===Guiding Principles, Appropriate Attitude and Required Skills===
To ====Guiding Principles==== In the last years I had numerous profound talks about the essence of hiking and what it takes to appreciate such an endeavor in a sustainable manner. What you will now read is the résumé of this exchange of ideas with hikers that walked on the GPT or did other long distance hikes. The following two guiding principles summarize this combined expertise and apply it to the GPT: '''1. Before you depart understand the GPT to make appropriate choices and get properly prepared.''' '''2. While being on the GPT adopt to the land and the people to become a sustaining and contributing guest.''' ====Before you depart: Understand==== One of the most important skills before you depart is your capability to read. In particular experienced hikers are at risk to make incorrect assumptions and rely on a false sense of expertise because the GPT is so different compared to other long distance trails. That’s one of the reasons why some highly experienced thru-hiker failed to enjoy this trail: They did not understand the GPT and as a consequence made inappropriate choices and departed unprepared. Therefore read this entire article and maybe read it again. Follow the links to additional sources of information i.e. on Wikipedia and read blogs of other hikers that walked on the GPT. These blogs are essential to get a wider and more personal perspective of the trail. Read about Chile and Argentina and learn more about Patagonia. This article does not intent to be issueda sufficient source of information; it’s just an introduction and a general guide how to get prepared. Download the trail file and virtually hike on the GPT by reviewing the tracks in detail in Google Earth. That’s essential to better understand the landscape and the nature of this trail network. Get road maps and guide books for Chile and Argentina in particular if have not been to one of these countries before. There will be more than enough surprises along the trail so eliminate the avoidable once by understanding what you are considering to do. If you find this article to long, to repetitive and to confusing then be assured that the GPT is much worse. If your curiosity and patience runs out while reading this text then your patience and interest will run out rather quickly on the trail. If you don’t make to the end of this article than better don’t start with the GPT. Understand your motives and objectives and be honest with yourself. The GPT is quite special and only a specific sort of hiker will appreciate this route network. If you have seen images of Patagonia and you are now looking to get to these places then the GPT is probably not the right choice. Someone who looks for an athletic walking challenge or a thru-hike will quickly be driven into frustration by this weird route compilation. It’s a discovery network and only hikers that wish to discover Patagonia and the adjacent regions should contemplate with hiking and packrafting on the GPT. If you have specific questions to the GPT that are not answered in this article then ask. I have provided my email in this article and with the current volume of requests I can normally arrange a Skype call if I see genuine interest and that the available information is being read and digested. ====Before you depart: Choose=== Don’t take it for granted that the GPT is your trail. If you look for some “normal” hikes in Patagonia with limited time available then I suggest visiting the national parks and bus in between. There are good guide books available that describe numerous established hiking routes in more detail. In particular if you don’t speak Spanish stick to these better known and more visited places that you find i.e. in the “Lonely Planet – Hiking in Patagonia” guide book. There a couple of questions that quickly indicate if the GPT is a suitable choice for you or not. If you answer any of the below questions with a “No” than better consider other trails: 1. Do you have some reasonable good conversational Spanish skills? Could you explain to a local resident in Spanish what you are doing there and keep up in a more confrontational conversation if necessary? 2. Do you have extensive Outdoor experience? Long distance hiking experience is not required but being competent in moving and living under the sky in different landscapes is crucial on this trail (forest, steppe, desert-like landscapes). 3. Do you really look for a demanding unpredictable discovery hike? Can you deal with being unable to plan your trip in detail? Are you willing to backtrack if a route turns out impassible? If you have very specific expectations than this indicates that you probably don’t want to discover. 4. Do you have at least six weeks in Chile and Argentina available? If you have less time available than taking some of the established hiking routes is more appropriate and effective to see several parts of Patagonia. 