Friday, April 16, 2010

Calculating Hiking Travel Times

When you are preparing for a wilderness trip, it is important to be able to judge approximately how long you will be hiking on the trail.  The following information is a general guideline that can help plan your itinerary.

5 km/hr          Good maintained trail free of obstructions               
3-4 km/hr       Trail with some obstructions, some vague spots      
2-3 km/hr        No trail but open terrain                                       
1-<1 km/hr      No trail with forested or obstructed terrain           

Other mitigating factors:
Add 1 hour for every 300m of elevation gained.
Add 15 minutes for every 300m of elevation lost.

Other mitigating factors that may affect your travel times include: excessive heat, heavy packs, substrate that you are traveling on, and individual walking speeds.

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