100 Days of Summer

[B Rabbit]

I've started planning a 100 day NOBO thru. This will be my first time but I like to feel that I am an experienced outdoorsman, Eagle Scout, etc. I am in good shape already but I plan on being in full out Beast Mode by the time I start out on MAY 10. I am in grad school at USC and I've got 106 days between my last day of exams and first day of fall semester.

I am definitely looking for someone to do this with, if not for just sections than the whole thing. If there are any other college aged out there who are interested in doing a 100 day between semesters type deal then feel free to get in touch with me.

AVG 20.5 a day or 21.5 a day w 7 zero days. I am pretty confident due to some reading and research that in the mid atlantic sections there are some definite 25-28 mile days out there so i am not opposed to however the breakdown is as long as I get this done in 106 days.

Would love for someone(s) to join in on my bomb summer coming up.

Public Admin student/play guitar/love to read/love to golf and play basketball/addicted to international current events and domestic politics/love to travel/ bilingual Thai.

[Feral Bill]

Expect some serious scepticism from this group. Enjoy your summer.

[B Rabbit]

Yeah I'm not here to listen to skeptics right? "Ain't nobody got time fo dat!"
That being said, everyone has the right to their own opinion!
I am also a 27 year old in the prime condition of my life physically so quick recap I don't have old knees, I don't have back problems, and my mind still doesn't tell me 'no' yet. It still says 'Hell yes you can! What's your last name? Get it done!'

Just looking for some people in the same boat as I am regarding time frames that's all. But thanks though!

[Colter]

Your odds of finding a stranger on the internet and having you both finish in 100 days are really, really low. Like in single digits.

The AT is about 2,180 miles long.
20.5 mile days times 100 is 2,050 miles.
21.5 mile days times 100 is 2,150 miles.

You will fall short in both cases not even counting your zero days. 21.5 x 93 hiking days = 1,999.5 miles.

Then there are unexpected down days due to minor injuries, emergencies, etc.

You are looking at the days where you can hike faster (Virginia) while seemingly not looking at the days where you will be slowed by terrain, NH and ME for example.

If you have a bunch of 175+ mile weeks under your belt you might have an idea of what you're in for. If not, it's still possible you will pull it off but you have no idea right now what you're getting into.

[Slo-go'en]

A 100 day thru hike isn't unheard of, but it is tough. Being an experianced outdoor person is a help, but being an experianced long distance hiker is better. The two are not quite the same.

As noted above, your unlikely to find someone willing to keep up that pace with you. In fact, a partner is likely to slow you down as your no longer making all the decisions for just yourself. Now you need work with someone elses needs too.

[max patch]

Have a great summer no matter how far you get.

I played basketball at Fontana Village although with your schedule you probably won't have the time. There is also a court In Damascus that is close to the hostel.

[aficion]

I am definitely looking for someone to do this with, if not for just sections than the whole thing. If there are any other college aged out there who are interested in doing a 100 day between semesters type deal then feel free to get in touch with me.

AVG 20.5 a day or 21.5 a day w 7 zero days. I am pretty confident due to some reading and research that in the mid atlantic sections there are some definite 25-28 mile days out there so i am not opposed to however the breakdown is as long as I get this done in 106 days.

Would love for someone(s) to join in on my bomb summer coming up.

You should hookup with B Turtle. No, seriously, what you propose is way more doable solo. It is not like you will be out there all by yourself. Go for it and have a blast!

[Malto]

You may find this helpful. Different trail but identical concept.

http://postholer.com/journal/viewJou...entry_id=27590

[Colter]

You may find this helpful. Different trail but identical concept.

http://postholer.com/journal/viewJou...entry_id=27590

Malto is considerably tougher than most people, and daily mileages tend to be higher on the PCT, but read his advice carefully. He's "been there" and his advice rings very true.

