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MtnRider1981
01-12-2010, 13:47
Suppose I left Springer Mountain and hiked for 40 days beginning in middle April. I am 28, 6'2", male, fit. Any guesses on how far I am likely to go?

Anumber1
01-12-2010, 13:50
400 - 600 miles, depending on how many days off you took

Hooch
01-12-2010, 13:50
You'll be able to hike until you stop. Proabaly about 350-400 miles or so. Maybe more, maybe less. No way to find out like getting out there and doing it. Enjoy!

Ewker
01-12-2010, 13:52
who knows for sure. You could fall and break an ankle 1 hour into your hike.

Manwich
01-12-2010, 13:52
Pearisburg, Maybe a little before, Maybe a little after.

MtnRider1981
01-12-2010, 13:58
who knows for sure. You could fall and break an ankle 1 hour into your hike.


oh. true.

bigcranky
01-12-2010, 14:13
Damascus would be a good target.

MtnRider1981
01-12-2010, 14:15
Damascus would be a good target.

Good! How far is that from Springer?

Lone Wolf
01-12-2010, 14:36
Good! How far is that from Springer?

460 miles.......

Hooch
01-12-2010, 14:37
Damascus would be a good target.


Good! How far is that from Springer?


460 miles.......Now get to hikin'. :D

jesse
01-12-2010, 14:56
Suppose I left Springer Mountain and hiked for 40 days beginning in middle April. I am 28, 6'2", male, fit. Any guesses on how far I am likely to go?

How long is a string?

FlyPaper
01-12-2010, 15:08
Good! How far is that from Springer?

See http://www.atdist.com

463.5 miles according to the 2010 trail guide.

Pootz
01-12-2010, 15:11
Suppose I left Springer Mountain and hiked for 40 days beginning in middle April. I am 28, 6'2", male, fit. Any guesses on how far I am likely to go?

I made it 415 miles from Springer in 40 days with a coulple of days off, and I was not fit when I started.

Good Luck

sasquatch2014
01-12-2010, 15:38
if you focus more on the time out there than the miles you will be less likely to push it too hard and injure yourself and it will be more enjoyable.

Skyline
01-12-2010, 15:52
I'm thinking somewhere between Dennis Cove TN and Dickey Gap (Troutdale VA). Damascus VA is about in the middle of that.

Barring injury or the kind of weather that would make you want to hole up in town or at a hostel for awhile (not impossible, even with a mid-April start but your odds are significantly better than if you started in Feb. or Mar.), that would give you days averaging between about 10 miles and 12.5 miles without taking any zeros. Add four or five zeroes and your average daily hiking mileage would become about 11.5 to close to 15.

Many hikers would start with daily mileage in the high single digits, and build up to daily mileage in the high teens or even low 20s. More extremely fit hikers would do more, others perhaps less. But for "average" hikers I think the stretch between Dennis Cove and Dickey Gap would be about right as a target--with Damascus as a realistic and do-able goal.

Bronk
01-12-2010, 21:34
Most people make it to Damascus in 6 weeks.

MtnRider1981
01-12-2010, 22:36
How long is a string?

Clever!!!!

waywardfool
01-12-2010, 22:45
Most people make it to Damascus in 6 weeks.

Most people sit at home on the sofa and watch TV. :D Most hikers make Damascus in about 6 weeks. :)


:banana

fredmugs
01-13-2010, 10:14
I think the biggest factor is whether you have done a 5 days or longer hike before. There is a learning curve and things like blisters and brining the wrong stuff will certainly impede your abilitiy to hike.

Damascus in 40 days is very achievable. I always thought that if I did a thru hike I would try an start slowly and do months of 300, 450, 450, 450, 350, the rest.

You can average 15 miles a day and still be able to take a few zero days along the way.

Old Hiker
01-13-2010, 10:40
How long is a string?

Twice as long as half of it.

sasquatch2014
01-13-2010, 10:44
Twice as long as half of it.

Is it a three ply twine and are we counting all the indiviudal cords? If so and a it were to be taken and flown out by a swallow would it find a coconut?

schnikel
01-13-2010, 10:53
Are you trying say that coconuts migrate?

sasquatch2014
01-13-2010, 11:02
Are you trying say that coconuts migrate?

It could have been carried by swallow.:D

JAK
01-13-2010, 12:07
Suppose I left Springer Mountain and hiked for 40 days beginning in middle April. I am 28, 6'2", male, fit. Any guesses on how far I am likely to go?There is something very poetic about 40 days, and the road to Damascus, and combining both into one adventure.

