我目前最長紀錄28天，不過重點是不能臭兮兮的上飛機啊！

Well, you can always just stink on the plane (I feel particulatly sorry for whomever got to sit next to me after 5 days in the Mojave Desert a few years back)

Most truck stops have showers. These usually tend to be rather unsanitary and in less than ideal parts of town, but they’re cheap and quick.

I know theres a place in Lee Vining that rents showers to backcountry folk, I can find out the details if you are planning on being up near Tioga Pass. I’m also pretty sure there are public showers in some of the campgrounds outside the west entrance of the park.

You can always stop and take a dip in a lake as well. Not as good as a hot shower, but it’ll get the grim off of you.

I can take a ’shower’ with my 2-litre water pack! I soap up, rinse down, and shave, using about 1.25 litres; I can even soap and rinse again using only an additional 0.25 litre! Nice - huh?

I’ve been on both sides of this one as well.

If its really a “group” hike (i.e. Sierra Club style with a formal leader and liability issues), then the best way is to have the slowest person in front. Its much easier for the slower folks to keep a pace from behind than to self regulate from in front.

The goal of the outing tends to be important as well. Its much easier to slow down if you’re on a 5 mile nature/photography walk vs. a peak bagging outing where you’re trying to cover 20 miles and be off a peak before the afternoon thunderstorms roll in.

Most of my outings tend to be less formal affairs where everyone is responsible for their own safety/routfinding/etc. With these its usually easier to pick a waypoint to meet up at and let everyone hike at their own pace.

Last year I was leading an informal sea kayak day trip. Against my orders, three people (physically strong yet inexperienced kayakers) took off ahead and two weaker people were left behind. I called for the stronger people to come back, asking them to paddle in circles if they want to keep moving, but before long they were out of sight. In this case there is no way I am going to leave the slower, weaker people alone. I had no choice but to let them go, wondering the whole trip where they went. When I got back to the kayak club where we rented the boats, I found that they had gone where I specifically warned them not to, and two of them had capsized in waves (very cold water) and the other other barely able to drag them to shore. Luckily there was a passerby in a car who saw and offered to drive them and the Kayaks back to the club.

While I don’t think they were in grave danger, since we were paddling near the city and it was not exactly a wilderness situation, and I was not “legally” responsible in any way, not knowing where they were was one of the most frightening experiences I have ever had while “in charge”.

In my case it was different than yours because the people who went ahead were not experienced enough to do so. In retrospect I suppose I could have stressed more how important it was that we stay together, and offered them alternatives (as you suggest with the photo-journalist, etc.) to going far ahead.

As for keeping fast people back while hiking - in my experience, the biggest problem always arises when the end-goal is not set - i.e. the faster we go the further we go. But if the destination is decided, there is no benefit to going fast. I find this with myself as well. If I know I can reach my destination in four hours, but I have six hours to get there, I walk slowly and take photos and look at leaves, bugs, and birds. If, however, I know that if I go fast I might be able to make it another XX kilometers to the next camp, I am more likely to speed up.

And finally, I have found that sometimes (when the situation calls for it) you just gotta kick the slow people in the butt. One hike I was on we really wanted to get to the camp before dark but there were two people going much slower than anticipated. We tolerated them as long as possible, but with one hour left before dark, I let rip on them pointing out that we are *all* tired, but we just have to be *fast* and tired. Perhaps I shocked them because I never get “angry”, but somehow they kicked into gear and beat everyone else to the campsite.

I need to work on how to make sure my point is clearly stated so that there’s no room for my parcipants to make their own interpretation. My weakness of being a leader is I am often too “polite.” =)

and to bastish,
yes I can understand the fear of “not knowing where they are” especially when I feel I’m liable for their safety. That’s another reason why I don’t dare to lead or even coordinate any kayaking trip, because to me, there’s too much liability and I think I don’t know enough water rescue skills.

to 小帽，
這招對於短暫的行程可能行不通，因為社會人士通常沒有這麼多時間，為了兩天一夜的行程，還特別空出時間來「聯絡感情」，不過對於長天數的行程，事先讓大家認識的確是很重要的。

I’ve been on both ends of the fast hiker/slow hiker problem. Changing your own comfortable hiking pace to accomodate someone’s else’s pace is really, really difficult and can seriously mar a hike.

