Does anyone have experience sending mail drops from Canada? Are mail drops common?

[Crumbcakes]

Hi,

I'm wondering if anyone has attempted to send food resupply boxes from Canada to the A.T. Am looking into my options yet aware that postage is very expensive with Canada's current exchange rate. Also wondering if there are possible problems with food passing customs and being held up.

Are mail drops the most-commonly used way to get food resupply along the trail? Based on the previous post and thread, it sounds like they AREN'T and hikers tend to resupply in towns. This is the one area of my thru-hike that feels the murkiest. I'd like to eat specific foods, hence wanting to pre-buy and mail to myself.

Any specific experience or advice would be appreciated. Cheers~

[Dogwood]

I'm super picky about what I put into my body and mind. I tend toward organic and have been a happy pesce vegetarian for 19 yrs. I lax off with the diet on the trail a bit and will eat some chicken or turkey or even a fried food though. In my case I also take many holistic supplements, nutraceuticals, nootropics, etc in lieu of meds so mailing some resupply boxes makes sense for me. If what you mean by "I like to eat specific foods" is somewhat similar here's what I can offer.

I'll answer your question from being a regular LD hiker on LD trails and routes throughout the U.S. and DO mail myself at least some resupply boxes on most of my LD hikes. The vast majority of AT hikers will not mail themselves resupply boxes on AT thru-hikes. In what I consider a fair opinion, many LD hikers, particularly AT hikers, will jam any crap they can find down their gullets. This is changing however with more regular LD hikers that live the LD lifestyle giving greater attention to better trail nutrition choices.

What you can do is once you get to the U.S. you can buy the choosy foods you like at a larger town at stores that carry your brands and take a day or two to mail some boxes ahead to key locations using USPS Priority Flat Rate boxes to where you would have otherwise have difficulty buying your foods on the fly. I do it often buying food at Wholefoods, CoOs, Earthfare, etc. I then schedule some resupply locations where I haven't mailed a box at other larger towns with stores I know carry my food or have a wide selection and buy on the fly too. This is called a hybrid resupply method. You need to know the stores that carry your foods though which means doing some pre hike research. I fill in and supplement at other times. For knowing what grocery options are in what locations along the AT I used the AT Thru-Hikers Companion. TIP: don't assume you need to drive yourself mad anally scheduling out every single resupply or do this all at once for an entire AT thru-hike. You can do this again from a different large town that has grocery stores that carry your food up the trail. I find it's a good way to spend a "zero day."

Now, there are costs but also possible benefits involved but perhaps it can work for YOUR hike. There are pros and cons to most everything and resupplying this way is no exception. Med size Priority Flat rate boxes are $13.45 allowing up to 70 lbs and if mailed in the Lower 48 get to locations along the AT in about 2 days. Most AT USPO's, campgrounds, hostels, hotels, and a few outfitters will hold your mailed resupply box for 30 days or longer. I find with a polite respectful ph call all these places will extend the time they hold a box if you notify them in advance. If you go to the WB Home page, click Preparation, and then click the Resupply link there are good resupply articles including mailing resupply boxes. http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/list.php/category/15-Resupply I get about 6 days food in each box but have gotten up to 9 days. Tip: mix up your food choices, which is what happens when you do it this way, and don't let anyone here tell you it can't be done or don't do it especially when some will opine on things they have no experience. It's YOUR hike. It's YOUR diet.

[4eyedbuzzard]

Hi,

I'm wondering if anyone has attempted to send food resupply boxes from Canada to the A.T. Am looking into my options yet aware that postage is very expensive with Canada's current exchange rate. Also wondering if there are possible problems with food passing customs and being held up.

Are mail drops the most-commonly used way to get food resupply along the trail? Based on the previous post and thread, it sounds like they AREN'T and hikers tend to resupply in towns. This is the one area of my thru-hike that feels the murkiest. I'd like to eat specific foods, hence wanting to pre-buy and mail to myself.

Any specific experience or advice would be appreciated. Cheers~

EDIT: ^^^Great advice previous post^^^

There are probably no customs issues with packaged processed foods, but there could be with meats or other fresh agricultural products like fruits or vegetables. Pretty gray area as while USPS may not have a specific regulation, if USDA has a prohibition, USPS has to abide by it.

Mail drops are definitely not the most common way of getting foods on the AT. Most hikers buy at stores along the way, 3 to 7 days of food at a time depending upon hiking speed and distances between towns. There are many reasons for this as you have likely read, but mostly expense (postage costs) and convenience (hours of operation of Post Offices).

Add in that Canada Post prices will likely be in the C$40 range per box of about 5kg to zip codes along the AT. That's going to get very expensive given 20 +/- mail drops. I asked my wife (works for USPS) about forwarding with the US of General Delivery addressed parcels sent from Canada, as Priority Parcels here can be forwarded for free to another post office if you don't pick them up. She has never done it, but will research this if she has the time.

Another option is to research is where at least some of these foods you desire may be available along the trail, and supplement that with fewer and lighter packages from Canada. Why not post the specific foods you are looking for here and see if WB members know where you can get them? And as previously posted, buy them here and then ship ahead.

And ALWAYS put in writing "Hold for AT Hiker" on the front of the box.

[Spirit Walker]

We had to deal with this when we hiked the Great Divide Trail in Canada. We were told that food packages can be held at Customs for a couple of weeks, though they aren't always. We decided to cross the border and mail all of our packages for our six week hike from Waterton.

You might do better to buy in the larger stores and mail food to yourself in the small towns with limited supplies. it would certainly be cheaper, because the farther a package goes, the more expensive it is to mail unless you use flat rate boxes. Some items (like medications) you might want to bring with you and create a bounce box that gets forwarded up the trail along with maps and guidebook sections.

[ChuckT]

Won't customs and security be an issue? Guvmints take a dim view of "stuff" flowing back and forth.

[4eyedbuzzard]

Won't customs and security be an issue? Guvmints take a dim view of "stuff" flowing back and forth.No, it's not uncommon at all, and it's not really a big deal. The only additional step is that you have to fill out a customs form when you send a package from either country. Tons of mail and packages flow between the US and Canada. The USPS and Canada Post have always worked together pretty well. You can even track packages in the US and Canada using the same tracking number that was assigned from the point of origin. You can track your package on the USPS website while it's in the US and then use the same tracking number on the Canada Post website once it's handed off to them, and vice-versa.

[ChuckT]

Way back when I had to ship a package of supplies, FD meals and such, back to the states from Alberta. It looked like wolves had been it it when it arrived.

[Crumbcakes]

Thank you so much for all of this detailed advice!

[Dogwood]

Thank you 4eyed buzzard and Spirit Walker. Especially liked the GDT mailing resupply boxes info as that is my scenario for the near future.

[Crumbcakes]

Thank you, Dogwood :) I appreciate all of the information and support you offered. From this thread, I have figured out that it is unnecessary to pre-plan all of my mail drops before I leave and especially to send them from Canada. I'll take your advice and do some shops in larger towns along the trail (and research them from home here) and then mail a few drops to myself, ie. the 'hybrid resupply method'. As for specific foods, I'm going no-stove and will be looking for quality foods to re-hydrate as well as salami, jerkies, hard cheeses, nuts, etc.