View Full Version : Anyone ever just get food from hiker boxes?
How far can one get just eating food out of hiker boxes? I always see lots of oatmeal, redbeans and rice, yellow rice, mac and cheese, ramen noodles in every hiker box at each hostle and even some hotels started putting out a hiker boxs. When does this slow down? It just does not seem necessary to mail boxs if I can find the same foods for free and plenty of it. How far north are there boxes full of food?
tiamalle
02-26-2006, 22:07
How far can one get just eating food out of hiker boxes? I always see lots of oatmeal, redbeans and rice, yellow rice, mac and cheese, ramen noodles in every hiker box at each hostle and even some hotels started putting out a hiker boxs. When does this slow down? It just does not seem necessary to mail boxs if I can find the same foods for free and plenty of it. How far north are there boxes full of food?I'm
already getting plenty in the Box at Budget Inn of Franklin.Stop by for some
mac and cheese and a few of the other items you mentioned.
Kerosene
02-26-2006, 22:07
I would view it as very poor taste to depend on re-supplying solely from hiker boxes, kind of like not carrying a tent and expecting everyone at shelters to make room for you.
That said, the food has been put there for others to use if and when they need. As long as you don't depend on it, and as as long as you leave stuff for other needy hikers (and as long as you can live with the selection!), then you should certainly be able to take advantage of the contents.
I've found hiker boxes with a surprisingly good selection as late as October in northern Virginia, although there's no telling how old some of the food is.
Cookerhiker
02-26-2006, 22:14
On a 5 day section hike in PA spring '03, I met a homeless guy who obviously depended on the hiker boxes. He was a hiker of sorts but I don't think he covered much ground. He claimed to have thru-hiked a few times. He certainly knew a lot about the Trail with a particularly morbid familiarity with the murders that had taken place over the years.
When I first arrived at the shelter, his first words to me were asking to use my stove. I ended up cooking his meal for him because his hands tremored, not just out of compassion but I didn't want his full pot spilling on my stove and the shelter floor.
In addition to the hiker boxes, he mooched off the hostels, taking advantage of the ones without a set fee.
Honestly, depending on the boxes is a really poor idea (bad pun) for a few reasons.
First, the food in the boxes will run low once you get to Virginia. There was a lot of food in the boxes in the south, at places like Neels Gap and other popular hostels where people send maildrops to. After Damascus (or Pearisburg) many hikers drop off and the ones who remain seem to stop recieving big maildrops filled with oatmeal, opting to buy along the way. As you continue into the mid-Atlantic, the trailtowns are few and far between and the hiker boxes even more seldom. That being said, there are good selections at places like the Church of the Mtn hostel in DWG, but this isn't something that can be relied upon.
Relying on something that may not be there is a bad idea. Who knows if a like-minded hiker will come 2 days before you and wipe everything else, as he too is relying on handouts.
It's simply too reliable. Use them if they are there, but be prepared to have a backup plan, i.e. money stashed away for groceries.
As stated by Kerosene, just because the boxes are free, and for hikers use, doesn't mean one person should monopolize them and rely solely on them, while others are left with little choice. They are for everyone, and there are a lot of hikers. Supplement a meal or a snack here or there, or get lucky and grab that tube of seam-sealer, but don't loot them.
SGTdirtman
02-27-2006, 01:24
I gotta agree those boxes are for hikers who may actually be short on food... You cant plan a hike based on the hope that others will provide for you. for one the food may not be there, second its kinda taking advantage of people. If you are seriously short on food then by all means grab some. I met a hiker digging around one of the boxes once and having just checked to see what was left in it, knew there wasnt much... There was some fruit snacks and some noodles. So I went up and offered to cook up some extra dinner for him since I had plenty, turns out he was short on food because he did the same thing to someone he met the night before.
one thing I've learned on the AT is that everyone is extremely willing to help everyone else... but please dont take advantage of that
I did an entire 4 day resupply out of a hiker box when I had problems with my ATM card, but over the course of the trip I put more in them than I took out so I figure my hiker box karma is good.
I do not really think planning a trip around using them to resupply is very cool honestly.
I wish hikers that leave food would start putting the ingredients, date and directions on stuff left in ziplocks.
