Carrying 20 kilos on your back needs practice

As soon as I saw my packing list in full for the first time and estimated the total weight before water at around 15 kilos, I realized that hiking with up to 23 kilometers and 2,800 meters of elevation gain per day would open up a completely different world of strain on my body than in the initial early thoughts about the trip. On top of that, the new tent and the new hiking boots made it all the more important to get plenty of practice hiking in this setup.

So I came up with a two-step plan to prepare properly for the trip: first try out the equipment itself, then practice hiking longer distances.

Gear needs to be tested

Since I had only ordered the equipment quite shortly before departure, three days before my booked bus connection to the Alps I found myself in downtown Heidelberg, equipped with my new backpack, containing nothing but the new tent as well as volumes “A” to “tZ” of the encyclopedia series “DER BROCKHAUS” (“A” to “tZ” being 8 of the 15 books, total weight about 13 kilograms). The books were of course more of a weight simulator than reading material for the road, because you can walk up to the Heidelberger Königsstuhl, my destination for the day, faster than you could get through the Brockhaus from chapter “AA” to “AB”.

With the brand-new shoes (Salewa Mtn Trainer 2) in size 46.5, I took my first steps with the heavy backpack on my back toward the Heidelberger Königsstuhl. My first impression of the new equipment could perhaps be described as “Oh wow!”: on the one hand, “Oh wow, this backpack is pretty heavy with all that literature,” and on the other, “Oh wow, these shoes don’t fit as well as I thought.” To be honest, not exactly the best first feelings you can have with new gear after investing about 3,500 euros in the whole thing.

While the feeling of the backpack being heavy mostly faded after the first 20 minutes, the unpleasant impression of the shoes remained, until after just under 45 minutes, 190 meters of elevation gain, and 3 kilometers of walking, I took the shoes off and had to realize that I had managed to rub two truly gigantic blisters onto each of my heels. Damn, I really should have put on blister plasters as a preventive measure, and also actually brought some along on this mini hike in the first place.

But those thoughts were not much help now either - first finish the hike and then think about what to do with my heels until the start of the trek.

So I kept walking, and after another three quarters of an hour I was already standing on the viewing platform of the Königsstuhl.