As far as mileage goes, the total weight on your feet factors into it. If you can average 10 miles a day with 250 pounds total, you should average 12.5 miles a day with just 200 pounds total. Also, you can cover more ground per day if you hike slower over 8-10 hours than hiking faster over 6-8 hours. In terms of fitness, it is as much about how fast your body repairs itself, as it is about strength and endurance, though all three adapt over time. The amount of energy you can burn each day through hiking, averaged over a week, might initially be only 50-100% of your basal metabolism, depending on your initial fitness, but with hiking it can increase to perhaps 200% or more.

So the variables are:
1. Total weight on feet, relative to your lean body mass.
2. Total hiking energy/day, relative to your basal metabolism.
Plus the external variables having to do with terrain, and weather:
3. Cummulative Elevation Gain. 500 feet adds the equivalent of a mile.
4. Trail roughness, can add 10-20% compared to a smooth trail.
5. Weather effects; Mud, ice, snow, can slow you down 50% or more.

So over moderate terrain, like Springer to Damascus,
assuming you don't get slowed down by mud, ice, or snow...

I would guess something like:
10 x EnergyFactor / WeightFactor = miles per day

EnergyFactor = Hiking Calories / Basal Metabolism
(typically 100%-200%)

WeightFactor = Total Weight on Feet / Lean Body Mass
(typically 125%-175%)


p.s.
Food per day = (1+EnergyFactor+CampingFactor-WeightLossFactor) x Basal Metabolism / Food Density = pounds per day

CampingFactor represents energy burned other than basal metabolism and travel, and might only add another 10%-20%, unless you are really into frizbee and stuff.

WeightLossFactor represents energy gained by burning body fat and muscle while on the trail, and this can be as much as 200% of your basal metabolism for a pound a day, though that is somewhat extreme. You could also gain some weight, in theory, though some have put that theory to good practice also. 50-100% might be typical for those with some fat to burn.

Basal Metabolism is in kcal, roughly 2000 kcal for a 200 pound male.

Food Density varies with %fat,%fibre,%moisture,%packaging
but typically ranges around 1200-2000 kcal per pound. Higher for lean hikers that need to carry fattier foods, and lower for hikers that like stuff like fresh fruit and vegetables, which you might as well count extra.

... or you can just pack about 1.5 pounds a day, if thats how much you eat.
That might work out to about 0.1 pounds per mile for you, in moderate terrain.

sasquatch2014
01-13-2010, 12:14
There is something very poetic about 40 days, and the road to Damascus, and combining both into one adventure.

As far as mileage goes, the total weight on your feet factors into it. If you can average 10 miles a day with 250 pounds total, you should average 12.5 miles a day with just 200 pounds total. Also, you can cover more ground per day if you hike slower over 8-10 hours than hiking faster over 6-8 hours. In terms of fitness, it is as much about how fast your body repairs itself, as it is about strength and endurance, though all three adapt over time. The amount of energy you can burn each day through hiking, averaged over a week, might initially be only 50-100% of your basal metabolism, depending on your initial fitness, but with hiking it can increase to perhaps 200% or more.

So the variables are:
1. Total weight on feet, relative to your lean body mass.
2. Total hiking energy/day, relative to your basal metabolism.
Plus the external variables having to do with terrain, and weather:
3. Cummulative Elevation Gain. 500 feet adds the equivalent of a mile.
4. Trail roughness, can add 10-20% compared to a smooth trail.
5. Weather effects; Mud, ice, snow, can slow you down 50% or more.

So over moderate terrain, like Springer to Damascus,
assuming you don't get slowed down by mud, ice, or snow...

I would guess something like:
10 x EnergyFactor / WeightFactor = miles per day

EnergyFactor = Hiking Calories / Basal Metabolism
(typically 100%-200%)

WeightFactor = Total Weight on Feet / Lean Body Mass
(typically 125%-175%)


p.s.
Food per day = (1+EnergyFactor+CampingFactor-WeightLossFactor) x Basal Metabolism / Food Density = pounds per day

CampingFactor represents energy burned other than basal metabolism and travel, and might only add another 10%-20%, unless you are really into frizbee and stuff.

WeightLossFactor represents energy gained by burning body fat and muscle while on the trail, and this can be as much as 200% of your basal metabolism for a pound a day, though that is somewhat extreme. You could also gain some weight, in theory, though some have put that theory to good practice also. 50-100% might be typical for those with some fat to burn.

Basal Metabolism is in kcal, roughly 2000 kcal for a 200 pound male.

Food Density varies with %fat,%fibre,%moisture,%packaging
but typically ranges around 1200-2000 kcal per pound. Higher for lean hikers that need to carry fattier foods, and lower for hikers that like stuff like fresh fruit and vegetables, which you might as well count extra.

... or you can just pack about 1.5 pounds a day, if thats how much you eat.
That might work out to about 0.1 pounds per mile for you, in moderate terrain.

Depends on if you are hiking north or south as well. The earth is fatter at the equator so hiking towards the equator is more up hill.;)