View Full Version : Two week hike question
I posted this in the wrong forum, so I am re-posting here:
A friend of mine has started doing 2-3 week hikes on the trail. He, myself, and my stepfather are going to hike a portion together next summer (June). Since he is hiking the trail in portions, he doesn't mind hiking where we live to make things a bit more convenient as he hasn't hiked this portion yet. Now to my question--I have heard 12 miles is a good distance to assume you will hike in one day. I am trying to come up with a good hike for all of us. My stepfather will be leaving early, here was my thought, please give me some advice one whether or not you think this is a good idea:
Begin at Donnellytown, PA (the beginning of Section 10) and hike south to Smithsburg, Md. This is a distance of 80 miles. Is this feasible in 6 days? My stepfather is going to leave after six days to head home for work. He is in excellent shape, he is a mail carrier. Or should we set our sights for Cascade, MD instead? That is about 10 miles shorter.
My friend and I will continue to hike the next 8 days and I thought it would be feasible to hike to Front Royal and finish the Maryland, West Virginia, Northern Virginia section. Any thoughts?
The other option is to hike south from Cascade, MD....into the Shenandoah national park. Is it difficult to obtain a permit to camp? I would hate to obtain a camping permit and then not finish the park this year...which we wouldn't, then someone else will lose their opportunity at a permit. Please let me know what you think.
We could also begin hiking at northern Pennsylvania and hike North into NJ/NY or south into Pennsylvania.
Kerosene
07-10-2007, 21:50
Whichever section you end up doing, set up your plan to reach your car (80 miles in 6 days should be doable if you're in reasonable shape and you don't get too many blisters), but have a bail-out plan if things don't work out. In your first example, the bail-out plan might be that your stepfather can't make the full 80 miles, so the two of you accelerate your pace the last few days so you get to the car and go back to pick him up. He then takes you to where you originally parked your car to continue your hike.
Another option is to carry the number of several shuttlers or taxis that service the area in case you need to get off early and get back to your car. Hitching can work, although frequently you'll need to catch several rides; one down the mountain to a road paralleling the ridge, a second along the ridge, and the third up the mountain to the car.
thanks for the advice--the nice thing is that if we start at the PA/NJ border, we are only 30 minutes from my stepfathers home.....if we hike to carlisle, my wife can pick us up.....
same thing about starting in carlisle or at caledonia state park and heading south, we can get a ride from family who is no more than an hour away....that's one of the reasons we wanted to hike somewhere close to Pennsylvania.
Johnny Swank
07-11-2007, 00:20
Sounds to me like you can just wing it. Carry enough food to get to the next town, but you really won't know how fast ya'll hike as a group until you actually get on the trail. Some groups hike the same pace as if they were all individuals, but most end up doing a bit less mileage per day overall for any number of reasons. 12 miles per day is a good number as a rough estimate to work around I think. If you guys are feeling it, ramp up the miles and call for someone to pick you up down the trail.
Shutterbug
07-11-2007, 02:11
Sounds to me like you can just wing it. Carry enough food to get to the next town, but you really won't know how fast ya'll hike as a group until you actually get on the trail. Some groups hike the same pace as if they were all individuals, but most end up doing a bit less mileage per day overall for any number of reasons. 12 miles per day is a good number as a rough estimate to work around I think. If you guys are feeling it, ramp up the miles and call for someone to pick you up down the trail.
It has been my observation (as well as my experience) that section hikers often over estimate the mileage they can accomplish because they carry too much weight in their pack. 12 miles per day is a reasonable goal if you limit your pack to a reasonable weight (10% to 12% of your body weight). If your pack is heavier, then reduce the miles per day.
I had not thought of that. If we limit our weight and plan on picking up supplies along the way, we may cover more distance. I will keep that in mind. We are also currently hiking to stay in good shape for the trip. My stepfather delivers mail (on foot, not a driving route) and hikes on his off day. I think winging it may work to some extent, but the more I think....starting at the PA/NJ border may be our best bet.....as we will be heading toward my wife and away from my brothers etc....this way, my stepfather can be picked up by my brother or mother and my buddy and I can be picked up by my wife
Jack Tarlin
07-11-2007, 11:34
Limit your pack to 10 to 12% of one's body weight??
Geesh, that means that a normal, 180-pound guy shouldn'tbe carrying more than 18 pounds! Or a 140-pound woman shouldn't be carrying more than 14!
Well, VERY few A.T. hikers carry 14 or 18-pound packs, and this is especially true for new-comers. In point of fact, doctors suggest one doesn't carry more than ONE THIRD of one's body weight fo any length of time, so in truth, your pack can absolutely contain more than 10-12% of your weight without being a health risk.
That being said, 12 miles a day might be a bit more than a lot of folks want to do right out of the starting gate, tho some folks might handle it just fine (like letter carriers, for example!) On the other hand, southern PA and Maryland are fairly easy sections.
My suggestion: Split the difference----shorten the distance you plan to hike or give yourself a few more days, if possible. But assuming you might want to start out with 8-10 mile days instead of 12, your "average" mileage over the trip may be closer to 10 than 12 per day, i.e., you might want to plan on hiking a bit less than 80 miles, or, if you can, try to give yourself an extra day or two to cover the distance of your planned trip.
7Sisters
07-14-2007, 06:55
Being your first trip out as a group, I would start at Harpers Ferry and walk towards your home (north). You'll walk through MD - arguably one of the 2 or three easiest states on the AT.
This will give all of you (including your step father) a little time to get your bodies used to carrying a pack day after day. I know you mentioned he carries mail for a living, but a backpack will strain different muscles.
You'll also walk through one of the prettiest and most unique states on the AT (MD). If you're a civil war buff, this is the state for you. You'll walk right past Civil War trenches, markers, historical buildings and monuments. You'll also be within a very quick hitch of both Antietam Battlefield and Gettysburg.
Walking towards you family gives you some support in the event something happens. It will also give you greater flexibility for shuttle pickups.
I would park my car about 60 miles north of Harpers Ferry (which would be Caladonia State Park). Get a shuttle from there to Harpers Ferry and plan to walk to your car - drop off your step father, and continue north. You can resupply at the following points:
1 - Wolfsville Rd (Smithsburg MD) 30 miles N of Harpers Ferry
2 - Caladonia SP (put food supplies in your car)
Under the above plan, you'll be carrying 30 miles worth of food at a time. It could take you 2-4 days to travel this distance. I would start the trip with 4 days of food and when you get to Wolfsville MD, you'll have a great idea of how many days it should take you to cover the next 30 miles. Subtract that from how many days food you still have and that's what you need to buy in town (Smithsburg).
Make sense?
Great idea...I live near York which is only an hour from Caledonia state park, we had discussed caledonia as a possible starting point. Thanks for the tip--I have a couple of good ideas now, and my group will decide on the right corse for us. Thanks for the advice