how many hours a day do you hike

[cabalot]

how many hours a day do you hike on an average day?
average being a day of good weather, trails are not muddy, mild tempurature, sunset is around 7pm or 8 pm. you woke up on the trail and you are camping on the trail, you are not day hiking with a day pack, you are back packing.

the question of how many miles has been posted but mileage can fluxuate with terraine.

basicly how many hours from start to finish including breaks.

[screwysquirrel]

I usaully do about 6-7 hours with a 10-15 minute break every hour. My pack usaully goes about 40-50 lbs cuz I like the creature comforts and don't mind carrying a big pack. Also I don't plan on staying in the shelters.

[TJ aka Teej]

how many hours a day do you hike on an average day?Sunrise to sunset. I stop for breakfast about an hour into the day, take a long lunch and a siesta, then find a place to throw down about 30 before dark. Random breaks all day. I'm easy and get seduced by likely locations all the time.
If it's daylight, I'm moving along or poking around.
I tent too, shelter people seem to sleep late and stop early imo.

[Kozmic Zian]

Yea......Hours....Hard to say. I guess, if you averaged it, 'bout 7 hrs a day, during a Thruy. Rest of the time, day hikes, 3-4 days, it depends on a lot of variables, like, where I am, what I'm doing, where I want to go and how far is it. I don't always hike at 4 miles an hour. Sometimes I stop to 'smell the mosses'. Duh....?KZ@

[chris]

I should have read the instructions before voting (11-12). A typical day in the summer sees me up and moving at 6 am, unless it is really cold out, in which case I might start at 7. I generally set up camp around 8 or 9 pm. In some terrain, I might start an hour earlier and end an hour later. Throughout the day I usually take around 5-6 20-40 minute breaks plus an hour one sometime in the afternoon for cooking lunch. Hiking in the early AM (6-8) and in the early evening (6-9) is really rewarding. It is generally cooler, so hiking is more pleasant. The light is spectacular. There are almost no hikers out, as most people are in camp by 6 and generally don't leave until later. There is an abundance of wildlife in the edge hours. If you haven't tried it before, I would encourage you to do so. Around 4 or 5, stop hiking and cook yourself a meal, taking a good, long break. Around 6, hike for another hour or two and then set up camp. See how you like it. So, for me, a typical day sees me hiking or resting for 14 or 15 hours a day.

Note: Don't try doing this right away. The next day you might not feel so good. Rather extend your hiking hours slowly over the course of several weeks. If the prospect of a 15 mile hike in Georgia sounds tough, don't try to hike 30. Build up slowly, but consistently.

[Youngblood]

basicly how many hours from start to finish including breaks.

Could I rephrase your question as "how long after sunrise do you take to get on the trail and how soon before sunset do you get off the trail"? If so, then my answer for a typical day of long distance hiking is about 1 hour after sunrise and 1 hour before sunset.

Where I do most of my hiking, the daylight varies from about 10 hours in the winter to about 14 hours in the summer, so my hiking hours vary from 8 to 12 hours. When hiking solo in the winter I plan on 12 to 15 mile days, while in the summer I plan on 15 to 20 mile days. If I am hiking with other long distance hikers, I find that the mileage estimates should go down and not because of hiker abilities, but because the number of breaks typically go up because of individual interests and the way one person may feel that particular day. Therefore I cut my winter estimates to 8 to 12 mile days and summer estimates to 12 to 17 mile days.

Youngblood

[hungryhowie]

About 30min after sunrise to about 30min before sunset...unless I find someplace really cool that I want to stay before then...

Some days I sleep in, some days I stop early, but on average, this is how it works for me. It takes about 30 minutes to wake up, take care of business, eat my breakfast and pack the pack. Likewise, I like to have a little sun/warmth left for relaxing in camp in the evening before heading to bed.

At the begining of my thruhike in March 2000, the Sun set at ~5pm, and being green and needing more time to do the put up and take down routine, we normally stopped around 3-4pm. In the mornings, partially because it was so cold, we tried to sleep in to about 9am. Maybe coming from the world of full time student and full time worker, however, I just needed the sleep.

