New Year's Resolutions for Hikers

Did you know that you can achieve most of your New Year's Resolutions simply by hiking?

It's true! Of the Top Ten New Year's Resolutions suggested on About.com, most can be directly applicable to hikers. Here are a few they noted that you might consider through a hiking lens as we head into 2011:

Spend more time with family and friends: There are few better ways to spend quality time with family or friends than going hiking together. You get to share an experience, achieve a fun goal and spend undivided time with one another.

Get fit & lose weight: Many people start to hike for simply this reason. If a gym isn't your cup of tea, try hiking and watch the pounds melt away as you burn lots and lots of calories. Hiking offers sustained exercise - great for stamina,  strength-building and weight loss. If you build hiking into your exercise and weight loss programs, you will certainly see results.

Enjoy life more: Whether its connecting with your friends and family on the trail, the quiet meditation of hiking silently through the forest, the clarity you get from the exercise or the beauty of a mountain view, hiking can help you enjoy your life more.

Learn something new: No time like the present! There are always new things to learn on the trail - backpacking, orienteering, scrambling, wilderness first aid, outdoor photography. Think of a twist to your usual hiking regime in 2011.

Help others: Have you ever volunteered on trail? WTA's Trail Maintenance program offers trail work parties six days a week. Whether you're 8 or 80, you can give back to other hikers by volunteering your time maintaining trails.

So what are you waiting for? Grab a pen and paper and start jotting down your New Year's Resolutions for 2011. Dream about where you want to go, who you want to do it with and how often you're going to go. Then come pack to wta.org and write a Trip Report about your adventures.

And have a very Happy New Year!