Experienced hikers -- No hat, no eye protection?

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What jellyree said.

Why cast the lovely Reese Witherspoon if you’re going to plonk a dowdy hiking hat and shades on her and make her face all greasy with sunscreen? Also, Cheryl Strayed was not an experienced hiker (packed too much gear, wore wrong boot size) so perhaps she forgot to protect her head too.

I don't know about sunglasses, but the book does mention her hat. For the movie, showing the actress' face seems more important that these details.

www.freerice.com

Heck, your legs can burn if you are wearing shorts on long summer hikes.

I think that is the point of a lot of these hiker movies. People get out there thinking all you need for a hike is working legs.

They did have a thing where get got blisters didn't they? I don't remember this movie too well other than that I liked it.

I've lived in Northern California for 50 years and have done a fair amount of hiking and camping along the coastline and in the Sierras. I'm very light skinned and definitely sunburn easily. Regardless of the fact that this film may have wanted to show off its star's face, I immediately thought it was nuts to show her hiking all day, whether in the desert or mountains, without at least a hat as well as sunglasses (they could have been hanging on a cord around her neck for most of the shots, if they wanted to show her
face). The lack of these important 'details' was pretty glaring and somewhat irritating.

I didn't want to denigrate Cheryl for that omission as I have to assume she actually did have those items. But, for ANYONE hiking the desert as well as being in the sun, day after day, not having a hat and sunglasses is totally ridiculous. It takes very little reflection off snow to potentially damage your eyes/corneas and a 50+ UV protection hat should be nearly as important as water. Beside protecting her scalp and face, it can significantly decrease the chance of heat stroke.

If she had puchased the bulk of her equipment at REI (or any other competent outdoor sports retailer), they most definitely would have strongly recommended she purchase both a protective hat as well as sunglasses. So, we'll just have to assume the director et al overlooked these items as critical to her equipment.

As to her having had zero experience doing any backpacking, it was nuts for her to fail to fully familiarize herself with ALL her equipment and make sure everything was in workimg order prior to heading out on a 1,000 mile solo hike. Finding out you don't have the right fuel for your stove is really crazy. I mean, really . . . she was potentially putting her life at risk here.

Well, it's Hollywood. And, not having read Cheryl's book, it's hard to know how she actually prepared for this grueling trek. I actually never felt she was having a very challenging time on her journey. Also, if it had been me, I would have at least had Mace as protection from aggressive men I might meet along the way, such as the hunters. "Forwarned is forearmed!"

Nonetheless, I'm very glad she made the entire trek, safe and sound! And, though I'm not sure she necessarily 'learned' that much on this journey, I do believe she was able to get in touch with some deep feelings about her relationship with her sweet, positive Mom and uncover/express her real grief and sadness at losing her to Cancer.

The scene at the hospital, where she has to instantly deal with her Mom's death, hit me really hard. I lost my sister (only 52) three and a half years ago to Cancer and I haven't gotten over it at all. I was alone with her as she died and had to snap into action to immediately call family members and deal with all the arrangements. I've largely kept my feelings about her death to myself, but her loss left a big hole in my heart and soul. I sorely miss her everyday. Life can be so unfair but we go on the best we can . . . This film did help me get back in touch with that moment and my tremendous sadness at losing someone so terribly important to me. I deeply appreciate that gift. . . .

Bon Voyage, to my dear, sweet Peggy and to Cheryl's Mom!

It's one thing to go on a (probably short?) outing and quite another one to be for weeks outdoors without end or protection. While I'm also no big fan of sunglasses and just wear them if it really feels necessary, it would seem rather odd to not bring any on such a trip. Even more so a hat or headscarf, which is undoubtedly one of the (very light) essentials of hiking more than a few hours in a place with a decent amount of solar irradiation. Even more since we also don't see her using any other form of sun protection, nor does in the "inventory" in the first camp a huge bottle of sunscreen pop up.

So yes, that is definitely one of the irritating flaws of this movie. I don't know what kind of hikes you are doing, but it's definitely not normal to head out this unprotected to a overland hike like portrayed in this movie. Doing that would be at least as stupid as many of the other silly mistakes she made. Except that for most others at least some consequences were shown, e.g. the weight, the shoes. The sun however seemed to be no issue at all, which is rather absurd for such a pale "white bread" in the middle of the desert. I'm of the same skin type as she is and I know therefore very well how you'd crisp up in a few hours on the first day.

Long story short: As a fairly experienced hiker, a lot of the hiking/outdoor experience shown in this movie felt very unnatural and unrealistic and definitely took me out of the story..

No one who participates in your leadership wears glasses? Do they have to take them off every couple minutes? I've worn glasses all my life (out of the womb, yes) and I deal with it. Hat's can make your head sweatier, yes, but if you are facing South or West late in the day, your face is going to burn, especially if you are sweating and the Sun is refracting through the droplets. It's when you know the exposure is extreme is when you should be doing things about it. Spending a day in the sun likely won't change your life, but continued exposure should be avoided.

I hope your melanoma is curable when you get it.

The person who actually took the hike, that Reese is portraying, was massively unprepared. That's part of the story.

Too many hikers are fast to slam this film for not being realistic but that was the reality of this hike, an unprepared person struggling with things they didn't understand both on the trail and in their own life.

What's good for a hat in the hot sun is those safari hats. They are held off your skin so they do not make your head get hot, and they have ventilation holes in them and are very lightweight. I don't think baseball caps are that great, but they do keep the sun out of your eyes.

I think people want to have a genuine experience and think they will be OK, but I've read a few books about people making these hikes and there are some pretty painful mistakes, and sometimes fatal mistakes you can make. Hydration is super-important. Shoes and the right kind of socks, and making sure your feet do not sweat and get wet.

I liked this movie.