I think you’re on the right track to have the fast hikers stop and wait at turns and junctions, but you have to go further than that where turns and junctions are further apart.
1. Insist that at least one other person stay with the fast hiker at all times (preferable the 2nd fastest hiker)
2. Set a time limit. Let the fast hiker hike his/her hike if it shouldn’t be dangerous for them to go ahead. Tell them to hike for 30 minutes (or however long you want), and then wait for the rest of the group to catch up.
3. Make them clean up camp in the morning(so they start hiking later than the rest of the group) and set up camp when they arrive (first) at the night’s site. If you normally cook at lunch, have them start the food for everyone. Sometimes the extra work load is enough to calm down the fastest hikers, at least a little.

Carolyn H.

[...] Final Frontier: An Outdoor Blog » Blog Archive » Slow Hikers; Fast Hikers [...]

這一篇寫得真好
幾乎所有細節都含括到了
相當值得作為範本
and 新年快樂！

[...] My leadership training has taught me that it’s much better to take actions in early stages to keep group dynamics chaos from happening. This can be done by the followings: 1) describe the trip difficulty well which can be accomplished by providing details such as total mileage, elevation change, and expected hiking time etc. 2) Pre-screen the participants carefully which can be fulfilled by asking them questions about their past experience and the frequency and durance of their regular workouts. [...]

bastish,
Indeed, “worst scenario” simulation is very important. As a leader, we really have to work on contingency plans — know how to bail out or evacuate victims etc.

One time when I was taking a leadership workshop, one of the role plays I had to perform was a leader with a first aid scenario — we had a group of six but one broke his ankle and the other passed out because of seeing him suffer. At that time I only had three others to deploy and it was windy and rainy in the White mountains. I have to say I learned a lot from that case.

這個程序真的很不錯
很值得學習與思考呢!!

恩恩，挑選隊員真的很重要
在台灣這樣的機制似乎還好，除非是縱走級的路線，才會評估隊員的實力，目前我參加過去NOLS上課回來的朋友開的隊伍才有填寫這樣的表格
原來有Epi-pen這種東西阿！！

藑鷸，美國這邊是非常小心的，除了安全考量外，還怕被告呢。我參加的登山團體規模很大，所以也對法律問題特別注重。

nachtluft，先說一聲歡迎來玩，
其實登山團體帶團的人多半都是自願的，所以比較喜歡帶有經驗的人，這樣領隊的負擔比較輕。我常常建議我的Club應該多開一些entry-level的trips，畢竟大家都是從新手開始。

我目前是只有帶美東的啦，雖然我最近又受了帶西岸或是國外團的訓練，但是我要必須協辦兩次才有資格自己帶隊，所以要帶到美西去，還有一陣好等 … :-p

很高興看到有關Screening的討論,
去年在NOLS參加Outdoor educator mountaineering課程,
因此填了一堆的Screening form,
其中有關健康,疾病史相關的文件還必須要醫生的確認及簽名才有效,
最後學校依此表格來判斷身體是否能夠負荷上課所需的體能
並且在表格中需要填寫自己的運動情況,
如什麼樣的運動,每格多久時間運動一次及每次運動的量,
並要列出對於即將要上的課程,對自己體能上的訓練計畫,安排,
在台灣目前有使用Screening來審核參加人員體適能的狀況還不普遍,
不過在戶外活動上使用Screen確實有其必要性,
可以省去許多不必要發生的問題

在上課出發前,
每個人的背包會先過磅做紀錄,
在行走時,依每個人當時的狀況來調整背負的重量,
教材中建議個人的背負重量為體重的45%,
出發前分配的公糧及公器材及個人裝備總重不見得會在這範圍中或者會超過,
因此在行走初期在依個人行走的感覺及速度稍做調整,
使整各隊伍的行進速度能夠一致,另一方面能夠從這部分培養團隊的默契,因此幾天後不需要講師會領隊的分配,隊員便會在早上出發前
針對當日要走的路線作評估,並對隊員體能狀況來調整公器材及食物的分配,
還沒機會到東岸走走,如果可以參加您的隊伍應該會很棒喔!
順安!

PO
很好奇體能究竟是要什麼程度才算至少不會造成整個團隊的負擔呢?
因為我也是那種exercise regularly,
可是擔心一上山後沒多久就露饀了的那種,
很想九月過去費城後去參加你們的活動,
這陣子可以建議一下如何鍛鍊自己的耐力,
以免到時後太軟腳嗎?

對了,我暑假要回台灣去,
有沒有需要什麼東西呢??