View Full Version : Math on the Trail
This poll asks how often you recalculated you average milage on your firstlong-distance hike. You know, divided your miles walked by the number of days on the Trail.
Be honest.
i don't know if i ever really calculated it but i had a good idea of my average mileage, but it wasn't something i stressed about. I still haven't added up my total mileage from my section, i just know that it was around 450, thats all i really care to know.
Lone Wolf
11-21-2006, 21:26
Never. I flowed man.
I tagged the plaque at Springer at the end of a long day before retreating to the last shelter on the AT-- simply to maintain an average of 15 MPD, rather than winding up at 14.9 something.
I was one $%#*ed youngster.
In my own defense, the Trail had turned my mind to mush so it wasn't really my own fault.
I don't think the idea of average mileage over the entire trip ever occured to me...
the goat
11-21-2006, 23:41
i flowed as well, i didn't know folks did this sort of thing.....
saimyoji
11-22-2006, 00:28
I just had to vote for the past tense usage of the vernacular defacatory. :D
saimyoji
11-22-2006, 00:30
...or should that be colloqiual defacatory? :-? Someone smart will figure it out I'm sure.
huhu...huhu..hu...he said shat.....huhu...huhu....:D
I'm always calculating my mileage. When I start a trail I have a projected finish date, in which case the trail calls a certain miles per day average.
For instance, on the CDT the route I took was approximately 2700 and the perceived weather window called for 5 months or 18 miles per day. Allowing for a few days off I needed to hike 19 miles a day. I didn't start that fast and tried to divide the hike into 3. 1) 17 mpd, 2) 19 mpd and 3) 21+ miles a day. If I hiked longer I earned an additional day off.
I think most people have a set goal and need to think about the miles whether they admit it or not.
BTW, I finished in 5 months 2 days...
I'm always calculating my mileage. When I start a trail I have a projected finish date, in which case the trail calls a certain miles per day average.
For instance, on the CDT the route I took was approximately 2700 and the perceived weather window called for 5 months or 18 miles per day. Allowing for a few days off I needed to hike 19 miles a day. I didn't start that fast and tried to divide the hike into 3. 1) 17 mpd, 2) 19 mpd and 3) 21+ miles a day. If I hiked longer I earned an additional day off.
I think most people have a set goal and need to think about the miles whether they admit it or not.
BTW, I finished in 5 months 2 days...
Kludos Sly.;) :)
Kludos Sly.;) :)
Thanks Nean.
Also, between resuplies most have a set daily mileage, or average, in mind and buy their food accordingly. How else could you do it?
I'm certainly conscious of how many miles I hike each day. I don't calculate an average however. 20 miles is still some kind of magic number for me. It always feels satisfying after reeling off a 20 mile day. Especially if I'm out for a couple of weeks. I'm much more of a hiker than I am a camper.
SGT Rock
11-22-2006, 08:12
Haven't done it yet, but thinking about how to stay within my time constraints (I don't have 9+ months like some people). I have set goals of when to be at certain major points along the trail. I based them on what seems to be the average for people doing that section (it isn't as easy as x/y) because it appears in some sections people go faster and in others they go slower based on terrain, weather, towns etc. (slower in the whites, faster in the southern part of Pennsylvania, etc)
So getting between those points there is a loose plan on average miles per day to get to each of them, but no rock soild "I must do 14.5 MPD" to make it in 153 day.
I will add that when I started on March 7, 2000 I had to be finished by August 15 - or so I thought. I eventually withdrew from a semester in Costa Rica (while in Andover, ME) so that changed my finish date somewhat.
Anyway, I was in Shenandoah NP over Memorial Day weekend wondering how the heck I could ever make it to Katahdin by my looming deadline. I had more than 1200 miles to go, and less than 3 months to do it in.
I didn't end up doing math and determining an average MPD needed to make it. I simply turned on the afterburners. Starting with this entry (http://trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=86584) in my journal, I pretty much stepped on the gas, and by the time I reached New York, all concerns about deadlines had evaporated.
I flow with the math myself.:banana No, I don't carry an abacus but I know how far it is from town to town and how many days food I have in my pack. :eek: No need for a Phd to figure out if I have 6 days/ hundred miles I need to average 17, 5 days /100+ 20 mpd. :-? Whats the big deal?:confused:
I guess the "flowers" either go hungry or walk into town with lots of extra food.
Being an older guy, 66, when I did my thru I found it necessary to keep track of my progress for a couple of reasons. I started on April 13 so the amount of days to get to Katahdin before closing was determined. I had no idea as to how many miles I could hike in a day before I started and I figured that I just couldn't start cranking them out if I fell behind. Once I got to Demaskas and felt that I was in "trail shape" I started to determine how many miles I needed to do each day to stay ahead of my goal. I figured that I had to do at least 11 miles a day for the rest of my hike. By keeping track of my miles I knew how far ahead of schedule I was. I eventualy got far enough ahead to take a week break at home. I eventualy flipped, at Duncannon to give me more time but still finished on Oct. 13.
SalParadise
11-22-2006, 13:14
I did that stuff all the time, average mpd over a week/month, mph, even my speed over a particular climb. Was never on any schedule, just enjoyed doing the math. Or if I was aiming for a particular shelter that night, a fast pace in the morning could mean an extra hour for lunch. it's a fun mental exercise when you're walking.
DawnTreader
11-22-2006, 13:26
yeah, I originally planned on keeping tight calculations, because I had to be at a certain destination at a certain time.. This became bollucks, so I ended up getting to said destination way early.. One thing I learned, I can walk a lot further in a shorter period of time than I ever thought possible..