Suggested mail drops for a Thru-hike

[mPalozzola01]

I am curious what would be the suggested mail drop locations for thru hikes. I am only mail dropping my shoes and insoles. I'm using trail runners and expect to need 3 or 4 pairs for the thru-hike. I know I want 1 drop to be 50ish miles before the whites. What towns are good to break up the trail decently evenly? what post offices/hostels have a real good record working with hikers and mail? And how long will places hold the package? Can I ship out the packages before I leave or should I rely on someone to ship em a few weeks before I get to the drop?

[bigcranky]

Damascus, Harper's Ferry, and Hanover should do the trick for shoes and insoles.

I would have them mailed about 2 weeks ahead.

[garlic08]

I did Pearisburg, a friend's house in PA, and Hanover.

[CarlZ993]

I used Brooks Cascadias. Went thru 4 pair. I had replacement shoes shipped to Daleville (VA), Mt. Vernon (NJ), & Andover (ME). I waited too long for the last pair. Lots of duct tape to keep them together until I reached Andover. I wouldn't use Mt. Vernon as they were mailed to the church hostel there. Luckily, a backpacker there accepted the package or I would have been out of luck. Ship to a regular business if possible.

[mPalozzola01]

I used Brooks Cascadias. Went thru 4 pair. I had replacement shoes shipped to Daleville (VA), Mt. Vernon (NJ), & Andover (ME). I waited too long for the last pair. Lots of duct tape to keep them together until I reached Andover. I wouldn't use Mt. Vernon as they were mailed to the church hostel there. Luckily, a backpacker there accepted the package or I would have been out of luck. Ship to a regular business if possible.
Those are actually the exact shoes I'm planning to use. Those are my running shoes and I love em so why not use em for this adventure. My running shoes normally last 400-500 miles on asohault. I'm light only about 150 and am aiming for total 35lbs for the pack w/ consumables. I feel i can get 500 miles outta them on trail... especially thro some of the easier terrain.

[MuddyWaters]

Hostels , outfitters, etc will hold packages a long time.

P.Os vary. Always talk to p.o.directly in my experience.
Small town PO hold general delivery MAIL 30 days typically. They often hold packages much less, sometimes as little as a week, due to space . POs on AT seem to be better than others out west too. Sometimes a very small PO is literally an 8x8 room.