The Community of Hiking

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“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.”  — John Muir


 

One of the best things about hiking is the community of people that you meet. Many of the trips are unforgettable not only due to the gorgeous scenery but to the amazing companions you meet along the way. Talking to people from different backgrounds is what makes life more interesting and there is no better way to build a friendship and a community than by taking a hike together. Here are some of my favorite communities I’ve met through the various journeys I’ve taken along the way. Each person I’ve met has impacted me with laughter, joy, compassion and storytelling.

Argentina: 

We met a wonderful couple from Italy on their honeymoon at Los Glaciares National Park in Argentina. Here we are at the end of a spectacular day hiking returning to El Chalten, a tiny outpost in the middle of nowhere.

Nepal:

We spent two weeks trekking with our two Nepalese guides. Lots of laughs along the way and good times at night playing cards over an ice cold beer. So many memories of this special time we shared together.

Walking along the Annapurna Trail with a local Monk.

The Machu Picchu hiking group at “The Bar in the Clouds”

Our entire group indulged in probably too many Cusquenas on the last day of our trek along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Yet we had a fabulous time for our last night together.  I can’t think of any other bar in the world with a view as amazing and special as this one!

France:

During a six day trek throughout Vanoise National Park we were never short of meeting new friends along the way. Evenings were always the most fun!

Picnic lunch

China:

And how could I ever forget this photo? I had just reached the top of the Great Wall of China and this fun-loving group of Chinese girls invited me as the alien blond intruder to be in their photo with them! How could I refuse?

Guatemala:

Then there was the early morning climb up the sacred Santa Maria Volcano where the local Mayans go to pray. A huge community of them were on the top chanting and picnicking watching the neighboring volcano erupt into steam.

This post was inspired by the Weekly Photo Challenge: Community. To view more entries, click here. 

51 thoughts on “The Community of Hiking”

  2. You get around, don’t you?!?

    A friend of mine told me after her vacation that Argentina is one of the most beautiful places on earth. Your first photo in this post tells me she wasn’t lying. 🙂

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Yes Argentina is amazing!!!! One of my favorite places of all. Pure magic!

      Reply ↓

  3. Pingback: Weekly Photo Challenge – Community | Joe's Musings

    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thank you!

      Reply ↓

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    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Yes it does!!! That is what community is all about!

      Reply ↓
  8. loca4motion – Phuket, Thailand – Travel feeds my soul. The kick of living in foreign cultures keeps me awake. Photography, writing and the great outdoors are my passions.
    loca4motion on said:

    Love this post and love hiking! I’m still in touch with people I met hiking years ago even though we only knew each other for a brief moment.

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thanks Lucy! I still have my heart set on Kilimanjaro. The timing just never seems to work out right. Still thinking about maybe next October but so much is up in the air right now.

      Reply ↓
      • loca4motion – Phuket, Thailand – Travel feeds my soul. The kick of living in foreign cultures keeps me awake. Photography, writing and the great outdoors are my passions.
        loca4motion on said:

        I’d love to climb Kilimanjaro too! I have a friend who went & said what an amazing experience it was! I’m sure the right time will present itself to you. You have other things to focus on at the moment.

      • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
        thirdeyemom on said:

        Yes indeed Lucy! 🙂 We are leaving today for Florida. Happy Holidays if I don’t check in with you. Then I’m headed to AZ on 12/26 to spend some time with my parents again. 🙂

      • loca4motion – Phuket, Thailand – Travel feeds my soul. The kick of living in foreign cultures keeps me awake. Photography, writing and the great outdoors are my passions.
        loca4motion on said:

        Thanks Nicole and Happy Holidays to you too! Thinking of you.

      • loca4motion – Phuket, Thailand – Travel feeds my soul. The kick of living in foreign cultures keeps me awake. Photography, writing and the great outdoors are my passions.
        loca4motion on said:

        Focus on good health for the family first. Kilimanjaro isn’t going anywhere.

  9. Hiking! What a beautiful community of people. I really wish I had my hiking pictures with me in Nicaragua. Most of the photos from Machu Picchu, the Alps, and other places I’ve hiked are not digital photos. Thanks for the beautiful reminders of a lifetime of gorgeous hikes.

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      You’re welcome! I just love to hike. It is my favorite kind of trip. Love being outdoors and meeting new people and cultures.

      Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thank you!

      Reply ↓
  11. The Tales of a Traveler – Bangalore – Software engineers by profession and travel freaks by passion. Its our sweet ,mad travel and fashion journal to inspire people that its not that hard to travel with a full-time job.
    njoyeverymoment on said:

    Lovely post …. I believe that it is always the journey that is more beautiful than the destination and meeting people make the trips more interesting and fun 😊

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Yes indeed! Thanks for your comment. 🙂

      Reply ↓

  12. Pingback: Weekly Photo Challenge: Community | A mom's blog

    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thank you! Glad you enjoyed!

