Brews and Views - Elevate Your Beer Hiking Gear

If you’ve never been beer hiking, we’ve got you covered. You might even be wondering, “What is beer hiking?”

Beer hiking is when you combine two enjoyable activities that hold the power to bring people together. You load up with a few favorite snacks and beer, hike mountainous terrain together and finish off the hike by cracking open a celebratory cold one and enjoying the brews and views before you. Whether it’s your friends, your family, or some new acquaintances, it’s a fun way to bond. When you add the two together you have beer hiking, the extracurricular jackpot. (It’s also a great way to entice your non-hiking friends into trying out a new activity)

We’ve put together some helpful tips and answered a few important questions to elevate your beer hiking experience.

Can I Bring Alcohol While Hiking?

Sure, you can! If you do so safely, it’s no problem. Consider leaving the glass bottles at home and instead bring your favorite canned beverages. Glass is easily broken, and we don’t want to leave any behind or create a potentially dangerous situation.

However, if your absolute favorite beer comes from a bottle or is homemade and you absolutely insist on those being the end reward, GrowlerWerks uKeg Go Carbonated Growler Dispenser is a creative way to keep your beer fresh and cold. It comes in two sizes, 64 oz and 128 oz. It keeps your carbonated beverages cool and carbonated by using double-wall stainless steel vacuum insulation and a regulator cap. The regulator cap gives you two options, high carbonation or low carbonation, and a 3-position dispenser tap to pour from.

It keeps glass off the trails and keeps your favorite beer fresh and carbonated for several days or weeks, although sure you won’t wait that long to drink it.

How Do I Keep My Beer Cold On My Hike?

Beer hikes require a little more preparation than simply packing up a car and heading to a brewery. You should bring tools and accessories to accompany you to that will make your journey easier so that you and your friends can safely enjoy a cold beer at the end of your destination.

If you’re thinking, “How do I get to the top of a mountain on a hot summer day and still keep my beer cold?”, stop. I have the solution right here. Presenting to you, a cooler and backpack in one. The TOURIT Leak-Proof, Waterproof, Soft Sided Cooler Backpack. It has everything you could possibly need. This backpack is 17.71” X13.78” X9.84” of waterproof, insulated, leakproof BPA free material. Its large compartment holds up to 36 cans and ice and features an airtight zipper keeping your food and beverages cold for up to 3 days.

That’s plenty of room to fill with beer, water, and even a few snacks. The TOURIT also features two side pockets for dry storage, so you will always have a place to put your phone or other dry accessories.

Speaking of accessories, I have a cool and convenient one that will make opening your beer a breeze. When you just finished a hike the last thing you want to do is fumble around with a can of beer trying to get it open. I suggest bringing The Draft Top 3.0 Original Beer Can Opener. It’s small and won’t add any additional baggage for the trip. It allows you to cut the top of the can off leaving smooth edges so you can safely sip your drinks quicker.

Is It Safe To Drink and Hike?

Just like any sport, taking precautions is important. You should know what your physical limits are before going on an adventure. What I’m trying to say is, if you’re a novice hiker, maybe don’t slam 2 IPAs with an ABV of 9% while attempting to climb Mt. Everest for the first time.

When you’re on a beer hike, it’s extremely important to prioritize hydration. And no, your light beers do not count as water. If you don’t feel like lugging around a giant water bottle, this MengK Outdoor Hydration Pack Running Vest makes hydrating easy and accessible. It holds up to 2L of water in the water bladder and has a place on the front of the waist for a soft water bottle that holds up to 350 ml.

This vest is lightweight with mesh straps and has shoulder pouches for easily stored snacks also.

Another thing to consider when hiking is good footwear. Hiking with shoes that have good support and traction on the bottom are important, especially when venturing through the woods where there may be hidden holes or rocky hills. I recommend the Salomon Men's X Ultra Pioneer Shoe and the Salomon Women's X Ultra Pioneer Shoes.

These are both waterproof shoes that are lightweight and made with a rubber sole to brave all kinds of weather and terrain. Whether you’re stomping through snow or shuffling through the woods, these would be a great and dependable pair to have on hand.

While we’re talking about tools that make hiking physically easier, you can always use trekking poles. These are used to help keep you well balanced while tromping through unfamiliar or uneven terrain or while carrying extra weight on your back. Black Diamond Alpine Carbon Cork Trekking Poles are a smart option, although a bit pricier than some of its competitors.

It’s made of 100% light weight carbon steel and features FlickLock Pro adjustability and cork grip handles with straps for ultimate stability and grip.

How Do I Find Hiking Trails Around Me?

You can always start off with browsing the almighty internet for places to explore. Oftentimes trails branch off from one another, creating intricate paths that lead in all different directions. With that being said, consider using a GPS navigator. It’s also smart to have on hand just in case you lose your way in the different trails.

You can also use it to explore the topographic maps to see if any other trails in the area pique your interest.

Getting lost in the woods can flip your entire hiking experience from “strolling through a beautiful, enchanted forest” to the Blair Witch Project. You don’t want to get lost, especially in unfamiliar territory where every rock and tree look the same as the last.

Until google or apple maps has developed a GPS system that works without cellphone reception, you should consider getting a GPS navigator. Something like the Garmin eTrex 22x, Rugged Handheld GPS Navigator. This specific handheld GPS relies on Satellite Service, so you don’t have to worry about your phone losing reception or dying. It’s preloaded with TopoActive maps that will show you roads and trails that can be used for either cycling or hiking. It also holds 8 GB of internal memory and contains a slot for a micro-SD card so you can always add more memory. All it takes to power this guy is two AA batteries, and its battery life lasts up to 25 hours in GPS mode.