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View Full Version : How much should a thru hike cost?



cabalot
06-19-2004, 00:57
A question for all those that have completed a thru hike of the AT. How much did it cost? Please do not include the cost of buying your gear but do include the cost to repair damaged gear. Please detail your average weekly expenses and then anything out of the ordinary like emergency expenses or luxery expenses.
Also how long did your hike take.

A-Train
06-19-2004, 12:05
I didn't keep a close record (I should have) but I probably spent between $2000-$2500 bucks. That included all groceries, town meals and food, laundry, lodging (hostels or split motel rooms) and other expenses such as supplies at outfiiters, a couple new pairs of shoes, couple sets of Aquamira. Also covered a couple hundred bucks I spent on transportation to get from Glencliff NH to NY for a wedding and back.

It can be done on a lot less, and done on a lot more. It should cost as much as you need to have a good time and enjoy it. I wouldn't cut corners thin, its a once in a lifetime opportunity for most folks. Always have a little extra banked away for emergencies. Health care was a lot of money, while I wasn't a student for a semester too, but I didn't include that in the mentioned above.

My thru-hike took 150 days or 5 months exactly, including 9 days off for a wedding, 2 at home and 6 town zeros on trail.

hungryhowie
06-20-2004, 15:52
Like A-Train, I didn't keep a close record of my expenses. I know what my bank account said when I left and I know what it said when I got back...and the difference was about $1700-$1800. This includes everything spent from Springer Mountain to Katahdin, but not the transit to or from the termini provided by family members).

It includes about 1/3 of my food (I bought much of it before I left on the trail), all hostels and hotels, a bus ride from Waynesboro to Damascus (for traildays), a few new pieces of gear (a tarp, some waterproof gloves, new socks, etc), etc.

My hike was 175 days, but I took nearly 40 zero days, most of which were spent in towns, and spent about 30 nights in hostels and hotels.

-Howie

Footslogger
06-20-2004, 23:53
There's no magic to it. Save as much as you can and spend it. I know people who hiked the trail for around $2500 and some who spend $9,000 to 10,000. I tried to keep track of my expenses at first and finally just gave up and hiked my hike. I've never gone back and attempted to total my expenses but if I had it would probably have been around $3,500 or $4,000. I was frugal at first but toward the last two months of my hike I took full advantage of opportunities to get a good meal, a shower and a real bed.

Bottom line is that I really don't think there is any ONE answer to your question. Your thru-hike should cost you as much as you are prepared to spend. Hey ...it's the adventure of a lifetime (at least for those of us who will only hike the AT once).

'Slogger