Quoted message said:Most published safety literature on hiking frowns upon walking alone,
however the majority of my walks are undertaken uncompanied.
Is this stupidity?
Let us refer to the de-facto Bible of uk hill walking, the official
handbook of the Mountain Leader Training Board, Eric Langmuir's
"Mountaincraft and Leadership":
"Going solo in the hills is almost universally condemmed by those
who are not themselves hillwalkers, usually on the grounds that if
something goes wrong there is no one to raise the alarm, and as a
consequence a great deal of unnecessary time and effort may have to
be put in by search and rescue services. This is a narrow view.
The desire to be alone from time to time is a powerful and basic
human need, and where better to fulfil this than in the mountains?
There are few, if any, experienced mountaineers who have not, at
some time in their lives, deliberately sought the solitude of the
hills. Solo hillwalking can be a profound and rewarding
experience, but it demands judgement and experience of a high
order. In particular it brings a responsibility to make double
sure that nothing does go wrong, and that as a result of
foolhardiness or thoughtlessness others are not put to unnecessary
inconvenience and risk "
Quoted message said:How many others walk alone?
I do, I can't think of any friends who won't.
You must further draw some distinctions between walking and
walking. What the lowest common denominator UK recreational walker
regards as "walking" and what a seasoned mountainair regards as
walking are very different things, and while considerable care and
experience will form a backdrop to a solo attempt on the Liatach
Northern Pinnacles in winter conditions, a Sunday dander round a
well used bit of National Park on a nice day really doesn't merit
much browbeating over foolhardiness!
I'll further note that I have /never/ spoken to a member of an MRT
who thought people shouldn't go out alone, despite the fact that
it's the time and trouble of MRTs that is often cited by ignorant
numpties as a reason not to do it.
Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