Most people have no idea of the stuff left over but may take it if they knew what it was and how to cook it.
jackiebolen
02-27-2006, 16:04
I ate a decent amount of food out of hiker boxes but I would NEVER have depended fully on them! That just seems crazy. Sometimes there was nothing in them at all except mystery baggies of substances unknown. Other times, it was quite the score but you could never count on it, that's for sure.
My experience, [the southern 400 miles] is that it can be done, but you are counting an awful lot on luck. I have seen boxes that you could have almost done at least 2 weeks of food from, and boxes that you would have had a hard time getting breakfast from. Of course the former depended on you having almost no tastebuds :p
IMHO, go ahead & use the hiker boxes, that is after all what they are there for, but be prepared to not need them, they may be empty.
Doctari
Wise Old Owl
01-12-2009, 20:20
On a 5 day section hike in PA spring '03, I met a homeless guy who obviously depended on the hiker boxes. He was a hiker of sorts but I don't think he covered much ground. He claimed to have thru-hiked a few times. He certainly knew a lot about the Trail with a particularly morbid familiarity with the murders that had taken place over the years.
When I first arrived at the shelter, his first words to me were asking to use my stove. I ended up cooking his meal for him because his hands tremored, not just out of compassion but I didn't want his full pot spilling on my stove and the shelter floor.
In addition to the hiker boxes, he mooched off the hostels, taking advantage of the ones without a set fee.
Ok that is sad and above the call of duty, This appears to be a small conversation about where to draw the line. Having been there before I would have done the same. / but the murder part would have sent me to the next shelter by warp factor speed......
Hiker box saved me in fontana. I sent a drop box there and they wanted to charge me $30.00 for it. I said no way. Got some stuff out of the hiker box and from old goat who was sent to much food.
Lone Wolf
01-12-2009, 20:30
who wanted to charge you $30?
Spirit Walker
01-12-2009, 20:34
As Sly said, in the boxes you find a lot of mystery packets. Makes a difference if it's protein powder or milk or soup or mashed potatoes but you can't tell from the outside.
Down south it seemed like there were also a lot of long cooking foods - long grained rice and beans and lentils especially, things that work well at home but not so well on the trail when time, energy and fuel are limited.
I mostly traded items, trading something I was tired of for something more interesting. Sometimes there were good things in the boxes, but not often.
It can be very irritating to arrive in a hostel and discover that another hiker has cleaned out the box. In Maine there was a couple hitching from town to town and cleaning out the hostel boxes. They were not popular. If you are always mooching off others, and taking all the good items out of the hiker boxes, you will get a reputation that you may not care for.
Fontana Dam motel HWY 28 box5 fontana dam,NC 28733 I was was SOOOOOO pi**ed.
I hiked from Springer to Hot Springs on mostly hiker box food. You do have to fill in the gaps buying some stuff though.
Lone Wolf
01-12-2009, 20:39
that's a total rip-off. was it the hike inn?
Fontana dam motel, I looked it up in my AT stuff to make sure
Fontana Dam motel HWY 28 box5 fontana dam,NC 28733 I was was SOOOOOO pi**ed.
You have posted this in a couple of places. You fail to mention that it tells you in the guide books the maildrop service is for staying guest only. A 30.00 fee for non staying drops. You got their address from somewhere. How about I send packages to your house you go to the PO and carry them back for me. I'll be there sometime in the next month to pick them up so you store them for me. They don't owe you nothing. Why should they do your crap for free? Oh yeah, your a thru hiker, thank you for blessing them with your presence.
Clyde
1234, I have to agree with Kerosene, A-Train, and SGTdirtman. Poor taste(pardon the pun) to solely rely on UNRELIABLE hiker boxes for food from the get go!!! That's just not wise planning!!!
buckwheat
01-12-2009, 20:48
I wish hikers that leave food would start putting the ingredients, date and directions on stuff left in ziplocks.
I wish they'd cook it for me, and by the way dudes, you guys need to learn a thing or two about cleaning up. My cookpot hasn't been looking too clean lately.
Maybe you guys could get on that when you're through with my grocery shopping for the week?
In 2006 I saw more food in the 100 mi wilderness shelters and at Shaw's than anywhere else. SOBO's were ditching weight like ballast in a sinking sub.