      Reply ↓

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  15. Cris – I am a graduate of the New York Institute of Photography. I also spent four years as the Community (read, Assistant) Editor for a small-town daily newspaper in Iowa several years back. During this time, I won a first-place National Newspaper Association quarterly photography contest. I also won first and third place Iowa Newspaper Association photography awards. In <a href="http://thebiblicalapologist.wordpress.com/">The Biblical Apologist</a>, I search out interesting and un-traditional Biblical subjects to write about. In <a href="https://fstopfantasy.wordpress.com/">f-stop fantasy</a>, I try and capture the mystery and fantasy in everyday objects and scenarios. In <a href="https://oddsandendthoughts.wordpress.com">Odds and End Thoughts</a>, I write about whatever comes to mind.
    Cris on said:

    Wow! You guys really get around. I figure I’m doing good if I “hike” around the thirty acres of land I live on. However, I once did climb Mt. Timpanogas in Utah—11,749 feet, if I remember correctly. A group of arrived at precisely the moment it started snowing. I wrote about this trip at
    https://oddsandendthoughts.wordpress.com/2012/04/11/peril-atop-mount-timpanogas-an-adventure-to-last-a-lifetime/
    You will enjoy it; I promise.

    But for a different sort of community, here is my entry for this week’s challenge: Community (and Sub-communities)
    http://fstopfantasy.wordpress.com/2013/12/13/weekly-photo-challenge-community-and-sub-community/ 🙂

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Nice entries! Thanks for sharing. I would love to hike in Utah. I bet it is beautiful. Too bad your photos were destroyed but maybe it is all better in your memory! 🙂

      Reply ↓
      • Cris – I am a graduate of the New York Institute of Photography. I also spent four years as the Community (read, Assistant) Editor for a small-town daily newspaper in Iowa several years back. During this time, I won a first-place National Newspaper Association quarterly photography contest. I also won first and third place Iowa Newspaper Association photography awards. In <a href="http://thebiblicalapologist.wordpress.com/">The Biblical Apologist</a>, I search out interesting and un-traditional Biblical subjects to write about. In <a href="https://fstopfantasy.wordpress.com/">f-stop fantasy</a>, I try and capture the mystery and fantasy in everyday objects and scenarios. In <a href="https://oddsandendthoughts.wordpress.com">Odds and End Thoughts</a>, I write about whatever comes to mind.
        Cris on said:

        It would be better in my memory, if I had one. 🙂

        I have a few water damaged photographs, but that’s about it. I’d still like to do it again, just not that time of year, say, the middle of summer? Thanks for stopping by and enjoying my trip. 🙂

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  18. tatteredpassport – Perth. Western Australia – I stumbled over this for a while. How do I explain to you who I am? Do I tell you what I do for a living, do I tell you who I think I am, do I tell you what I want out of life? So I guess I kind of found and lost myself while traveling. Travel to me is exciting and relaxing, it helps me put my life into perspective, travel lifts me and also keeps grounded.
    mykombiandi on said:

    I am looking forward to meeting my hiking group in April next year when we attempt Everest Base Camp.

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Wonderful!!!! I did the Annapurna trek back in 2010 and loved it. I wrote about it quite a bit on my blog and started my blog just after it. I’ve heard Everest Base Camp is a great trek as well. Enjoy!!!!

      Reply ↓

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    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Yes indeed. Thanks! 🙂

      Reply ↓

  22. Pingback: Weekly Photo Challenge: Community | Beijing Daily Photo 2

  23. surrounded by rough nature humans for sure notice each other more than in a big city, where there are doing all their efforts to ignore each other. a walking team in the nature is not disturbed as much …

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      🙂 I like this comment a lot! Yes, it is true in the bigger cities people tend to lose respect and noticing each other. I’m lucky that my community here is rather small and everyone in my neighborhood tends to know one another or at least be friendly! 🙂

      Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Yes indeed! 🙂

      Reply ↓
  25. Ruth – Retired from Pittsburgh Public Schools Visual Art/photography teacher, photographer, knitter, reader, cook,baker, poet, filmmaker, Grandmother, traveler, Friend,
    Ruth on said:

    Enjoyed your photos today. 🙂

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      thank you!!!!

      Reply ↓

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  29. Hi there! Just discovered your blog, and I am so glad I did. I am having a wonderful time reading about your experiences (and neglecting school work). Thanks for the insight and the pictures.

    Best,
    Michelle

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thanks Michelle! I am so glad you enjoy it. I’m going on three years with this blog and really enjoy doing it. 🙂

      Reply ↓

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