Taking a break (while hiking).

I recently viewed my hiking stats from 2022.  Something I came to realize is that I take too many breaks and I am not necessarily efficient with my time spent on the trail in comparison to resting or stopping to observe nature, be it a viewpoint, flowers, fungi or anything else that captivates my attention.  

My Hike stats varied, which allowed me to take into consideration as to why. Some days I completed a mile within 15-25 minutes and other days, I may have taken almost an hour to complete a mile. What gives!? 
Well, I had to study the stats according to dates that indicated longer than usual completion timing. I most certainly  can say that on the days when I am photographing, are the indicators of much slower paced hiking. Whereas on days I decided to leave my Nikon  dslr camera behind, my timing was significantly different.  So, mystery solved, right!? Not so much... There were still inconsistencies.

As I approach the new year with new goals and planning for some challenging, long distance hiking. 
Regardless of my personal reasons for slow-going while hiking, it does have a lot to do with my artistry and how I view the natural environment as my muse, which is a major component to my photography style.  But, in actuality I am hiking and not everyone can relate to my slow-going hiking.  And, not everyone hikes exactly at the same pace. So who is to say what's appropriate and how to hike more efficiently? 

More importantly I would just like to be more efficient with time, while hiking with or without my Nikon dslr..

I found a very interesting article posted on the Outdoor Research website blog page.  
​https://www.outdoorresearch.com/blog/how-to-hike-more-efficiently​

"How to hike more efficiently" basically broke it down into two separate types of ways to maintain hike/distance coverage time efficiency, especially hiking long distances. 
 1) Mandatory breaks 
 2) Preventable breaks
And, ways to avoid  Preventable breaks or combine these into Mandatory breaks.
*Below is an excerpt from the article  

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