LEARNING TO BACKPACK AS AN ADULT By Dominique Sabins, writer and outdoor enthusiast
Dominique enjoying the view of Mt. Olympus. All photos courtesy of Dominique Sabins.
s a San Francisco-born and raised city girl, I used to dread backpacking. My love of the outdoors inspired me to move to the Pacific Northwest in 2016, but backpacking remained a beast I feared to tackle.
A
choice was Mt. Si, just outside of North Bend. Its climbs were even steeper than the trail I would be doing for my trip, and I figured that training somewhere more difficult would boost my confidence.
After having car camped and day hiked for three years, backpacking began to pique my interest. I wanted to explore the more untouched Pacific Northwest wilderness and step outside my comfort zone. So, last summer, I gathered the Ten Essentials and embarked on my first backpacking trip: Seven Lakes Basin in Olympic National Park.
To practice carrying a heavy backpack uphill, I filled my dayhiking pack with extra weight by using gallon jugs of water. If I found myself too exhausted on a training hike, I could lighten my pack by dumping out some water and finishing the trail. As time went on, I gradually increased the aMt. of water until I reached my desired pack weight.
Preparing for the trail
Persevering through defeat
To prepare for my expedition, I closely studied the trail. Seven Lakes Basin clocks in at roughly 20 miles — depending on how much you explore around the lakes — and includes about 5,120 feet of elevation gain. I knew that the elevation would be the hardest part for me, so I started training six months before my trip and made elevation acclimation my top priority.
My first training session was not a success.
My backpacking partner and I intended to cover over 3,000 feet of elevation in only six miles during the first day. To practice and build strength, I set my sights on day hikes that had comparable elevation gains. My training location of
28
mountaineer | summer 2023
Mt. Si begins with an immediate uphill climb and endless switchbacks. I was carrying around 20 pounds in my pack — something I had never tried before — and couldn’t make it to the end of the trail. After about two hours of non-stop elevation gain, I collapsed on a nearby bench. My legs were shaking and I was completely out of energy. About halfway up, I turned around. This first failure left me deflated. I was consumed with the anxiety that I wouldn’t be able to build the conditioning to complete my backpacking trip. As I drove home, fears swarmed