View Full Version : Need help planning Thru-hike!!!
Hi. I am in need of some hiking wisdom here. Me and a friend plan to do the AT NOBO in about 3 years from now. However, we are wanting to begin planning and prepping now.
Some questions I have:
How much will this trip cost?
What is the first step I should take to plan this?
What are some essential items we should take?
How much food should we start with?
How much should we realistically expect to travel in a day?
What are the Pro's and Con's of NOBO and SOBO?
Any other advise or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks for all your thoughts!
Hi. I am in need of some hiking wisdom here. Me and a friend plan to do the AT NOBO in about 3 years from now. However, we are wanting to begin planning and prepping now.
Some questions I have:
How much will this trip cost?
What is the first step I should take to plan this?
What are some essential items we should take?
How much food should we start with?
How much should we realistically expect to travel in a day?
What are the Pro's and Con's of NOBO and SOBO?
Any other advise or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks for all your thoughts!
Lots of questions. I'll take #2 for $100 Alex.
You live in Knoxville. I would plan on hiking with a pack as much as you can between now and then. Since you're from Knoxville, I would go to the Smokies and generally stay off the AT and hike from the valleys up to the ridges, and back. That will have you ready to rock in 3 years. The experience should help answer question #5 for you.
Other experience or words of wisdom? Don't become totally fixated on the AT. It's an awesome trail, but there are lots of other trails you can hike in the SE. Since some of them require better navigation skills than you need on the AT, and most have no shelters. Those trails will prepare you for the AT. Explore the Cherokee & Nantahala NF south of the Smokies. Or the Foothills Trail in SC. Have fun!
MtnRider1981
07-14-2009, 20:07
Try browsing this site and finding answers and opinions. If any one person answers all of your questions and you take them to heart, you are bound to mess up. Get different opinions and don't try to figure it all out by tomorrow. You have PLENTY of time!
A fair amount of money—typically about $3,000 to $5,000—to undertake a 2,000 mile, five- to seven-month hike, not counting $1,000 to $2,000 or more for gear. Many dollars are spent in vain, along with planning time and effort, when someone learns too late that a thru-hike is not for him or her.
Step by Step: An Introduction to Walking the Appalachian Trail (http://www.appalachiantrail.org/atf/cf/%7BD25B4747-42A3-4302-8D48-EF35C0B0D9F1%7D/Step%20by%20Step%20Fall%2006.pdf) (*.pdf 3.14MB)
MtnRider1981
07-14-2009, 20:14
For starters read the articles in the link below. They are recommended and will help you decide what is best for you.
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=366
Ox97GaMe
07-15-2009, 00:28
Beyorn,
Im in Knoxville too. I can help you with decisions about gear, and planning local hiking trips. I am in the Smokies at least once a month. Would be happy to take you out and show you the ropes; so to speak. Drop me a PM and we can meet up and discuss.
Blissful
07-15-2009, 14:13
You're at the right place to answer your questions So scan the articles and threads that abound. I'd read some trail journals too at trailjournals.com
Hi. I am in need of some hiking wisdom here. Me and a friend plan to do the AT NOBO in about 3 years from now. However, we are wanting to begin planning and prepping now.
Some questions I have:
How much will this trip cost?
What is the first step I should take to plan this?
What are some essential items we should take?
How much food should we start with?
How much should we realistically expect to travel in a day?
What are the Pro's and Con's of NOBO and SOBO?
Any other advise or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks for all your thoughts!They say people can/will seperate on thru-hikes who have been the best of friends for years. Each one of you need to be independently equipped gearwise, so if one of you bails, the other can continue, if he chooses to, without missing a beat. Join the Appalachian Trail Conservancy if you haven't already, and purchase books pertaining to hiking the trail. Educate yourself through reading about the trail, other's who've hiked it, and right here on Whiteblaze. After researching, buy decent, lightweight, durable gear. Save if need be, and have at least $5000 each available to complete the hike. If you don't want to spend that much, maybe you won't, but have it in reserve. Don't worry about distances travelled at this point, this will be determined in the field. If you hike Northbound, leave earlier in the year. Southbound, which has been described as a somewhat harder start, later in the year. Your choice, read about advantages/disadvantages to both. As far as essential items to take, I would say visa/debit card, cash, good tent, warm clothes, good boots/shoes,warm headgear, headlight, water treatment, and a good sence of humor.
stranger
07-16-2009, 09:35
In terms of mileage, many hikers leave Springer only doing 8-10 mile days but there is no reason why a fit hiker cannot leave Springer doing 17-20's if you want to, I've done it more than once. I met a guy last year who hiked 27 miles on his second day, it's up to you.
In terms of money, good that your hike is 3 years away, start saving now so money isn't an issue. Money is a problem for most hikers for some reason, probably due to inexperience, I would not plan on thru-hiking the AT in 3 years time for anything less than $3/mile at your disposal. I'm not saying you will need that much, but life goes on when you are on the trail and things go wrong, having extra money is a good idea. With the exception of about a dozen hikers over the years, every thru-hiker I've spent time with along the trail is concerned about not having enough money.
How much food? Depends on mileage. I left Springer in 1995 with 4 days worth of food and I left Springer last year with 1 day, Neels Gap is only 30 miles up the trail and you can be there on your second day if you are fit and feel so inclined. Last year I didn't carry more than 3 days worth of food on my hike, Springer to Atkins, Va.
ShelterLeopard
07-16-2009, 10:43
Hi. I am in need of some hiking wisdom here. Me and a friend plan to do the AT NOBO in about 3 years from now. However, we are wanting to begin planning and prepping now.
