Planning GA Thru-Hike

[dkh178]

Greetings All.

I hiked a small portion (5 miles) of the AT in Tenn last year and got totally hooked. I'm planning to thru-hike the entire GA portion this fall with my son (he's 15). It will take me that long to get in shape. (I was a certified couch-potato)

I've started walking 4-5 miles a day carrying a small pack (20lbs), so I feel by this fall I'll be at least physically able to handle a fast pace, but I don't want to be overly optimistic of what I can do "on the trail".

My question is simply what is a "reasonable" pace for the hike? 5-day? 6-days?

Thanks Ya'll

Danno

[whitefoot_hp]

i would call a reasonable pace any pace which you enjoy the hike, be it three nights, as i plan in a few weeks from now, or 7-8-9 nights. i think several aspects of the GA hike give you this liberty, if you are not against several hitch hikes for supplies. you have at least limited re ups at woody gap, (2-3 miles from a gas station), neels gap, unicoi gap, (hitch to helen), dicks creek gap (hitch to hiawassee)

i think there is no reason to worry about your pace, just worry about how you want to enjoy the hike, for example, do you want to take the one mile trail to lake winfeild state park, camp and shower and swim there? possibly get hooked up by some feasters grilling burgers?
sounds like if your doing some walking, you are on the right track. i wouldnt worry about your physical shape. seems like it doesnt matter how often i exercise, the trail always exceeds my current shape to a certain extent.

[dkh178]

I live just south of Atlanta, so my wife can meet up with us halfway for resupply, so we hopefully won't have to hitch.

I'll check out Winfield State Park. It sounds like a great stop. Thanks.

[Blissful]

A hike around with your day pack is unfortunately not like hiking day in and day with a fully loaded backpack and on GA terrain. It will help some cardiovascularly, but it's still tough. Nothing will get you ready for a hike than hiking! So take it easy and enjoy it (no more than 8-10 miles a day). Stop at Neels Gap (stay at Goose creek Cabins) and Hiawasee (at Unicoi) for some breaks if you need it. And Tray Mtn shelter has awesome sunrises and sunsets.

[bloodmountainman]

Give yourself 9-10 days. :rolleyes:

[briarpatch]

I generally recommend 6-10 days to cover all of the AT in Georgia. The average seems to be about 8 days, with a zero or nero day somewhere along the way. And www.mountaincrossings.com (http://www.mountaincrossings.com) is literally on the trail at about 30 miles in, you can do a resupply there.