View Full Version : Accountability
What have you done in the past to keep you accountable for your hike? I have told my family, told my friends, I have committed to do this but theres always that bastard inside of me that is able to talk myself out of things. Did you start buying gear? ie investing money into it to keep with it or just tell as many people as possible in order to keep yourself committed or anything like that?
I know I am going to do this I just need to start doing something to make it more real that just an goal and a date.
any ideas?
Frolicking Dinosaurs
09-23-2007, 19:55
Good question. I've had a hard time keeping my dream alive during the past few years as life has happened and gotten in the way of our section hike. I've bought gear, made gear stayed active in hiking circles and tried to help others make their dreams come true. Even if I never manage to complete my section hike, I have had a small part in helping several people complete there thru and section hikes. Life is good.
Appalachian Tater
09-23-2007, 20:07
in order to complete a thru-hike, the motivation has to come from within yourself. Make a list of everything you need to buy and do in order to leave and then start doing the things on the list.
hopefulhiker
09-23-2007, 20:09
Research, buy a trail guide, I worked out a spreadsheet, along the lines of what Sgt Rock did on hiking hq.. I researched and contemplated the gear. did a few real short shake down hikes... Started dehydrating food. worked out gear lists and refined them.... I was planning for about three months..
Doughnut
09-23-2007, 20:25
There are always a thousand reason why you can't do something, and only one good reason why you can, because it's what you WANT, Just like quitting smoking, you have to want to quit worse than you want that cigarette.
I went on a couple of shakdown hikes this summer, Springer to NOC, I plan to hike Smokey Mountains Park over Spring Break (School teacher) then over the summer, take the train to Maine to hike 100 mile (PLUS) in July.
All in preperation for 2-4 years, starting in July in MAine, and maybe making it home by Christmas
The Old Fhart
09-23-2007, 20:31
I think we all have gone through that same sort of questioning but I've found that it ends once you've been on the trail for a short time. I talked to one hiker who said he made all the usual announcements, got the going away gifts, etc., but after he started his A.T. hike he realize this wasn't what he had visualized it to be. He said he wanted to quit but he was just too embarrassed to quit and go home, besides, what should he do with the gifts-return them? He decided to keep at it a little longer and when I had this conversation with him he was almost finished his hike and was enjoying it. Just remember that not every moment is going to be great but if you hang in there and have a good attitude, you’ll make it.
The more you budget enough money, the more you know about your upcoming hike through research, and the better prepared you are by doing shake-down hikes to test all your gear, the easier it will be.
Yeah Im feeling as though once I put that first few hundred bucks into a savings account and start getting gear in the mail everything will finally hit home. Its just that first step off Mt. K that im worried about, after that its a peice of cake.
The plane ticket to Maine will big a real kick in the butt :)
Having set my start date for 2010, with plenty of leeway for cold feet, I'm feeling you. Matter of fact, couple weeks after I set my start date I commenced budgeting my gear and got kinda freaked. Actually told my wife I was cancelling my hike. Luckily she's a good woman, and she talked me out of it.
Since then, I've spent a considerable amount of time researching my gear, watching AT documentaries, reading hiking books, and hiking short trails to get in shape. I also took a cue from a fellow who appeared in the video "Appalachian Impressions" and began to tell friends and people at work about the hike. If you're like me, trepidation goes out the window once your reputation, in your mind at least, depends upon you staying the course.
Best of luck!
Nightwalker
09-23-2007, 23:04
Yeah Im feeling as though once I put that first few hundred bucks into a savings account and start getting gear in the mail everything will finally hit home. Its just that first step off Mt. K that im worried about, after that its a peice of cake.
The plane ticket to Maine will big a real kick in the butt :)
Going up Katahdin will be harder, believe me. :)
Plane tickets are cheap if you buy them at least a month ahead of time. Bus tickets are even cheaper.
