View Full Version : 10 Day Maildrops
Jail Break
03-07-2008, 15:02
I figure on carrying 10 days worth of food to cut down on maildrops. Has anyone else done this? I have tons of food home and I would LIKE to resupply my food using maildrops instead of buying what I already have. I notice alot of the PO's are 9,11,13 miles off-trail. What is the most efficient way to access these PO's? I also have seen that people say they leave their pack in the Hilton, and take a nice packless walk to town for resupply or whatever... Is your pack safe in a shelter for 10 hours while you walk to and from town? What I'm asking I guess are the logistics of accessing the towns that are a day's worth of walking off the trail. How do you guys make the best of this? Also, others' maildrop schedules would be appreciated for reference. Thanks everyone.
Please also see my other post, "GEAR LIST- Any Ideas?"
Appalachian Tater
03-07-2008, 15:08
Most people hitch-hike into town if it is far off the trail. Do not leave your pack unattended at the Hilton, people have even had them stolen after hiding them in the woods at trail heads, from hostels, and at Trail Days. There is an article on mail drops. Realize that postage will be going up again shortly. I do not think you can save much money, if any, by doing drops, and they can be inconvenient. Consider using hostels or other service providers instead of POs. http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?p=95199&postcount=1
Two things:
Based on 2 1/2 pounds of food per day, 10 days worth is going to weight 25 pounds. That's a lot to carry on the AT
Second, for most of the trail, there are good resupply options within walking distance of the AT much less than 10 days apart.
In short, very little need to carry 10 days of food, and very little need to rely exclusively on mail drops.
Johnny Swank
03-07-2008, 18:33
I'm all for carrying more food and spending less time in towns, but 10 days is pushing it. There are easy, easy places to buy food along the way, and by the time you end up paying for postage, you'll likely spend about the same in the end.
With a little planning, you can set yourself up to get food anywhere from 3-7 days without killing yourself, or spending too much time in town. My sweet spot is about 5-6 days. Any more than that feels like work!
Seems silly carrying 10 days of food when you'll be walking through or near a town, and by a food store, sooner.
Appalachian Tater
03-07-2008, 18:44
Yeah, what Jail Break needs to look at is Baltimore Jack's resupply article, not the maildrop article:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/articles/resupplybook.pdf
Blissful
03-07-2008, 19:25
I wouldn't leave your pack anywhere unless you have someone watching it or it's locked up safe or it's in a place where you can keep an eye on it. Better safe than sorry.
Jail Break
03-08-2008, 01:35
[quote=Johnny Swank;561496]There are easy, easy places to buy food along the way, and by the time you end up paying for postage, you'll likely spend about the same in the end.quote]
My point is, I already have the food. I have piles and piles of food stacked in my basement I got from a friend who works at Costco. I'd hate to have all that sitting there, not being used when it's all great stuff. And if I'm gonna pay the same for postage as I will for buying food as I go, I might as well ship what I have, no? So I'm looking for a way to make that work as efficiently as possible. Any ideas from anyone on that?
[quote=Johnny Swank;561496]There are easy, easy places to buy food along the way, and by the time you end up paying for postage, you'll likely spend about the same in the end.quote]
My point is, I already have the food. I have piles and piles of food stacked in my basement I got from a friend who works at Costco. I'd hate to have all that sitting there, not being used when it's all great stuff. And if I'm gonna pay the same for postage as I will for buying food as I go, I might as well ship what I have, no? So I'm looking for a way to make that work as efficiently as possible. Any ideas from anyone on that?
If you are like the typical thru-hiker, you will find very quickly that your tastes change. You will have a different ideas once after a few weeks. Many hikers dump much of their mail drop into hiker swap boxes, and go to the local grocery store to supplement what they didn't put into the swap box.
Also, it's hard to predict what your appetite is going to be.
So, if you have the food anyway, then go ahead and start out the way you want to. Just be prepared to make adjustments along the way.
In 2006, I hiked from GA to VA using maildrops that were spaced 10 days away. I remember choosing them because it was convenient. I really regret this move. My pack was so heavy, and every climb out of town was a nightmare. This year I'm aiming for 3-4 days and very few maildrops.
I figure on carrying 10 days worth of food to cut down on maildrops. Has anyone else done this? I have tons of food home and I would LIKE to resupply my food using maildrops instead of buying what I already have. I notice alot of the PO's are 9,11,13 miles off-trail. What is the most efficient way to access these PO's? I also have seen that people say they leave their pack in the Hilton, and take a nice packless walk to town for resupply or whatever... Is your pack safe in a shelter for 10 hours while you walk to and from town? What I'm asking I guess are the logistics of accessing the towns that are a day's worth of walking off the trail. How do you guys make the best of this? Also, others' maildrop schedules would be appreciated for reference. Thanks everyone.
Please also see my other post, "GEAR LIST- Any Ideas?"
You raise a number of issues. 10 days of food is a lot; for most folks that's 20 pounds or so. That's gonna slow you down.
The trail guides generally indicate how far off-trail a given town is, and sometimes they indicate whether it's a tough or easy hitch. Hitchhiking has its dangers, but it beats a long road walk on a hot day. There are obvious alternatives: choosing towns or facilities on or very close to the trail, and/or using facilities (hotels/hostels/B&Bs) that offer shuttles to/from the trail.