I'm not afraid to say it. Too many people with the mistaken notion that hiking the AT means someone owes them something. Some people just look to be leeches rather than looking for ways to unselfishly contribute. Fortunately, this group is in the minority. *This is not aimed at any single individual mentioned here or anywhere else, it is simply aimed at a mindset that needs to be changed.*
rcli4
1st I did stay there!!
2nd I got the address from a guy that thrued in 2000
3rd I dont remember you being there.
$th
sorry battries went out on my keyboard
4th I am letting people know.
5th I am not some kind of jerk to the people. I was pi**ed. You get ready to go into the smokies with no food.
rcli4
1st I did stay there!!
2nd I got the address from a guy that thrued in 2000
3rd I dont remember you being there.
$th
1 I have stayed there the folks are nice and they haven't charged for a drop
2 It is "Smart" to call the place to find their policy before you send mail
3 Did you have the place to yourself? You don't know me
4 I am sorry you had a bad experience. Have a nice day.
Hikerwannabe
01-12-2009, 21:24
Oh wait 1 minute.............. I am getting ready to send Kayak Karl a resupply box to Fantana Dam.. are you telling me He is not going to get it unless he pays a arm and a leg??
Oh wait 1 minute.............. I am getting ready to send Kayak Karl a resupply box to Fantana Dam.. are you telling me He is ot going to get it unless he pays a arm and a leg??They are fussing about the Fontana Dam Motel. If you are sending it to the Fontana Dam Post Office then there is no charge.
Yes send it to the post office he will be able to get it there.
Lone Wolf
01-12-2009, 21:30
never heard of the fontana dam motel. where is it?
joshua5878
01-12-2009, 21:42
1 I have stayed there the folks are nice and they haven't charged for a drop
2 It is "Smart" to call the place to find their policy before you send mail
3 Did you have the place to yourself? You don't know me
4 I am sorry you had a bad experience. Have a nice day.
WHY are you so MEAN to this guy?? What if he really was mislead? Keep an open mind dude. :0) Don't attack, hike. Wow....
People will forgive you for a lot of things throughout your life, but being cheap is not one of them. If you have the ability to pay....please do so.
superman
01-12-2009, 22:07
I'd heard hikers talking about coos coos. When I made a town stop some was in the hiker box. It was nasty crap. I wouldn't slop a hog with it....er maybe that's what it is.:-?
If you have the ability to pay....please do so.
If you don't have the ability to pay....stop hiking and get a job.
Hiker boxes ain't a charity system that exist only for the idiots that don't know how to manage their money.
Cookerhiker
01-12-2009, 23:26
On a 5 day section hike in PA spring '03, I met a homeless guy who obviously depended on the hiker boxes. He was a hiker of sorts but I don't think he covered much ground. He claimed to have thru-hiked a few times. He certainly knew a lot about the Trail with a particularly morbid familiarity with the murders that had taken place over the years.
When I first arrived at the shelter, his first words to me were asking to use my stove. I ended up cooking his meal for him because his hands tremored, not just out of compassion but I didn't want his full pot spilling on my stove and the shelter floor.
In addition to the hiker boxes, he mooched off the hostels, taking advantage of the ones without a set fee.
Ok that is sad and above the call of duty, This appears to be a small conversation about where to draw the line. Having been there before I would have done the same. / but the murder part would have sent me to the next shelter by warp factor speed......
And to top it off, he also had a black eye patch - looked like a Cyclops. But I didn't feel threatened - he wasn't very strong and as I said, he shook and tremored. He slept in the loft, I slept on the ground floor. Later on, some locals came out for a weekend hike so we had company.
Also it was pouring rain shortly after I arrived at the shelter (William Penn) and I didn't feel like getting soaked. That was the year ('03) of rain, rain, rain....
When I got to Roughneck's hiker hostel the next day, I gave her extra money to cover the homeless guy who had stayed there for about a week. He had promised he'd send her a check but we both knew that would never happen. I wasn't doing it for him, I was doing it for her.
I heard from an '04 thruhiker friend that he was on the trail in PA again the next year.