I went from Greenville, SC to whatever town the AT Lodge is in for 79 bucks by bus, just by buying the ticket 1 week in advance. The ride was long, but very interesting. I got to hang out in Manhattan from 4 to 6 AM on a Saturday, and it was wide open. I also had a good layover in Boston that I enjoyed. I made some friends on the bus as well. Some people knock riding the bus, but it beats hitching!
Do you mean, in terms of finishing? Reaching Katahdin from Springer, or vice versa? For that, the only accountability that matters is to yourself. I say this as someone who took 17 years to "finish."
Lone Wolf
09-23-2007, 23:59
I know I am going to do this I just need to start doing something to make it more real that just an goal and a date.
any ideas?
just do it kid. no ideas needed
your insite blows my mind L Wolf.
your insite blows my mind L Wolf.
LW is the king of the one-liners. He's also dismissive (at times) of the whole idea of "thru-hiking" so maybe he's not the best person to ask. Nor am I. But from my experience, the only motivation that counts comes from within. As they say elsewhere, "your mileage may vary."
Lone Wolf
09-24-2007, 08:42
your insite blows my mind L Wolf.
it's just a trail. start walkin'.
I started planning for an 08 thru hike 10 years ago. Started planning by reading everything I could get my hands on. I researched gear extensively and made purchases, only to find out that a certain piece of gear was not compatable to my abilities or physical nature, then bought more equipment testing it out on short hikes. Then I plotted the entire 2,160 miles on an excel spreadsheet with anticipated daily miles using the trail companion and the AT database. I know that this plotting is anal and everyone tells me that I cannot micro-manage my hike. The intention is not that, it's just a tool to let my family have an idea of where I will be and it gives me an idea of where I need to be to be sure to meet my final destination in the 6 months I have my leave of absence. The next 6 months will be spent planning my food drops; trying to find food that will be palatable.
I was talking incessently to my family 10 years ago, but it wasn't until this last March that they finally realized that I wasn't just talking to hear myself talk. I get pangs of fear occasionally when people finding out start asking questions. The thought of "it's real" sets me wondering if this was all a romantic dream, or if my body will last the entire trip, of if my heart can stand to leave my family for 6 months. All normal thoughts, I'm sure.
I started planning for an 08 thru hike 10 years ago....
So, how much hiking have you done? In particular, how many hikes, in rocky, hilly terrain, in excess of, say, three or four days?
I'm always amazed at folks who "plan" thru hikes without ever having set foot on the A.T.
Not to say it can't be done. But you really won't know what it's about until you've got a few hundred miles under your belt. And even then, "success" isn't guaranteed. Folks drop out in Virginia, Pennsylvania... even as far north as Gorham, I'm told.
Lone Wolf
09-24-2007, 09:47
Folks drop out in Virginia, Pennsylvania... even as far north as Gorham, I'm told.
can you imagine some dumbass getting that far and quitting?
Appalachian Tater
09-24-2007, 10:34
I'm always amazed at folks who "plan" thru hikes without ever having set foot on the A.T.
For some people that's the best way. If I had gone on a shakedown before my thru, it would have been difficult, like my first few weeks on the trail, and I might never would have considered going hiking again. There were times when I thought I would never make it to the next tree, much less the top of the mountain.
On the internet, people talk about their equipment, about stealthing and treating or not treating water and freezer bags and stoves, boots vs. shoes and hostels and re-supply, but most of what you do on a thru-hike is climb up and down mountains with weight on your back, all day, almost every day, rain or shine. People don't talk about that as much and it's easy to forget about the actual physics of moving your body up and down for 2,000 miles or how hard it is to put on wet socks and crawl out of your nice dry tent on a rainy day.
REBELYELL
09-25-2007, 06:14
can you imagine some dumbass getting that far and quitting?
Soetimes it aint an option
can you imagine some dumbass getting that far and quitting?
This dumbass thought about quitting in Gorham. Glad I didn't.