5. Do you have monthly budget of 1000 USD (or as bare minimum 800 USD) after having paid your gear and the airfare? Don’t undermine the cost of living in Chile and Argentina. Be honest with yourself! If you answer any of these questions with “No” than this trail might disappoint you, drive you into frustration or put you in harm’s way. If you opt to hike on the GPT than you must take several decision while you prepare your hike. 1. Do you want to hike only or do you want to packraft as well? The answer to this question will determine the equipment you need and what zones to tackle. You can easily fill an entire season with hiking on sections that are very attractive for walking but where carrying a packraft is not beneficial. The same applies to packrafting: you can fill a four to five month period packrafting in areas where carrying such a light-weight boat really pays off. I suggest opting for the one or the other and not mingling both choices into one season except if you have a trustworthy place in Chile to leave your packrafting gear while hiking without your (loved) boat. 2. Do you want to hike a continuous part of the GPT with connecting footsteps or do you want to visit several selected sections? For some hikers connecting footsteps are an essential concept and motivator to stay on track while others don’t mind to bridge a less attractive part by public transportation or hitchhiking. Choose what is appropriate for you. And please do not look down on others but respect individual choices. Hike your hike. 3. Do you want to follow the regular route or will you attempt in some areas more remote investigation options? The answer to this question is really a matter of personal interest and capability. I have intentionally created the GPT as a wide network with as many options as feasible because I’m fully aware that my way of walking with my personal preferences is not everyone’s best choice. For hikes that are accustomed to follow a single trail this might be irritating but for such hikers the GPT is probably not right trail anyway. You will finally need to take these decisions on the trial but you need to get prepared before you leave. Therefore start your hike in Google Earth by looking at these options to make educated choices later on the trail. One hiker summarized this Vielfalt with these words: “The GPT is a mosaic out of which everyone needs to assemble his trail.” 4. Understand the suitable timing of the different sections and align your travel plans accordingly. Certain sections became passable relatively early in the season while others can only be hiked safely after most of the snow is molten and the river levels normalized. Don’t assume wrongly that you will face more restrictions in the south. It’s the opposite; the more mountainous northern sections have the smaller seasonal window while the generally lower southern section’s permit an earlier start or later finish even if the climate is generally more volatile in the south. 5. Choose in what direction you will travel. If you packraft than several key sections are only floatable southbound what determines the generally recommended packrafting orientation. But some optional packrafting routes can only be taken northbound. Verify your choices carefully otherwise you may reach a river that just flows in the “wrong” direction! If you are hiking you are freer to choose and change your direction of travel. Only at certain section you might run into permit and permission issue if have made a wrong choice. ====Before you depart: Get prepared==== If you opt to hike or packraft along the GPT and your Spanish is still insufficient, than learn and improve your Spanish. Since you are just a guest on an informal trail network you need to explain to herdsmen, indigenous Pehuenche, settlers and police what you are doing. You need to ask for direction, organize your resupply by either figuring out what is available on the route or taking public transportation to resupply towns off the trail. For this you need to ask locals for bus schedules, routes and stops. Don’t expect anyone along the trail to speak English. Only in the tourist town and national parks with international profile you will somehow get along with English. Study the route network that is relevant for you and become an expert in setting up the GPS trail files on your GPS devise and your backup systems i.e. a smart phone and an InReach satellite pager. Exercise how to follow a track on your GPS if you never done it before. It’s not as simple as it seems. Test the battery running times of your GPS and your emergency satellite communicator to plan your recharging on the trail. Test also the record function of your GPS to create tracks and waypoints. This is essential to become a contributor. Don’t undermine this tech stuff and don’t postpone it to the end! A good proportion of the hikers that attempted walking on the GPT experienced substantial struggles because they lacked these “nerdy” skills. Some hikers were stopped by issues as simple as not being able to make an already uploaded route visible on the GPS devise. Others got stuck on overgrown trails and had to backtrack several days because they did not load the last update before they departed. The irony was I send them greatly improved route several for exactly this area weeks before they departed. I’m not providing and I’m also not planning to provide a specific and detailed gear list with my personal equipment choices and recommendations. What I plan to issue is some general guidance and examples of what other hikers used with success. Suitable gear is essential but it must be suitable for you and what you are comfortable and skilled with to use. So far appreciation and disappointment on the trail was rarely linked to gear but primarily to attitude. Being light is good and important but not all aspects of the ultra-light philosophy are suitable for this trail.
===Understanding your Motives===
