View Full Version : Should I carpe diem?
Due to an unexpected change at work, I might be able to thru-hike the AT this year. However, I haven't had time to prepare physically or mentally plan out the details.
-Would it be totally crazy to head out without planning out mail drops, stays in advance? I would expect to start slower and hike myself into shape.
-Can you just resupply as you go? Would that make it dramatically more expensive?
-With only two weeks to prepare what would you do to get ready?
-After being on the trail for 20-25 days, I will have to take 1 1/2 weeks off for some family "holy days of obligation". Where would be a good place to plan to get off the trail & shuttle to an airport?
- Would starting mid-April with two weeks off, still allow sufficient time to make it to Katadin in Oct?
I'll turn 53 this year and would hate to miss this opportunity. Too often events conspire against me rather than for me.
I do have some idea of what I might be getting myself into. Last year my wife & I hiked across England (192 miles) carrying our gear (but sleeping at pubs & hostels). I have both tented and hiked hut-to-hut thru the Whites. We hike regularly during the summer here in New England, so I do have two pairs of broken in boots.
GO FOR IT !!!
Check the supplies article and other links on the left column of the home page. Check the ATC and ALDHA websites for more information. Just go! The next two weeks will be a scramble, but you will have months to enjoy. Do it!
I say GO FOR IT!!!!!!! Definitely Seize this opportunity!!! You may never have this chance again, do you want to let it slip by, or go for it and no matter what happens, at least know that you took a chance when you had it!!
fiddlehead
03-29-2008, 20:44
I decided to do one of my thru hikes 6 days before i started on May 5. I was in Peru at the time. I flew home, spent 2 days buying and packing food, took care of some business, set up a shuttle and was on Springer before a week was out.
If you are doing it without maildrops, it won't take long IF you have your gear. I'd go out and hike and camp out at least one night to try to make sure you have all you need.
I would also send one box to Neels Gap. That way, you can start out with only 3 days food which is a lot easier carrying if you are out of shape than 6 or 7.
Have fun. Often times the trips taken on impulse are the best ones.
Too much anxiety the other way.
Due to an unexpected change at work, I might be able to thru-hike the AT this year. However, I haven't had time to prepare physically or mentally plan out the details.
-Would it be totally crazy to head out without planning out mail drops, stays in advance? I would expect to start slower and hike myself into shape.
-Can you just resupply as you go? Would that make it dramatically more expensive?
-With only two weeks to prepare what would you do to get ready?
-After being on the trail for 20-25 days, I will have to take 1 1/2 weeks off for some family "holy days of obligation". Where would be a good place to plan to get off the trail & shuttle to an airport?
- Would starting mid-April with two weeks off, still allow sufficient time to make it to Katadin in Oct?
I'll turn 53 this year and would hate to miss this opportunity. Too often events conspire against me rather than for me.
I do have some idea of what I might be getting myself into. Last year my wife & I hiked across England (192 miles) carrying our gear (but sleeping at pubs & hostels). I have both tented and hiked hut-to-hut thru the Whites. We hike regularly during the summer here in New England, so I do have two pairs of broken in boots.
Just go. Don't worry about it. Before the Internet, that's what everyone did. They figured things out as they went along. Pack a tent, sleeping bag, some maps. and enough food to reach Neel Gap and head out. You're way ahead of many AT hikers. You've seriously hiked and tented before.
Just start slow. Put one foot in front of the other for eight hours a day and believe me, sooner than you wish, you'll be in Maine and sad that your grand adventure is ending.
Weary
FFTorched
03-29-2008, 20:54
why not? What do you have to lose?
Definitely do it if you can. Look at Fontana Dam as an out for your time frame. Look at resupply at Neels with your drop box and then Hiawassee(Dicks Gap). I was in that area until friday and tere was lots of activity. easy to get a shuttle at Dick's Gap for sure. Enjoy! I'm envious
I also say go for it! I had an opportunity last year but did not because of the birth of my first grandchild. I wouldn't have missed that for anything in the world, but I wanted to be on the trail also. I spent a lot of time keeping her, but if not for that I would have been on the trail for sure. We may have another layover in a couple of years so I am planning on it then.
Nearly Normal
03-29-2008, 21:49
Be best if you start soon. Work your way into warmer weather.
Go for it.
Definitely wait until next year. At the age of 53 planning is as exciting as the hiking. Make sure you are in shape, you have all the proper equipment and are ready mentally. Fiddlehead seems to be able to do it, but you are the one that had to ask on WB. He who hesitates is lost. In your case wait.
camojack
03-30-2008, 00:29
Absolutely! The trail will get you in shape; just don't push too hard in the beginning...
River Runner
03-30-2008, 01:57
Go for it!
kayak karl
03-30-2008, 07:13
Go, if you have a break in career, go. next year u might not. whats the worst that can happen? really!
go for it.
I used to seize the day.
