The Joys of Bushwhacking

I consider myself a lifelong hiker, with many miles logged on overnight trips into wild areas in the upper Midwest and Southwest, not to mention all of my local walks at well-travelled forest preserves close to home. While I normally hike on established trails, I occasionally wander off the path, usually for short spells to explore interesting natural features, plants, etc. seen from the trail. I have discovered, like many seasoned hikers, that bushwhacking – off-trail hiking – elevates the experience of being immersed in a landscape in an almost meditative way. Note that I am making a clear distinction between conscious and confident off-trail hiking and being lost with no clear sense of direction and how to get back to your starting point. More about that later.

The appealing thing about bushwhacking is that it requires mindfulness, awareness and focus. Walking down a well-trod trail, you can be lost in thought or in conversation when hiking with others, especially if it’s a path you’ve walked often. On a trail, your direction of travel is pre-determined, and what you’ll see and experience is more or less curated for you. When hiking off-trail, you are forced to be observant of not just the uneven terrain but the vegetation (low-hanging branches or thorny scrub), where you put your hands and feet (poison ivy, snakes, etc.), and your direction of travel. While focusing on what is in front of you, you must also maintain an awareness of what lies ahead and beyond. In most cases, you will still have a destination. It’s just that you’ve decided to take the long and scenic route. You’ve decided to open yourself up to new discoveries and adventures. At times, your destination may simply be solitude, quiet, an incredible view, a place to sit and meditate or write. At other times, you are simply choosing to take an alternate and unmarked route from here to there. The rewards are a deep sense of connection with your natural surroundings, freedom of travel, unexpected surprises, and the confidence to know that that you can trust your sense of direction and intuition.

Know Where You’re Going…sort of

While your specific route is not defined in advance, knowing where you are going is still important in bushwhacking. In fact, it’s very important when setting off into large, remote wilderness areas. You want to have a plan and be prepared to alter it if needed. You may encounter unexpected obstacles. You may twist your ankle (or worse). You may suddenly remember that your wife sent you to the store to pick up a few items (time for an evaluation). You will certainly encounter obstacles and experience moments of indecision concerning your route, and you want to be equipped to make those decisions with confidence. Navigation skills are essential, and while GPS and/or one of the hiking apps recommended for off-trail hiking, such as Avenza or Gaia GPS, can be useful, they shouldn’t be solely relied upon when setting out into remote wilderness areas. You can lose cellphone coverage and/or batteries can lose power. In these more remote areas, a topographic map and compass skills are needed so that you can not only triangulate to determine your position if needed in relation to nearby roads and prominent landforms but assess the terrain along your intended route. You don’t want to suddenly find yourself at the edge of a steep drop or extensive swamp when your ultimate destination requires you to keep going forward. Proper navigation with a topo map would have shown that sudden elevation change or low-lying swamp and allowed you to divert around them in advance.

In addition to navigational skills and aids, one should also be equipped to walk through off-trail areas with sturdy shoes, long pants and long-sleeve shirt or jacket (brambles), insect repellent applied to ankles and legs (ticks), hiking poles, water, and a snack. You may also want to consider bringing toilet paper (you never know) and matches to start a warming fire if needed. If you’re out later in the day, also consider bringing a headlamp in case you end up being out later than expected. Most people get into trouble in the outdoors when they are unprepared. When bushwhacking with a companion, it is important to stay together but not follow each other’s footsteps. One of the mantras of backcountry travel is ‘Leave no Trace.’ You should be trying to minimize your impact on plants and wildlife as much as possible.

Bushwhacking in large remote areas is not recommended as a solo venture. If some sort of mishap or fall were to occur, rescuers would be unlikely to locate you, even if you had a working cellphone with reception. In many established national and state parks, off-trail hiking is not permitted. This is also true of high-quality nature preserves, where sensitive plant communities or rare wildlife habitat could be damaged by off-trail tromping around.

Start with the Familiar

Since many of you are likely already hesitant, if not aghast, at the idea of navigating off-trail in a remote wilderness, I would recommend less ambitious bushwhacking at a familiar forest preserve or wildland reserve (where permitted). Once you are familiar with the terrain and the trails, you can begin to venture off trail, allowing the land and the vegetation patterns to guide you. Start by cutting off in the direction of where you know another trail to be. For these shorter duration and safer excursions, apps such as AllTrails work quite well. Advanced map and compass skills are not necessary, though still helpful. Not only will the app show you where the trails and trailheads are but will show your location relative to these, as illustrated below.

Savor the joys of meandering, allowing the land to share its secrets. Be patient with yourself, and take your time. Stop frequently to simply stand or sit in silence. As you become more experienced and comfortable with bushwhacking, you can venture into larger sites and those with more challenging terrain. Bring a friend and share the joy and the magic!