What comes to mind when you think of a lone woman hiking? Do you picture Reese Witherspoon traversing
the Pacific Crest Trail in the film Wild? A woman with all her belongings on her back, navigating the mountains alone and finding inner peace along the way? Or does your mind conjure horror stories of snake bites, falls from high cliffs or, darker still,
a violent stalker?
Whatever you imagine, the science is clear: spending time alone in nature is very good for you. There are well-documented physical benefits of course, like improved cardiovascular health and balance, but there’s also a plethora of research supporting the mental health benefits. According to a 2021 study based on data from Norway, Germany and New Zealand, solo wilderness activities provide a range of pathways to improve wellbeing, including introspection, mental clarity, self-actualisation and reflections on the larger meaning of life. Meanwhile, recent research from the Australian Psychological Society has shown that exposure to natural environments is associated with a lower risk of common mental health disorders.
All of this sounds great, but what about the risks that accompany hiking alone?
Peace, empowerment and solitude
Thirty-year-old Kate Donald initially began hiking on her own because her schedule as a health care worker made it difficult to coordinate with others. Although she started hiking out of necessity, she quickly realised the benefits. “I needed that outdoor alone time. Just to get my thoughts together. Honestly, I feel like it’s my form of meditation.”
As an experienced solo hiker who has spent many weeks on the trail by herself, Kate knows what she’s talking about. In 2019, she completed her first thru-hike — a long-distance end-to-end trail — hiking the 690km Australian Alps Walking Track. “I was going through all my own thoughts, to the point where my brain became still. It was just … peace. It’s the absolute most amount of peace I’ve ever felt in my life, just walking for days and days and days.”
In addition to the mental clarity Kate describes, thru-hiking can be incredibly empowering. Successfully navigating challenging terrain, pitching your own tent and carrying everything you need on your back develops self-reliance. But thru-hiking is not for the faint hearted or beginner hikers.
Luckily, you don’t need to spend weeks on the trail to gain the benefits. Twenty-six-year-old Isabella Clark tries to get away for an overnight camping trip whenever she’s not working as a tour guide on local trails. “There’s something about being in the bush that is regenerative to the soul. This is how life is supposed to be lived. Everyday life separates us from being a part of the planet, but we are a part of it; that’s why hiking feels so natural.”
Kit Kline, founder of Nature Based Therapy, agrees. “We are not separate from the natural world, we are nature,” she says. Kit uses nature-based experiences such as solo hiking as a tool to promote health. She says the sensory experience of nature is therapeutic and can relieve modern ailments like stress and burnout.
“When we tune into our sensory system and become physically present, that has a profound effect on our mental health,” she says. “Because we’re tuning into our senses, we get into the body rather than thinking. So a lot of people stop overthinking because they’re tapping into that sensory embodied experience.”
It’s often easier to tap into that embodied experience when you’re not distracted by other people. “As an anxious person, I feel a distinct sense of calm inside me when I walk alone,” says Isabella. “I find on occasions when I do walk with others, that anxiety returns.”
Anna Rogan, 37, feels similarly. “When I go hiking with other people, I’m always tuning into their experience. I’m like, do
I need to slow down? Am I going fast enough? Do they need to stop for a snack? Is this too difficult? Is this not difficult enough? And when you’re on your own, you just don’t have that.”
A mum of two and a small business owner, Anna doesn’t have the flexibility to escape for days at a time, but she finds regular day hikes feasible, as well as necessary. “I’ve had phases in my life as a mother where I’ve felt like I’ve really lacked any sense of agency or independence. And it’s taken some time to understand that I can have a private life, I can have things that are just for me. I can have solitude. And solo bushwalking is a beautiful way of doing that.”
Don’t discount the benefits of a shorter hike either. Even a few hours in the woods can offer the mental relief many of us require in this busy world. As Anna describes it, “There’s a certain point you get to during a bushwalk where your nervous system relaxes. It’s being in nature, it’s the movement of your body, it’s the sounds and the sights and it’s not being on your phone. It’s the total immersive sensory experience.”
The most important thing, according to Kit, is avoiding your phone. “Be present and tune into your sensory system,” she says. “Often, I’ll see people hiking through the bush while talking on their phone or listening to music. I don’t think they’re getting that full nature connection experience.” Put your phone on aeroplane mode and leave it in your backpack.
Preparation
Regardless of the length and level of your hike, preparation is never so important as when you’re in the bush on your own. As Tim Savage, founder of the hiking platform Australian Hiker, says, “When you’re by yourself, you’re it and you can’t rely on anybody else.” Here is what you need to think about before setting off on your own.
Plan your hike and hike your plan
Kate has made it her mission to help people avoid the mistakes she made on her first solo hike. “I had no idea where I was going. I just went for a drive and found this spot and was like, this looks great! I didn’t have a first-aid kit, I didn’t have water, I didn’t have snacks. I just wanted to be out of the city.”
It’s important to define where you’re going well before you go. The amount of detail needed will depend on the length and complexity of your hike. If you’re heading to a well-defined, well-signed and populated trail for a few hours, you’ll need to do less research than if you’re preparing for a multi-week thru-hike with food and water drops. “Really what it comes down to is: are you in a remote area with no phone signal? And what’s the likelihood of someone being able to come across you?” says Tim.
Pack the right equipment
“If you have the same things in your bag all the time, then you’ll never be caught out. It’s so simple to just have a bag packed at all times and grab it when you want to go,” says Kate.
What to pack in your bag:
First-aid kit with basic supplies, including a snake-bite kit.
Adequate water and food.
Layers — always check the weather before you leave and be prepared. Particularly in the desert or in the mountains, where weather can change quickly and dramatically.
Maps — if you’re on a well-marked trail with phone reception, paper maps are likely unnecessary. There is a multitude of applications you can download (AllTrails and Gaia GPS are popular ones). But on a longer hike without reliable phone coverage, having
a physical back-up is vital.
Communication — when venturing onto a more remote trail or any trail without phone reception, it’s a good idea to invest in a Personal Location Beacon, which will enable you to call for help in an emergency.
Let someone know where you are
Even if you’re heading out for a two-hour walk on a well-defined trail, let someone know where you’re going and when you expect to return. Anna says she also leaves a note on her dashboard with this information, just to be safe.
Know your limits
These will be different for everyone, but the important thing is knowing yours. For Isabella, a desert dweller, that’s not hiking in snow. For others, it might be avoiding river crossings or more technically challenging trails. “I think one of the hardest things I’ve had to overcome is knowing when to quit,” says Kate. “You need to be okay with turning around.”
Pay attention
“Make sure you’re not going to get yourself lost; you need to be looking where you’re putting your feet,” says Tim. This sounds obvious, but it’s easy to become distracted by your own thoughts and find yourself drifting from your planned route.
Paying attention is key — both for your safety and to reap the benefits of spending time alone in the woods. Pay attention with all of your senses: smell the scent of pine needles and eucalyptus in the air; listen to the breeze as it moves through the branches of the trees or the waves as they crash on the beach; feel the give of the trail under your feet; taste the rain water as it falls on your tongue; look at the colours of the landscape surrounding you.
When you focus on your sensory experience, it will not only calm your mind, but possibly lead to answers you’ve been looking for. “Reducing your thoughts makes way for more creative thinking and problem solving,” says Kit. “A lot of people who walk on their own in the bush tend to find solutions to problems without even thinking about it. The answer just arrives.”
Kate offers one final piece of advice for anyone thinking about hiking on their own: “Don’t be afraid. Just get out there!”
Ellen Bryant is an American-born freelance writer based in the Macedon Ranges, Victoria.
