The question that inexperienced hikers or mountaineers most often ask themselves is whether they will be more or less able to reach a goal, a summit.
Given that insecurity and tension are part of the excitement before setting off, especially if we are about to tackle a demanding hike or mountaineering climb, it must also be said that there is no exact method for answering this question.
A question of method...
However, a good store of experience is the yardstick by which we measure the world. Building up this broad store of experience takes time and patience. On every hike we can ask ourselves to tackle ever harder paths, we can think about taking on mountain groups that are even more remote and wild. At every step, when we “dare” that little bit more, we find ourselves in a position to learn something new. We are straddling what we have already been able to achieve and the “new” that we wish to conquer. You learn to face difficult situations by going step by step, without throwing yourself into situations that are completely unfamiliar to you.
With time you learn to recognise the spaces and distances of the mountains, the sounds and the echoes, the colours and the shapes. It is a matter of making ever more familiar what in daily life is usually foreign to us. Observation plays a fundamental role and you need to learn to look carefully, paying attention to all the apparently insignificant details.
To choose a path we have to assess the objective factors of the mountain:
- the height gain to be covered;
- the distances in kilometres;
- whether or not there are mountaineering passages, and how difficult they are;
- the weather conditions and temperatures;
- the number of hours of daylight;
- the presence of snow and other weather factors;
- the availability of suitable equipment.
The human being is a complex entity and we cannot leave out of our assessment the subjective factors:
- your own physical condition (age, ability to recover, endurance);
- your ability to tolerate emotional stress;
- your own sense of direction;
- assessing your own sense of balance and any tendency to vertigo;
- keeping a cool head;
- personal determination and inner motivation.
On easy walking routes and hiking routes, perhaps, all these assessments are not really that necessary. They become necessary, if not fundamental, on routes for experienced hikers and for hikers with equipment.
The trip report of a hike should record as many details as possible, going back over the difficulties and the feelings of every moment. A trip report is not only meant to remind us where we were and what we did. It is from the things we do that, the next time, we take up the dialogue with nature again, adding to our experience each time.