View Full Version : Tips
Lone Wolf
01-02-2015, 23:29
http://appalachiantrail.com/20150102/doctor-grumpys-ten-tips-appalachian-trail-thru-hikers/
No Directions
01-02-2015, 23:51
Good info.
Tuckahoe
01-02-2015, 23:57
I predict 20+ pages of pontificating and the parsing of every little meaning, 1 account warning and 1 account lock, and many insistences that he's doing it wrong.:)
Love it.
"You cannot learn how to swim by studying swimming. You must get into the water."
Refreshing. 9 out of 10 threads I've read on this site are addressed. Thanks
HooKooDooKu
01-03-2015, 03:01
Seems like the entire article could be summed up with the words...
"Get outside and learn to deal with your $#!T"
(figuratively as well as literally)
Lone woof...Great article. It's too bad many new thru-hikers won't believe it.
12trysomething
01-03-2015, 10:54
This is funny (very very true) but this is one funny article. "Have a friend with kids? Offer to carry a couple of them around for a day or 2 for practice"
Made my morning!
Lone Wolf
01-03-2015, 10:59
Lone woof...Great article. It's too bad many new thru-hikers won't believe it.
i'm so glad my first AT experience was before books, internet, cell phones, etc. i remember the ATC sent me a "thru-hiker packet". in it was a list of former thru-hikers with phone#s to call and ask for info. i never called. i winged it from the start. it's the best way
Lone Wolf
01-03-2015, 11:17
Before books?
AT books. journals
WingedMonkey
01-03-2015, 11:40
Hello. Doctor Grumpy here with a few words of wisdom for those planning a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 2015.
I am never going to thru-hike the AT. Sad but true.
#2: Stop reading blogs and writing blogs and posting on AT sites and reading AT Facebook pages.
Once again someone who has never and will never complete a thru-hike posts advice on how to/not to hike a thru-hike.
At least he advises not to read them.
:sun
Great.
now to get all the Newbies to read it.
Old Hiker
01-03-2015, 11:53
Nice info, Lone Wolf. Thanks for sharing. I enjoyed the article. Yet another shortcut on my desktop to check every now and then.
A few additions to start the 20 + pages:
a. When the guy is writhing in pain from a groin kick, take 5 seconds and either STOMP on his neck HARD a time or two or kick him in the throat. Do it. You are trying to stop the threat, not just to you right now but to others later on.
b. The blogs and web sites (NOT Facebook so far) have helped me quite a bit in gear, etc. I'll still read and throw my 2 cents in occasionally.
c. If he is "Doctor Grumpy", why is he only getting crazy and not grumpy?
i'm so glad my first AT experience was before books, internet, cell phones, etc. i remember the ATC sent me a "thru-hiker packet". in it was a list of former thru-hikers with phone#s to call and ask for info. i never called. i winged it from the start. it's the best way
Yeah I remember those packets I got one in 95, I actually still have it, I opened it, looked through it, didn't feel that I needed it so I put everything back in the little box and put it in my closet. but I will admit I did call a couple of the numbers with no answer.
I wonder why they quit mailing those to people, some of these folks could use something like that.
kayak karl
01-03-2015, 12:01
you mean "Go Outside" and "Just Walk" It has to be more complicated then that ;)
thanks LW....if people actually read that article and follow his advice, 97% of the posts on WB would disappear.
I have looked at trail journals. I don't get much from trail journals. Some trail journals have practically no details.
I liked his Blog, however. It is a Blog, right?
I like the general message, but I'm not sure the people who are doing a ton of research and spending a lot of time on forums make up a lot of that 75% that fail. I'm betting they make up more of the 25% that succeed. How can you blame people for being very invested in a half-year trip that they are likely sacrificing a lot to be able to do? No, researching gear so that you can shave ounces or few pounds probably won't make or break a hike, but a city person with dreams of the AT for whatever reason that has never even hiked before could come to a place like this and find out that their planned layering system and sleeping bag won't be warm enough, or they could easily shave 10 pounds of gear, or their steel-toed boots aren't a good idea... that COULD make or break a hike.
And it seems to me that people who use maildrops or bounce boxes usually have a legitimate reason, medications, dietary restrictions etc. The sense I get is that a huge percentage of thrus are resupplying in towns nearly 100% of the time.
The author has never done a thru-hike, so where is he getting the idea that everyone on forums talking about gear isn't getting out and hiking too? I don't imagine that's the case. I think the people he is criticizing are very few and far between and barely even exist. We're all here talking about gear and techniques because we like to hike and want to make ourselves more comfortable when we hike right?
You could make a valid argument from the complete opposite side that if you have proper gear that has been tested by other thru-hikers, you will get that experience and develop your hiking legs when you hit the trail eventually anyways, so having the right stuff is MORE important... Completely depends on the person. I think more research, preparation, living in the elements, and hiking especially with a backpack, the better!
MuddyWaters
01-03-2015, 14:04
Awful lot of people spend $1500 on gear, a year planning, and still dont make it out of GA.
Its simply much harder than many think . Even some that study and read and plan for a year or more. Until they actually do it, they dont believe that. If you click on Journals at the top of the page, and scroll down a couple of posts, there is one recent example of such.
