Hello all,

I'm in the process of planning a thru-hike of the FT beginning after January 1st, 2014.

Initially, I'd been planning to do from Springer to Harper's Ferry but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it makes more sense for me to just do a thru of the FT. My primary reasoning:

1) I'm a native Floridian and this will give me an opportunity to really get to know my home.
2) Getting to and from the trail periodically will be easier because I have friends and family all over the state.
3) I can leave sooner (January) than waiting for the thaw in the Appalachians (April/May).

However, all of my planning thus far has been on the assumption that I'd be hiking the AT. Now I am facing a bit of a scramble to get everything in place for an early January start-date.

So, that being said, I've compiled some basic questions about the trail that I'm hoping can be answered by some of my fellow hikers.

1) How do I get to Loop Road? I've read some info from last year that says the road was closed--is this still the case? Also, are there any shuttles that go out this far? I don't know anyone that far south who would be able to take me into the Preserve so I'm scratching my head trying to figure out how to get there, short of hitchhiking.

2) Is hiking the FT cheaper than hiking a comparative length of the AT? I know this is a difficult question. It seems to me that there are less options to stop along the FT so therefore, less opportunities to spend money on creature comforts. I'm working up a basic budget and I'm trying to get an idea of how much money I should plan on spending during a thru-hike (keeping in mind that I already have all of my big-ticket gear items).

3) I'm familiar with Florida Hikes, the FTA, and of course this website--are there any other good sources of info for hopeful FT thru-hikers?

4) How useful are water/boat shoes on the underwater portions of the FT? I recognize that I will be getting wet but I'm trying to find a solution to walking in wet socks and shoes all day (if there is one).

5) I have a copy of Sandra Friend's 2002 FT guidebook (the one with the blue cover). I know that there are always changes taking place to the trail--would this book still be sufficient for my purposes, with a bit of editing for the sections that have been rerouted, or should I seek out more updated information?


That should do it for now...but I'm sure there will be many questions to come. Thanks to all