This past weekend I went on my first ever backpacking trip. For those who don’t know, this is like going on a hike with a bit more – the main factor being that you stay overnight somewhere in the back-end of nowhere.

So yes, you have to carry everything with you – tent, sleeping pad and bag; food, clothing, water, camera etc. If required you also need to be prepared to have a crap in a hole. Nice.

This trip was with Glenn, CP, Clark, Michelle and Ranger the dog. The aim was to climb Mt San Grogornio in the San Grogornio Wilderness area via the Fish Creek trail. We would be camping at Mine Shaft Flat on the first night then continue up to the summit before returning back to the cars.

Getting to the trail was a wondrous journey on unpaved and at times rocky trails. Upon arrival we all geared up and hit the trail. Weather was bright and sunny but not too hot. After a few hours climbing (and a pass-check with some rangers) we arrived at our campground for the night. We pitched up, collected water and had dinner. I was tired so it wasn’t long after 9pm before I turned in (to my Eureka Spitfire 1 tent).

That was possibly the worst night I have ever had. Despite my pitch not looking too slopey, and after clearing away rocks, I ended up sliding around on my sleeping pad and feeling a particular rock sticking into my hip whenever I turned over.

Next morning after a hard lesson in where not to pitch a tent and a fitful sleep I arose – a monster of my former self. I had long ago in the night decided that I wasn’t going to continue up to the mountain summit. Nope, I was knackered and felt like crap. I was going back to the cars. I informed the others of my decision as we packed up camp. We hiked up out of the campground and at a trail intersection parted our ways.

I had a very pleasant stroll down the mountain. The solitude was amazing, and again the weather perfect. After a couple of hours I was back at the parking lot where I ate lunch and had a snooze. I was expecting the others a couple of hours after my return. This, however, turned into a mammoth test of patience. As each subsequent hour ticked by there was no sign of them. I was getting worried. I even asked other hikers as they came off the trail whether they’d seen my party. Nope.

It wasn’t until a whopping 6 hours after my return to the car park that they came into view – tired and thirsty. The hike up the mountain had taken longer than they’d thought it would. I was just glad they came back as I was making plans to still Glenn’s truck if they didn’t show soon!

At least during my wait I caught up with some podcasts. All of the backlog I had!

Oh, and throughout the trip I didn’t have to crap in a hole, so it wasn’t all bad.