Unfortunatly I built up a tollarance.
Now I'm seizing entire weeks just to get the same buzz.
Seize it, conquer it, dash out and live it and all that other good stuff! Have an adventure, sounds like the time is right and the opportunity is now. GO!
cowboy nichols
03-30-2008, 10:29
I've used both methods, plan, prepare.get lists, exercised etc. for me the best hikes are the ones I have taken on short notice. My backpack is always ready to go except for food, water and throwing in my sleeping bag(down) I keep a handy selection of package foods and energy bars in the pantry. I can be ready to leave in 2 hrs or less and beon a trail for as many weeks or months as I want. The one thing I can't control is family emergencies. They do tend to cut my hiking miles. GO HIKE!!!
Due to an unexpected change at work, I might be able to thru-hike the AT this year. However, I haven't had time to prepare physically or mentally plan out the details.
-Would it be totally crazy to head out without planning out mail drops, stays in advance? I would expect to start slower and hike myself into shape.
-Can you just resupply as you go? Would that make it dramatically more expensive?
-With only two weeks to prepare what would you do to get ready?
-After being on the trail for 20-25 days, I will have to take 1 1/2 weeks off for some family "holy days of obligation". Where would be a good place to plan to get off the trail & shuttle to an airport?
- Would starting mid-April with two weeks off, still allow sufficient time to make it to Katadin in Oct?
I'll turn 53 this year and would hate to miss this opportunity. Too often events conspire against me rather than for me.
I do have some idea of what I might be getting myself into. Last year my wife & I hiked across England (192 miles) carrying our gear (but sleeping at pubs & hostels). I have both tented and hiked hut-to-hut thru the Whites. We hike regularly during the summer here in New England, so I do have two pairs of broken in boots.
Depends on what kind of "change in work" it is. How prepared you are financially for the time off needed? Are additional funds a concern during and in the months following your hike?
I figure I will need 12K minimum in savings to quit my job and go...
Your figure might be different.
Feral Bill
03-30-2008, 11:04
Do it for yourself and for those of us who can't yet. I'm 55 and full of envy.
There is so much info out there right now, including some of the best in the "Articles" section of White Blaze, that you can get up to speed in short time about gear, food, strategies, etc. You can certainly go ahead and hike this year. Just remember to not pack heavy non-necessities, and to start slow so you can build your trail legs and general stamina on the AT.
As for resupply, there is an excellent contribution by Jack Tarlin in the "Articles" section on this site: http://www.whiteblaze.net/index.php?page=resupplypart1. It was last updated in 2007 but should be mostly applicable for 2008. (Status of individual hostels, shuttle providers, etc. change all the time, but with few exceptions the general resupply strategies Jack has put forth hold true regardless). If you supplement this series of resupply articles with one or more of the AT books for 2008 (Companion, Handbook, or AT Pages) you should be fine.
If you can do anything requiring physical exertion between now and when you hit the trail, it would help make the first few days more enjoyable. I'm thinking a short-term gym membership, or just walking up and down steps—a lot—while wearing a loaded backpack.
You are really fortunate that you have boots already broken in. Foot issues are often the first to show themselves, and have knocked a fair number of folks off the Trail prematurely.
One mental strategy you might employ is to make a stringent personal commitment to yourself, only to be broken due to an extreme emergency at home or a life-threatening injury, to hike these first five segments without fail:
Springer to Neels Gap
Neels Gap to Hiawassee
Hiawassee to Franklin
Franklin to NOC
NOC to Fontana
After this, you should be in good enough trail shape to continue on as a "thru-hiking machine,";) and you can go further between town stops and resupplies if you so choose. The keys up to this milestone are to keep your pack weight under control, resist big-mile days, and to not let any of the little annoyances accumulate in your head so that going home starts to look like a good option. In the experience of many of us, that latter point can be the most challenging.
If you're not a picky eater you can hike the whole trail without maildrops. I would NOT send a drop to Neels Gap as others recommend. There is plenty of food for sale there to get you to Dicks Creek Gap. You'll spend 9 bucks to send it from Mass to GA.
You can always send food drops from trail towns along the way if you want to put together some drops. Especially if you go home during the hike you'll have the chance to re-adjust and put together drops.
Get your gear straight, buy the maps and guidebook and read Jack Tarlin's resupply article on this site. You'll be fine. A spontaneously planned trip these days is rare; IMO people tend to overdo the planning. TBS, I thoroughly enjoyed planning my hikes.
max patch
03-30-2008, 12:33
You can do it if you want to.
I quit my job, and did all my "planning" and gear upgrades at night and on the weekend as I worked off my 2 week notice. This was in the pre-internet days. I didn't even get around to buying a handbook until I reached Damascus. When I left Springer I knew I was going to get some supplies at Neel Gap and that my wife was going to meet me in Helen. I had no other resupplies planned. No big deal. Don't make planning a bigger deal than it is.
