Trip Plan for Boy Scouts

[ScouterM]

I am an assistant Scoutmaster with a Boy Scout troop and we are planning 3 days of hiking on the AT in April. The plan is to hit the trail on a Saturday and exit the trail on Tuesday.

We are currently talking about picking up the trail northbound at Woody's Gap. My thoughts for a trip plan are:

Day 1 Woody's to Jarrard Gap 5.5 miles
Day 2 Jarrard Gap to Bull Gap 6.1 miles
Day 3 Bull Gap to Hogpen Gap 5.3 miles

There will be boys from age 11 to 15 on the trip and I am not interested in necessarily clocking a ton of miles but just getting the boys out there and having a good time hiking. This plan would also have us finishing up late Monday which if I could break it up a little more would not mind having a short hike on Tuesday morning and exiting the trail then. The next point with a road crossing I believe is Unicoi Gap which is another 15 miles and would just be too much ground to cover in this amount of time.

Are there good places to camp in the areas I am planning to stop? not enough miles in a day?? too many miles?? Any ways to break it up to have maybe a couple mile hike out on Tuesday morning??

We did an AT hike a couple of years ago in February and went southbound from Woody's. It was like 12 degrees when we left out in the morning and when we camped that night we had some snowfall. At that point we decided to cut things short and not continue on. The original plan was to push on the Springer. We did about 10 miles that first day and it was just too many for some of the boys. The conditions will hopefully be better in April but will still like to have a more leisurely pace.

Thanks in advance for any info you can provide

[The Weasel]

Excellent plan. Better to have short mileages and smiles and wanting to do it more.

YIS -


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[shelterbuilder]

I'm not familiar with that area, but I'll offer some general observations as a former ASM.

Assuming that the boys have SOME trail experience, 5 to 6 mile days are not too long. Trying to strike a happy medium between 11 year olds and 15 year olds isn't always easy, as 15 year olds can usually carry more and hike more miles. You don't want them to be bored with short days, but you don't want to burn out your 11 year olds, either. Shorter days on the trail mean longer days in camp, with plenty of time for "sightseeing stops" along the way. April can be muddy, but probably not buggy; nights can still be a bit chilly.

Remember that large groups can really tear up a campsite - even if you don't mean to. Large groups can also place a strain on the area's toilet facilities. Both the ATC and BSA discourage groups larger than 10 persons because of this (it was always tough limiting our groups to ten, because not all of our adults were "into" the outdoors).

Good luck, and thanks for caring about the next generation!

[skinewmexico]

Challenge the 15 year olds to carry a bigger percentage of troop gear. Sure helps the 11 year olds.

[elangomat]

I too am a Scoutmaster, while I'm not familiar with the area your going I would like to suggest that the Scouts use tents, not the shelters. I hate seeing posts by hikers complaining that shelters are taken over by Scouts. I try to keep my boys in a positive light.

[Ghosthiker]

As a scouter and a hiker, I'll also add this. When you stop for a break, get off of the trail. Hikers shouldn't need to step over and around gear and legs. As elangomat said, try and keep them in a positive light with other hikers and teach them trail manners. Also, try and camp in an area not so close to shelters and other sites. It's amazing how tired 11 year olds can regain energy at camp and be ready to run, play and yell.

[Egads]

You didn't say how many will be hiking, but April is the middle of thru hiker season, and you will be on the most crowded part of the trail.

I'd consider the Bartram Trail, Foothills Trail, or the Benton MacCaye trail.

BTW, check the packs for proper gear and clothing, and not too much much weight. Too much weight is more of a kill-joy than too many miles. My son's scout troop usually hiked 6-8 mpd.

There is plenty of campsites. Slaughter gap is good. Cowrock is a good one if not too windy.