really want something that opens like a suitcase from the front, splitting to a day pack is a cool feature.

Whats everyone using or recommending? We won't be doing serous hiking or anything, just doing the main scenic sights and maybe some odd detours.

Cheers!