Including everything from when I leave camp to when I make the next camp:

Early Spring on the trail = 6-7 hours
Summer = 10-12 hours (this best fits the description that you want an answer for)
Fall = 9-10 hours

-Howie

[Youngblood]

At the begining of my thruhike in March 2000, the Sun set at ~5pm,

Howie, seems like the last time I saw you we where eating chocolate chip cookies somewhere south of Hanover. Unlike me, you are too young for memory problems or maybe you were using CST instead of EST? :D

Today, February 18th, in Atlanta the sunrise is computed to be 7:19am and the sunset is computed to be 6:25pm. March 21st or so is the spring equinox (12 hours of daylight), so you thrus out there trying to figure out mileage should plan on about 12 hours of daylight in the early part of your hike if you are starting in late March and maybe 11 hours if you are starting now. According to the "Appalachian Trail Workbook fo Planning Thru-Hikes", you will get more than 16 hours of daylight around the summer soltice (~June 21st) at Harpers Ferry, WV, which is close to the halfway point. For the next couple of months (till around the end of May) the amount of daylight will increase at a rapid rate each day and then it will be more steady for the next couple of months. This, the terrain in Virginia and thru-hiker conditioning are some of the reasons why thrus have their highest daily mileages in the mid section of their journey.

Youngblood

[Doctari]

I hike all day most days. I enjoy hiking, and rarely take breaks. If I don't take a break I average about 1.5 MPH from leaving camp to arriving at camp, if I do take a break however, I average about 1.5 MPH from leaving camp to arriving at camp. Still havn't figured out why I don't take breaks :-?

I posted that I hike 7 to 8 hours per day, and that is probably my average or close to it anyway.

Doctari. :dance

[Jaybird]

how many hours a day do you hike on an average day?................the question of how many miles has been posted but mileage can fluxuate with terraine..............basicly how many hours from start to finish including breaks.



i basically get up @ sunrise...have a small breakfast & strong coffee & headout for 8-9 hours (breaks & lunch-stop included)

i also stop for many photos, enjoy the scenery, camraderie,& conversations along the way. :p


see ya'll UP the trail

[Kerosene]

Most of my hiking is done in the spring or fall, with sunset coming around 6 PM. As a section hiker, I've found that I'm slow in breaking camp those first few days and I don't get in halfway decent shape until about Day 4. By the end of the week I'm on the trail by 8 and setting up camp around 5. I'll take 15-20 minute breaks every 90-120 minutes carrying a 25-30 pound pack in a temperature range of 45-60 degrees. All of these factors, plus terrain and views, will impact mileage in a day, but I'm usually "out and about" for 8-9 hours, including a stop for lunch of about 45-60 minutes.

[SGT Rock]

I hike about 7-8 hours. I do get up about 0700 and I am on the trail about 0800, but that is just an average. I usually hike until about 1700-1800. I know it may seem my math is screwy since it looks like I spend more like 10 hours a day on the trail, but I just like to take breaks a lot. I usually take a lot of 20-30 minute breaks whenever the mood hits me. I can usually go about 15 trail miles in a day like this plus about another mile in side trails.

[Lone Wolf]

No earlier than 0800 and no later than 1700.

[Scaper]

I usually started hiking about 1 hour after sunrise and would have my mileage in by about 3 or 4 pm. In the shenandoah national park I would usually have in 20 miles by 1 or 2 pm because the terrain is easy and I am a fast hiker. In the white mountains I would stop at about 4 or 5 pm after about 15 miles because the hiking is alot tougher ! The only time I hiked until dark was coming into Harpers Ferry on a very long day with a very sore ankle.
Jim Ga-Me 1990

[Skyline]

Not being a morning person (and proud of it!) I typically don't hit the Trail until 9 or 10am. It is not unusual for me to keep hiking--with time out for short breaks, lunch(es), to smell the flowers, etc.--until 6 or 7pm. If on terrain I know well, maybe even past dark.

[Footslogger]

From about 8 AM (on average) until it gets dark, how ever many hours that ends up being. I don't like cooking in the dark with a headlamp too much. I have been known to eat dinner, relax a bit and then knock out 4 - 5 more miles before calling it a day.