What have you done in the past to keep you accountable for your hike? I have told my family, told my friends, I have committed to do this but theres always that bastard inside of me that is able to talk myself out of things. Did you start buying gear? ie investing money into it to keep with it or just tell as many people as possible in order to keep yourself committed or anything like that?
I know I am going to do this I just need to start doing something to make it more real that just an goal and a date.
any ideas?
Start an online journal. Tell the whole world you're gonna do it. Act as if. It'll make it harder to try and back off your plans.
Lone Wolf
09-25-2007, 07:27
This dumbass thought about quitting in Gorham. Glad I didn't.
i was the dumbass that did. twice
L Wolf, maybe you should go SoBo so Gorham wont seem so bad !!
I'm always amazed at folks who "plan" thru hikes without ever having set foot on the A.T.
Unfortunately, not every thru-hiker hopeful has the option of driving the many hours or flying the hundreds of miles from their home to the AT for a shakedown hike, especially considering the cost of preparing for the thru-hike itself.
Those of us who don't have easy access to mountainous terrain or plenty of dough have to make do with the trails we have and hope for the best once we hit the big one.
Lone Wolf
09-25-2007, 08:35
L Wolf, maybe you should go SoBo so Gorham wont seem so bad !!
i did. in 98
Unfortunately, not every thru-hiker hopeful has the option of driving the many hours or flying the hundreds of miles from their home to the AT for a shakedown hike, especially considering the cost of preparing for the thru-hike itself.
Those of us who don't have easy access to mountainous terrain or plenty of dough have to make do with the trails we have and hope for the best once we hit the big one.
So what attracts you to such a huge, unknown entity, then? If you've never set foot on it, it seems foolish to presume that you'll enjoy five million steps on it...
Its just that first step off Mt. K that im worried about, after that its a peice of cake.
You gonna have a helicopter deliver you to the summit?
The plane ticket to Maine will big a real kick in the butt :)
The ticket home from Bangor will be worse. :D
Blissful
09-25-2007, 09:31
This dumbass thought about quitting in Gorham. Glad I didn't.
On my hike I wanted to quit in the following places - (these really stand out)
Stecoah region near Cody Gap.
Second day in the Smokies. (thanks Hikernutt for being there at Mollies Ridge shelter) :)
Southern VA
Maine (huh?? But actually other women were having some problems too. For me I thought - okay, I got to Maine. I'm sick and tired of hiking, being scared of falling, etc etc. The terrain in southern Maine is no picnic. When I made it to the Bigelows though, I knew I was set).
Full support on the homefront is what kept me going. Another plus for a cell phone call.
Blissful
09-25-2007, 09:43
Not to say it can't be done. But you really won't know what it's about until you've got a few hundred miles under your belt. And even then, "success" isn't guaranteed. Folks drop out in Virginia, Pennsylvania... even as far north as Gorham, I'm told.
I did several hundred miles of the AT including some of the Whites beforehand and didn't know at all what it was all about until I set myself into a 2,000 mile hike this year. It's not the same thing. You don't really know until you get out there and walk, day after day, week after week, month after month. I did plan, for years too, but a good deal of my plans went up in smoke. Some stuff worked out, like my mail drops. Other stuff didn't, like the mileage I would make and some of my gear choices. The best way to do it is...do it. See what happens. And adjust as you go. Those that can't adjust to changing circumstances will have problems.
Those that can't adjust to changing circumstances will have problems.::::::::::::::Good advice Bliss! All the "expert" advice don't mean a thing if you can't adapt to change. Especially when you need to "change" socks and underwear. :D
BTW: Take much advice from LW. He has much knowledge of the AT when he's willing to share it.
I did several hundred miles of the AT including some of the Whites beforehand and didn't know at all what it was all about until I set myself into a 2,000 mile hike this year. It's not the same thing. You don't really know until you get out there and walk, day after day, week after week, month after month. I did plan, for years too, but a good deal of my plans went up in smoke. Some stuff worked out, like my mail drops. Other stuff didn't, like the mileage I would make and some of my gear choices. The best way to do it is...do it. See what happens. And adjust as you go. Those that can't adjust to changing circumstances will have problems.
