5-6 month thru hike

[Mountain_Goat]

Starting my thru hike on march 1st. Never hiked south of CT.How is the trail in comparision to MA/NH?(that is where i do the majority of my hiking)

Giving myself 5-6 months to hike the trail.I have done the math and it comes out to 11.5 miles a day in order to do a 6 month hike.I see some guys/gals hike the rail in under 5 months. Is it realistic to hike it in 5 months and still enjoy yourself?

[max patch]

Assuming you take off 1 day per week to resupply, shower, and rest you actually need to average about 14 miles per hiking day to do a 6 month thru.

You can absolutely enjoy a 5 month thru.

"Stop and smell the roses" is code for leaving camp at 10:00, stopping for the day at 5:00, taking a loooong lunch, and spending multiple days in town. Nothing wrong with that, but if that is how someone wants to hike then they will absolutely be miserable attempting a 5 month thru.

[MEB]

Hey Mountain Goat!
Prior to my hike all my hiking had been in New Hampshire and Maine as well. You will be pleasantly suprised at how nice the trails are down south compared to up this way....nice grades and lots of switchbacks and not too many rocks and roots. I did my thru is just over five months even though I had given myself six months to complete it....and totally enjoyed myself.
Have fun!

-MEB

[Red Hat]

yep, MEB (aka Jibitz) said it! Trail down south are really sweet compared to ME and NH! sure you can do 5 months and have fun... go for it... old ladies like myself need the six months...

[Grampie]

A five month thru-hike should be no problem. Just try not to take too many "0" days and you will be fine. During my thru I started at a slow pace. Was taking a "0" every 5-6 days mostly just to rest the body. After hiking for three months I did the math and discovered to finish by Oct. 15 I had to average 12.5 miles a day. I started to keep tract of my daily mileage and when my daily average got high enough I could take a "0" if I wanted.
Althow I ended up fliping and finishing my hike in Doncannon, PA I finished on Oct 12.
It actualy took me 201 days.

[garlic08]

I agree that the trail south of NE is mostly very high quality. Even in the steep rough terrain of the Southern Appalachians, I was very impressed by the trail tread.

When I hiked I met plenty of fun-loving hikers who were hiking the AT in four months or less. Pace has little to do with enjoyment. If anything, the people who really love to hike spend more time hiking and the trail is completed easily and then they go on to do more hiking. For some of the slower hikers, hiking is a chore and they take lots of time off, and that's OK.

Of course, your pace will depend on many variables, not the least of which is your pack weight. If you're hauling a twelve pack, two-burner Coleman stove, and extra pairs of jeans, those 11.5 miles are going to be tough.

[Mountain_Goat]

Thanks guys for the great advice.I'm a pretty fast paced hiker up here in new england so from what you'll have stated about the trail south of NE,i should be alright.
I look forward to meet amazing people and sharing great stories.I have always looked up to all of you whom have completed a thru hike.It's your stories that have motivated and inspired me to go for mine.

[StormBird]

I don't know about you guys, but as I recall, Georgia kicked my butt. Don't underestimate the hills down south.

As for a time frame, the best lesson I learned on trail was to not plan. Just go with the flow and you will have a better over-all hike.

Happy Trails and good luck!

p.s. At MEB - > Hey Jibitz! It's Cerveza!

[StormBird]

^sidenote: It took me 6 months and 1 week to complete the trail.

[fehchet]

The day I hiked past the NC/GA sign it was snowing. I met "the Priest" there. He was going SOBO. Then later at the top of hill I stopped and smiled, "Georgia in my back pocket."
Have fun.

[Cookerhiker]

Even though Georgia is mostly up and down and NC between Rt. 64 & Fontana has some very steep stretches, the Trail's grading, switchbacks, and little in the way of rocks make it easier hiking than Northern New England.

My prediction is the first descent reminding you a bit of home will be Blood Mountain and the first such ascent will be Albert Mountain.

[jersey joe]

You can absolutely enjoy a 5 month thru.

"Stop and smell the roses" is code for leaving camp at 10:00, stopping for the day at 5:00, taking a loooong lunch, and spending multiple days in town. Nothing wrong with that, but if that is how someone wants to hike then they will absolutely be miserable attempting a 5 month thru.

I totally agree. a 5 month thru hike is totally doable if you are out there to hike the trail and not lay around at shelters and in towns.

[Lillianp]

I took over two weeks worth of zeroes and finished in 5.5 months. So yes, definitely possible to do it in 5 months and still have time to smell the roses and have fun.