Hikerwannabe
01-13-2009, 00:37
Thanks For the info will just send his to the post office that he told me to and not get exicited over boosted fees:D
Lone Wolf
01-13-2009, 08:40
the box at The Place in damascus never has any good stuff cuz i grab it all as payment for babysitting the slobs that stay there
Rockhound
01-13-2009, 09:51
Relying solely on hiker boxes for food? Don't do it! first you will never know if they will have what you need or enough of what you need. second, if only a handful of hikers adopted this strategy the chances of finding what you need in hiker boxes decrease greatly. Third, showing up at a hostel, raiding the hiker box and hiking on is in very poor taste. Fourth, the further you go north the more difficult this task will become as there are fewer hikers and those that are left have a better idea of their resupply needs so the hiker box surplus will decrease greatly. Fifth, you will be almost certain to earn the name scrounge or mooch. If you don't have the money to hike, then don't hike. As for your $30 surcharge, why did you mail your box to the Inn if you were not going to be staying there? They do have a post office at Fontana.
Rockhound
01-13-2009, 10:05
I'm not afraid to say it. Too many people with the mistaken notion that hiking the AT means someone owes them something. Some people just look to be leeches rather than looking for ways to unselfishly contribute. Fortunately, this group is in the minority. *This is not aimed at any single individual mentioned here or anywhere else, it is simply aimed at a mindset that needs to be changed.*
Those that do rely on hiker boxes ( Transients, broke hikers, poor planners) tend to be a little more humble and polite. They have to be. They are relying on you for their AT survival. What really bugs me are the experienced, well prepared hikers with entitlement issues. They arrive at hostels expecting the people there to be at there beck and call from the moment they arrive until the moment they leave. I'll do whatever I can to help a hiker out any way I can but I aint gonna be anybody's cabana boy. I don't care how many times you've hiked or how many miles you've hiked. Lose the entitlement issues.
In 2006 I saw more food in the 100 mi wilderness shelters and at Shaw's than anywhere else. SOBO's were ditching weight like ballast in a sinking sub.I know the food you in the 100 Mile Wilderness are talking about and it wasn't left by SOBOs. We stayed at the Carl Newhall Lean To together so we were there at the same time. There was a father and two younger sons that were taking it slow and and just out for a couple of weeks. I met them in town and they told me all about it. At least they hung the food on the hangers in the shelters instead of just leaving it on the platforms.
one couple i met was solely relying on hikerboxes, there was even a warning from other hikers before they got in: 'if you want to look in the hiker box check it out now before (the couple) get here' forgot their names he was very tall and ate 30lbs of food a week she was a tiny thing, of course there was only a couple unidentifiable things left in the hiker box when they were done...
but anyways they weren't to well liked because of their constant wiping out of hiker boxes, i waited to put my extras in till after they left
think of hiker boxes like the 'leave a penny take a penny' treys at cashiers....they are there to help you out in a pinch, or to take a load off when you have to much
Might be a good way to extend a trip to skip a trail town, but I think the idea would be to put back what you take. That would include trying to take where it is less needed, and put back where it is more needed. You might be able to do some strategic spreading it around though, and maybe also add some more variety when you put stuff back.
U said it a little more eloquently and succinctly than I did. Well said rockhound!
Blissful
01-13-2009, 22:03
think of hiker boxes like the 'leave a penny take a penny' treys at cashiers....they are there to help you out in a pinch, or to take a load off when you have to much
Exactly. Agree.
the box at The Place in damascus never has any good stuff cuz i grab it all as payment for babysitting the slobs that stay there
i were not a slob. i were well-dressed and well-mannered.
I know the food you in the 100 Mile Wilderness are talking about and it wasn't left by SOBOs. We stayed at the Carl Newhall Lean To together so we were there at the same time. There was a father and two younger sons that were taking it slow and and just out for a couple of weeks. I met them in town and they told me all about it. At least they hung the food on the hangers in the shelters instead of just leaving it on the platforms.
HH, I checked my journal and yes, I stayed at Carl Newhall but don't remember you. I noted Tea Leaves (Glenn) and Slow Leak were tenting, and Cedar and Flower Lady were in the shelter. You sure we were both there on 23 July 2006? If so, I apologize for being old and forgetful. Mango
Ron Haven
01-13-2009, 22:24
never heard of the fontana dam motel. where is it?Someone said they charged $30 to recieve a box at Hike Inn if you were a non guest.That's hard to believe.
