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View Full Version : The New Sobos. . .



Jester2000
10-16-2007, 21:57
Thought I'd throw this out there. . .

It seems to me that there's a new breed of SOBO. I've only been on the scene a couple of years, but before last year my impression of Southbounders was that they were, generally speaking:

1) more introverted, and looking for solitude on the trail
2) generally more experienced than Northbounders
3) less fun

Last year there seemed to be the beginnings of a trend, and this year it seems to have blown up into something bigger, to whit:

A lot of Southbounders this year are college students who realize that they can complete the trail at a comfortable pace and only have to take one semester off from school. Many who do the same Northbound have to take off two semesters over two different school years.

In other words, they're Southbounders by circumstance rather than by inclination. There definitely seem to be more Southbounders than previously, and they seem to be more social (traveling in larger groups than normal). Has anyone else noticed this trend?

rafe
10-16-2007, 23:13
I was passed by two SOBOs this summer. In SNP, around Labor Day. They were both traveling alone and clearly ahead of the rest of the pack. Probably not representative of any trend...

TJ aka Teej
10-17-2007, 07:41
I met about 30 MEGAs in Baxter, the 100 Mile, and Monson this year. They're seemingly more apt to be older, female, and have more backpacking experience than they were ten years ago.

Sly
10-17-2007, 10:36
I met about 30 MEGAs in Baxter, the 100 Mile, and Monson this year. They're seemingly more apt to be older, female, and have more backpacking experience than they were ten years ago.


Hmmm.. time to hike southbound? :-?

Mags
10-17-2007, 10:41
There definitely seem to be more Southbounders than previously, and they seem to be more social (traveling in larger groups than normal). Has anyone else noticed this trend?


I noticed this trend back in the dark ages of 1998. The most thru-hikers I saw at any one time on the AT was in Maine. Thirteen SoBos at one shelter! (I started early and finished early on my NoBo trek). I also saw many recent college graduates as well.

Maybe the trend is more notiecable now, but I think it has been that heading that way for sometime.

warraghiyagey
10-17-2007, 15:55
I've been southbound the last two years and have met the best of folks. SOBOS ar a different breed for sure but if you're headed in the same direction you'll find yourself in rarified air with some of the best you'll be blessed to know on the trail.:) :)

hammock engineer
10-17-2007, 17:55
I think I have only met a total of 13 or so southbounders so far. 3 dropped of on or before Monson. I only met 1 flip flopper with a lot of experience. Most of the people I met this was there first long trip or multiple night. Could just be my later start though. I'm checking in from the Doyle now checking in on the water situation. The only other hikers here is a sectioner and the southbounder I am hiking with. I saw one other for a day out of DWG, and 2 of the big group talked about below at RPH shelter. Other than that we are sitting on a bubble. I heard there is a dozen or so including a group somewhere behind.

There is a big group just infront of me. There was 12 southbounders here last weekend living it up. But I think they do huge miles, followed by zeroing in town.

Side note, it seems the farther south and the closer to getting done the more negative day hikers or other non-long distance people get. Up north it was "have fun you will be fine". Now it is "isn't it going to get cold" or "do you think you are going to beat winter". It seems almost everyone I meet says something to that effect. My replies started out nice, but after a couple weeks are quickly declining.

rafe
10-17-2007, 19:19
Side note, it seems the farther south and the closer to getting done the more negative day hikers or other non-long distance people get. Up north it was "have fun you will be fine". Now it is "isn't it going to get cold" or "do you think you are going to beat winter". It seems almost everyone I meet says something to that effect. My replies started out nice, but after a couple weeks are quickly declining.

Why is this "negative?" I don't know when you started your hike, but ISTM that it's late to be arriving in Duncannon in mid-October. Not knocking it or anything, but these questions don't strike me as horribly unreasonable or negative. Even in the best of cases, SOBOs face an uphill battle against the calendar.

Simple math: You're at the halfway point. If you started June 1 you've been on the trail 4.5 months; another 4.5 months takes you well into 2008. If you started July 1, you're 3.5 months into your trip, and can expect to finish by the end of January. I think my math is sound, but again, I don't know when you started.

Again, I'm not criticizing -- just saying that the questions appear (to me) to be reasonable.

