Howdy! To prepare for our upcoming 10-day trek we had a one night shake down trek. The purpose of this was to double check that our backpacks fit correctly, learn to pitch tents, and cook food while camping. It was also helpful as it provided a gauge for what our backpacks will weigh and if it is worth it to bring a heavy book or a few extra shirts. While this was just a shakedown trek it was still extremely challenging.  

We hiked around 8 miles in 80-degree weather. Something I quickly learned was the importance of drinking enough water, a dehydration headache is very hard to come back from. I will be sure to drink plenty of water during our longer trek. Another factor that was reinforced is working as a team and maintaining a positive attitude. While carrying a heavy backpack in hot weather, it can be easy to start snapping at others or complaining but negative attitudes in just one person are matched by the rest of the group. Thankfully my hiking group remained positive, however, it was easy to see how one person being gloomy can change the dynamic for all.  

During the shakedown trek, I was in a group with Ben, Sydney, and Madan. Ben was our first leader and was in charge of setting the pace and timing of our breaks. A few leadership qualities we have discussed are communication, and patience, Ben implemented both of these in his leadership role as he set a sustainable pace and told the rest of the group when breaks were coming up. Additionally, he let us know when it had been two hours since we last applied sunscreen. Madan was the ‘sweeper’ for our group. He was at the end of the group and was there to help anyone or verbalize when we may have needed to slow down if group members were struggling. Madan’s role involved a bit of being kind and looking out for others, two important leadership skills.  

Since I have prior backpacking experience, I did my best to help my team out with advice and motivation. As I mentioned earlier, it can be very easy for emotions and exhaustion to takeover, leading to conflict. To remain positive, during breaks I would often look back to how far we had come. I also took over a leadership role within my cooking group. For our first meal, I took the lead as ‘head chef’. Cutting up the vegetables and overseeing the stove. I felt comfortable in this role and am excited to have more opportunities to expand my leadership skills.  

This shakedown trek was very challenging, and we learned a lot. I will be sure to drink more water moving forward. As difficult as this trek was, it reminded me that I can do more than I think. Even with a pounding dehydration headache, I was still able to continue hiking for another hour until we reached our camp site. I also felt very cared for by my crew as they were very kind to me when I was not feeling my best. I am feeling a healthy anxious for our 10-day trek and excited to see what new experiences it will bring.