And so it begins

[G.Sterling]

I have wanted to hike the trail ever since my first overnight trip in vermont almost ten years ago. Now I am out of school and I finally have the time/will to get out there and do it. I would love to hike the trail this season but my hiking buddy has one semester of classes left before we can make time for us to hike the trail. That being sad we are planning a 2014 hike! I have tons and tons of questions, so I'm glad that I discovered this forum! It looks like there are a lot of helpful and wise hikers that would be more than willing to give me their two cents here. So there it is, my formal hello to all of you here on whiteblaze!
-G.Sterling

[Rocket Jones]

Welcome. I suggest you check out the articles list on the home page, there's a lot of good information there to start with.

[avalonmorn]

Welcome! You'll learn the good, the bad, and the ugly, but will be a better hiker in the end.

[johnnybgood]

This is a great forum for advice and much can be learned from many here--both thru hikers as well as section hikers. You will find polarizing views here on certain subjects, take away what works best for you .

Good Luck on your 2014 thru hike.

[Don H]

Read some of the journals at http://www.trailjournals.com to get an idea of day to day trail life.
Good Luck!

[prain4u]

Howdy! Welcome! Happy hiking!

[HikerMom58]

Welcome to white blaze!

[Sarcasm the elf]

I have wanted to hike the trail ever since my first overnight trip in vermont almost ten years ago. Now I am out of school and I finally have the time/will to get out there and do it. I would love to hike the trail this season but my hiking buddy has one semester of classes left before we can make time for us to hike the trail. That being sad we are planning a 2014 hike! I have tons and tons of questions, so I'm glad that I discovered this forum! It looks like there are a lot of helpful and wise hikers that would be more than willing to give me their two cents here. So there it is, my formal hello to all of you here on whiteblaze!
-G.Sterling

Hello and welcome.

Since you're got some time, first off go out and do as many day hikes as you can. You will find that a lot of your questions will be answered if you go out and do long dayhikes. Winter is a great time to do this because the trails aren't as crowded and as long as it's cold the ticks will be less active. Do this a good bit before you spend any money on overnight gear, as it is basically a free activity and will give you some idea of your ability and likes/dislikes.

If you don't have them already get a copy of the Connecticut Walk Book,the Saugatuck Valley Trail Map and the Redding CT Book of Trails (these last two items are available at the Mark Twain Library in Redding). Between these three you should find plenty of terrain to hike that is all within a short drive, I especially recommend sleeping giant in Hamden. There is plenty of advice that we can give you here on the site, but with experience a lot of stuff will fall into place.

I'm not sure of you have any gear yet, if you don't, then before purchasing it would likely be a good idea to rent from a local outfitter for your first couple over overnights, i know you can rent gear from REI in norwalk (EMS in fairfield and outdoor sports center in Wilton might rent too, but I'm not sure). This will allow you to try out different types of gear and find out what you like before dropping real money.

Also, just a thought, have you considered hiking the trail southbound? Many people start at Mt. Khatadin in Maine, usually in June or July and hike the trail south to Georgia. This would allow you and your buddy to hike this year if that's what you wanted to do.

[Cookerhiker]

Welcome to WB and good luck to you on planning your hike. You're fortunate in that you live reasonably close to the Trail. I suggest that you take practice hikes on the AT in CT and NY of varying lengths to become accustomed to basic trail conditions (hiking with full pack, setting up tent, cooking, testing gear etc.).

[Old Grouse]

If you only have a morning and don't want to spend it driving too far, Devils Den in Weston will give you a workout and the terrain is quite similar to a lot of the AT in your immediate area.