Take a Hike in Spanish

Quick Answer

¡Hola!Learn how to take a hike in Spanish in this article and the lessons above! Specifically, learn how to do the following in Spanish:

• use common vocabulary related to hiking

• use the preterite to talk about a trip

• talk about specific moments in the past

Vocabulary

Let's start off with the vocab words in these lessons!

Nouns

Spanish	English
el bosque	forest
la catarata	waterfall
la herida	injury
el oso	bear
la piedra	rock
el río	river
la ruta	trail
el sándwich	sandwich
el venado	deer

examples
De repente, vimos un venado. Suddenly, we saw a deer.
Crucé por unas piedras. I crossed over some rocks.
Encontramos un bosque enorme. We found a huge forest.

Noun Phrases

Spanish	English
el otro día	the other day
el medio ambiente	environment
la tienda de campaña	tent

examples
El otro día hice senderismo. The other day, I went hiking.
Cuidamos el medio ambiente. We took care of the environment.
Primero, montamos la tienda de campaña. First, we put up the tent.

Prepositional Phrase

Spanish	English
de veras	truly

examples
De veras, lo pasamos muy bien. Truly, we had a very good time.

Verbs

In this skill, you learn the following verbs!

Acampar

Acampar(to camp) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	acampé	I camped
tú	acampaste	you camped	informal singular you
vos	acampaste	you camped	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	acampó	he, she camped
usted	acampó	you camped	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	acampamos	we camped
vosotros, vosotras	acampasteis	you camped	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	acamparon	they camped
ustedes	acamparon	you camped	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Almorzar

Almorzar(to eat lunch) is an -ar verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	almorcé	I ate lunch
tú	almorzaste	you ate lunch	informal singular you
vos	almorzaste	you ate lunch	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	almorzó	he, she ate lunch
usted	almorzó	you ate lunch	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	almorzamos	we ate lunch
vosotros, vosotras	almorzasteis	you ate lunch	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	almorzaron	they ate lunch
ustedes	almorzaron	you ate lunch	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Buscar

Buscar(to look for) is an -ar verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	busqué	I looked for
tú	buscaste	you looked for	informal singular you
vos	buscaste	you looked for	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	buscó	he, she looked for
usted	buscó	you looked for	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	buscamos	we looked for
vosotros, vosotras	buscasteis	you looked for	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	buscaron	they looked for
ustedes	buscaron	you looked for	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Cocinar

Cocinar(to cook) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	cociné	I cooked
tú	cocinaste	you cooked	informal singular you
vos	cocinaste	you cooked	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	cocinó	he, she cooked
usted	cocinó	you cooked	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	cocinamos	we cooked
vosotros, vosotras	cocinasteis	you cooked	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	cocinaron	they cooked
ustedes	cocinaron	you cooked	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Contaminar

Contaminar(to pollute) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	contaminé	I polluted
tú	contaminaste	you polluted	informal singular you
vos	contaminaste	you polluted	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	contaminó	he, she polluted
usted	contaminó	you polluted	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	contaminamos	we polluted
vosotros, vosotras	contaminasteis	you polluted	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	contaminaron	they polluted
ustedes	contaminaron	you polluted	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Cruzar

Cruzar(to cross) is an -ar verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	crucé	I crossed
tú	cruzaste	you crossed	informal singular you
vos	cruzaste	you crossed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	cruzó	he, she crossed
usted	cruzó	you crossed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	cruzamos	we crossed
vosotros, vosotras	cruzasteis	you crossed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	cruzaron	they crossed
ustedes	cruzaron	you crossed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Cuidar

Cuidar(to take care of) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	cuidé	I took care of
tú	cuidaste	you took care of	informal singular you
vos	cuidaste	you took care of	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	cuidó	he, she took care of
usted	cuidó	you took care of	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	cuidamos	we took care of
vosotros, vosotras	cuidasteis	you took care of	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	cuidaron	they took care of
ustedes	cuidaron	you took care of	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Durar

Durar(to last) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite. We tend to use the third-person singular and plural forms of the verb to discuss an activity or event that lasted a certain amount of time.

