Hiking as a hobby

Getting started with hiking is really easy. Hiking is a wonderful hobby that suits everyone, practically all it takes is an adventurous attitude to start hiking. In practice, the standard of equipment goes hand in hand as the hobby progresses. Hiking in the immediate vicinity of national parks does not set as high a standard for equipment as distant wilderness. It is a good idea to start hiking by exploring the nearby forests and therefore packing a warm drink in a thermos bottle and snacks in your backpack. As the experience grows, you may want to start planning overnight excursions to the immediate area.

There are also plenty of national parks in Finland, so a weekend in one of them is always a good option. National parks usually have firewood and shelter ready for hikers. As a rule, lava networks are built in the national parks, and there are firewood sheds along these. Routes are marked with signs and you don’t need use of compass on marked trails, basic knowledge of reading maps is required. When leaving for an overnight excursion, it is advisable to back a sleeping bag, sleeping pad, tent and cutlery. Of course, in the summer time you can bring a blanket in the absence of a sleeping bag, which is very good especially in southern Finland. The foam pad is enough for the sleeping pad, and its function is to protect it from the cold from the ground, not so much to bring softness to sleep. If you are not sure about the continuity of your hobby, you may not want to buy an expensive camping stove right away. Therefore, it is worth packing food that does not necessarily require so much warming, of course, warm food during the excursion raises the mood in every one of us. There are a variety of camping stoves, both spirits and gas stoves. Gas cookers are much more expensive than spirits cookers, but their speed is a great asset, it doesn’t take many minutes to warm up a liter of water with gas, with spirit cooker it takes little bit more time. It is also advisable to back a Mug, then it is nice to drink a cup of hot beverage before going to bed and getting up in the morning.

It is also easy to abort the trip in the national parks and in the nearby forests if you wish to do so. The telephone connections are really good (except for the northern wilderness) and this also provides security and peace of mind for the trip. During the summer months, especially in the national parks, there are plenty of hikers, ranging from overnight hikers to day hikers. When night temperatures drop to zero I strongly recommend purchasing a proper sleeping bag. Eating out on excursions is easily handled with your own snacks, and tea water is easy to take directly from nature, as long as you remember to boil the water thoroughly before enjoying. The shops are full of great ready-made pasta and dishes that can be poured directly into the pan and cooked delicious treats from it.

However, when cooking with open fire, it is worth bearing in mind that the food burns very quickly in extreme heat, so be especially careful when cooking with open fire. National Parks have the opportunity to make fires at campfire sites and lean-to areas, but keep in mind that in dry weather, forest fire warnings in the area should be investigated. All in all, starting a hike is within everyone’s reach, and there is something new to learn on each trip. For overnight travel you will need equipment for sleeping and dining. Rough backpack, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, tent, fire making equipment, mug, spoon, camping stove or kettle, knife and warm clothing. Slightly life-enhancing, but not so necessary in national parks include a headlight, an ax, a campfire and a string. These equipments make it easy to get started, and the more experienced you are, the less you need to bring along. Have a great time starting a new hobby, nature has a lot of great things to offer.