View Full Version : So is hiking the AT really that cool?
pattydivins
02-28-2010, 02:47
I mean it seems pretty cool. Are there nice vistas all along as you walk? I am sure it takes a lot of work to get up to some of them.
I really enjoy walking around in nature, I wonder what it would be like to do that for months on end. :cool:
fiddlehead
02-28-2010, 03:03
It's usually cooler than southern jersey.
stranger
02-28-2010, 03:35
Words like...Rewarding, challenging, demanding, inspiring, painful, wet...come to mind however
Lone Wolf
02-28-2010, 03:47
I mean it seems pretty cool. Are there nice vistas all along as you walk? I am sure it takes a lot of work to get up to some of them.
I really enjoy walking around in nature, I wonder what it would be like to do that for months on end. :cool:
it gets old. it ain't all that
double d
02-28-2010, 03:54
Yea, its pretty cool, especially during the early spring, late summer, mostly during the fall and certainly during the winter months.
restlesss
02-28-2010, 04:22
Every Hike is Cool, Rewarding, Challenging, Exciting!
SassyWindsor
02-28-2010, 05:14
My last outing on the AT had night/early morning temps down into the
-12c range. No telling what the wind-chill was. So, I'd say it's not only cool, but can be very cold.:) But to answer the question, as posted, yes its "Cool" to hike most any trail, not just the AT.
I mean it seems pretty cool. Are there nice vistas all along as you walk? I am sure it takes a lot of work to get up to some of them.
I really enjoy walking around in nature, I wonder what it would be like to do that for months on end. :cool:
Try it for a long weekend. You don't have to walk the entire trail to enjoy hiking, camping, the outdoors.
It's not called the long green tunnel for nothing - long spells of dense foliage, rhodos and the like. But as fiddlehead pointed out , it sure beats southern Jersey ! If you love the outdoors, camping and cooking out, then go do it.
See you out there, leaving early March, can't wait...
I think that's the reality for most people after a month or more on the trail, and that's the primary reason most thru-hiker's decide not to finish. "It's not what I expected."
A comparison I've made is say a person likes golfing: would they like golfing all day long, nearly every day, rain or shine, all summer?
Most people find a thru-hike more difficult physically and mentally than they had imagined, and that the rewards are less thrilling than they had expected. (Is the 200th overlook as impressive as the 1st?)
Some of the most fun times in the outdoors are short visits where a person can really focus and appreciate everything around them.
In my opinion, it's the "Grand Adventure" aspect that is generally the most rewarding to people who hike long sections.
Lone Wolf
02-28-2010, 09:04
I think that's the reality for most people after a month or more on the trail, and that's the primary reason most thru-hiker's decide not to finish. "It's not what I expected."
Most people find a thru-hike more difficult physically and mentally than they had imagined, and that the rewards are less thrilling than they had expected. (Is the 200th overlook as impressive as the 1st?)
that's pretty much it in a nutshell. thru-hiking is a marathon and most who attempt it are stressed out
Toolshed
02-28-2010, 09:20
It's like a job. I don't do more than a week at a time now, usually a few times a year. After my weeks worth, I am set for a few months for anything more than backpacking weekends.
I have the type of personality that I cannot let go of thinking about the many other things I could/should be doing, other than just walking around with a pack on my back.
I appreciate, but don't understand, those that can do that.
Lone Wolf
02-28-2010, 09:24
long distance backpacking has absolutely no appeal to me anymore. a few nights out and i'm good
Tipi Walter
02-28-2010, 10:07
I mean it seems pretty cool. Are there nice vistas all along as you walk? I am sure it takes a lot of work to get up to some of them.
I really enjoy walking around in nature, I wonder what it would be like to do that for months on end. :cool:
One thing that has to be remembered about the AT is that it's mostly a ridgeline trail, and so you are right above many rural roads and parkways. In the summer this can be disturbing as motorcyclists take over these roads and the noise is terrible. I recently pulled the Fontana-to-NOC section and was bombarded with the wannabe racers the whole time. Bring ear plugs. Winter is a better time to backpack the AT, at least in my neck of the woods, as winter thins out the fickle throttle-mad leathered screamers.
hikingshoes
02-28-2010, 10:31
I think that's the reality for most people after a month or more on the trail, and that's the primary reason most thru-hiker's decide not to finish. "It's not what I expected."
A comparison I've made is say a person likes golfing: would they like golfing all day long, nearly every day, rain or shine, all summer?
Most people find a thru-hike more difficult physically and mentally than they had imagined, and that the rewards are less thrilling than they had expected. (Is the 200th overlook as impressive as the 1st?)
Some of the most fun times in the outdoors are short visits where a person can really focus and appreciate everything around them.
In my opinion, it's the "Grand Adventure" aspect that is generally the most rewarding to people who hike long sections.
Im looking forward to meeting and seeing different places/people and the History of the towns that the AT goes thru or take a zero day.Plus the history of the AT as well.You can read all day long about the AT, but i think you need hike the AT before you can understand it.April21 ill see if i understand it.HS
berkshirebirder
02-28-2010, 11:52
A few hundred hikers complete a thru-hike of the Trail every year. A few MILLION hikers walk part of the Trail every year. A thru-hike is a daunting physical and emotional challenge for most, and it's an accomplishment to be admired. But a few million hikers every year is the big picture. Pick a section and start walking.
It seems to me that some (a lot? most?) of the thrus and long section hikers hike to an agenda, and if that isn't what they find there, they will be disappointed and maybe bored. Others get past that and just hike, accepting whatever they find. I'm talking about all long trails, not just the AT. For these other people, the trail can be a retreat, a solace, a renewal. It can be life changing, and there are plenty of people on this list that can attest to that. I like the trails less traveled for this kind of retreat, but for some, I'm sure the AT is just right.
