PDA

View Full Version : How Nervous Were You Before Your AT Thru-Hike?



EverydayJourneyman
04-22-2009, 13:40
I'm starting to get really anxious and a bit nervous. Just wondering how past thru-hikers dealt with growing nerves. Or perhaps you were completely unfazed by the entire thing.

Reid
04-22-2009, 13:56
I've never thru'd I just thought I'd add my thoughts. A trail like A.T. you will definelty find out what your made of. It all sounds great on paper but the actual task is not to be taken lightly (regardless of those who say "it's just walking") so to be nervous I'd say is normal. You can bite off as much as you want to on the A.T. and it's neccessary to have thick skin or a whole lot of money. When your at home all you can think about it the trail but when your on the trail, alot of the time all I can think about is being home. It takes a certain type of person to do this type of thing and if your not that type of person you will find out rather quickly. I think I've heard before that most quite within the first 11 days, cant wait to see how far I make it!

ChinMusic
04-22-2009, 14:11
I'm starting to get really anxious and a bit nervous. Just wondering how past thru-hikers dealt with growing nerves. Or perhaps you were completely unfazed by the entire thing.
Nerves are normal. "It's just walkin'" is a healthy way of looking upon it. You gotta like it.

Scrapes
04-22-2009, 14:12
Two things make me concerned, leaving my family and my left knee.

Blue Wolf
04-22-2009, 14:15
It's normal to be excited but it goes away after your first 6 days of rain I found.

ChinMusic
04-22-2009, 14:29
It's normal to be excited but it goes away after your first 6 days of rain I found.
Lock the thread.

This post sums it up.

McKeever
04-22-2009, 14:35
Set your mind to rest and turn your anxiety over starting the AT into excitement. It's true about what's said about over planning. Make sure your gear is light, that you always carry the 10 essentials, and expect to make a change or two as you go along. Keep out of the rat race and don't get caught up in excessive parting that you will probably be tempted with.

Spirit Walker
04-22-2009, 18:15
Before my first thruhike, I would wake up at 5:00 a.m. thinking about the trail. There was a huge mixture of excitement, happiness and worry that filled my thoughts. I was really ignorant back then, and I knew it. I didn't know whether I would be able to do the hike and was wondering what the AT would actually be like.

Before I hiked the CDT I had much the same kind of emotions. I had researched as much as possible, but I still had so many questions - foremost being "Can I do this?" I knew it would be more difficult, and I was several years older - so I had no certainty that I would be able to go the distance.

As others have said, the extreme feelings pass quite soon after you get started on the trail. You're too tired to be so excited. Soon you start feeling at home in the woods and the routine becomes normal. In a couple of weeks you start feeling some confidence in your ability to handle whatever the trail might throw at you. By midway you start thinking that "I can do this", though a little doubt remains. For the AT, that doubt lasted until I crossed the Kennebec. For the CDT, I knew I could do it when we left Colorado and began hiking in NM and only had 700 miles to go. On the PCT it was when we finished California and only had 1000 miles to go.

I often feel envious of the mixture of excitement and ignorance of a first time thruhiker. A second or third hike will never be quite the same. Now when I plan a long hike, I know how much I will hurt. I know how tired I'll get of being tired and dirty. I know how hard it is to eat Noodles Alfredo for the 20th time. At the same time, I know how happy I am when doing a long hike. I know to treasure the small moments - the bird song in the morning, the squirrels playing in the trees above you, the sunlight glinting on the water. I remember how good it feels to pass from one state to the next -- and how sad it feels to know that your hike is drawing to an end. So I keep going back. And I still find myself waking up early in the weeks before I leave, filled with excitement and worry.

EverydayJourneyman
04-22-2009, 18:18
Before my first thruhike, I would wake up at 5:00 a.m. thinking about the trail. There was a huge mixture of excitement, happiness and worry that filled my thoughts. I was really ignorant back then, and I knew it. I didn't know whether I would be able to do the hike and was wondering what the AT would actually be like.

Before I hiked the CDT I had much the same kind of emotions. I had researched as much as possible, but I still had so many questions - foremost being "Can I do this?" I knew it would be more difficult, and I was several years older - so I had no certainty that I would be able to go the distance.

As others have said, the extreme feelings pass quite soon after you get started on the trail. You're too tired to be so excited. Soon you start feeling at home in the woods and the routine becomes normal. In a couple of weeks you start feeling some confidence in your ability to handle whatever the trail might throw at you. By midway you start thinking that "I can do this", though a little doubt remains. For the AT, that doubt lasted until I crossed the Kennebec. For the CDT, I knew I could do it when we left Colorado and began hiking in NM and only had 700 miles to go. On the PCT it was when we finished California and only had 1000 miles to go.

I often feel envious of the mixture of excitement and ignorance of a first time thruhiker. A second or third hike will never be quite the same. Now when I plan a long hike, I know how much I will hurt. I know how tired I'll get of being tired and dirty. I know how hard it is to eat Noodles Alfredo for the 20th time. At the same time, I know how happy I am when doing a long hike. I know to treasure the small moments - the bird song in the morning, the squirrels playing in the trees above you, the sunlight glinting on the water. I remember how good it feels to pass from one state to the next -- and how sad it feels to know that your hike is drawing to an end. So I keep going back. And I still find myself waking up early in the weeks before I leave, filled with excitement and worry.

Ah the triple crown, congrats. You used the word "we." So he hiked these trails with someone you knew?

Tatertot
04-22-2009, 18:24
Yeah, Im planning on my first thru Hike next year and every waking moment is spent thinking about the trail, Im sure I can do it but I know its gonna be tough and I will want to quit, but I will try my best not to. I spent 4 years in the service so I like to think that I have a slight mental advantage, I just dont know what to expect and I am planning on Yo-Yo ing. Im going north to maine and then south back to Ga, so thats like 4,000 plus miles, we will see what happens!!

Kirby
04-22-2009, 18:39
I was more anxious than nervous. It was odd to [I]actually[I] stand on Springer, knowing it was all about to begin.

I would say I was also confident. In order to start a thru-hike on the right foot, you MUST be confident you are going to go all the way, hell or high water.

Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst.

Bearpaw
04-22-2009, 18:40
I have never been nervous starting out a long hike. Honestly. I spent the last night before I hit the AT with my girlfriend and three bottles of wine. All was good.

The AT was a vacation, and a wonderfully self-indulgent one. Some days sucked, but they were still better than most folks work days.

The Colorado Trail was a much lonelier, but awesome vacation.

I DO find the first week of a long hike is generally a bit lousy. Aches, pains, missing home, adjusting to trail food, missing home, gear problems, missing home, and so on.

After about a week, the trail becomes a second home.

Just remember it is vacation, even when it sucks, and all will be good.

wrongway_08
04-22-2009, 19:14
It was just hiking, no big deal. Tons of fun, great people and great times but its just hiking.................



left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - trip, fall and bust your ass - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot -left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - left foot - right foot - climb big K and go home.

Engine
04-22-2009, 19:16
I didn't count, but that doesn't seem like enough steps.

wrongway_08
04-22-2009, 19:17
I got loooooong legs ........:D

kayak karl
04-22-2009, 19:30
of course i was nervous. i was riding AMTRAC:D

superman
04-22-2009, 20:31
I used to say that hiking the AT was my reward...not my punishment. Nervous...what was I supposed to be nervous about? It was nothing but gravy. It was the best thing I ever did for just me both mentally and physically. I was just going for a long walk with Winter...and they lived happily ever after.:)

celt
04-22-2009, 21:07
I was excited to start my thru hike for many months but I remember feeling queezie during breakfast of the morning I started walking. I had a hard time eating. Also, I was occasionally snippy with my driving partner (mom) during our trip from NH to GA. Definitely a by product of nerves.

As soon as I stepped on to the trail all the nervous tension dissolved.

TrippinBTM
04-22-2009, 21:09
I was more anxious than nervous. It was odd to [i]actually[i] stand on Springer, knowing it was all about to begin.

I would say I was also confident. In order to start a thru-hike on the right foot, you MUST be confident you are going to go all the way, hell or high water.

Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst.

Kirby's right. It's a weird feeling, to be (for me) getting on a bus to Georgia, doing this totally unconventional thing. But it's a thrill too. And in truth, though I was a bit nervous, I was mostly just riding the momentum of the planning and the concrete choice to hike. There was no turning back after quitting two jobs and getting rid of my apartment and most of my stuff, and telling tons of people I was going to hike the AT. Shame alone prevented it!

This may help a little bit. Before I left, and even once I'd started, I had three thoughts in my mind:

First: this is going to be the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. (never think it's easy. It's grueling, a lot of the time (though well worth every second!). Plus, then you're going into it with the correct level of respect.)

Second: Let me be as awake and aware as I can be on this hike. (not only is it a thing you want seared into your memory/soul, which is easier to do when you're paying attention; but this puts you in the present moment. You aren't thinking about Katahdin 2000 miles up ahead if you're totally present in the bit of forest you're in, with the people that you're with. This means it's only one more step, not 2000 miles, in front of you).

Third (actually a non-thought): Quitting was never really an option or a real idea in my mind. The words might run through my head, but I never started actually planning it. I didn't conceive of it at all, and I think it's safe to say I didn't know HOW to quit. I had something I wanted to do for a long time, and was doing it. The end.

This is an attempt at an un-egotistical way of saying I was confident and sure that I could do this thing, despite all odds and personal shortfallings. After all, it's just walkin' ;) Stay positive bro (sis?), you're in for the experience of your lifetime.

Spirit Walker
04-22-2009, 21:40
I met my husband on my second AT hike. We've hiked together for the past 17 years.

Spirit Walker
04-22-2009, 21:54
I met my husband on my second AT hike. We've hiked together for the past 17 years.

Sorry that was a response to a question from EverydayJourneyman above that I forgot to quote.

A long distance really is, for some of us, more than just walking. It's more than just another vacation as well. Vacations are very temporary pleasures. Thruhiking can be, and has been for many of us, life altering activities. Attitudes toward the trail have changed over the years. I suppose forums like this encourage the cynicism. Talking from the heart is a good way of getting attacked, so it's easier to just say it's just another day in the woods. Yet so many of us go back, over and over again. Why? For some people a long hike can be a pilgrimage. It can be a spiritual journey. It can be a way of getting in touch with our most authentic selves. It can also be an alternate lifestyle that is more interesting than holding down a 9 to 5 gig and paying off a mortgage. It can be a way of belonging to a community of interesting insane people where we may fit in a bit better than we do in the mundane world. It can be a physical, emotional, spiritual testing of who we are and how we want to live our lives. It can be a way of proving something important to ourselvelves. It can be a way of feeding that part of ourselves that needs contact with the natural world.

People hike the long trails for a lot of different reasons. For some people it's just a walk in the woods. For a few of us - it is much more.

Blue Wolf
04-22-2009, 21:59
It is a dream many will never get to live. I always say it seemed like a good idea reading about it from my comfortable chair in my computer room, now I am doing it, so far no regrets but I have only hiked 315 miles so far. I was told it's about the journey and not the destination.............I have had my moments on the trail thats for sure just do it I say and have no regrets cherish the sunny days and smile and find a way to laugh on the rainy ones.

Happy Trails
SpOtlight
GA-ME
"2009"

Blissful
04-22-2009, 22:12
I was nervous at the start and every time I left town. I never knew what was going to happen out there. Every day was something new. But you take it as it comes, one day at a time.

Many Walks
04-22-2009, 23:41
It's the anticipation of a great and wonderful adventure. The worst days on the trail are still better than a good day at work. The best days on the trail have no equal. Enjoy your journey. Wish you all the best!

wrongway_08
04-23-2009, 08:03
After the hike is the hard part, after relizing how great it is and the benifits of the trail, its hard to "get away" from the trail.

I look forward to our "Parade Of Fools" trips - helps keep the hike going. The best part is the people, you always look forward to hiking with them again and its hard not to want to hike with all your fellow thruers - even if the chance will never present itself for some.

kayak karl
04-23-2009, 08:21
I'm starting to get really anxious and a bit nervous.
MIXED EMOTIONS is the best way to decribe the start and the first few days. what am i saying. its the same for the rest of your hike:D

DavidNH
04-23-2009, 09:15
I was very very nervous. attempting to thru hike the AT is NOT "just walking". It is five to six months of walking over some of the most challenging and rugged terrain anywhere in America. In fact, 70-90 % of those who start out attempting to thru hike do not succeed. Many of those throw in the towel in the first few hundred miles and there are some who actually quit on the approach trail (Yes I have actually heard this is the case!).

That said, If you can last a week and still be happy, you will be over your nervousness and in good shape to hike the whole trail. For those forutnate enough to already know how beautiful the Northern New England states are, and especially how spectacular the whites are and Baxter State park is, that knowledge enough can be enough to keep you going. It was for me.

David

traildust
04-23-2009, 11:39
Seemed it took way to long to get going that first day. Trailheads are naturally hard to get to and it takes time. But once we got there, a slug of Maker's Mark Ky Bourbon and I was fine.

But seriously folks, after the first hour, the first shelter, the first day and a dozen other first it was finding the groove and moving ahead.

garlic08
04-23-2009, 19:31
Not nervous at all. Echoing Blissful, I thought every day out there was an entry on the credit side of the balance sheet.

But success is priceless, too.

Lumberjack2003
04-23-2009, 21:26
I have to admit that I was terrified for the 2 weeks before my start. After 2 weeks on the AT I was so excited for the next day to start as it was fanatastic.

Bronk
04-24-2009, 06:25
If you think you're nervous about starting the trail, wait until you are getting off the trail and going back to the real world. I found that to be much harder.

stranger
04-24-2009, 07:46
I think becoming nervous is natural, and how anxious you get is largely dependent on your personality. I'm a person who worries about stuff, and what I've realized in life is that I will find something to worry about, regardless of how irrational, so I just accept it.

In 1994 when I first thru-hiked the Long Trail I planned the trip for like a year, had the guidebook nearly memorized, had everything sorted down to the T, and as we were driving up to the start I said to my girlfriend "I feel unprepared" and she started laughing, as the statement was so far from the truth.

In 1995 on my first AT hike, I felt the same

In 2001 I was very nervous, cause it had been 6 years since my last long hike

Last year I still felt a bit nervous, very much so once around other hikers heading up to Springer, but once walking felt fine.

I'm sure when I go next I will have my worry stage, just part of my personality, but I know it's not real and I just wait for it to pass, it always does.

The only point I would make is that if you suffer from strong anxiety (panic attacks) DO NOT make any big decisions during an episode, and keep in mind that a panic attack can last days. I wish I knew more about this back in 1995, but I didn't and I quit in Pearisburg that year.

Being nervous means you really care about what you are doing to be doing, and that desire will see you well on the trail, it's natural.

EverydayJourneyman
04-24-2009, 08:19
The only point I would make is that if you suffer from strong anxiety (panic attacks) DO NOT make any big decisions during an episode, and keep in mind that a panic attack can last days.

Thankfully no history of panic attacks Stranger. If being held at gunpoint by African warlords in January didn't trigger one, I think I should be panic attack free on the AT.

TrippinBTM
04-24-2009, 08:20
A long distance really is, for some of us, more than just walking. It's more than just another vacation as well. Vacations are very temporary pleasures. Thruhiking can be, and has been for many of us, life altering activities. Attitudes toward the trail have changed over the years. I suppose forums like this encourage the cynicism. Talking from the heart is a good way of getting attacked, so it's easier to just say it's just another day in the woods.
.

Hey, I'm not afraid to say my thruhike changed my life. I learned so much about myself out there, important things, I'd even call them epiphanies. It was the best thing I had ever done in my life, and I can only hope there will be more great things like that to come.

But for someone getting nervous about starting, it's not a bad thing to calm down these huge and high aspirations by saying "it's just walking." If the idea is amped up too much, it just adds to the anxiety. Of course it's more than that, but he'll find that out soon enough.

Chaco Taco
04-28-2009, 16:44
I was more anxious than nervous. It was odd to [i]actually[i] stand on Springer, knowing it was all about to begin.

I would say I was also confident. In order to start a thru-hike on the right foot, you MUST be confident you are going to go all the way, hell or high water.

Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst.

Kirby you described my thoughts that first day as the rain started to fall! Well put!

Chaco Taco
04-28-2009, 16:46
Thankfully no history of panic attacks Stranger. If being held at gunpoint by African warlords in January didn't trigger one, I think I should be panic attack free on the AT.

Good luck man. If you need anything, we are in Asheville. May keep up with ya and throw some magic on ya! Good luck. The nerves are the best part. If you know you are ready, then your are ready! Good luck, its a friggin awesome way to spend your next few months!

Footslogger
04-28-2009, 16:52
I'm starting to get really anxious and a bit nervous. Just wondering how past thru-hikers dealt with growing nerves. Or perhaps you were completely unfazed by the entire thing.
==========================

For me back in 2003 it was a case of mixed emotions ...kinda like watching someone you absolutely hate drive over a cliff in your new car.

I was more anxious and ready to start walking than anything else. But I do remember feeling a little guilty and irresponsible quitting a good paying job to go walking for 6 months.

In looking back though ...it was all in my head. I've never regretted for a moment walking the trail in 2003. Wish I had done it sooner.

