Many hikers tend to insist on night hiking as if it were something special, but what is so special about it? For people who didn’t hike at night previously, it can seem scary, dangerous, and even stupid because there won’t be much to see in the dark, so why do people do that? We did the research for you to give you the best possible answer. We will focus on the reasons and try to describe what’s good about night hiking!
At first, you have to know that hiking at night has some advantages but the most important one is the sky which is a very important factor for the feeling of your trip. There are also a lot more advantages but unfortunately even more disadvantages. So is hiking at night worth trying out? Let’s find out!
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Watching the sky on a hiking trip
What’s so fancy about the night sky? Most of us live in cities, where even at night there are some sources of light, and those lights are ruining our view of the night sky, that’s just how it works, that’s why it is very hard to see any stars from your balcony.
While hiking we can spot a lot of beautiful landscapes, but what if we are getting tired of them? To make your next hiking trip feel way different than it was before in the light of day, you can try the same trip in the dark.
The emotions while hiking at night are totally different because we are scared but amazed by the night sky! The night sky outside of the cities is so beautiful that most hikers are guided only by this to plan their next hiking trip.
You can sit down for a while and watch what’s above you, so make sure to bring some blankets to lay on. Apart from the fear aspect, it can be a very good idea for a romantic date, but before that ask your partner if she or he won’t be scared because that will ruin the whole trip.
At night you can see the stars above you, also with the moon, so bringing a telescope won’t be a bad idea if you have free space in your backpack.
Advantages of night hiking
The night sky is only one of the night hiking advantages, but there are more things that can convince you to try it out. So let’s talk about other advantages of night hiking:
- A totally new experience – Everyone spends their nights in a cozy bed, but what if you want to experience something more? Hiking in the day is very common, but doing it during nighttime will give you totally different feelings. Even your boring local mountains will make you happy, so if you are already bored of hiking then you should try it out at night.
- It is romantic – If you and your partner want to spend time in a romantic way then hiking at night is a great option for you. Walking in the shine of the moon with the loved one is perfect, especially if you will be able to do that during a full moon. If you would like to do that with your friend that could end up a bit weird, but why not!
- It sharpens your primal senses – Being in nature during the day is creating between you and nature some sort of connection, but during the night your brain starts to make your senses even sharper due to the limited vision. The sharpest be your sense of hearing so be aware that you will start to hear a lot more than before during your hike.
- Being scared – It is weird for most people but it really is a thing! Some people just like to be scared and it is not that uncommon, let’s take for example horror movies. Why do they exist? Because people love to be scared and feel that adrenaline.
- Night sky – We won’t say much here because we talked about it a lot before in this article.
Those are the most often pointed out advantages of night hiking, so if you are currently thinking about it but you are not convinced enough yet, then make sure to read them at least twice!
Disadvantages of night hiking
Unfortunately, hiking during the night has a lot more disadvantages and can be very dangerous if you are not properly prepared, but for now, let’s point out the disadvantages of night hiking:
- Low temperature – Nights are almost always way colder than noons, that’s why you need to bring additional clothes to warm up yourself. A lot of people just don’t like being cold, and hiking while cold is harder and you can catch a cold.
- Being scared – We also added this point to the advantages but for many people being scared is a big disadvantage. Some people won’t even get out of your car due to them being scared of walking in the dark.
- Wild animals – Some animals are more active during the night, and those animals are often predators who you don’t want to see in the middle of the forest at night. Wild animal encounters are very rare but they can happen.
- Slower pace – Due to the limit of your vision you won’t be able to walk at your normal pace, so the overall time spent on your hike will be longer.
- Higher chance of an injury – It’s harder to notice every single rock on the ground with your flashlight, and that can be a reason for twisting an ankle of yours.
- Ruining your day schedule – If you are planning a night trip that means that you will have to sleep before or right after that trip, which means that the rest of your day you will sleep. That will force you to another change in your sleeping schedule.
- Additional package – You will need to bring so additional clothes to keep you warm, also if you want to watch stars then a blanket would be necessary, and also a few flashlights could be useful. Every additional item will make you carry more pounds.
- The possibility of losing the way back – It’s hard to navigate at night because your sight is very limited and you can’t look for viewpoints that you could use to navigate around. You can even miss another path that’s near you or the next crossing.
There are more disadvantages and things like being scared or thinking about dangers are a big factor in terms of making a choice if the night hiking is worth trying out.
In summary – Why do people insist on night hiking?
People would like to try out something different or more extreme than normal hiking, something that will give them more adrenaline, that’s why they are thinking about hiking at night. It can be a good way to check how brave you are but think about it twice because it requires more preparation than a normal day hiking.
If you are thinking seriously about hiking during the night you should check out our new article about “Why I Can’t Sleep Before Hike? – 5 Tips To Fall Asleep Fast“. That will let you know what to do to not feel sleepy during your next hike.
