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NorthBay Hikes - Basic FAQ
- What is NorthBay Hikes?
- How does the web site work?
- I can't login - how do I fix my cookies?
- What are the people like?
- What are the hikes like and where do you go?
- Do you have a schedule of events?
- I'm new to hiking - what advice do you have?
- Who can organize events and who are these people?
- Do you have physical email newsletters or phone trees?
- How can I share my pictures?
- For detailed web site information, see the advanced faq.
- Where to go for more questions.
What is NorthBay Hikes?
We're a group of people in Sonoma County, California, who enjoy hiking and other outdoor activities. All of the activities are volunteer led by members and are free. We do appreciate donations to help pay for the web hosting. We reject all suggestions for paid hikes or charity events.
How does this web site work?
Once you have created an account, you'll get email invitations for upcoming events. Select the yes or no boxes on the invite, and it will send an email to the organizer to let them know you are coming. There is no need to respond unless you want to join an event. Feel free to sign up and lurk for a bit until you read of an event you like. About half our members are infrequent hikers who only join us once or twice a year. If you are new to hiking, we recommend you wait for an easy hike.
You can log into the website at any time to see the current list of upcoming events and sign up. We recommend that you never log off when accessing it from your personal or work computer. That way you won't have to login or remember your password each time.
I can't login - how do I fix my cookies?
If you try to login or sign in, and you keep getting the login screen, you probably have cookies disabled for your web browser. Please see our how to enable cookies help page for more details on how to fix this problem.
What are the people like?
Our group has a lot of diversity and it changes from year to year and hike to hike. Currently the average age is people in their 40's with a good mix of 20's, 30's, 50's and 60's. About half the people are married, half single, all enjoy the outdoors. We have a mix of racial types and usually the same number of men and women. This is not a dating club, and not focused on any orientation, although many people have made lasting friendships and a few have found more. We're just a bunch of people who like to hike and enjoy each others company.
We've been around for over 10 years. Some people go through phases where they're really into hiking and sometimes sick of hiking for a while. We've found that most events have a similar makeup - about 50% regulars - people who've also been on one of the last few hikes - and about 50% people who only join us a few times a year. It keeps things refreshing, and there are almost always new faces.
What are the hikes like and where do you go?
It depends on the organizer. Rob tends to organize longer hikes, usually 8-10 miles, when he's in good shape. :) Paul prefers shorter hikes from 4-8 miles, and Judy sometimes organizes hikes in the rain. We also partner with other hiking groups, and sometimes join them on their events. While we have >400 members, many people only hike a few times a year, so our hike sizes range from 5-20 people. We try to avoid more than 25-30 people an event as it becomes difficult to coordinate and more job-like & less fun to manage.
We do more than hikes - Judy has done a yearly white water rafting trip, and some of the regulars will schedule a camping trip or two each year. Our group is open to a variety of activities, and you'll see cycling, river and sea kayaking, and perhaps even a skydiving invitation if Rob ever gets around to it.
Most of the events are in Sonoma County, with a few events in Marin, Napa, and lake counties. When it's hot in the summer, you'll often find us at the coast, including Stinson/Mt. Tam, Point Reyes, Bodega Bay to Jenner coastline, Salt Point, and a few of the slightly inland parks like Armstrong Woods, Pomo Canyon, and Muir Woods. When it's cold in the winter, you'll often see inland hikes on Mt. Saint Helena or Palisades, Sugarloaf/Hood Mountain, Robert Louis Stevenson Park, Mt. Burdell/Olompali, etc. As we're blessed with temperate weather, we mix it up on the best of days, and hit other parks between these 2 areas.
We usually carpool to our hikes, and encourage passengers to chip in a few $$ to whoever drives to help offset the cost of gas. As it takes a couple of hours of time to organize a hike and answer emails before the event, it's nice if the organizer can be a passenger and not have to drive as well.
Do you have a schedule of events?
No. The group is free, and we do all we can to keep it low maintenance. Big events such as white water rafting are organized a few months ahead, otherwise it's up to the organizer to do what works best for them. Paul and Cheryl tend to send their invites out ~Tuesday before an upcoming weekend event, and Rob is a bit more carefree (and likes to see how the weekend weather is shaping up) and sends his invites out Wed or Thurs before the weekend of the event.
You can always logon to the website to see a list of any & all future events.
Do you have physical (paper) newsletters or phone trees?
No, sorry. Again, we keep things simple and easy, or the organizers won't want to organize. If you don't have internet access, we recommend you use the public library or have a friend let you know.
As we have >400 members, calling or printing and mailing a newsletter to all would be expensive and exhausting.
I'm new to hiking - what advice do you have?
If you haven't been hiking for a while, we recommend you do a couple easy hikes or walks on your own first to see what you can do. See our favorite hikes or try something simple like a 2-3 mile hike along flat ground in the beautiful armstrong woods. If you're not very athletic, we recommend waiting for a simple 3-5 mile hike.
Not all of our hikes require hiking boots, but they are useful and are recommended if you want to do frequent or serious hiking. If you buy new boots, please wear them around the house for a few days to break them in before trying any hiking trails. TIP: bring a pair of sandals along with your hiking boots so you can wear them on the way home. Your feet will be much happier!
Who can organize events and who are these people?
Currently we have ~5 people who can organize events. Most of them are listed on the contact page. Being able to organize is special privilege granted to those we've hiked with many times and have shown an interest.
How can I share my pictures?
After you join us on an event, come back to our site and review it. On the review page is a place for your pictures url. (a web address that usually starts with http://) This requires that you use a picture service, such as facebook or Google's picassa, to upload and share your photos with others. Once you save your review, the pictures link will show up for others to see. (on the welcome home page, the event listing page, and the current event page)
Our pictures site contains many pictures of past events and links to other peoples picture sites. There is currently no easy way to upload pictures to this site. It was created before picassa or facebook ever existed.
Where to go for more questions
Advanced topics are covered in more detail on our advanced faq.
Please see our contact page for general questions. Please contact the event organizer with any event specific details. We hope to see you on a future hike!
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