Ditto.
Sitting around the table at home, having a hot meal and a cold drink, it's hard to understand why anyone would have difficulty hiking the AT. It's just walking. ;) It especially doesn't make sense to quit when you're "so close" to the end, i.e., New England for NOBOS or VA for SOBOs.
But...when you're tired/hungry/lonely/bored/homesick/whatever, even ONE MORE DAY of hiking can seem like too much.
That's why thru-hiking is a mental game.
I'm in complete agreement w/Blissful and Marta. Though I've been pooping around on the AT for these last 30 years or so, I have to admit... even on this year's marathon section hike, my patience was precisely metered out for 587 miles and 39 days. As the hike went on, and especially in the last few days, I found my patience waning. Had the hike taken one or two "extra" days, I might not have finished. It was touch-and-go.
So what attracts you to such a huge, unknown entity, then? If you've never set foot on it, it seems foolish to presume that you'll enjoy five million steps on it...
Not as foolish as your presuming to know my expectations.
Quite obviously, I couldn't know how I'm going to handle the trail, whether or not I'll be able to complete it, or even if I'll be desirous to do so once I've gotten a taste of the experience. That being said, do you know how many people have completed a thru-hike with little to no prior backpacking experience? Quoting "Long Distance Hiking: Lessons from the Appalachian Trail":
"About one person out of every five said he or she had never been backpacking at all, and another 10 percent had only experienced dayhiking."
Also:
"Almost one-third of the succesful thru-hikers [surveyed for this book] were beginners."
Also, I must hasten to add that the AT, to me, is not an "unknown entity." I grew up in Georgia, about three hours from the AT's southern terminus. Many times I camped near Long Creek Falls, less than five miles from Springer, and it was these camping trips which piqued my interest in the trail. I've read about, viewed documentaries on, and spoken with thru-hikers regarding the Appalachian Trail over almost a decade. I regularly read these forums, as well as the at-l email list and others, and I'm quite well informed and, more importantly, realistic about the Trail.
So there... ;)
Manach, your rebuttal is well-taken. I am not and (probably) never will be a thru-hiker, so I'm in no position to lecture you on any of this. I'm also horrible at predicting who will "finish" and who will not.
I'll just say that the day-to-day reality of the trail is, at times, vastly different from what one might imagine from the comforts of home. And that's true even for someone who's done (for example) dozens of weekend hikes in rugged mountains, or read the books, the journals, forums etc.
I can tell you that even on this year's section hike, with the end just days away, I had doubts about my determination to finish and my commitment to the task at hand. I took nothing for granted until that final step.
Best wishes and good luck on your hike.
I'm also horrible at predicting who will "finish" and who will not.
I don't think there really is any predicting it. I remember reading about a fellow who met a lady not far from Springer who couldn't even set up her tent. He didn't think she'd last long. Sure enough they ended up summitting Katahdin together.
I'll just say that the day-to-day reality of the trail is, at times, vastly different from what one might imagine from the comforts of home. And that's true even for someone who's done (for example) dozens of weekend hikes in rugged mountains, or read the books, the journals, forums etc.
I don't doubt that in the least. As I said, I'm realistic about the trail. The one constant in all the good literature is the assertion that only thru-hikers have a clue as to what thru-hiking is really all about.
I took nothing for granted until that final step.
I think that's a good philosophy. It's certainly a major factor in my taking a decade to decide I'm hiking the trail, and nearly two and a half years to prepare for it.
Best wishes and good luck on your hike.
Why, thank you. And happy hiking to you.
...and nearly two and a half years to prepare for it.
I was sincere in wishing you a great hike... and I clearly don't know how to put this politely, but 2.5 yrs to plan a thru hike is kinda anal. ;)
I wouldn't be able to stay away from the trail for that long. I'd at least be doing short hikes, at every opportunity. Put the books down and go hiking.
