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  1. #1
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    Default AT Thru-Hike with only 3 to 5 resupplies?

    Unsupported/Unresupplied/Thru-Hikes??

    There is a thread on Backpackinglight.com about the possibility of a AT Thru-Hike with only 3 or 5 resupplies.

    Ron Bell (Mountain Laurel Designs) asked the question:
    "Wondering if any one knows of any Records/ Info for any of the triple crown hikes, AT/CDT/PCT by folks going unsupported (no help from crews) and with the fewest resupplies.

    Could the entire AT be done with only five or even four resupplies?

    Could all of the 550m in VA be done in one push?

    What would the starting weights and miles per day need to be?

    How long to complete?

    How crazy to try?

    Gear lists?"


    You don't need to be a member to read this thread.
    http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-...thread_id=4623

    WB has more folks on and off the AT than any other site I know of, what are your thoughts?

  2. #2

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    Why would you want to? No way I would carry 10-20 days supplies at a time unless it was absolutely necessary (i.e. Alaska). Carrying only a few day's supplies means that your pack is lighter so you enjoy your hike more. Why would you want to weigh yourself down unnecessarily? Besides, going to town to eat 'real food' and get clean is one of the great pleasures on a thruhike. I don't get it.

  3. #3
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    Default The AT in 3 to 5 resupplies

    This is a composite answer from the current thread at BackpackingLight.com:

    "It seems like the real strength of this kind of thinking would be to use the hike as a training ground for longer, riskier walks. There are a lot of places in the world where resupply is difficult or impossible (like an Arctic trip). Being able to go 700 miles without resupply opens up all sorts of new possible routes in Alaska, Canada, probably Russia, maybe in the Amazon, etc..."

  4. #4
    Registered User halftime's Avatar
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    Averaging 20 miles per day in 4 segments (3 resuplies) with 28 days between supply points. 110-112 days total. 1.5 lbs food per day = 42 lbs food. Could someone do it?

  5. #5
    The AT Hiker Formerly Known as MASH
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    To put it nicely, this is insane. The trail is hard enough with the lightest pack you can get. You're not hiking through darkest Africa. You're not even out West. Towns are close and convenient.

    BUT . . . if it's your thing, then anything can be done. Just keep in mind that you escalate your chance of injury with a 50-60 lb pack, as opposed to a 20-30 one. I guess it's like going into a bar and picking a fight with the biggest, meanest biker you can find . . .

  6. #6
    The AT Hiker Formerly Known as MASH
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    Oh wait, I see. Using the AT as a trainer for more remote areas. Lord, there's easier trails to use as trainers where you aren't pitted against sadistic trail planners (I'm looking at you BMECC). But that's an idea. If you could do the AT with ten days of food then you could certainly do, oh, Taklamakan.

  7. #7

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    Halftime--

    It certainly COULD be done, but I think you'd be nuts.

    Even at 1.5 pounds of food a day, this would still mean starting out from town with a thirty pound food bag, which is crazy.

    Plus, 1.5 pounds a day is less than what most folks eat: If your breakfast was a pack of Pop Tarts; Lunch was a cheese and pepperoni sandwich; you had 3 candy bars during the day; Dinner was 1 Lipton and your dessert was a pack of combos and a small packet of Oreo's.....well THAT's about a pound and a half. Most folks eat a lot more than that during the day, and would absolutely require more if they were hiking 20 miles a day every day with a 60 pound pack.

    In short, the answer to your question is that someone absolutely COULD do the Trail on a handfulof re-supply stops, especially if they freeze-dried or dehydrated everything, but it'd still be a miserable horrible way to hike.

  8. #8

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    I think if you were going to do something like this in Alaska, Canada, Russia , or the Artic, you would take a gun and shoot some game. In the Amazon, you could eat fish and edible plants. On the AT, except in hunting season, you would have to carry too much.
    I'd attempt it maybe if i was 300 lbs and wanted to lose half the weight.
    I carried 12 days food once, wouldn't want to again.

  9. #9

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    It should also be remembered that a very large percentage of the calories taken in during a thru-hike are consumed in town. This includes such things as fresh fruit, vegetables, juices, whole milk, dairy products, and real meat.

    Not only would a great many calories be lost by not going into town regularly, but so would the chance to eat such things as green salad, non-preserved food, fresh breads, etc.

    It would not only be harder to carry 20 to 30 pounds of food at a time, but it would also mean a less healthy diet, one that consisted mainly of dried, preserved, overly salted and chemically treated food.

    Resupplying only five or six times during a thru-hike would not only be tough; it'd also be pretty unhealthy.

  10. #10
    Registered User Frolicking Dinosaurs's Avatar
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    The diet could be improved by the use of dried beans, lentils, whole grains and brown rice, but the lengthy cooking times would demand using a fire to cook and it would still be darned heavy.

  11. #11
    Registered User halftime's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jack Tarlin View Post
    Halftime--

    It certainly COULD be done, but I think you'd be nuts.
    Jack/Mogilews: Just to set the record staight here, this ain't my thing. I was only analyzing the question raised in post #1. It's no big deal to me but I can see some viewing the possibility as a worthy challenge.

