two "start date" questions

[McIntyre]

Friends -- thanks in advance for information. I'm sure this has come up before but my search didn't find it.

#1) Is there any particular advantage to starting Jan 1? I know there are tons of disadvantages. Every once in a while someone does this -- Brian Robinson, the first Calendar Triple Crown hiker, for instance -- but there have been others.

And #2) given the slow going in Jan, Feb, March, (maybe average 8-10 miles/day?) and much better (like 20+ mile days) later, any rough guess about finishing dates?

I know these are goofy questions; thanks for patience.

McIntyre

[bigcranky]

I do a lot of hiking in Jan, Feb, and March in the Southern Appalachians, and other than the short day length and the occasional snow storm, there really isn't much to cause "slow going." Most of the trail is not like up North with constant deep snow and ice. You might have to get off the trail for a day or two during a bad storm, and you'll surely get some snow especially in the higher elevations of the Smokies, Roan Highlands, and Mt Rogers. You'll probably have some 8-mile days. But if you are normally a 20+ mpd hiker, you should be able to keep that pace much of the time even in winter. Certainly by mid-February.

There are some journals on trailjournals.com of people who start in January. Lots of good information.

[kayak karl]

Friends -- thanks in advance for information. I'm sure this has come up before but my search didn't find it.

#1) Is there any particular advantage to starting Jan 1? I know there are tons of disadvantages. Every once in a while someone does this -- Brian Robinson, the first Calendar Triple Crown hiker, for instance -- but there have been others.

And #2) given the slow going in Jan, Feb, March, (maybe average 8-10 miles/day?) and much better (like 20+ mile days) later, any rough guess about finishing dates?

I know these are goofy questions; thanks for patience.

McIntyre
if you like to be cold, alone, only one in shelter or hostel (if they are open) fog, snow, ice and frozen shoes, you will have a GREAT time.:sun

[Blissful]

Yeah ask Kayak Karl, he was out in the worst of it in Jan and Feb. and still trying to recover. :(

Many also start in mid Fed and the ones I saw a few weeks back are hoping to finish by the end of July. They were going strong.

[stranger]

As stated, some benefits include solitude and cold, and that's assuming you like both of those things.

Personally, I think many long distance hikers along the AT like to use the term "bad weather" a little too frequently. Last year I was coming across people who wouldn't leave town when it was raining, I mean, are you kidding me? It's rain!

There are many people who enjoy the cold, even extreme cold, much colder than the southern Appalachians could ever even remotely produce in their worst years. It also depends on your definition of cold, and experience in cold conditions. Some hikers might consider 32 degrees as cold, others might consider 6 degrees cold, -10, etc...

Personally, those days are behind me at this stage, but I really enjoyed the time I spent in upstate NY during those winters, those 20 below zero nights (I'm not talking about wind chill either), trips when you might see a high temperature of 26 at 1pm if you are lucky. Trips where you might have to carry an additional pound of fuel just to melt snow, and conditions that could produce frostbite with the slightest false move.

However, I've never done a long distance trip in winter, and even though the southern Appalachians are not going to smash you to bits, they still do get quite cold (in my opinion) during winter. Most of my extreme cold trips have been in the 3-4 day range, so that's a completely different mindset cause you know it will end shortly!

Knowing that you have to continue to hike through continuous cold, snow and ice for two months would be tough for me, but I'm fairly soft now!

There are plenty of advantages to hiking in winter, if you like winter.

[bulldog49]

Friends -- thanks in advance for information. I'm sure this has come up before but my search didn't find it.

#1) Is there any particular advantage to starting Jan 1? I know there are tons of disadvantages. Every once in a while someone does this -- Brian Robinson, the first Calendar Triple Crown hiker, for instance -- but there have been others.

And #2) given the slow going in Jan, Feb, March, (maybe average 8-10 miles/day?) and much better (like 20+ mile days) later, any rough guess about finishing dates?

I know these are goofy questions; thanks for patience.