'Slogger

[fiddlehead]

Time spent hiking (walking) reall depends on whether i'm thru-hiking or just out for a week or so.
I assume those people who said they only hike 2-5 hours a day are not thru-hiking.
But when i'm out for a week or less, it's usually with friends who i want to spend quality time with and we spend much longer hours in camp talking, smoking, or drinking, playing & singing music (or playing craps on our home-ade craps table) and less trail hours.

but for a thru-hike, it's usually dawn to dusk with an hour break two or 3 times a day.

[TOW]

i just take my time because i am in no hurry when i'm out there, if i make it to my destination or not does not matter usually.....

[Grampie]

During my 2001 thru, I would hike, on average, 7 hours a day. I was never in a rush to get started early. Would start about 8:30 and hike to around 3:30 or 4:00.
I was 66 years old and found out that if I hiked longer than about 7 hours I would feel it the next day. This would include several breaks from 10 t0 30 minutes. I averaged 11.6 miles for my 186 days hiking.
It was always nice to set up camp early. Get a good spot in a shelter or find a nice place to put up the tent. It also gave me time to do my journal, clean up and cook.

[Sly]

For a time on the AT, I had a rule, "nothing before 9". Now, I usually hike from just after sunrise to just before sunset.

[neo]

i average 12 to 13 hours a day,i get bored setting around in camp:cool: neo

[The Preacher]

I am a morning person so I like to get started early. After that I let the events of the day and the trail dictate how long I keep moving. I have been known to stop in the middle of the day for a nap. But I don't like being rushed setting up camp at the end of the day. I like to set up my tent, freshen up a bit and eat supper, preferably before dark. So, probably somewhere between 6 to 8 hours. I'm in no big rush.

[Bolivershagnasty]

I'm about 7 to 8 hrs. Up at 6.30 ish gone by 7.30ish. Try about 10-12 mi a day. Take at lest an hour for lunch and several 10 to 20's a day. Down by 6'ish. Depends on terrian too. I havn't really been out long enough at one time to establish trail legs. But 12 miles my dogs are hollerin. No matter the tiime. I've got about 12mi in about 7hrs of acual hiking not counting breaks but I pull into camp at about 6ish no matter what.

[Moxie00]

Tough poll to answer. When on a thru hike or on a very long hike I hike from one hour after sunrise until I reach a shelter or appropriate place to camp within an hour or two before sunset. I hike three times a week and a day hike can take anywhere from two to six hours. At least once a week I try to do a major mountain, Saturday I did "little Jackson" (nothing little about it) and today did Bibelow and a hike up a 4000 footer can take 6-12 hours depending on difficulty and legenth of hike. I stay in shape in the warm months by hiking as much as I can and in the winter I serve on The National Ski Patrol and cross country ski on days I don't patrol. I also like to winter hike in Maine but not as often. Backpacking and hiking are two different animals and I hike and ski to stay in shape to backpack and backpack and hike to stay in shape for skiing.

[Seeker]

hard to say...

most of my trips are 1-2 overnighters on weekends. once a year i can take a longer trip (7-12 days, depending on how much time i can get off). because of this, i tend to have established goals for where i want to spend a night on my shorter trips, and time doesn't matter as much, as long as i get to where i'm spending the night. if i happen to hit a scenic spot, i'm apt to sit down and enjoy it for awhile. i find that on my longer trips, as i'm recovering from sleep deprivation, i become more and more a morning person, going to bed late and sleeping in late (9) at first. after about 3 days, my body seems to readjust to the sun and i rise and retire with it. i'm sluggish in the mornings though, so i usually like something hot for breakfast. breakfast, cleanup, packing, etc, takes about 45 minutes on a good day, 1 hour if i'm slow. i hike slowly, maybe 2 miles an hour, nibble all day, take breaks as the mood hits, stop for some hot soup and a big snack for lunch, then continue moseying until dinner time. sometimes i cook before setting up camp, other times, i cook in camp... on longer trips i'm more flexible about where i'm going and how long i'll take to get there. but i hate to cook in the dark, so i try to find a place to set up camp about 2 hours prior to sunset...

not much help there, huh? guess it works out to 7 hours some days, 12 hours others...

[kyhipo]

I average around 6 to 7 i try not to keep miles anymore and just to hike :banana ,I like to hike for fun anymore:D ky