I agree that solo hiking is often enjoyable. But that is an off-topic for this thread.
Not necessarily. The fact that I was trying to drive home here is that having negative experiences in a group of people can have some serious negative psychological consequences that can lessen skills that you actually have. In effect, when a group rejects you in any way, shape, or form (or even if the rejection is more perceived than real), you often feel dumber, weaker, and generally less capable. On a mountain, this can leave you not knowing what to do, even if you know full well how to handle the situation. After all, losing confidence in your abilities is about the same as not having them.