Example: I stupidly had a mail drop sent to Mt. Holly Springs, PA. I ended up walking the 2.5 miles into town, and got a hitch back out. The round-trip in and out of town cost me maybe three hours. Had I studied the maps and guides a bit more carefully, I'd have noticed that the nearby town of Boiling Springs, PA was smack on the trail. The trail passes right by the post office.
Leaving pack in shelter: I wouldn't do that. In a hostel... maybe, for a short while, but I'd remove any small, valuable, irreplaceable items. In a private room in a B&B or motel... no problem. ;) In any case, I'd guess that you'd have better luck hitchhiking with a pack than without it.
Chaco Taco
03-08-2008, 09:52
Ill take some of it:D
[quote=Johnny Swank;561496]There are easy, easy places to buy food along the way, and by the time you end up paying for postage, you'll likely spend about the same in the end.quote]
My point is, I already have the food. I have piles and piles of food stacked in my basement I got from a friend who works at Costco. I'd hate to have all that sitting there, not being used when it's all great stuff. And if I'm gonna pay the same for postage as I will for buying food as I go, I might as well ship what I have, no? So I'm looking for a way to make that work as efficiently as possible. Any ideas from anyone on that?
whitelightning
03-08-2008, 19:31
If you want to use the food you already have, I would plan to send some maildrops to places where it may be difficult to resupply (see Jack's resupply article & the guides). You could also resupply via a combination of maildrops and buying along the way. This way you're not spending as much on shipping and not carrying 10 days worth of food. There is just no need to carry that much food at one time ANYWHERE on the A.T.
For example you could send a maildrop to one of the hostels near Hiawasee, GA. That would last you til Franklin, NC where it's easy to buy to resupply. Then get another maildrop at the NOC and/or Fontana. And so on...
Also consider that you will want and need to buy some perishable foods (like fruits and vegtables) for proper nutrition and for stuff you crave (like ice cream). So chances are you will supplement the food you send in maildrops at places you can buy at.
As others have mentioned, be flexible in your planning.
If you take 6 months and space out your drops 10 days that's 18 drops. You could add 12 and do a normal resupply and only add $156 or less (depending on which box you use) to your budget using PM flat rate boxes. It's well worth it!
Total mailing budget for 30 drops using large PM flat rate boxes = $388.50 @ $12.95 per box. The boxes are free and shipped to your home.
https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10152&storeId=10001&categoryId=13354&productId=36601&langId=-1 (https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/OrderItemDisplay?langId=-1&krypto=dyE9XVUr1ZL7CYBGHAQPcvRkfYm5pGql0zEvrk1ldQB wIvm0zRWU%2BLD684qIl6NIWAOUSEhT22Ro%0AqRfEXmMd%2FC psa6m43aLIiocA%2F2tn4ypDnhK1qfna2XytE64cln%2BW2js8 X9Hj1y33NNfpb1W4mj7Y%0ARet6hDfWGs6Bo8IsHDjjOgmyQOB %2BPkIo2LAB1qRaIOfJ8RvNRiJrcEY010oN6ScFmBOtrZw82Tk 4%0Ah6EYBUWrHwxePcbk8Q0UizW%2BtDQgc%2FTVkIvI74gnwQ RLQAMY1KZmDhv4hrtjAFvcMc8qEsE4tJYz%0AS8KcqUq3kI9hP hL9eYBYGaPPKPVnF48nge9iWbuWxwqnpqnuZEhIrqKXl2oAZNT j%2Bqd%2BQ7SkyP76%0AMM0cvLNTx3OgHXVSGf9f%2FZ3q1YbD 6zHhKki%2FlXC8gMKa2Rwf%2B9QVy5lvHb4%2FqRbDv2aA5MyG j2nz%0AmUfqFIUv6%2F9HC8kSz8IYQpcmC1eUhDqIx7JJX%2B% 2FWGDfMsrkmTkiFZRwT3qk4mqD3Ev6%2BpYW3RTbU%0ACknV7I tGq7%2FOPq5tO%2BQRaKDhSYLVJ8R8pW6aWsPHucsuHaUcQcVu K75pHU%2FsNHAi00HWjhUPYKC1)
Keep in mind... if you carry food for 10 days.. you will be hauling a 50 pound pack and possibly 60! as someone else already mentioned.. 10 days of food will run you a good 25 pounds.. and that is just for food!
Thing is.. there is NO place on the AT where you need to go 10 days between food stops. Never mind mail drops, you can resupply fairly easy every 4-5 days. 100 mile wilderness maybe food for 6-8 days (resupply at white house landing and at Abol Bridge).
David
fiddlehead
03-08-2008, 20:57
There are places where it is advisable to send food, and others where it is not.
Listen to some of the above advice and mix it up more.
You WILL probably get very tired of some food and want variety (depends on the person, i once hiked with a guy who ate the exact same thing every day the whole hike. I just couldn't do that, or at least don't want to)
Read the resupply article. Definitely, I would send to: Neels Gap, Port Clinton PA, Glencliffe NH, many places in NY, CT, Mass (much more expensive there).
The Solemates
03-09-2008, 01:59
we often carried 7-10 days worth of food on our hike. didnt slow us down any :)