I clearly don't know how to put this politely, but 2.5 yrs to plan a thru hike is kinda anal. ;)
Granted. But it's going to take me that long to buy the gear, save the money to make up for the income I won't be making while I'm on the trail, and tie up various other ends to ensure my family has as easy a time as possible while I'm gone. In my house there are three adults and four young kids. We all work full time and we homeschool the kids. It's going to be tough for the house while I'm away. I'm making every effort toward ensuring that my hike will be successful. I know I can't plan for everything, and even bad blisters can take me off the trail. But being confident in my gear, my physical condition, and my expectations for the trail will go a long way toward ensuring that all the hard work my family puts into making my hike work won't have been wasted.
I wouldn't be able to stay away from the trail for that long. I'd at least be doing short hikes, at every opportunity. Put the books down and go hiking.
Working full time and spending my off days with the family makes multi-day hikes a virtual impossibility. But I hike some local trails several times a week for between four and eight miles each hike. I'm taking the kids on a two day camping trip next week, and my wife and I are going on our first overnight backpacking trip in years the week after. We haven't invested much money in gear since we bought our first packs and stove and what not nearly a decade ago. That's because, being uneducated newbies, we bought some cheap, crappy gear at the start (though our PUR Hiker and MSR Whisperlite are still going strong) and haven't had enough time to devote to hiking to justify putting serious cash into gear. Things have changed this past year, though, and we're slowly accumulating the things we need. We're also working hard to learn all about lightweight backpacking so that we never have to waste lots of time and money on gear again. My wife's going to make me a Ray Way quilt which, if all goes as planned, will be my thru-hiking "bag."
Oh, and in case you can't tell it from my posts, I tend to be long-winded, and I often feel a real need to explain myself way too thoroughly. :D
The biggest thing around here is when my wife stopped saying, 'if you go...' and now says, 'when you go....'
Tom
katagious
09-30-2007, 10:23
i was the dumbass that did. twice
heh, I don't care what anyone says...you're alright by me.:p
Both of my sons had dreamed of hiking the trail together since they were young boys in scouts. When they started planning and I realized that they might need a little boost to get past all the events that life kept throwing at them...I bought them one way tickets. Flew them to Georgia to start April fools day..and told them to walk home. :D
My youngest (Nuckin) is in the White's atm, my oldest had to come home due to some real life obligations that could wait. He plans on doing it again next summer. This time alone.
So, how to make sure you start....just get your mom to buy you a ticket.
SGT Rock
09-30-2007, 10:35
Do what we did here.
My most favorite bourbon is Makers Mark. Right after I got home, the whole family had to go to Ft Knox, KY for my welcome home and re-integration processing. On the way back we passed right by the sign for the Makers Mark Distillery. So we decide to take a side trip.
When we get there and take the tour - we ended up back at the gift shop. One of the things they sell there are the "Gold Label" bottles where you get a custom label on a bottle of Makers Mark. So my wife gets me a gold label bottle that says "Congratulations on completing your 2008 thru-hike of the Benton MacKaye Trail and Appalachian Trail".
So now I have to finish to get that bottle open. It sits on the shelf in plain sight mocking me every day.
So now I have to finish to get that bottle open. It sits on the shelf in plain sight mocking me every day.
Whoa! That's pressure!
You'll finish if you have to crawl...
SGT Rock
09-30-2007, 11:14
You ain't kidding Marta. The only thing she could do to make it one better is hide that damn bottle on the top of Katahdin somewhere after I start in Georgia.
You're not entirely without friends in Maine. You might be able to have someone bring it to you, if you've got someone you can trust not to sample it beforehand.
Generallee,
In 2000 I was forced to leave the trail by an injury. For me the burning desire to finish was not stilled by being snookered into a high pressure job, some serious medical setbacks or any of life's little side trips. As well, I don't suffer failure lightly.
Good Lord willin' an' the creek don't rise, I start again at Springer in Mid March.
As to advice for you, Listen to LW, he knows what he's talking about.