HH, I checked my journal and yes, I stayed at Carl Newhall but don't remember you. I noted Tea Leaves (Glenn) and Slow Leak were tenting, and Cedar and Flower Lady were in the shelter. You sure we were both there on 23 July 2006? If so, I apologize for being old and forgetful. MangoYou are right. It was Long Pond Stream Lean To. I don't keep a journal so I am just going off my head. They are both on the descent of a set of mountains, I was thinking of the wrong set. I think it was just me, another SOBO from Cary, NC and you there that night. You said something about being happy to see some other southerners.
hiker boxes full of food. I only mention because I saw someone dumping I would say 50# box full of hiker food in the dumpster. I saw it so I know it happened at least once and I said to the person "you know you could give it away to folks who need it. My reply was "I dump this much every week and I do not have time to drop it off anywhere else."
So, back to the question, is there enough food to just use it, to help the poor inkeepers from straining there backs hauling the stuff to the dump?
What I have found was rice in every box, oatmeal packets in every box, grits, homemade stuff I came only guess what it was. What I saw everyone take or TRADE with the box was noodles and kind, got swapped out for anything that took over 10 min to cook.
Oh, by the way what favor are you doing someone when you leave a leaking water bladder in the food box?? Oh, and nalgene 1 liter bottles, I see in boxes all the time. Maybe they should start equipment boxes and food boxes.
I have the impression that most stuff left in hiker boxes, like stuff left in the shelters, is stuff almost no one wants -- or already have too much of. Most of it ends up in the dump -- especially shelter leavings.
Shelter maintainers in Maine anyway are told to remove everything they find in shelters. When from time to time in the past I've taken groups on the same sections of the trail a week or two apart, I almost always found the same stuff still there on the second visit -- just a bit more mouse chewed.
A further thought. Yes. We should all try to give back what we take from others, whether from hiker boxes or otherwise. That includes ATC and the maintaining clubs, most of which are always in need of both funds and help.
At the MATC all day planning meeting this month we were presented with a $220,000 budget for the year. Since dues income is less than $10,000 a year, that means $210,000 has to be raised elsewhere.
Keep in mind also the groups that work to provide buffers for the narrow trail corridor. In Maine that is mostly the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust. Though AMC and the Nature Conservancy have also done a great deal.
Land these days remains expensive, despite the collapse of the financial system. I spent Saturday looking at a critical buffer for one of our town trails. The owner wanted as much for 11 acres as a neighbor had paid for 30 acres a few years ago.
Weary www.matlt.org
Bootbanger
11-05-2012, 18:53
You have posted this in a couple of places. You fail to mention that it tells you in the guide books the maildrop service is for staying guest only. A 30.00 fee for non staying drops. You got their address from somewhere. How about I send packages to your house you go to the PO and carry them back for me. I'll be there sometime in the next month to pick them up so you store them for me. They don't owe you nothing. Why should they do your crap for free? Oh yeah, your a thru hiker, thank you for blessing them with your presence.
Clyde
Great reply.
swjohnsey
11-06-2012, 08:17
I used food out of hiker boxes and left food in hiker boxes. I always checked the hiker box before goin' to the store. I used bulk foods like coffee, oatmeal, sugar, raisins, etc. I ended up leavin' most of the package in the hiker box.
kayak karl
11-06-2012, 08:37
thinks i got out of a hiker box: twine (shoelace), shoe-goo, ketchup packets, zip-locks
put in: zip-locks, fuel, trash bags, superglue, batteries with a little life left, cinnamon oatmeal:p
never used for food. we shared with other hikers, but was never extra after that.
peakbagger
11-06-2012, 08:45
One thing to keep in mind is that most hiker boxes I have encoutered are not varmit proof, I have seen boxes with mice nesting in them and mouse droppings all over the stuff in the box.
Josh Calhoun
11-06-2012, 09:03
if you walk on the AT with the mind set of only living out of hiker boxes " that people generously supply" i would have to call you a POS. thas reminds me of 75% of the population in Charlotte NC
Bucketfoot
11-06-2012, 09:25
Living on food from the hiker boxes would be essentially having other hikers pay for your hike. If you can't pay for your own hike you have no business being out there on the trail. I guess the trail is just a microcosm of the society that we live in.