milage markers ?

[penny b]

I haven't been on the trail yet but still planning my journey. i understand there is " white blaze" markers to follow the trail and i see many people say they do 10 miles or 15 miles etc ... a day. So my question is : are there mile markers along the way to know how far you have come or do people use a pedometer ? how do each of you know what you have hiked for that day ??

[ADVStrom14]

I haven't been on the trail yet but still planning my journey. i understand there is " white blaze" markers to follow the trail and i see many people say they do 10 miles or 15 miles etc ... a day. So my question is : are there mile markers along the way to know how far you have come or do people use a pedometer ? how do each of you know what you have hiked for that day ??

I'm not an expert but I am measuring mileage using the guide book and data book. Those books have mileages for the destinations along the trail and in my planning I know how far I'm supposed to get each day and how many miles the book says it is from point A to B.

Jes

[Studlintsean]

Quick answer is no there are not mile markers. The guidebook/ topo maps allows you to determine where you are at a point in time and then the guidebook has mileage marked on it or a map has a scale so you can gauge your mileage based on where you are at the time you're checking it. I hope that makes sense

[Sarcasm the elf]

Generally people keep track using either the ALDHA Thru hiker's companion or the AWOL A.T. Guide, or more recently phone apps such ad Guthook's which I haven't tried. Both list out known refernce points with mileage.

https://www.amazon.com/Appalachian-T.../dp/1889386960

http://www.theatguide.com

Here is an example from the ALDHA book.

(I promise the actual book is less blurry than my photo. )
image.jpeg

[MuddyWaters]

Profile maps have mile marks and significant features. You can tell when you arrive at shelters, trail intersections, roads, peaks, gaps, etc. You can see how far apart they are on profile map

[Spirit Walker]

Also, after a while you develop a fairly consistent pace. In my case, on the AT I usually hiked 2 miles an hour, so after 4 hours I knew I had walked close to 8 miles.

[rocketsocks]

I think mile markers would annoy the crap outta me, "Yes I know...8 more miles, thank you"

[penny b]

rocketsocks .... that got me to laugh " yes i know .... 8 more miles " i can understand that well

[penny b]

I just ordered these and cant wait to get them now !

[tdoczi]

c'mon guys, really, there are **NO** mileage markers on the trail? you guys hike in some area where every few miles you **DON'T** come to a sign telling you how far it is to the next major road crossing or the next shelter or the next major mountain summit? really? I've never hiked there.

that said, it is definitely true, i think, that those signs, though they are definitely present, is not generally how hikers keep track of their daily mileage.

[KDogg]

In the South there are almost no markers that I saw...maybe a random one every several days...really! They become a bit more common in the North but still not enough to use them to plot your course from. I used Guthook's app and always knew where I was and how far I had to go.

[steve_zavocki]

There are often signs after road crossing that list miles to the next shelters and/or road crossings, hiwever he signs aren't always acurate. For example in Georgia the sign from Neels Gap to Woody Gap says 11.3, when my guide book says 10.6. In that case I believe my guidebook.

[Starchild]

Just to add GPS trail apps such as Guthook's AT guide can and are also be used for mileage.

[tdoczi]

In the South there are almost no markers that I saw...maybe a random one every several days...really!

where is this exactly? through SNP and points south there are signs.the area north of damascus has signs.ive seen signs in the smokies.

i suppose if there are no signs in GA or between the smokies and damascus i couldnt say one way or the other. but still, thats a very very small percentage of the trail.

[Slo-go'en]

where is this exactly? through SNP and points south there are signs.the area north of damascus has signs.ive seen signs in the smokies.

The National Parks have signs with mileage on them and is about the only place you'll consistently see them. Sometimes there are trail head signs with mileage to some point on them, but these are sporadic.

I kind of wish there were signs which let you know when your getting close to a shelter, like a mile out. (don't give up, your almost there!)

The printed trail guides are what most people use to figure out how far they've gone or how far to go, but you have to keep track of landmarks and sometimes there aren't any for quite a distance.

The Gunthook app is nice as it will tell you exactly how far you've gone and how far to go to the next way point. Since nearly everyone has a smart phone these days, many are now just using this app. However, it's still a good idea to have one of the printed guides as back up. Also I find the printed guides better for longer term planning, for say the next week or two.

[tdoczi]

The National Parks have signs with mileage on them and is about the only place you'll consistently see them. Sometimes there are trail head signs with mileage to some point on them, but these are sporadic.

sorry but ive hiked all of the trail from montebello, VA to Monson ME and this statement isn't true.

i guess it depends on your definition of what constitutes "regularly." unless you're in a designated wilderness area, i'd say you're like to pass a sign every 5 miles or so. sometimes might be every 3 miles, sometimes might be every 10 miles, but i doubt youd find 20 mile stretch of the trail anywhere that is signless. i've never seen one.

there are generally signs at shelters.

there are generally signs at major road crossings

there are generally signs at intersections with side trails.

any of these would give AT relevant mileage marks.

yes, it is more common in ANY sort of designated area (not just national parks- state parks, forests, recreation areas, you name it) than they are at other parts of the trail, but that doesnt account for much area where there isnt likely to be signs.

its really just in wildnerness areas that you wont really see them.

I, and others, are into taking pictures of all of the signs. i've uploaded a few over the years as parts of discussions, and others have uploaded entire libraries of photos just of mileahe signs. look around this website, youll find a zillion of them.

[tdoczi]

some signs i passed and photographed on my most recent hike from damascus to MT roger's headwuarters. about 60 miles of trail. all the signs below were with maybe at most a 25 mile stretch.

IMG_3280.JPGIMG_3282.JPGIMG_3283.JPGIMG_3284.JPGIMG_3286.JPGIMG_3287.JPG

[rafe]

Seems to me the signage is mostly random. As Slo said, it seems more regular in the national parks. Other than that, its presence or absence seems to be largely at the whim of the local trail organization.

Overall I found it to be particularly lacking in some of the most critical places, especially where the trail meets civilization -- a parking lot, road crossing, road walk, or in some of the towns directly on the trail. (I'm thinking Dalton, MA and Williamstown MA, where you get dumped right onto town streets without much clue as to where to go next.)

You really need a guide, or guide app, or a summary listing of waypoints and their mileage. And yes, after a while you do learn to estimate distance via dead reckoning, ie., knowing your last waypoint, walking speed and time from the last waypoint.

[Bronk]

There are enough landmarks along the trail that you can usually know where you are within a mile or two, if not exactly. Get the AT Databook and you'll see what I mean. Shelters are generally 8 to 10 miles apart, but the databook also lists water sources, campsites, the summits of mountains, roads and many other landmarks. I never carried a watch, but I got to where I could guess the time correctly within about 15 minutes based upon where I was because I knew how fast I was walking. You will almost always have a general idea of where you are.

[tdoczi]

Overall I found it to be particularly lacking in some of the most critical places, especially where the trail meets civilization -- a parking lot, road crossing, road walk, or in some of the towns directly on the trail. (I'm thinking Dalton, MA and Williamstown MA, where you get dumped right onto town streets without much clue as to where to go next.)

signs in places like that are generally as you enter the woods, not as you exit them.i wont put forth an opinion as to if this is good,bad orotherwise. but i bet you as you leave dalton MA and enter the woods in either direction out of town that there is indeed a sign telling you how far the next shelter is,the next road crossing,etc.