You'll figure out everything you need to know as your hike progresses.
max patch
03-30-2008, 12:35
If you're not a picky eater you can hike the whole trail without maildrops. I would NOT send a drop to Neels Gap as others recommend. There is plenty of food for sale there to get you to Dicks Creek Gap. You'll spend 9 bucks to send it from Mass to GA.
You can always send food drops from trail towns along the way if you want to put together some drops. Especially if you go home during the hike you'll have the chance to re-adjust and put together drops.
Get your gear straight, buy the maps and guidebook and read Jack Tarlin's resupply article on this site. You'll be fine. A spontaneously planned trip these days is rare; IMO people tend to overdo the planning. TBS, I thoroughly enjoyed planning my hikes.
I agree with everything ATrain says.
astrogirl
03-30-2008, 21:24
I do have some idea of what I might be getting myself into. Last year my wife & I hiked across England (192 miles) carrying our gear (but sleeping at pubs & hostels).
Sounds awesome.
DH thinks I should do Land's End to John o' Groats, and he'll drive pub to pub! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land's_End_to_John_o'_Groats
I'd love to, but I don't think he's really thought that one through as we have our own company and someone has to make the money! :D
Seriously though, just go.* Take it easy at first, and I'm sure you'll be fine. I enjoy planning yes, but if I were you, I'd just go!
Due to an unexpected change at work, I might be able to thru-hike the AT this year. However, I haven't had time to prepare physically or mentally plan out the details.
-Would it be totally crazy to head out without planning out mail drops, stays in advance? I would expect to start slower and hike myself into shape.
-Can you just resupply as you go? Would that make it dramatically more expensive?
-With only two weeks to prepare what would you do to get ready?
-After being on the trail for 20-25 days, I will have to take 1 1/2 weeks off for some family "holy days of obligation". Where would be a good place to plan to get off the trail & shuttle to an airport?
- Would starting mid-April with two weeks off, still allow sufficient time to make it to Katadin in Oct?
I'll turn 53 this year and would hate to miss this opportunity. Too often events conspire against me rather than for me.
I do have some idea of what I might be getting myself into. Last year my wife & I hiked across England (192 miles) carrying our gear (but sleeping at pubs & hostels). I have both tented and hiked hut-to-hut thru the Whites. We hike regularly during the summer here in New England, so I do have two pairs of broken in boots.Yeah, just go for it.
But what does a thru-hike have to do with eating one fish a day? :confused:
Just a quick update. It took me a little longer to persuade work to let me go, but they have. On the 26th I start my leave of abscence & plan to be in GA starting the approach trail on the 28th! Thanks for all the great advice.
:sun
Just a quick update. It took me a little longer to persuade work to let me go, but they have. On the 26th I start my leave of abscence & plan to be in GA starting the approach trail on the 28th! Thanks for all the great advice.
:sun
Good luck!
Bare Bear
04-28-2008, 17:18
Go for it. If you need any help, I am nearby roaming Ga right now.
The biggest factor in completing the trail is the mental aspect. If you can handle the speedy preparations, it is likely doable IF you really want to do it and still are into it while you are on the trail. You will probably have enough time to complete the trail in that timeframe if you pace yourself, and can probably walk yourself into shape if you are sensible about it. I, too, would skip the Neels Gap food drop and just start out the trail with no food drops at all, mailing ahead whatever food drops you decide you really need from the trail. You can get by with none if you're flexible enough.
For most people buying as you go will be less expensive. A primary reason is most people don't complete the trail. Mailing food is expensive and you'll find the foods you selected in April may not be the ones you want to eat in August.
If it were me and I really wanted to hike the AT on short notice, I'd buy my guidebook(s,) start making a list of things needed to get my personal life and business in order, and start collecting the gear I'd need. Then I'd pack four days of food to get to Neel's (you'll be starting slow) then buy food for the next stretch there. Right away I'd start testing out my gear and doing some hiking, working hard on packing light.
If you are an experienced hiker, you can handle it from there. You can always make some gear changes in Neel's gap if you need to.
Go for it, IF it's the right thing for YOU.
CrumbSnatcher
04-28-2008, 19:37
Carpe Diem Always!
Just Jack
04-28-2008, 22:33
Remember the KISS formula--It is as simple as LEFT--RIGHT--REPEAT!!!
If you have any problems--there will be plenty of people on the trail that
will be able to help you solve them--or get to a computer and ask here.
I'm glad that you are going--everything will work out. you will have such
an amazing time that you will wonder why you took the time to ask,"Should I .....?"
The Weasel
04-28-2008, 22:37
Think of it as simply a series of 50 mile hikes or so. If you've done those, you can do this. It's not as complicated as all of us want to make it seem. Pretty simple: Put on pack. Walk. Stop at end of trail or when you want to. Enjoy.
TW