Whew, yeah number five can be a doozy when going with folks that are new to backpacking. My last trip there did not exist a pace where the other person on my trip could keep up a sustained walk. Their pace was so unbearably slow and filled with needless breaks that I would walk a quarter mile as slow as I could move my legs (invariably leaving them in the dust), wait five minutes, then rinse and repeat. Totally fucked my day plan and I had to make major adjustments to where I was hiking. I was depending on camping at a spring and filling my water, but couldn't make it to the spring on the first day. It is a shitty situation to be in. Worst yet is this person was fully aware of the challenges of the hike and invited themselves anyway.

Lesson learned? I have a mountain that I will now require people interested in backpacking to day hike. If they can't do it they aren't coming. (Flat Iron in Arizona)