Sly
10-17-2007, 19:48
Yup, not all that negative, just realistic. For the most part a sobo hike is much colder than northbound. And it's by far lonelier at the end.

rafe
10-17-2007, 19:59
Yup, not all that negative, just realistic. For the most part a sobo hike is much colder than northbound. And it's by far lonelier at the end.

By far lonelier everywhere after the first few weeks, I'd guess (and from personal experience.) No shortage of company on weekends, but mid-week, it's quiet out there.

Heater
10-17-2007, 20:36
Simple math: You're at the halfway point. If you started June 1 you've been on the trail 4.5 months; another 4.5 months takes you well into 2008. If you started July 1, you're 3.5 months into your trip, and can expect to finish by the end of January. I think my math is sound, but again, I don't know when you started.

He started July 14th. So he is at the halfway point in 3 months time.

Marta
10-17-2007, 20:36
If you started June 1 you've been on the trail 4.5 months; another 4.5 months takes you well into 2008. If you started July 1, you're 3.5 months into your trip, and can expect to finish by the end of January. I think my math is sound, but again, I don't know when you started.


He started around the 10th of July. Last time I checked, he was on pretty much the same pace I was on last year, although I started a week earlier. I should have finished Dec. 31st, but took the holidays off, so reached Springer Jan. 11th.

I had pretty much the same experience of being told "You'll never make it," by an awful lot of people who assume that Thanksgiving is some sort of drop-dead cutoff for hiking. It's not FUN to hike alone into the winter months, but neither is it impossible for weather reasons. In many ways, fall and winter are prime hiking time down here--no bugs, great views, cool days, cold nights.

The negative comments may be understandable, but they are irritating to a poor, struggling SOBO nonetheless.:D

shelterbuilder
10-17-2007, 20:46
Side note, it seems the farther south and the closer to getting done the more negative day hikers or other non-long distance people get. Up north it was "have fun you will be fine". Now it is "isn't it going to get cold" or "do you think you are going to beat winter". It seems almost everyone I meet says something to that effect. My replies started out nice, but after a couple weeks are quickly declining.

The comments you're getting now seem to be from believers of the old (mistaken) adage that, if you fall asleep outdoors in winter, you'll never wake up. Thirty years ago when I started going backpacking in the wintertime, I'd get the same sort of thing thrown at me by folks who liked to go deer hunting in cold weather, but who "knew" if they fell asleep out there, they'd freeze to death.:D

rafe
10-17-2007, 20:49
Marta and hammock hanger, do you really take the comments of nonhikers that seriously?? :rolleyes: I'm having trouble believing that.

You won't beat winter, and it will be cold. You know that. You're prepared for it. If some smart aleck says, "You'll never make it," just grin knowingly and move on. Folks are just projecting their own fears. It hasn't dawned on them that you've already considered these issues.

Freeleo
10-17-2007, 21:00
the odds of a cincinnatian finishing a southbound thru these days in the winter are pretty high.......i got my $$ on HE finishes

Marta
10-17-2007, 21:17
Marta and hammock hanger, do you really take the comments of nonhikers that seriously?? :rolleyes: I'm having trouble believing that.

You won't beat winter, and it will be cold. You know that. You're prepared for it. If some smart aleck says, "You'll never make it," just grin knowingly and move on. Folks are just projecting their own fears. It hasn't dawned on them that you've already considered these issues.

It's hard to explain why the comments are so annoying. Part of it is a sort of "How dumb do you think I am--of course I realize it's going to get cold" reaction. Another part is disappointment that, hey, you've found someone to talk to, but, damn, they only want to talk about how you're going to fail.

During the main hiking season, everyone attempting a thru gets a certain number of people who tell them they're nuts and will never make it. But they also get a few who are awed and thrilled, and a bunch who are excited and encouraging. And there are other hikers out there trying the same crazy thing, and you can egg each other on.

As winter drew on last year, the negative comments seemed to outnumber the positive comments by a substantial margin.

Or were those just my own fearful thoughts coming through?:rolleyes:

Once I joined up with a hiking partner in Troutville, the negative comments didn't bother me as much because my partner and I would laugh them off. That was a lot harder to do when I was alone.