Some questions I have:
How much will this trip cost?
What is the first step I should take to plan this?
What are some essential items we should take?
How much food should we start with?
How much should we realistically expect to travel in a day?
What are the Pro's and Con's of NOBO and SOBO?
Any other advise or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks for all your thoughts!
I'm saving 4,500 for my 2010 NoBo. But I love staying in Hostels, and I'm taking three zero days in Harpers Ferry, and I'll be staying in an actual Inn (not a hostel, so more expensive), and I'm taking a sleeper train down to Georgia, also a bit expensive. And you need money for replacement gear.
The first step is to go hiking for a week (if you haven't been on the AT before). Preferably in Pennsylvania. That will let you know if all your planning will be a complete waste of time.
4,ooo Calories a day, more or less depending on how far and hard you hike.
Most thru hikers average about 16-18 miles a day, but almost everyone starts out with 7-10 miles a day.
Pros of NoBo, you are with more people, you end at Katahdin, you can plan to go to traildays (which I'm not doing)
Pros of Sobo, you are with fewer people, cons- Springer is much less climatic than Katahdin.
The first step is to go hiking for a week (if you haven't been on the AT before). Preferably in Pennsylvania. That will let you know if all your planning will be a complete waste of time.
Why would it be preferable for someone who lists a Tennessee address to travel to Pennsylvania for a one week AT hike? I don't see what would be learned, nor could I justify the expense.
There are other locations closer to home which would offer a more representative sample. I know of one well-known AT hiker who specifically recommends against someone assessing their readiness for a 2000-mile, AT through hike based upon hiking experiences in its middle states. The greatest challenge presented by Pennsylvania's AT in the summer months is heat and humidity, but that's enough.
Through hikers may complain about The Keystone State's rocks, but I don't know I've heard of any quitting because of them and more quit before they begin Pennsylvania than after they complete it.
Blissful
07-16-2009, 14:26
Poor PA always gets a bad rap...
:) Maybe he was thinking how Warren Doyle does his mega days in PA with his hiking group. Like the 20 plus mile days.
But to those inquiring - in all honesty, you won't know if you can do it 'til you're out there doing it day after day. I took my couch potato son who only did weekends and he did the whole thing.
Blissful
07-16-2009, 14:33
In terms of mileage, many hikers leave Springer only doing 8-10 mile days but there is no reason why a fit hiker cannot leave Springer doing 17-20's if you want to, I've done it more than once. I met a guy last year who hiked 27 miles on his second day, it's up to you.
Unfortunately I also knew a young guy who did that and blew out his knee a week later. Not always the wisest choice. Besides, what's the rush? Enjoy the experience. Most hikers say wish they hadn't gone fast and missed stuff, me included. I still have to go back and see the Keffer Oak. :eek:
ShelterLeopard
07-16-2009, 15:17
I was thinking of the rocks, but also I though when I saw TN that I saw NJ. My mistake- they look pretty similar at a glance! ;-)
I'm sure you could find plenty of places for a decent shakedown.
(And Warren Doyle was in the back of my mind, but there's no reason to do crazy big miles for a shakedown- after all, you'll probably be starting with more like 7-10 miles a day, working up to the big miles.)
But don't pick an easy, flat no rocks hike- you want to have a serious shakedown, so you know before you go spend lots of money on gear whatnot whether or not you'll really want to do it or not.
ShelterLeopard
07-16-2009, 15:18
I meant "I thought that", not "I though".
Poor PA always gets a bad rap...
We're not poor here or ashamed and my post wasn't a reply to what I took to be shot at Pennsylvania's AT or its maintaining clubs, but rather a response to what I took to be less than the best possible advice.
I believe we're rich here in many ways, which have yet to be fully appreciated by WhiteBlaze or AT through hikers. You've no doubt noticed Pennsylvania WhiteBlazers provide some of the best, most prompt and accurate advice.
When composing my post, I had in mind something Warren posted too. He once referred to what he considered to be the most diverse 50 miles of AT hiking.
The section he mentioned might give someone able to hike only one section or seeking an overall perspective a better sense of what this thing we call the AT is all about. Then again, someone might want to save it rather than bank it, but, if it's that good, why not hike it twice?
I'll see if I can locate his post.
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showpost.php?p=809973&postcount=83
It's sometimes amazing what can be found when one knows what to seek and what search criteria to specify.
Poor PA always gets a bad rap...
:) Maybe he was thinking how Warren Doyle does his mega days in PA with his hiking group. Like the 20 plus mile days.
I liked PA. The rocks are overblown IMO. I cranked out a bunch of twenty mile days in PA. Some of the trail in the state is super easy. With an early start, a hiker in shape could easily bang out 20 miles in parts of PA, and be in camp by 4 PM.
ShelterLeopard
07-16-2009, 16:41
The only part of PA that I really had trouble with was the SoBo descent into Lehigh Gap/ Palmerton. But, I was extremely dehydrated, and due to my '89 trail guide, doing 19 miles instead of 15.5 that I meant to do. But the hostel in Palmerton was so great! Strawberry shampoo and a shower like a fire hose jet!
stranger
07-16-2009, 22:49
Blissful, you might want to read my post again, I wasn't "suggesting" anyone do 20's right from Springer. Like I said, many hikers do 8-10, but that's usually due to most hikers being inexperienced and unfit when they start, and also a major contributing factor in injuries.
20 a day isn't a rush for many hikers, everyone has different styles, paces and fitness levels. However, if you hit the trail unfit, you will have your share of problems in the beginning.
I do accept many hikers like to hike for 6 hours and sit around camp for 6 hours, just not my style.