[Just Bill]

Bunny Rabbit- I'm not a hater.
Weird things do happen on the trail, and things tend to work out. That said- it is highly unlikely you will find a partner, and that said partner will not interfere with your schedule. Choose one- 100 day schedule or a partner. If you get lucky great, if not then you still accomplish your goal.
You're not in your prime- most of the fastest folks are in their 30's- get in shape but spend some time on research.
Gear is important, to a point- shoot for 20-25 pounds FSO and with food and fuel.
Diet, nutrition, and calories are the most important, and the hardest to figure out.
Do drop boxes- you won't have time to shop and you can't take a chance on not having good food.
Malto's journal is an excellent guide- I learned quite a bit.
Nothing wrong with Andy- but put down Skurka's book and pick up Trail Life by Ray Jardine. Even though it's not a speed hiking book- it's the best speed hiking book.
Poke around the speed hiking forums, this last summer was a busy one with lots of good threads and advice.
One of the big advantages to your plan- best possible weather, lightest gear options, short trip from resupply to resupply. You could easily go as little as 3-4 days between towns. Learn all the secret and not so secret spots to grab a meal to save weight.
Plan on a very serious tune-up trip over spring break- it will make or break your trip. It doesn't have to be on the AT.
You'll be better off with several half days- full zeros tend to screw up your rhythm. Hit town around noon, leave a bit late- two half days not a full zero.
Be open minded and realistic- don't ruin 100 days of adventure by creating 100 days of torture. Try. Hard. But don't regret or ruin your trip just to hit a number.


Here's what a 100 day schedule looks like- it's based upon Map Man's studies of average hiking speed and gives a great idea of what to plan for each section. You are right about some faster mid trail mileage but there is a lot more to it. Even though these numbers may not look horrible, they are far from easy.
100 day AT hike- seven zeros.png

[B Rabbit]

Your odds of finding a stranger on the internet and having you both finish in 100 days are really, really low. Like in single digits.

The AT is about 2,180 miles long.
20.5 mile days times 100 is 2,050 miles.
21.5 mile days times 100 is 2,150 miles.

You will fall short in both cases not even counting your zero days. 21.5 x 93 hiking days = 1,999.5 miles.

Then there are unexpected down days due to minor injuries, emergencies, etc.

You are looking at the days where you can hike faster (Virginia) while seemingly not looking at the days where you will be slowed by terrain, NH and ME for example.

If you have a bunch of 175+ mile weeks under your belt you might have an idea of what you're in for. If not, it's still possible you will pull it off but you have no idea right now what you're getting into.

Colter, thank you for your input but you actually didn't tell me anything that I haven't previously considered. Are you really trying to give me a math lesson? I made A's in calculus so I appreciate that. Hmmm... lets see.

20.5 x 106 = 2173 sounds pretttttty close. I think I clearly said AVERAGE not hey guys I'm thinking about walking exactly 20.5 miles every day do you think I'll make it? Do you really think that's what I'm getting at? Cmon man. I also think it's a little cavalier of you to say that I have no idea of what I'm getting into. I have a pretty good idea, that's why I WANT to do it. I also realize that my odds of finding someone on the internet are pretty low, that being said my odds of finding someone by texting my friends are about exactly 0% so in my humble opinion just taking advantage of my resources. Like I said, have no problem with soloing.

If you have anything to say that could help me out instead of trying to insinuate that I don't understand 3rd grade math or trying to assign me an experience level.. I welcome that!

[B Rabbit]

Have a great summer no matter how far you get.

I played basketball at Fontana Village although with your schedule you probably won't have the time. There is also a court In Damascus that is close to the hostel.

Very nice! If I could make time I would love to have a shoot-around. Leaving my twice a week pickups at my church gym all summer long is going to be tough, no doubt!

[B Rabbit]

Just Bill - Thank you for the advice, some good advice there. I have been aiming at 29 lbs fso so it looks like I have a little bit of work to do there then and yes I have read a decent amount about speed hiking that's how I know that it's doable! I agree figuring out calories and provisions are going to be the toughest part of planning but I dont think I can get into that until I've got the base schedule down but I will probably just start doing some side reading about that soon. Really appreciate the schedule I'll be taking a look at that in the next few days good looking out!

[B Rabbit]

Malto thanks I look forward to reading!

[Colter]

Colter, thank you for your input but you actually didn't tell me anything that I haven't previously considered. Are you really trying to give me a math lesson? I made A's in calculus so I appreciate that. Hmmm... lets see.

20.5 x 106 = 2173 sounds pretttttty close. I think I clearly said AVERAGE not hey guys I'm thinking about walking exactly 20.5 miles every day do you think I'll make it? Do you really think that's what I'm getting at? Cmon man. I also think it's a little cavalier of you to say that I have no idea of what I'm getting into. I have a pretty good idea, that's why I WANT to do it. I also realize that my odds of finding someone on the internet are pretty low, that being said my odds of finding someone by texting my friends are about exactly 0% so in my humble opinion just taking advantage of my resources. Like I said, have no problem with soloing.