Sly
10-17-2007, 21:28
the odds of a cincinnatian finishing a southbound thru these days in the winter are pretty high.......i got my $$ on HE finishes

No one is saying he isn't going to make it, just that he's going to be friggin' cold. :D

Wonder
10-17-2007, 23:12
There definitely seem to be more Southbounders than previously, and they seem to be more social (traveling in larger groups than normal). Has anyone else noticed this trend?[/quote]

This is my first years being able to see the SoBos coming thru. What I've noticed is that, for the most part, they have been traveling in small packs and keeping to themselves. Only a feww seem to want to interact with the locals......but this is just my observation so far. I have conversed with a few really neat people:sun

Skyline
10-18-2007, 00:10
I've noticed the same mix of SOBOs coming thru SNP this year as in previous years. Some are in small groups, some are solo. They are generally a little more introverted than NOBOs. There aren't that many of them.

Sly
10-18-2007, 00:38
I have conversed with a few really neat people.

And so have they! ;)

shelterbuilder
10-18-2007, 06:43
For years now, conventional wisdom has said that if you want a "social" experience, do a NOBO; if you want a more solitary experience, go SOBO. I've been hearing this for almost 15 years. I'd always assumed that it was strictly an observation of the numbers of thru-hikers going in each direction, but lately I think that it's more of a commentary on the mind-set of the individual thru-hikers. Fewer numbers = less chance for social interaction; harsher weather = fewer hikers choosing the "tougher" option.

Thoughts???

Lone Wolf
10-18-2007, 06:45
Thoughts???

SOBO is a much better hike

shelterbuilder
10-18-2007, 06:49
SOBO is a much better hike

:-? ????Why????:-?

Lone Wolf
10-18-2007, 06:55
:-? ????Why????:-?

if you've NOBOd and SOBOd you'd know why

shelterbuilder
10-18-2007, 07:01
if you've NOBOd and SOBOd you'd know why

I guess I'll just have to do both and judge for myself.:D

rickb
10-18-2007, 07:03
Now it is "isn't it going to get cold" or "do you think you are going to beat winter". It seems almost everyone I meet says something to that effect. My replies started out nice, but after a couple weeks are quickly declining.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. :D

Johnny Swank
10-18-2007, 08:15
Same experience her regarding the "you're gonna die" comments. The farther south, the worse it got. I have not idea why.

FWIW - we go the the same sort of thing when we paddled down the Mississippi. Rednecks in Tennessee and Arkansas were particularly bad. Louisianans were cool though. I love me some cajuns!

the goat
10-18-2007, 09:41
i am a sobo of circumstance twice over!

Jester2000
10-19-2007, 20:27
i am a sobo of circumstance twice over!

I like the phrase "SOBO of Circumstance."

It's possible that my observations were tied to the fact that I was seeing a lot of people who are towards the back of the pack. But I do think that the fact that there now is a "pack" says something. . .

RITBlake
11-09-2007, 16:58
I think our group fit Jesters mold of the 'new' sobo.

In our core group of 9 thru hikers (all who made it to Springer), 7 were current college students who had decided to take off one semester and hike in to the fall. We chose to go Southbound after weighing the options and knowing that rushing a NOBO thru hike starting on June 1 wouldn't have been much fun or healthy. As far as a SOBO being more of a cold hike I would have to disagree.

On a 5th month hike:

June, July, August - Summer months warm
September - In the South so still not cool, still muggy
October - Things finally begin to get colder but certainly not COLD.

Now if you hike in to Dec/Jan that's a different story.

The group:
I wouldn't have considered anyone in the group overly introverted but rarely did we actually do our walking in groups. I observed many groups of nobos walking in chains just a few feet apart from each other. Sometimes these chains would be 6 or 7 hikers deep. Nothing wrong w/ it but I wouldn't want to spend my day stuck in the middle of a stinky hiker chain. How many "Maine Trains" have there been over the years.

I would say that I can think of two SOBO hikers we actually met that year who were the old school, introverted, head down type hikers. They were all business and quickly moved down the trail.

Anyway North or South it's all good just wanted to chime in to the thread as I think we fit this new mold.

bfitz
11-10-2007, 04:23
Ya, they're cooler. younger and cuter this year....and the goat's okay, I guess.

