Leading Hikes
Composed by Dan Cory 7/15/96
We love the fact that this group has grown so much (86 active members), but
we need your help. Almost all hikable areas in Washington have a limit of twelve
people per group and a $50/person fine for exceeding this limit. Although we can
agree or disagree with this limit, we need to follow it. We don't want to have
advance registration required for hikes, nor to have to send all but the first
twelve arrivals home on Sunday morning, nor to be more restrictive about who can
come. So the best solution we've found is MORE HIKES - splitting up to hike in
different locations. This also enables us to have hikes of differing difficulty
or length.
Unfortunately, more hikes means more hike leaders. So we need you to lead a
hike!
Here's what you have to do:
- Find a hiking book and pick out a hike. If you don't have a book, lots of
other people do. Or go out and buy one or borrow one from the library.
- Get an idea of how difficult your hike is. An approximate guide for this
group is:
Easy: under 4 miles with under 500 ft. of elevation gain on a relatively
smooth path. Example: Twin Falls
Medium: 4-6 miles with under 1500 ft. of elevation gain. Examples: Wallace
Falls, Snow Lake
Hard: 6-8 miles with up to 3000 ft. of elevation gain. Example: Mt. Si
Very hard: Anything else
Some people may find the above list pretty easy, but it covers the range of
places we've been pretty well. You should contact the ranger station, if
applicable, to check trail condition, the condition of the road to the
trailhead, etc. You can also use the Washington
Trails Association website.
- Send mail to info@wanderingjews.org
about when and where you want to lead your hike. Include a one-paragraph
description of your hike so it can be distributed.
- Copy some maps to the trailhead and include a description of the trail if
you have one.
- Show up to the meeting place early with maps in hand, ready to help divide
up the group
Leading a hike is easy, requires no experience, and is what makes this group
possible!