  12. #12
    Gettin Lighter..All the Time!!! Biloxi's Avatar
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    Default unsupported

    well this is what andrew skurka was gonna do, but he decided not to do it.. but if you go to his website you can find out how he had planned it..he is a excelent planner and goes into great detail how and with what he does his trips..and he has done some amazing things..great site

  13. #13
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    Default AT with 3 to 5 resupplies.

    Quote Originally Posted by halftime View Post
    Averaging 20 miles per day in 4 segments (3 resuplies) with 28 days between supply points. 110-112 days total. 1.5 lbs food per day = 42 lbs food. Could someone do it?
    halftime,
    You are real close to the numbers I came up with. My food per day is now at 1.5 pounds a day. I am on a liquid diet using Dry Ensure with a little Carnation Chocolate Breakfast drink mixed in for added flavor and a few more calories. It gives me 282.5 calories per 2.29 ounces and everything I need. I used this the first of Oct when I did the Georgia Loop. The 1.5 pounds per day of the Dry stuff worked fine. I also used a little Hammer Perpetuem in all my drinking water.

    My first draft for 5 resupplies would be:
    1. Springer Mt., GA to Damascus, VA - 459.5 miles / 23 days
    2. Damascus, VA to Harpers Ferry, WV - 550 miles / 22 days
    3. Harpers Ferry,WV to Pawling, NY - 422 miles / 22days
    4. Pawling, NY to Pinkham Notch, NH - 424.4 miles / 22 days
    5. Pinkham Notch, NH to Mt. Katahdin, ME - 319.5 miles / 22 days

    The rest of my gear load would be Super Ultra Light maybe in the 5 to 7 pound range except for food, water and a few consumables. No cooking as I just add water to the dry stuff and drink. I have been on this liquid diet about 18 months and all the stuff mentioned about real food isn't really necessary. The Ensure product and the other products like Ensure give me a complete and nutritional balance of everything I need everyday.

  14. #14

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    The only thing you've left out.....

    Why do you want to do this?

  15. #15
    AT 4000+, LT, FHT, ALT Blissful's Avatar
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    I think sometimes this hiking stuff can go too far. It almost becomes an obsession - like the weight of the pack, who can do it with fewest supplies or the shortest time - is there going to be a Guinness book of records on AT hiking I wonder? But in the end, does it really matter?

    I'll be SO thankful just to get from Springer to Katahdin and all that I learn along the way. The joy of the journey.

    But I guess it's all HYOH.







    Hiking Blog
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  16. #16
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    Default Added obsticles.

    This question, along with others I have read about faster hikes, etc. indicates that often the questions come from people who haven't yet experienced the trail. Trust me, the trail can be a GREAT challenge, regardless of how much testosterone you may (or wish to) possess.
    Why would you want to stack the deck against yourself before you even know if you can play the game?

    If you want to up the annie, I would suggest you first do the trail and then, if it wasn't enough of a challenge, you could try variations on your previous hike.

    (Sorry for the mixed mediphors.)
    A man said to the universe, "Sir, I exist."
    "However", replied the universe, "that fact does not instill in me a sense of obligation."

  17. #17
    Registered User A-Train's Avatar
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    Waht would be the point in hiking virginia without resupplying? For instance, you practically walk past a grocery store in Daleville, about halfway thru VA. Even if you absolutely wanted to skip hitching and not waste time, you'd be foolish to pass up a resupply opportunity here.

    Likewise for places like Duncannon, Kent, Hanover, Hot Springs, etc,
    Anything's within walking distance if you've got the time.
    GA-ME 03, LT 04/06, PCT 07'

  18. #18
    Pigpen aka Frankenfeet 2005 tarbender's Avatar
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    Default 5 Resupplies during a THRU

    Five resupplies during a thru is totally possible. You start off with a full load and reup four times. Basically you have five 435 mile chunks of AT. Your pack would contain about 30 pounds of food for each segment. You would need to try to hike each segment in about 15 - 17 days. People have certainly hiked the AT in 85 days before but they probably had more than five supplies during the whole hike. This a very attainable goal for a welll conditioned and highly skilled hiker practicing UL techninque. The BPL post about this is definitely very interesting. I think many people would be suprised at some of the discussions, scenarios, and models that appear there. That said, I basically agree with the general idea most of you guys seem to have here. I think it is something I would never do. I do however think that someone will do it and shatter many peoples perceptions. Some people don't see the purpose in this. I do. It probably has a lot to do with stuff like sponsorship, marketing, growth, development, field testing, public relations, etc. It will be a valuable and enriching experience for all those involved in an attempt of this nature.

    -jeff aka frankenfeet
    -frankenfeet stomps it flat-

  19. #19
    Working on Forestry Grad schol
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    If you try this idea and you see me, don't expect to bum food from me.

  20. #20
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    It can't be done.

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