Wearing headphones while hiking is uncomfortable, and wearing earbuds for any length of time is always uncomfortable - hiking or not. They also fall out.

As others have said - not really a big deal. Either get ahead of them and maintain a significant distance, or stay behind and do so.

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anigbrowl 9 hours ago | parent | next [-]

No. This is YOUR problem. If you want to play your own music on a speaker, you're making your problem everyone else's problem. Grow up.

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BeetleB 9 hours ago | parent [-]

You are being needlessly triggered, to the point that you're not parsing the thread well.

1. I didn't say I do this. It's not my problem.

2. You're exaggerating by saying "everyone else's problem". As is clear from the thread, only certain people view it as a problem.

I also don't like people taking selfies on trails. But I know how not to have my contentment be affected by minor problems.

Learn to share the trail and live with others different from you.

	▲	anigbrowl 9 hours ago \| parent [-]
		No. Your first sentence is framed from the point of view of your own experience. Regardless, I will not tolerate sound pollution like this. It's one thing in the city, where noise is chronic and endemic. Bringing that into a natural setting is simply inconsiderate of others, and it is the inconsiderate person who must change their behavior, not the people who are being imposed upon.

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gensym 10 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

It is a big deal. It means for a lot of people there's nowhere they can go to actually enjoy the sound of nature. The strategy of getting ahead or staying behind doesn't work when there are switchbacks or crowded trails. The strategy that does work is to get fit enough to go deep into the backcountry because the troglodytes that bring speakers to hikes lack the discipline to ever get that far.

	▲	BeetleB 9 hours ago \| parent [-]
		> The strategy of getting ahead or staying behind doesn't work when there are switchbacks or crowded trails. If a trail is crowded, you won't hear much of the sound of nature, whether someone is playing music or now. It all depends on where you live, and what access you have. Nature is not far from me, so I have several options within an hour's drive.

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latexr 10 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

https://shokz.com

There you go. Quite comfortable, don’t have to stick them inside your ears, and still allows you to perceive the sounds around you.

In the spirit of fairness, I’ll also share the cons from my experience: First is battery life isn’t as good as headphones. That’s somewhat obvious as they’re much smaller, but they will still last you the whole day so not really an issue for hiking. Second one is that because they don’t block outside sounds, they’re not appropriate for audiobooks/podcasts while walking in the city. Again, not an issue for hiking.

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BeetleB 9 hours ago | parent [-]

Whether they realize it or not, most of the population can't afford this. Cheap Bluetooth speakers are, well, cheap!

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lostlogin 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

> Cheap Bluetooth speakers are, well, cheap!

And so are cheap headphones.

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latexr 9 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Then buy a cheaper brand. I just did a no-effort search on Amazon and found some under $30.

Additionally, “I can’t afford the alternative” is not a valid excuse to be an asshole to those around you.

	▲	BeetleB 9 hours ago \| parent [-]
		What constitutes being an asshole is very much the point of contention in this thread. Your comment is borderline tautological.