If you have anything to say that could help me out instead of trying to insinuate that I don't understand 3rd grade math or trying to assign me an experience level.. I welcome that!

I took you at your word that you are planning a 100 day thru-hike. You said you have 106 days between my last day of exams and first day of fall semester. Whether you have all A's in calculus or not, that doesn't give you 106 days of walking, especially with your planned 7 days off.

I said that unless you already have some big mile weeks under your belt, you have no idea what you're getting into, and I stand by that statement. NOBODY really knows what a thru-hike is going to be like until they've done considerable miles.

Confidence is a good thing. Confidence combined with good training, experience and a good plan is much better. See Malto's link.

Good luck.

[steve0423]

PLEASE tell me you plan to blog your hike or post to trail journals!!
Would love to check in on your adventure!

[Cro-Mag]

I am not here to tell you that you cannot do it, but don't forget about resupply days. Sometimes getting into town, doing your errands and hitching a ride back out can take a whole afternoon. Just be prepared to change plans all the time.

Happy hiking!
Salad Days

[Slo-go'en]

Okay, you got a total of 106 days to work with between the last day and first day of classes. Your going to need a couple of those on each end to do what ever before and after the hike. Then there is a day or two of traveling time to and from the trail. You also say you want to take 7 zero days. Realistically, that leaves you maybe 90 days of actual hiking.

With only 90 days of hiking, now your looking at 25 mpd as the minimum daily average, from day one. Any time you can't do 25 miles you need to make it up on other days, so now we throw some 30-35 days into the mix. And you'd better have some miles in the bank by the time you reach New England, as doing 25 mile days just got a lot harder.

You can't just hike 25 miles and call it quits for the day. Your actual milage will be influenced by available campsites. Water, terrain and regulations infulence where and where not you can realistically camp. This becomes a bit more than a 3d grade math problem!

Unless you've already been doing a LOT of walking before hand, starting out doing 25 MPD more often then not results in a bad case of shin splints and/or blisters pretty quickly. Either one can put an end to your hike before you get very far at all.

If this is your first long distance hike (which I suspect it is) you'd be better off just taking it easy and hiking for the 90 or so days you have available and enjoy yourself. Go ahead and push yourself to the limits when the mood strikes you, but don't try to do that right out of the gate.

[Astro]

I took you at your word that you are planning a 100 day thru-hike. You said you have 106 days between my last day of exams and first day of fall semester. Whether you have all A's in calculus or not, that doesn't give you 106 days of walking, especially with your planned 7 days off.

I said that unless you already have some big mile weeks under your belt, you have no idea what you're getting into, and I stand by that statement. NOBODY really knows what a thru-hike is going to be like until they've done considerable miles.

Confidence is a good thing. Confidence combined with good training, experience and a good plan is much better. See Malto's link.

Good luck.

Confidence, good training, experience, and a good plan are all important, but my personal observation from this thread is that a dose of humility may also be helpful.

[garlic08]

My ears always perk up at any mention of a 100-day AT hike. My hike took 106 un-planned days and every day was fun. Here's my journal. I hiked with a long-term hiking partner from the PCT and CDT. Our combined age at the time was 114 years, which was more of an asset than a liability we found. One asset was knowing a sustainable pace and sticking to it. We took three zeroes, all of which were mainly to meet family and friends along the way. It was more fun to be out there hiking than sitting around somewhere.

When we started hiking one-percenters (over 21.8 miles per day) early in the hike (our average pace on the PCT and CDT was just under 20 mpd), we kicked around the idea of a 100-day hike. But we didn't have the motivation you have and thought it would be really dumb to exceed our natural pace for an arbitrary goal. So we just went on having a great time.

As you've already found out, you most likely won't find a partner via this website. There will be a few nuggets of good advice along with the skepticism. The overwhelming majority of successful AT hikers move at a six-month pace, and anyone who goes faster than that is a reckless fool who is not smelling the roses. You'll be more likely to find hikers with that kind of pace on the long Western trails, the PCT and CDT.

You'll meet plenty of people on the AT with a May start, and you'll share campsites and meals and a few hours of hiking with some. It's a very social trail. Good luck and have fun.