Which guide is the best? Should I carry it with me or write what I need on a tiny piece of paper?

The "new" Companion is what I would take w/ me. I'm not sure if you'd still need the data book. I use a bounce box and only carry a section or 2 at a time.

The three I carry are Wingfoots book, the ATC data book and the ATC companion. They all have necessary info and I cut out the pages and only carry those needed for the section I am hiking and mail the rest ahead.

WF's book, the ATC databook and the ALDHA Companion are the most commonly carried.

Any profit from the latter two helps protect the trail. In lieu of a hard copy, for planning, you can use 2005's online Companion.

http://www.aldha.org/05book.htm

The 2006 edition has been vastly updated including the the town maps and changes to town services. It should be available in the next couple weeks in the ATC's Ultimate A.T. Store and at Mountain Crossings at Neels Gap mile 30.

http://www.atctrailstore.org/catalog/iteminfo.cfm?itemid=514&compid=1

WF's book, the ATC databook and the ALDHA Companion are the most commonly carried.

The '06 Companion is the official AT Guide published by the ATC and compiled by ALDHA volunteers, and will give you the most bang for your buck. The DataBook has the barebones Trail info, something many find all they need. The individual state guides and map sets have more Trail detail, little town detail, and require quite a large cash outlay. The Companion and Handbook both have loyal supporters with strong opinions.

Pink:

The advice you've received above is right on the mark; there's much to much information for you to write it down on a few sheets of paper. Nearly every long-distance hikers carries one of the two main Guidebooks, tho many either tear it into sections, or photocopy sections and get more in the mail as they go, as most folks don't want to carry half a pound of information onnew England when they're still down South. In addition to the Guidebooks (one or the other, it doesn't really matter which), prudent hikers carry Trail maps as well.

i have used all of these:cool: neo


http://www.trailplace.com/portal/display.php?page=handbook_2005


http://www.atctrailstore.org/catalog/iteminfo.cfm?atcmem=0&itemid=507&compid=1

http://www.atctrailstore.org/catalog/iteminfo.cfm?itemid=514&compid=1