Number	Conjugation
singular	duró
plural	duraron

Elegir

Elegir(to choose) is a stem-changing verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," ele, changes to eli in the él, ella, usted and ellos, ellas, ustedes forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	elegí	I chose
tú	elegiste	you chose	informal singular you
vos	elegiste	you chose	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	eligió	he, she chose
usted	eligió	you chose	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	elegimos	we chose
vosotros, vosotras	elegisteis	you chose	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	eligieron	they chose
ustedes	eligieron	you chose	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Encontrar

Encontrar(to find) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	encontré	I found
tú	encontraste	you found	informal singular you
vos	encontraste	you found	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	encontró	he, she found
usted	encontró	you found	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	encontramos	we found
vosotros, vosotras	encontrasteis	you found	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	encontraron	they found
ustedes	encontraron	you found	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Esconderse

Esconderse(to hide) is an -er reflexive verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me escondí	I hid
tú	te escondiste	you hid	informal singular you
vos	te escondiste	you hid	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se escondió	he, she hid
usted	se escondió	you hid	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos escondimos	we hid
vosotros, vosotras	os escondisteis	you hid	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se escondieron	they hid
ustedes	se escondieron	you hid	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Estar

Estar(to be) is a stem-changing verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," esta, changes to estuv in all forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	estuve	I was
tú	estuviste	you were	informal singular you
vos	estuviste	you were	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	estuvo	he, she was
usted	estuvo	you were	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	estuvimos	we were
vosotros, vosotras	estuvisteis	you were	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	estuvieron	they were
ustedes	estuvieron	you were	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Llegar

Llegar(to arrive) is an -ar verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	llegué	I arrived
tú	llegaste	you arrived	informal singular you
vos	llegaste	you arrived	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	llegó	he, she arrived
usted	llegó	you arrived	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	llegamos	we arrived
vosotros, vosotras	llegasteis	you arrived	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	llegaron	they arrived
ustedes	llegaron	you arrived	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Montar

Montar(to put up) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	monté	I put up
tú	montaste	you put up	informal singular you
vos	montaste	you put up	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	montó	he, she put up
usted	montó	you put up	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	montamos	we put up
vosotros, vosotras	montasteis	you put up	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	montaron	they put up
ustedes	montaron	you put up	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Oír

Oír(to hear) is a stem-changing verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," oí, changes to oy in the él, ella, usted and ellos, ellas, ustedes forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	oí	I heard
tú	oíste	you heard	informal singular you
vos	oíste	you heard	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	oyó	he, she heard
usted	oyó	you heard	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	oímos	we heard
vosotros, vosotras	oísteis	you heard	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	oyeron	they heard
ustedes	oyeron	you heard	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Poder

Poder(to be able to) is a stem-changing verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," po, changes to pu in all forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	pude	I could
tú	pudiste	you could	informal singular you
vos	pudiste	you could	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	pudo	he, she could
usted	pudo	you could	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	pudimos	we could
vosotros, vosotras	pudisteis	you could	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	pudieron	they could
ustedes	pudieron	you could	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Quedarse

Quedarse(to stay) is an -ar pronominal verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me quedé	I stayed
tú	te quedaste	you stayed	informal singular you
vos	te quedaste	you stayed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se quedó	he, she stayed
usted	se quedó	you stayed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos quedamos	we stayed
vosotros, vosotras	os quedasteis	you stayed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se quedaron	they stayed
ustedes	se quedaron	you stayed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Querer

Querer(to want) is a stem-changing verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," que, changes to quis in all forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	quise	I wanted
tú	quisiste	you wanted	informal singular you
vos	quisiste	you wanted	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	quiso	he, she wanted
usted	quiso	you wanted	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	quisimos	we wanted
vosotros, vosotras	quisisteis	you wanted	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	quisieron	they wanted
ustedes	quisieron	you wanted	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Note that the yo and él, ella, usted forms of querer in the preterite do not have accent marks.

