Mailbag - Camping Tips and Best Trails for Solo Hiking

In this episode of Exploring the National Parks, we are doing a mailbag episode! We are diving into some of the questions we have gotten from you guys about the national parks and sharing our best tips and suggestions.

Join us as we discuss some camping tips, the best trails for solo hiking, park ranger Ash, and more!

In this episode, we discuss:

What beginner campers need
How to find the best affordable camping equipment
How to plan your meals while camping
Where to find the best campsites
Where to find the best hiking trails for solo hiking
How and why Ash became a park ranger
The trips we have coming up on the East side of the Mississippi

We hope you enjoy hearing the answers to some of these listener questions today.

If you have any questions about national parks, family travel, outdoor activities, us, or anything in between, please visit dirtinmyshoes.com/podcast to leave us a message. We’ll answer them in an upcoming Mailbag episode!

Listen to the Full Podcast Episode:

Question 1: Camping tips and tricks for beginners

“Hey y’all! I’m loving listening to your podcast each week. This week, you talked about camping as one of your ways to save money. I’ve never been camping and would love an episode on tips and tricks for beginners.”

Campground Reservations

What a great question! We go camping a lot. First and foremost, camping in or around national parks is all about knowing when reservations open for the year. Many parks start taking reservations six months in advance. We covered some changes that may be happening to campsite reservations in Episode 61: 2024 in the National Parks – What to Expect.

When we reserve campsites, we use Campendium to help us find campgrounds near national parks.

Camping Gear

Second, and just as important, you don’t need to spend a bunch of money on gear to start camping! Thrifting, garage sales, renting gear, sales, and borrowing from friends or family are great ways to get the gear you need.

Learning how to repair your gear will also help cut down on costs. Duct tape is a handy tool to always have on hand. You can catch more tips on saving money while traveling to the national parks in Episode 67: National Parks on a Budget – Tips for Saving Money.

When you pick out a tent, be careful of the number of people it claims it can hold. Our family of four fits with some of our gear in a six-person tent. A two-person tent is only for people who are very close to each other because you will be very close to each other while you sleep. We love Kelty tents.

Sleeping bags are rated by degrees as a guideline, not a guarantee that you’ll be comfortable at that temperature. You can always unzip your sleeping bag if you get too hot at night, but you can’t easily add more warmth if you’re too cold. National parks tend to get colder at night than most visitors are used to. Get the degree rating that makes you feel comfortable.

Men’s and women’s sleeping bags are also rated differently because, on average, men tend to sleep warmer than women. Make sure you know what rating you’re actually getting before you make your purchase!

Renting gear is a great way to figure out what you like or don’t like. If you get a tent that’s too small, a sleeping bag that’s too snug, or a sleeping pad that’s too thin, you can return it at the end of your trip with no issues! Try out a few different styles before committing to a purchase.

Camping doesn’t mean suffering. Bring whatever makes you cozy and helps you sleep well, whether that’s medicine to help you fall asleep, your favorite blanket, headphones, or a good book and a flashlight. Make your tent your home away from home!

Camping Food

For food, keep your meals simple and easy to clean up. With time, you’ll figure out a cooking system that works best for you.

To start, all you need is a simple stove and a cooking pot with one or two utensils. Avoid messy meals like bacon and eggs. Sometimes, you’ll have to clean up without any water – be prepared. You can get fancier as you gain more experience!

Here is what a typical day of meals looks like for our family while we camp:

Breakfast: Boil hot water for instant oatmeal with fruit
Lunch: Sandwiches or hummus and pita wraps
Dinner: Hot dogs over the fire or tin foil meals. If there isn’t a fire pit, we’ll make soup in our pot on our stove with a side of bread

Good to know before you go

Set up your gear at home before your trip! Even experienced campers need to test out their new gear before going. Trust me, you do not want to be putting up a tent for the first time when you are tired, cold, and have no cell phone service to look up instructions.

Learn how to start and build a fire. It takes skill to keep a fire going! Watching videos or learning from friends will help you feel confident when you’re ready to make your first fire.

Always wear layers! National parks are all about temperature swings, so being able to take off or put on layers easily will help you enjoy your camping time.

Bring bug spray, even when you think you won’t need it. Mosquitoes are always waiting to strike when you least expect it.

Question 2: Adventures for solo hikers

“Hi! I love your podcast. I’m someone who wants to travel and visit lots of parks but will likely end up doing solo travel since I haven’t found my adventure buddy. I’m wondering if you’ve considered doing a podcast on best parks for going solo, particularly as a woman who wants to hike. I’m trying to keep safe from animals and other threats and want to know the safest trails that are a good adventure alone.”

I feel you on this question! I solo hike sometimes and know that it can feel limiting not to have someone to go on an adventure with.

The key to solo hiking is to make sure you pick highly trafficked trails. That way, if something does happen, people will be passing by often for you to ask for help.

The Highline Trail in Glacier National Park is a great option. I solo-hiked this popular trail last summer and felt safe. Angels Landing is great for feeling like you’re adventuring while still having people around the whole time.

Our itinerary provides all the details on how to plan the perfect trip to Glacier National Park!

Mount Rainier is a great park to travel solo and hike the Skyline Trail and the Burroughs Mountain Trail. The Mist Trail in Yosemite, the Peekaboo Loop in Bryce Canyon, the Beehive Loop in Acadia, and the Sky Pond Trail in Rocky Mountain are also great for solo hikes!

We have itineraries for Yosemite, Bryce Canyon, Acadia, and Rocky Mountain!

Avoid going to Yellowstone solo because it’s not a popular hiking destination. Bears are a consideration as well because they are warned by noise, and unless you’re talking to yourself, solo hikers don’t make a ton of noise. Parks like the Grand Canyon that pose dangers like falling or heat illnesses are also often not great options for solo adventures.

Question 3: How did I become a park ranger, and what do I do now?

“How did you become a park ranger? What led you to pursue that career?”

We cover in detail how I became a park ranger in Episode 33: How to Become a Park Ranger! I spent so much time in the national parks that I just knew I had to make it my career. It was a dream job for me!

In episode 33, we dive into the details, including the different paths to becoming a park ranger.

“How do you support yourselves?”

We support ourselves all from Dirt In My Shoes!

We started Dirt In My Shoes nine years ago when I left my park ranger career to be a mother. John encouraged me to write down all the fun things we do when we visit national parks and put them into the world to help me transition through leaving my job. Everything developed from there!

After a few years, John quit his job to work full-time on the backend of Dirt In My Shoes. Our podcast is the first time he’s stepped into the limelight :)

“Do you still live in a camper?”

We were full-time RVers for three years, but we are regrettably no longer living that life. We had a blast and plan to go back to living on the road when our kids are a bit older.

“Do you ever get out east of the Mississippi River? Have you ever been to Indiana Dunes National Park?”

Yes, we do! There aren’t as many national parks in the East, but we love visiting them when we go.

This year, we are headed to the Great Smoky Mountains and Mammoth Cave. I’ve been to Mammoth Cave three times in the last five years! We also love going to Acadia and Florida.

We have not made it to Indiana Dunes yet. We passed by it a year before it became a national park, but we didn’t stop. We’re excited to head back someday!

Thank you for your questions! Head to dirtinmyshoes.com/podcast and let us know what questions you’d love us to answer on our next mailbag episode!

Links mentioned in this podcast episode:

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Mailbag – Camping Tips and Best Trails for Solo Hiking