People have this thing called an ego, that interferes with their perception of reality. They dont realize how poor shape they really are in, how bad their gear choices are, etc. They might read, but the dont understand.
Before my first thru-hike, I did a lot of what that article said is useless, but found doing so to be of use to me. But the difference was I was also going out backpacking regularly and trying different things out. Nothing wrong with head knowledge as you never know when something you read once might come in useful. I agree that nothing beats personal experience, but I'd rather learn from reading about someone else's mistake then making it myself.
And yes, many blogs are useless as they don't give you any details other then how today felt like a party and the next is about how miserable they are. But there are a few that give a good description of their hike and experiences each day.
It's not that the information found in books and online is completely useless, it's that it's only about 10% as useful as actually hiking. I like WhiteBlaze (obviously) but getting out and actually hiking for days, weekends, and a couple of weeks is what prepared me for a thru-hike. WhiteBlaze is a social networking site, not boot camp for hikers. In fact, the more time a would-be hiker (or "fantasy hiker" as my husband calls them) spends reading and playing movies in their mind about how the hike is going to be, the bigger the gap between the fantasy and the hike they actually experience will be. Fantasies are the ultimate "I'm not really here--my body may be in the office but my mind is on a mountaintop" experience while actual hiking is very much a "be here now--here just won't go away, in all its pain and beauty" experience. The two things really don't mesh very well.
daddytwosticks
01-03-2015, 20:00
I went out in the woods to practice my pooping, but the next door neighbor called the cops on me. I'm now in jail and can't make bait. Looks like I won't be hiking the AT anytime soon. :(
When I first opened my business in 2004, there were lots of jaded "experienced " folks who would serve up their expertise with a spoonful of scorn and cynicism towards us newbies. I listened, I learned, and I discarded what felt like bull****. Now I am one of a very small percentage who made it over 10 years and I share my experience to newbies in my field with an honest desire to help them be successful. I feel the same way about this hike. I'm new- I'm green- but I have common sense, desire to do it, willingness to learn, and balls. I'll take whatever advice people want to give me, and I'll discard what sounds condescending or disingenuous. Just because someone is a rookie at hiking does not mean they are a moron. Rookies can be judged by being over enthusiastic, cocky, clueless, whatever. But experienced folk are also being judged- by their compassion, empathy, and generosity of spirit when they share their knowledge. We all have choices about how we want to be perceived. I like reading trail journals. I like trolling here for info. And I like hiking. I think I'll be better prepared by taking advantage of all of my resources.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Walking is good for solving problems — it's like the feet are little psychiatrists. ~Terri Guillemets
Walking is good for solving problems — it's like the feet are little psychiatrists. ~Terri Guillemets
Hmm- after re-reading my last obnoxious post I'm looking forward to my little psychiatrists doing their work! Sorry!
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Hmm- after re-reading my last obnoxious post I'm looking forward to my little psychiatrists doing their work! Sorry!
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Easy Dog, responding to the thread. Business is tough.
atraildreamer
01-04-2015, 13:50
I went out in the woods to practice my pooping, but the next door neighbor called the cops on me. I'm now in jail and can't make bait. Looks like I won't be hiking the AT anytime soon. :(
But they were nice enough to let you use their computer to post on WB!
It's not that the information found in books and online is completely useless, it's that it's only about 10% as useful as actually hiking. I like WhiteBlaze (obviously) but getting out and actually hiking for days, weekends, and a couple of weeks is what prepared me for a thru-hike. WhiteBlaze is a social networking site, not boot camp for hikers. In fact, the more time a would-be hiker (or "fantasy hiker" as my husband calls them) spends reading and playing movies in their mind about how the hike is going to be, the bigger the gap between the fantasy and the hike they actually experience will be. Fantasies are the ultimate "I'm not really here--my body may be in the office but my mind is on a mountaintop" experience while actual hiking is very much a "be here now--here just won't go away, in all its pain and beauty" experience. The two things really don't mesh very well.
Very well said. The mental game begin when expectations and realities don't match.
RJSutherland
01-14-2015, 17:02
Thanks for sharing the link, Lone Wolf.
RJSutherland
RJSutherland
01-14-2015, 17:03
Well put.
Thanks.
RJSutherln
RJSutherland
01-14-2015, 17:08
Hi.
Didn't mean to say any preparation was useless ... just that hiking is more beneficial than reading about hiking.
Thanks for your insights, Miner.
RJSutherland
Seatbelt
01-14-2015, 19:23
Awful lot of people spend $1500 on gear, a year planning, and still dont make it out of GA.
Its simply much harder than many think . Even some that study and read and plan for a year or more. Until they actually do it, they dont believe that. If you click on Journals at the top of the page, and scroll down a couple of posts, there is one recent example of such.
People have this thing called an ego, that interferes with their perception of reality. They dont realize how poor shape they really are in, how bad their gear choices are, etc. They might read, but the dont understand.
Ouch!! this describes my first attempt at a section hike on the AT!! I studied for a year, read, researched, etc, but when I arrived at Neels Gap, I was a mess!! Took a day off and learned more from Pirate and Lumpy the next day then I had learned in the previous year of "research". Hit the trail again the next day and made it to NC on time...and have been back several times for more successful sections since then. But I agree with Dr Grumpy that too much time can be spent just reading as a prep tool.