Skyline
11-10-2007, 11:02
Ya, they're cooler. younger and cuter this year....and the goat's okay, I guess.


Photos, please.

Appalachian Tater
11-10-2007, 13:44
I've noticed the same mix of SOBOs coming thru SNP this year as in previous years. Some are in small groups, some are solo. They are generally a little more introverted than NOBOs. There aren't that many of them.

That was my observation in 2006, plus they seemed to be primarily male, under 30, and some of them were moving pretty fast. At least one had started in Newfoundland and done the Canadian portion of the AT.

Blue Jay
11-11-2007, 08:25
In other words, they're Southbounders by circumstance rather than by inclination. There definitely seem to be more Southbounders than previously, and they seem to be more social (traveling in larger groups than normal). Has anyone else noticed this trend?

Yes, I have found the same observations to be true. I also prefer SOBO. I've never met a SOBO I didn't like.

Tinker
11-11-2007, 23:27
I have always thought that if I had the time to do a thru instead of section hiking the AT, I'd go the traditional nobo route.

I've recently been mulling over the idea of a sobo, and it sounds increasingly more appealing. I guess I'd be one of those older, more experienced folks.:-?

Just a Hiker
11-11-2007, 23:46
I have gone both ways, and I prefer SOBO! However, SOBO does have it's own set of hardships. Blackflies and difficult fording in Maine is a tough way to start your thru-hike, plus when you get down south, many services have already closed for the year; however that issue seems to be getting better each year. From my experience, the one thing common with all SOBO's is that they don't absolutely need the "social experience" the AT provides. They aren't anti-social, it's just not as important. For me, the tough part of being a SOBO is the mental let down I have right after I climb over Mt. Mousilauke. I have to take 2 or 3 zeros to get my head back in the game after Maine and the White Mountains. Just my observations over the years :)


Just Jim

RITBlake
11-14-2007, 12:01
For me, the tough part of being a SOBO is the mental let down I have right after I climb over Mt. Mousilauke.

Why the mental let down JJ?

Uncle Silly
11-14-2007, 13:02
Why the mental let down JJ?

I'm betting it has to do with the lack of 4000'+ elevations on the trail until southern VA. After Moosilauke, you're done with the highest elevations in New England. You get a few 3000'+ elevations in Vermont, but once past those you're held to 2000' or below all the way to northern Virginia. That's a long way without the excitement of a 4000' mountain.

Just a Hiker
11-14-2007, 13:57
Why the mental let down JJ?

Uncle Silly is atleast partially right, because I feel that Maine and the Whites are so inspiring......thats why I moved here; although I love all of the AT. However, Maine and the Whites take alot of concentration, and in some areas you have to watch each and every step you take, and I think my mind and body need a rest after all of that excitement. So when I get to Glencliff, NH I just feel totally drained mentally, and yes, a bit sad because the most inspiring part of my hike (for me) is over. But I go into North Woodstock for a couple of days to regroup and eat good, and I get back on the trail with a new attitude. :D


Just Jim

RITBlake
11-16-2007, 11:34
Uncle Silly is atleast partially right, because I feel that Maine and the Whites are so inspiring
Just Jim

Totally get it. For me it felt like a bit of a roller coaster. When you are SOBO you start all the way at the top and then once you get in Mass/CT you have kind of hit bottomed out. Nothing wrong w/ the mid states, they can certainly be magnificent and inspiring but it definitely felt good to get back in to Virginia and some higher elevation. I don't think I felt mentally let down though, just a change of pace and scenery. But boy was it hot going through PA, NJ, and NY

Christopher Robin
11-16-2007, 13:14
I met about 30 MEGAs in Baxter, the 100 Mile, and Monson this year. They're seemingly more apt to be older, female, and have more backpacking experience than they were ten years ago.
Yes and live in New England.

DuctTape
11-16-2007, 20:59
I just finished The Long Trail as a SOBO and everything felt so backwards - with the left hand being east, reading the guidebook from the bottom of the page to the top, and so on.

Still, if I were to do the AT again, I'd seriously consider going SOBO. Every year I get the impression that the northbound herd is becoming more and more of a fickle trail magic circus... (apologies)