Jim Adams
02-28-2010, 14:51
I love thru hiking and long distance backpacking! I am a little confused by alot of the answers here...maybe I'm just weird. I ONLY hike the AT when I'm thru hiking...can't seem to see any reason to go for just a day or two. I can do that on other trails closer to home but my main reason is...why waste a day on the AT if I can spend it canoeing or motorcycling? Just me.
geek
Doing the whole trail in one year is "cool" only if you enjoy being in the wild, and have learned to appreciate the diversity of wild places. It's a long green tunnel only for those with no curiosity and no knowledge of the incredible diversity of that tunnel.
I didn't experience a long green tunnel. I experienced day by day new visions of the natural world. I tried to identify every flower, every animal, every tree, and a lot of the bugs. I carried a couple of light weight guides that identified the common things, and took notes of others for when I got to a town with a good book store or library.
The trail has wonderful mountain vistas, great waterfalls, and occasional historic sites. But these occur too rarely to keep one's interest up. Hence the talk of a long green tunnel.
If you don't learn to appreciate and enjoy the life of the tunnel, you will be bored and the trail will become a job, punctuated only by an occasional party with trail friends in the towns.
Weary
DrRichardCranium
02-28-2010, 15:53
Hey weary, can you recommend some good nature guides?
berkshirebirder
02-28-2010, 16:08
waste a day on the AT
Waste a day on the AT? Waste a day on the AT? I don't get that at all.
I agree with Weary. A hiker can appreciate being on this wonderful, historic trail and learning all its treasures for any length of time.
It's not really any "cooler" than any other long distance hike, unless your definition of "cool" is dependent on a roving party. In fact, it may be less "cool" because "everyone" does it.
Not diminishing or putting it down, I'm working on completing it via section hikes, may someday do a "thru" on the AT, but will definitely be doing other "Thru hikes" on other trails once I retire and can devote the extended time. Only 3.5 or 5.5 more years, depending on how much pension I want!!!!
Sometimes folks here on WB don't even consider expanding their opportunities - that's a shame.
Jim Adams
02-28-2010, 16:47
Waste a day on the AT? Waste a day on the AT? I don't get that at all.
I value the little free time that I do get. For me, takng the time to get to the AT, hike a day or weekend is just not worth it...yes it is wasting alot of MY time to do that. There is so much more available to me than making the effort to just hike for a day. I love thru hiking...the weather, the views, the beauty, the wildlife but mostly the freedom. To me the hiking is just a way to do that. If I want to see the view from the top of the mountain then I have to hike there. OTOH if I want a view of the mountain and still have beautiful surroundings then I can experience that from my canoe with more enjoyment than hiking gives me. I can't wait to thru hike again but I don't day hike...just not worth my time.
geek
Hey weary, can you recommend some good nature guides?
There are many great guides -- all too heavy to carry on the trail. I mostly carry the one ounce pocket guides put out by the Waterman Press. There are dozens of them available for each section of the country, and for trees, flowers, bugs, animals, etc. They are available in most good book stores. The list price for each is $5.95.
They mostly provide an idea of what common things look like. If I find something that doesn't seem to be in the guides, I take notes and search more thorough guides like Peterson's when I get in town. But Waterford typically has 90 percent of what hikers ordinarily see.
Amazon often has them cheaper. than list, Sometimes half price. The New England Flower and tree version covers much of the trail, since the high ridges of the south tend to have a lot of New England species. But If I was starting again in Georgia in April I would definitely invest in the Georgia Tree and Flower guide.
A list of all the current Waterford Guides can be found at www.waterfordpress.com
Weary
patty, take a drive up to Delaware Water Gap. Park and hike up to Sunfish pond and back. See what you think. I love the AT. But it can get old doing the same old, same old every day. No, there aren't vistas every day. Sometimes it rains and it gets cold. Sometimes there are too many bugs. But I'd take the AT over Millville (or Vineland, or Bridgeton, etc) any day.
Ha, I must have thru-hiked the other Appalachian Trail.
For me, the AT was full of adventure, full of beauty. loads of fun start to finish. If there was anything that would show you the greatness of America and the American people it's a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail -- all while hiking with some of the best people you'll ever meet in your life, seeing some of the best sights in the world, hiking on the most notable footpath known to man.
Man alive, I can't imagine anyone missing out on the opportunity. It'd be one of the best things you could do in your life.
Datto
singing wind
03-01-2010, 20:17
It is cool? Go and check it out and see what you think. There's alot of interesting places within 2-4 or hours drive of SJ depending on where you are. Northern NJ, southern PA (ie Pine Grove Furnace are or especially Michaux State Forest), even parts of Maryland. Fairly easy walking.
Long distance hiking is it's own kettle of fish, but if you like being out in nature there's heaps to see and do. And shorter trips + day hikes are a great way to check it out as well.
...It'd be one of the best things you could do in your life.
Datto (my bold)
I know what you're getting at, yet I think it's a huge assumption. Thru-hiking the AT was one of the best things I have done in my life, too. But what's a fun adventure for some is a painful chore for others. That's life. Thank goodness hiking the AT ISN'T everyone's cup of tea.
Whether or not hiking the AT is the right thing for any given person is their choice, and there's really no way to know for sure if it is fun or not until a person is out on the trail. Even then, looking back on it, for those that enjoy it the experience often becomes even more meaningful as the years go by.
No, it's not cool. Go ride a Harley if you want cool :D