I have this ongoing hilarious problem. Every single new hike I go on, I catch myself saying "Oh my God, this is the best hike I've ever done." That leaves me in a real predicament when asked what my favorite hike is.
A quick pause. A finger tap on the chin. The immediate urge to answer with the name of the hike I completed most recently. But wait...that's not right. Is it?
I guess that's what keeps me coming back for more- that continual falling in love with each new stream, new valley, new vista, new summit. I have had this idea for years to keep a journal and score the hike on several factors, all out of 10, to try to form some type of actual ranking...so they don't all continue tricking me into thinking they're my favorite. I've never done it, though. In fact, I've never recorded any of my hikes in any real way. I'd be hard-pressed to even think back and list everything I've done. Mid-hike I tell myself I will do it this time, and yet I never do.
Do you keep a hiking journal? How do you motivate yourself to actually record the what, where, and when?
I think each new hike will always be my new favorite, and I'm okay with that. But I sure would love to have a journal of all those "favorite hikes" to look back on one day. What do you do?
I understand the conundrum of thinking your last hike was your favorite. I do that all the time. 😎
I don't keep a journal. However, I document everything on my Instagram Page. Google also has this cool tool that allows you to pin everywhere you've been on a U.S. map.
One of the things I tried to figure out was buying at least one relic or souvenir after all major excursions. However, they can take up a lot of space, so I went with hoodies, stickers, and patches.
@adventurejunkie That's a great idea! IG is the closest I have to keeping track, too, I guess....though I wish I was more consistent!
The Google Maps idea is super cool! It would be so fun to see it all in one place like that. Thanks for the idea!
I use AllTrails! I keep the GPS running and throw the phone in my backpack so I'm not distracted. Then at the end of the hike, AllTrails has my activity logged. It will ask me to rate the hike on a bunch of different factors, have me upload photos, and then it gets saved to my account. This has been so helpful for me when I can't remember which trails had which features or what time of year is best to go to certain trails. It's also fun to look back on your year and see all of your achievements since it also logs distance, elevation gain, etc. I do really like the idea of an actual journal though, I think being as analog as possible can be quite beneficial sometimes.
@sarahruth333 This is such a smart solution! I've used AllTrails for years but never leave the GPS on! That's such a simple way to keep track of everything in one place - great thinking!