It occurred to me following a recent conversation that there is some confusion about what hiking is all about. I realize that there may be other views, but a hike is not a glorified nature walk.
Hiking is an activity that is mainly done in nature and generally on an existing trail. The main goal is to get exercise. There are side benefits that include solitude in nature, scenery and photographic opportunities.
It is in the photographic opportunities that the difference between hiking and taking a nature walk come up. If you are alone - and I don't think hiking alone is a good idea - then you can do whatever you want and call your activity whatever you want, but most of the hiking we do is with others.
When you hike with others it is important to keep together as much as possible. To that end, we generally try to have someone set the pace that everyone can keep up with. On some trails that are "out and back" you can have more than one group where a faster group that wants to go farther can do that while a group that wants to hike slower to a shorter turn around can do that.
Where most problems arise in a group hiking is when people stop to take pictures and then are unable to catch back up. A better strategy for those hikers is to hike near or at the front so that they have the time to get their shots and not get dropped from the group.
It is not reasonable to have everyone stop for these photo ops in the context of a hike. That is the proper providence of a nature walk - more specifically a photographic nature walk - where everyone has as the main goal seeing every inch of the area and taking lots of pictures. That is not the goal of a hike.
The other thing that will help is to have your camera easily accessible and ready to operate. If you need to fish it out of your pack or pocket and then remember how it works every time you want to take a picture then you are not properly prepared to hike. A hiker has their camera ready for the shots they find along the way.
An I-Phone may be a cool device, but they seem to take forever to get ready to take a picture. A better bet is a cheap point and shoot camera, and Pam's Pentax WG1 at under $300 is dust proof, shock proof and water proof to 10 meters and comes with a carabineer attach it to your pack. I hike with a full frame SLR that I have in an attached camera bag on my waist band.
The bottom line of this is that hiking is mainly a group activity and requires some group etiquette. The point of the rules is safety along with the idea that everyone should have fun. In the winter the rules become much more of a necessity as there are more hazards and less people on the trails.
There are lots of photography clubs and groups that get out in nature. If that is your desire then that is what you should do. If you are in it for the exercise then there are a few rules that keep us all safe and ensure we all have fun.
Be very well and more soon.....
