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Solo Hiking Quiz 2:
Comfort Level on the Trail

By Diane Spicer

As promised, here's Solo Hiking Quiz 2.

The first quiz concentrated on surfacing some ideas about why you are or are not drawn to exploring solo hiking.

This solo hiking quiz focuses on your comfort level when fictional, but likely, challenges pop up on the trail and you have no one else to turn to for ideas or comfort.

A few quiz taking tips

Put yourself into the following scenarios with as much realism as possible.

• You're alone, you're miles from other people, it's all you.

Don't try to pick the "right" answer.

Choose the response which is most likely, knowing yourself and being honest about your personal tendencies.

No one is going to grade this but yourself!

Ready?

Here goes...

Solo Hiking Quiz 2
Scenario #1

You catch a glimpse of a very large dark brown animal ahead of you on the trail - then it disappears into the bushes.

a) No worries! It's probably someone's dog. Keep going.

b) You let out a shriek to alert other hikers that you saw a bear.

c) You cautiously move forward for a better look.

d) You turn around and walk away quickly.

e) You have no idea what you will do in this scenario.

Solo Hiking Quiz 2
Scenario #2

After a strenuous morning of uphill hiking without many rest breaks, you unbuckle your chest and waist band straps.

While lowering your heavy pack to the ground, you feel something pop in your left shoulder as a twinge of red hot pain shoots down to your elbow.

a) Good thing you have ibuprofen in that heavy pack.

b) Pain scares you - what if it's a torn rotator cuff?

c) Maybe you should turn back before the pain gets worse.

d) You roll you shoulder experimentally, probing with your fingers to gauge how bad the pain is.

e) You have no idea what you will do in this scenario, but you know that pain sucks.

Solo Hiking Quiz 2
Scenario #3

You're two days into a four day trek and haven't met another hiker all day - until a tall young guy startles you out of your introspection by yelling "hey" from about 50 feet down the trail.

a) You yell "hey" back in a friendly manner.

b) Great. A psycho killer on YOUR trail.

c) Maybe he's warning you of a snake in the trail, so you slow down your pace.

d) You quickly think of the name you'll use for your fictitious trail buddy who's taking a pit stop somewhere nearby.

e) You have no idea what you will do in this scenario.

Solo Hiking Quiz 2
Scenario #4

After a lovely morning of clear warm weather, you begin to notice dark clouds rolling in. A breeze picks up and the temperature drops.

a) Not a problem - you're carrying rain gear in the outside pocket of your backpack.

b) Thunder and lightning are your worst nightmare - time to sit down and start worrying!

c) You keep checking the skies as you press onward, with some anxiety beginning to grow.

d) You take a rest break and consult the map, reconsidering your planned camp site on the stream bank.

e) You have no idea what you will do in this scenario.

Solo Hiking Quiz 2
Scenario #5

It's midnight. You're in your sleeping bag. You can't fall asleep because of all of the weird rustling noises surrounding you.

a) Who needs sleep? This is an adventure!

b) You know that it's a bear. Or a cougar. Probably both.

c) You make a mental note that a vivid imagination is NOT your friend right now.

d) You tighten and relax all major muscle groups, from top to bottom, to calm your body. Then you insert ear plugs and drift off to sleep.

e) You have no idea what you will do in this scenario.

Solo Hiking Quiz 2
Scenario #6

You already knew you were clumsy, but this is ridiculous! You just tripped over a tree root and bashed your knee -hard- against a rock.

Now you can't walk because of the pain.

a) It'll get better, it just has to.

b) You have already diagnosed a broken kneecap, followed by gangrene. You're doomed.

c) You begin to worry about what will happen if the pain gets worse but take no action.

d) You remove your backpack, straighten the leg and prop it up on your pack while thanking yourself for leaving an itinerary back home with a trusted friend.

e) You have no idea what you will do in this scenario.

Solo Hiking Quiz 2
Answers

I wrote the scenarios for solo hiking quiz 2 from personal experience.

And at one time or another, I have been all five of the following female hikers.

See which one you resonate most strongly with.

Mostly A answers

"A" answers belong to Suzy Sunshine.

• She is confident that she can get through anything in the outdoors. Whether or not this confidence is well founded depends upon each individual Suzy's skill set.
  
• If you're going solo, be sure you have lots of tricks and tools in your mental and physical tool kits!
  
• And don't be blinded by optimism or refusal to face facts. A positive attitude is great, but sometimes you will need more to get through a scenario.

Mostly B answers

If you tended toward "B" answers, you might be a Disastrous Devi.

• Your mind goes immediately to "worst case scenario", blocking out evidence to the contrary.
  
• You might find yourself getting caught in loops of worry or stress, which pulls you away from solving the immediate problems in front of you.
  
• Train your mind to acknowledge the "disaster" and any feelings of fear or stress associated with it, but move beyond to find an objective, rational space. That's where your strongest problem solving skills will surface.

Mostly C answers

Did you pick "C" most often?

You're a Nervous Nelly!

• Nothing wrong with being cautious, but sometimes timidity pulls you further into a situation without helping you.
  
• Here's where it pays to play these mental scenarios through a few times, rolling around what your options might be.
  
• Then you can revert to a pre-established plan without compromising your safety!

Mostly D answers

"D" answers are the hallmark of Prudent Penelope.

• She doesn't sugar coat the situation.
  
• She doesn't freak out.
  
• She doesn't waffle between "should I or shouldn't I".
  
• She takes action, she gathers data, she evaluates, she plans. It's taken me a LONG time to morph into Prudent Penelope, and I still revert to Nelly or Debi when I see fresh steaming bear scat on the trail or hear the crack of thunder over my head. But I'm getting better ;)

Honest E's

It's perfectly ok if you were honest and picked "E" answers every single time.

You're Enlightened Eva because you're at least one step ahead of everyone else:

• It's good to know what you don't know.
  
• It's even better to find answers for what you now know, that you don't know.

I hope this website will help you with the quest for trail knowledge.

Otherwise, Solo Hiking Quiz 2 was just a waste of time for you, or possibly an anxiety inducing experience, neither of which was the intent of the quiz.

Questions?

Any questions about what you just read?

Maybe you don't agree with my statements.

Or perhaps you would like more information about your choices. Drop me a line, and I'd be happy to respond.

My goal for solo hiking quiz 2 was to get you thinking about how to deal with solo hiking concerns.

Then you can get out there and explore some wild country like the Robson River in the Mount Robson Provincial Park, B.C.!

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