Recoger

Recoger(to pick up) is an -er verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	recogí	I picked up
tú	recogiste	you picked up	informal singular you
vos	recogiste	you picked up	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	recogió	he, she picked up
usted	recogió	you picked up	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	recogimos	we picked up
vosotros, vosotras	recogisteis	you picked up	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	recogieron	they picked up
ustedes	recogieron	you picked up	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Ver

Ver(to see) is an irregular verb in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	vi	I saw
tú	viste	you saw	informal singular you
vos	viste	you saw	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	vio	he, she saw
usted	vio	you saw	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	vimos	we saw
vosotros, vosotras	visteis	you saw	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	vieron	they saw
ustedes	vieron	you saw	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Note that none of the forms of the verb ver take an accent in the preterite.

Verb Phrases

In this skill, you learn the following verb phrases!

Consultar Un Mapa

Consultar un mapa(to check a map) is an -ar verb phrase that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	consulté un mapa	I checked a map
tú	consultaste un mapa	you checked a map	informal singular you
vos	consultaste un mapa	you checked a map	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	consultó un mapa	he, she checked a map
usted	consultó un mapa	you checked a map	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	consultamos un mapa	we checked a map
vosotros, vosotras	consultasteis un mapa	you checked a map	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	consultaron un mapa	they checked a map
ustedes	consultaron un mapa	you checked a map	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Hacer Senderismo

Hacer senderismo(to go hiking) is a stem-changing verb phrase in the preterite. That means that its "stem," ha, changes to hi in all forms.

In the él, ella and usted forms of hacer in the preterite, the c changes to a z.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	hice senderismo	I went hiking
tú	hiciste senderismo	you went hiking	informal singular you
vos	hiciste senderismo	you went hiking	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	hizo senderismo	he, she went hiking
usted	hizo senderismo	you went hiking	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	hicimos senderismo	we went hiking
vosotros, vosotras	hicisteis senderismo	you went hiking	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	hicieron senderismo	they went hiking
ustedes	hicieron senderismo	you went hiking	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Note that none of the forms of the verb hacer take an accent in the preterite.

Hacerse Una Herida

Hacerse una herida(to injure oneself) is a stem-changing pronominal verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," ha, changes to hi in all forms.

In the él, ella and usted forms of hacer in the preterite, the c changes to a z.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me hice una herida	I injured myself
tú	te hiciste una herida	you injured yourself	informal singular you
vos	te hiciste una herida	you injured yourself	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se hizo una herida	he, she injured himself, herself
usted	se hizo una herida	you injured yourself	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos hicimos una herida	we injured ourselves
vosotros, vosotras	os hicisteis una herida	you injured yourselves	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se hicieron una herida	they injured themselves
ustedes	se hicieron una herida	you injured yourselves	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Note that none of the forms of the verb hacerse una herida take an accent in the preterite.

Pasarlo Bien

Pasarlo bien(to have a good time) is an -ar verb phrase that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	lo pasé bien	I had a good time
tú	lo pasaste bien	you had a good time	informal singular you
vos	lo pasaste bien	you had a good time	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	lo pasó bien	he, she had a good time
usted	lo pasó bien	you had a good time	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	lo pasamos bien	we had a good time
vosotros, vosotras	lo pasasteis bien	you had a good time	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	lo pasaron bien	they had a good time
ustedes	lo pasaron bien	you had a good time	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

In many Latin American countries, the phrase pasarla bien is used instead of pasarlo bien.

The Preterite

Regular Spanish Preterite Forms

There are only two sets of endings for regular preterite verbs, one for -ar verbs and one for both -er and -ir verbs. To conjugate a regular verb in the preterite tense, simply remove the infinitive ending (-ar, -er, or -ir) and add the preterite ending that matches the subject. Check out the table of regular preterite endings below.

Subject	-ar Verbs	-er and -ir Verbs
yo	-é	-í
tú	-aste	-iste
él, ella, usted	-ó	-ió
nosotros	-amos	-imos
vosotros	-asteis	-isteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes	-aron	-ieron

Irregular and Stem-Changing Verbs in the Preterite

Note that some verbs, like many of those we saw in this lesson, are irregular or stem-changing in the preterite! Learn more about irregular verbs, spelling changes, and stem-changing preterite verbs in this article.

When Do We Use the Preterite?

Specific Times in the Past

We use the preterite to describe actions completed at a point in the past, especially those that occurred on specific days or dates, at specific times, and during specific time periods. For example, we often use the preterite with the following phrases: