stopping points for contacting family

[mymooninites]

I'll be going on the trail May 19th for about 3 months.

The thing is...my family is terrified, particularly my aunt. She wants me to give her stopping points where I can contact her...by phone.

Now using a cellphone seems stupid to me cause well, there are no outlets in the woods. And this is my absolute first time doing this, so I don't know where the check points are where I can call her. To be honest, I just don't know what to tell her.

I'm starting out with my uncle and he's going to get us some maps. But can anyone give me any information on this? Checkpoints and places to plug in a cell phone or public telephones/people nice enough to let you use their phone?

Any info at all would be much appreciated.

[Foyt20]

You can use a phone, and charge it along the way at different points along the trail. You may want to pick up a hikers companion to check out where some resturants, hostels and supply stores are. There are a couple that are advertised here on whiteblaze. And welcome to the site :D

[emerald]

It's reasonable for your aunt to expect to hear from you about weekly, maybe more often initially where it's feasible. Buy her an AT strip map or, if she's computer literate, give her its URL.

Someone else will link it for you if you can't find it yourself. I know where to locate it, but others need practice. Just ask.

It's a good idea for her to have your approximate itinerary and to not get too excited right away when things don't go as planned. Often they don't.

You didn't provide your put in and take out points. How are we to tell you where you can call her to reassure her?

Sounds like you need ALDHA's Companion in addition to the AT strip map.:-?

[Hikes in Rain]

My wife doesn't hike, but is mostly fine with me going solo (she's happier if I hike with someone) so long as I check in occasionally. Thus, I try to find out ahead of time how cell coverage is along my sections, so we can guestimate where I can't get a signal. There are surprisingly few place you can't. Upgrading our vintage phones to ones that have text messaging was a big help, too.

And as has been mentioned, there are places to recharge along the way. Ration power, keep it off unless you're trying to call (searching for a signal uses a ton of power) and you should be fine.

[Blissful]

I had no problem with my cell phone on the trail (I had Verizon) so calls were frequent. Depending on your cell, the chargers are pretty lightweight these days too and you can recharge it in town. Makes for better peace of mind for those back home.

[Kirby]

I was usually able to find reception once a day, I always tried calling my dad from my tallest point in the day, worked most of the time.