Mid May NOBO hikers interested in partnering up?

[jvernich]

Hey guys! I am planning a mid May nobo thru hike and would love to have a hiking partner/ group to set out with! Let me know if anyone else is setting out from Springer around that time!

[The Cleaner]

This year record numbers of hikers left Springer Mtn. I'd say just show up and join the parade. Overcrowded shelters and limited space in trail towns with beer parties too. What most hikers are looking for these days. Many, if they make to Trail Days in Damascus party there then quit later.

[atm2965]

My boyfriend and I will be leaving May 8th! Hope to see you out there!

[capehiker]

I'm tentatively stepping off NoBo on May 15th, but have not ruled out a flip-flop north starting at HF. The only constant is my start date.

[showtime_]

Hey guys! I am planning a mid May nobo thru hike and would love to have a hiking partner/ group to set out with! Let me know if anyone else is setting out from Springer around that time!

I am probably going to be setting out around mid-May as well. My plan was to hike the trail NOBO this year, but life got in the way and I had to abort. I'm not sure when my last final will be next semester, but May 15th is the last day for those... so we will see.

Right now I'm toying with ideas of how I want to do the hike. Part of me wants to start in Georgia and do a traditional NOBO, and part of me wants to just drive an hour west to Shenandoah and hike south to Springer, then catch a plane back to D.C. and start north to Katahdin from there.

[MrClahn]

I'll be heading out mid to late may depending on a) how quickly i can get a part time job, and b) when my last uni exam is. There's been a few posts here and over on reddit about late starters though and there's been quite a few people who are in similar situations of starting late trying to find out if they'll be other thru hikers at that time.

[jvernich]

May 15th is looking to be my start date too. I'm really considering to SOBO now though because I'm from Tennessee and it would be better for me to near the end near home.

[jvernich]

Yeah, college graduation has gotten in the way of my plans too! I can't leave until mid May and I'm really considering doing a Sobo now because I feel like it would be less crowded than a Nobo and I'm also afraid Katahdin will be closed by the time I get there if I were to nobo.

[jvernich]

That's good to hear! I was worried at first that I would be left in the dust, but I feel like there are going to be lots of other just-graduated college kids leaving around that time.

[showtime_]

That's good to hear! I was worried at first that I would be left in the dust, but I feel like there are going to be lots of other just-graduated college kids leaving around that time.

I've ran into a fair number of people in Shenandoah who started around the same time we are talking because of college. It's not impossible. Especially if you are in good hiking shape already. That's not to say that anyone is ever really in shape for a thru-hike... but it definitely doesn't hurt to be able to do large number days in advance haha

[4eyedbuzzard]

May 15th is looking to be my start date too. I'm really considering to SOBO now though because I'm from Tennessee and it would be better for me to near the end near home.May 15 is fine for a faster than average NOBO hike. If you are young and strong, you'll have 5 months until Baxter closes to camping on Oct 15. It cuts it close, but you could always flip at Harpers Ferry or NYC if you think you won't make it.

But if you wind up going SOBO, starting any sooner than mid-June is asking to make the hike much more difficult than it needs to be. You'll be starting on the most difficult mountain, and some of the most difficult part of trail through the 100 mile and beyond. The Hunt Trail (AT) on Katahdin typically isn't open by mid-May, it usually doesn't open until later in May or even early June. In mid-May, the AT itself in ME will likely have lingering snowpack and LOTS of melt/runoff. Streams, even small ones, will be raging and cold and deep (as in up to chest deep). You will encounter the worst of the black fly hatch from late May to late June. Add that trail maintainers will likely not have gotten out yet to clear blowdowns and such.

[chiefduffy]

May 15 is fine for a faster than average NOBO hike. If you are young and strong, you'll have 5 months until Baxter closes to camping on Oct 15. It cuts it close, but you could always flip at Harpers Ferry or NYC if you think you won't make it.

But if you wind up going SOBO, starting any sooner than mid-June is asking to make the hike much more difficult than it needs to be. You'll be starting on the most difficult mountain, and some of the most difficult part of trail through the 100 mile and beyond. The Hunt Trail (AT) on Katahdin typically isn't open by mid-May, it usually doesn't open until later in May or even early June. In mid-May, the AT itself in ME will likely have lingering snowpack and LOTS of melt/runoff. Streams, even small ones, will be raging and cold and deep (as in up to chest deep). You will encounter the worst of the black fly hatch from late May to late June. Add that trail maintainers will likely not have gotten out yet to clear blowdowns and such.\

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^Please read...extremely good advice!^^^^^^^^^^

[daddytwosticks]

I hike alot in May on this southern end of the trail. You would be surprised at the number of NOBO's starting at this time or those who plan on hiking northbound and going "as far as they can" by summer's end. :)