Preparation and Planning

As a starting point it’s a good idea to examine the hiking documents on the club’s website under “Summer Sports” and “Hiking”. They are: Hiking Participants’ Guide, Four Hiking Essentials, Know Your Pace, and Poles and Shoes. These will give you a basic knowledge of club hiking in our local area
If you’re not sure what pace you hike, join a few club hikes first and determine which level is most comfortable for you
Pick a hiking route that you like, and that you’re familiar with
Preview the hike to identify any potential issues
You can plan and post a hike at the last minute
It’s your hike, so you can decide if you want to allow dogs (subject to whether your area allows dogs); you can decide where to go; you can decide how far you want to go; you can decide what time to start; you can decide if you want an RSVP; you can decide if you want to limit the number of people who join you. The beauty of leading is that you have total control of your hike
To help you research your hike, there are a few local books which will give you some ideas, which can be found in the Park City or Summit County Libraries:
1. Park City Hiking Guide, 1^st Edition by Beverly Hurwitz
2. Park City Hiking Guide, 2^nd Edition by Beverly Hurwitz
3. Prime Cuts – Charlie Sturgis

To figure out mileage and elevation gain, you can plan your route on the Mountain Trails Foundation Interactive map https://mountaintrails.org/summer-interactive-map/ or Trail Forks https://www.trailforks.com or AllTrails https://www.alltrails.com/?ref=header
AllTrails also has many existing routes that you can use
Contact the hike coordinator for that month and tell him/her that you’d like to lead a hike (that person is listed on the Club’s website under “Hiking” which is under “Summer Sports”). There are different coordinators for each month
Write up your hike as per the template that your hike coordinator will give you. You’ll need mileage, elevation gain and time, which is why you might want to preview the hike
If parking is anticipated to be a problem at the trailhead, you should carpool from an area that has ample parking
It’s okay if you need to cancel. Contact your monthly hike coordinator or the Summer Sports Director as soon as you can and an email blast will probably be sent out

Day of the Hike – Meeting place

On the day of the hike, you should arrive at the meeting point at least 15 minutes early to start signing people in. Introduce yourself to people you don’t know. You can also have everyone introduce themselves
Have all participants complete the Activity Release Form. This form can be found on the Club’s website under “Forms” which is under “About Us”
Make sure everyone writes down an emergency contact. Carry the completed form with you, in case you need to contact one of your hikers, or you need to call someone’s emergency contact
Start setting up carpools
If you’re carpooling to the trailhead, have directions to share with your drivers
Leave on time

At the Trailhead

Before you start, you can review the hike with your participants
If there’s a lot of people on your hike, ask someone to be your sweep (you’d be surprised at how many people will fight over this job). No one should get behind your sweep, so that you don’t have to keep counting to make sure everyone’s there. You can decide if you want to let faster hikers go ahead of you, but let them know they’re on their own if they do. Possibly someone who’s familiar with the trail will take out the faster hikers
You should stop after the first 15 minutes to assess whether there are participant(s) who appear to be having trouble keeping up. If you’re concerned any person doesn’t have appropriate skills, stamina or equipment to be safe (especially adequate footwear and sufficient water), you have the right to ask them to return to the trailhead. One of the most difficult things as a leader is to ask someone to leave your hike. A slower hiker affects the entire group. If you need to ask someone to go back, pull them aside and explain why you’re sending them back
Regroup at intersections so that no one goes the wrong way
Stop to rest/eat/get water/give water to the dogs/regroup whenever you feel is necessary
You should only hike as fast as your slowest hiker
Be aware of your surroundings in front of and behind you at all times: animals and bikes. Warn the last person in line that they have to also listen for and look for animals and bikes. If your group has to step aside for bikes, try to all be on the uphill side of the trail. A common warning to your group is “bike up” from you, in the front or “bike back” from the person in the back. That lets everyone know from which direction the bikes are coming

After the Hike

Soon after the hike, take a picture of your activity release form and send it to your monthly hike coordinator

2024 Monthly Hike Coordinators

May – Robin Reade – readetwiggs@allwest.net

June – Chuck Mollard – chuckmollard@gmail.com

July – Steve Holmes – july2022@comcast.net

August -Kathy Shanks – kshanks1@comcast.net

September – Donna Sims – joedonna@gmail.com

October – TBD

Strenuous hikes – David Anderson – danderson@dcalaw.org