McIntyre


I do week-long section hikes on the AT every winter in Jan or Feb. I easily average 14 to 16 miles a day and I'm not a speed hiker by any stretch.

I like the solitude, tranquility, lack of bugs and great views. I've also found that extremely cold or snowy conditions seldom last more than a few days, with moderate conditions being the norm. It's my favorite time of year to be outdoors.

[Deadeye]

I wouldn't have a problem starting in January down south, I like the colder weather and prefer the relative solitude. The concern I have with a January start is that you wind up in northern New England in May and June - peak mud and bug seasons.

[Marta]

I completely agree that cold down here is not COLD. In a lot of ways, winter is a great time to hike in the Southeast--no bugs; leaves off the trees so you get better-than-usual views; no crowds; plenty of water; no snowpack. But most who try a long hike find it more difficult than they expect.

The lack of crowds turns into loneliness. The cold wears on you physically and mentally. The lack of daylight is tough to take.

I go weekend hiking all winter long. But, after spending much of the winter of '06-'07 doing the tail end of my thru-hike, I FEAR the cold and dark in a visceral way that I didn't before.

As I've put time between me and the hike, the FEAR has turned more to RESPECT. But I was surprised, as I was getting ready for my first post-Hike weekend hike (maybe two weeks after I reached Springer), that the shiver running through me as I packed was indeed fear.

[stranger]

I didn't think about the daylight, that's a strong point, I'm usually hiking til alteast 7-8pm at night, sitting alone in my tent in the dark at 5:30pm might drive me crazy, I would probably night hike.

[kayak karl]

I didn't think about the daylight, that's a strong point, I'm usually hiking til alteast 7-8pm at night, sitting alone in my tent in the dark at 5:30pm might drive me crazy, I would probably night hike.
nite hiking in snow and ice is not that easy. the reflections from your lamp make walking very uneasy. i felt safer with a very very early start. twice i spent 36 hours in my hammock waiting out storms. bring a book:D

[Marta]

nite hiking in snow and ice is not that easy. the reflections from your lamp make walking very uneasy. i felt safer with a very very early start. twice i spent 36 hours in my hammock waiting out storms. bring a book:D

I got a lot of reading done in December and January.

Another thing about hiking after dark is that, as the temperature drops, it can become difficult to accomplish your normal evening chores in the dark and cold. You really can't afford to lose your body heat before you get into the sleeping bag. Sometimes it's good to have a (relatively) warm space set up before the nighttime cold sets in.

As Karl found, it takes a lot of calories to keep you going in day-in, day-out cold. I started eating a dinner around 5pm, and another around 9pm. And I'd still wake up, hungry, at 3, but I'd usually manage to sleep some more, until having a big breakfast at 6.

[stranger]

I didn't say night hiking was easy, what I said was that "I" would probably night hike in the situation, I'm well aware of the complexities involved in hiking in snow and ice after dark.

Reading a book for 36 hours in your hammock might work for you, just like night hiking in snow and ice might work for someone else.

But assumptions are simply the best.

[Marta]

One of the fascinating things about meeting other hikers is seeing how they've chosen to deal with difficulties. One Jan.1 starter this year, Trek, deals with the cold by getting up and starting to hike at 3 in the morning. So he hikes in the dark, but in the morning, rather than the evening.

While I deeply admire his ingenious solution to the problem of getting cold at night, I won't be copying him anytime soon.:eek:

[The Solemates]

we started 1 feb on our thru. we loved it...and wouldnt have done it any other way. if we were to do it again, we'd start either in jan/feb or in may. either way you have the trail to yourself, which appealed to us. we got to baxter 1 july, waited a day and a half for some family to show up, and summited katahdin on 3 july. 5 months to the day...so I cant say it slowed us down any.

the cold in the south wasnt that bad, but then again I have lived in the south all my life and had been out hiking in the winter every other weekend for several years prior to hiking the trail. and the mud/bugs in the north weren't near as bad as everyone makes them out to be either, except for maybe vermont, where it rained for 8 days straight on us.