'Slogger

kyhipo
04-28-2009, 17:23
Well I did not have a clue what thru hiking meant!was reading a old nat.geographic magazine,said heck getting my income tax back and wham!was on the trail hiking first person I ran into was johnny reb,he says go home ky I thought fk you!been hiking every since.amazing how a little magazine can open so many eyes.ky

atsent
04-28-2009, 20:11
Hey, I'm with you. I'm starting SOBO soon and though I'm not thinking about it 24/7, every now and again I get butterflies in my stomach (like just now) and think to myself: "what the HELL am I doing? am I crazy or something?"

BigCat
04-28-2009, 20:21
I was so nervous I thought I was going to puke. Hadn't felt like that since my first deployment in the military. However, the moment I set foot on the trail I was fine. Granted I failed my attempt at 714 miles -- but had a pretty good time up until then.

Chaco Taco
04-28-2009, 21:10
Hey, I'm with you. I'm starting SOBO soon and though I'm not thinking about it 24/7, every now and again I get butterflies in my stomach (like just now) and think to myself: "what the HELL am I doing? am I crazy or something?"

That will def go away. I had the same feeling. After you walk and walk and walk and walk, you get so set in a routine from breaking camp, hiking intervals, and setting up that you literally become so adapted to the hike that you start to wonder, "Whats it gonna be like when I go home?" To me, that was so cool. When I used to go hiking before my thru, it was all planned out and I always got nervous. The beauty of it now, it takes me and Wak about 30 mins to prep for a hike these days. Wait til you get to Vermont, then you start getting nervous, about it being over!

Chaco Taco
04-28-2009, 21:16
Needless to say, I envy you all that are either on trail or getting ready to leave. Its a great thing you are doing. I guess one piece of advice I give, be patient with each other! "If another hiker pisses you off, all you have to do is walk away." A good friend of mine taught me this last year.

Realize that there are a lot of hikers out right now. People really do ask you, over and over and over, "you goin ta Maine?" Oh yea, and Virginia is not flat!!!

Kirby
04-28-2009, 23:51
Virginia Is Not Flat!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pa Really Does Have A Lot Of Rocks!!!!

Dont Think You're Invincible After Conquering The Whites, You Still Have Southern Maine.

DuctTape
04-29-2009, 00:52
Probably my most vivid memory of anxiety was while staying at a hotel in Dahlogena on the night before I started the approach trail. All the lights were out in the room, but it was lit up by occasionally lightning, with a forecast of rain for the next few days.

DavidNH
04-29-2009, 08:50
Virginia Is Not Flat!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pa Really Does Have A Lot Of Rocks!!!!

Don't Think You're Invincible After Conquering The Whites, You Still Have Southern Maine.

This is very sound advice to all prospective AT hikers. In fact, I'd say that Southern Maine is harder than the Whites and WAY more remote!

I would add to this.. When you reach Damascus, VA in early to mid May Winter is NOT over. You still get to go over MT. Rogers (5000 feet). My climb to the shelter up there was perhaps the windiest, dampest raw coldest of my entire trip! Get rid of winter Gear in Perrisburg, NOT Damascus. Unless you are a fast hiker and finish early, you will want cold weather gear back in Gorham.

David

Chaco Taco
04-29-2009, 08:56
Also and i just remembered this. If you cross paths with people slackpacking south, do not listen to them when they say "oh you got it easy from here" THEY LIE LIE LIE!!! They are looking at the trail from a different perspective. Im not saying they will lie all the time, just remember they are not carrying weight on their backs. Im not saying have a high and mighty attitude, just remember that they are going in the opposite direction as you and are carrying little or no weight!!!

BigCat
04-29-2009, 09:31
Also and i just remembered this. If you cross paths with people slackpacking south, do not listen to them when they say "oh you got it easy from here" THEY LIE LIE LIE!!!

ain't that the truth.

Spirit Walker
04-29-2009, 12:03
I remember being on the other side of that. We told somebody going the other way that the trail beyond was fairly easy. That night in the hostel in town he complained, "You didn't tell me about the rocks!" Hey, this is the AT - of course there are rocks! We still laugh at that one, especially when on a rocky stretch of trail.

Out west I learned, never listen to people on horseback. I was told once it was only a mile or so to camp - two hours later, I finally arrived, cursing those horsepeople. Same thing in town, if somebody says a laundromat is only five minutes away, remember, that's five minutes by car!

Chaco Taco
04-29-2009, 18:22
I had the same couple, 2 women, get me in NC, PA, VT and ME. I finally called them out and told them I wouldnt listen to them anymore. One woman finally had an epiphany in PA, "Ya know, hikin is so much easier without a pack on" :rolleyes: