View Full Version : Triple Crown
Chance09
11-22-2010, 00:11
Any records of how many people have succsessfully hiked all three long distance trails?
on_the_GOEZ
11-22-2010, 01:12
This looks to be a good start - http://www.aldhawest.org/triplecrown.html
Chance,
I believe everyone has a successful hike, no matter how far we walk.
Just allowing oneself to start walking is a great success in its own right.
I also believe the AT, PCT and CDT never truly end.
The trails (and wild places) are still there long after we have pasted by.
Hopefully we can return often either in person, thought or spirit.
Peace,
John L.
p.s. Try checking with ALDHA West. http://www.aldhawest.org
Spirit Walker
11-22-2010, 11:06
The Aldha West list only shows those members who are or were members. There are probably two or three times as many hikers who never joined but still hiked all three trails. We joined for a couple of years simply because we were in Washington at the time of the Gathering after hiking the PCT and wanted to see how Aldha-West differed from Aldha.
StorminMormon
11-22-2010, 11:38
Chance,
I believe everyone has a successful hike, no matter how far we walk.
Just allowing oneself to start walking is a great success in its own right.
I also believe the AT, PCT and CDT never truly end.
The trails (and wild places) are still there long after we have pasted by.
Hopefully we can return often either in person, thought or spirit.
Peace,
John L.
p.s. Try checking with ALDHA West. http://www.aldhawest.org
Well put. I know the "hike your own hike" phrase is starting to become a cliche' and even a little trite at times, but it's so true. The trails are there for us - not us for them. We all have our own magnificent experiences where 1 mile long or 10,000 miles long. While hiking all 3 long trails is a great accomplishment, I'm certain that there are even greater accomplishments (personal achievement, spiritual realization, etc.) that occur and are rarely discussed because they are unique to each hiker.
Chance09
11-22-2010, 11:50
Chance,
I believe everyone has a successful hike, no matter how far we walk.
Just allowing oneself to start walking is a great success in its own right.
I also believe the AT, PCT and CDT never truly end.
The trails (and wild places) are still there long after we have pasted by.
Hopefully we can return often either in person, thought or spirit.
Peace,
John L.
p.s. Try checking with ALDHA West. http://www.aldhawest.org
John L,
Just out of curiosity, where did i mention in my post that people who aren't triple crowners are unsuccessful? Or where did I mention that being a day hiker, section hiker or thru hiker isn't enough? It's all about the experience. Only on Whiteblaze would a simple question asked out of curiosity be answered as such. Chance
The Aldha West list only shows those members who are or were members. There are probably two or three times as many hikers who never joined but still hiked all three trails. We joined for a couple of years simply because we were in Washington at the time of the Gathering after hiking the PCT and wanted to see how Aldha-West differed from Aldha.
Actually there's no requirement to be a member of ALDHA-West to be listed. One simply has to submit their details to the Triple Crown Coordinator. Also getting a Triple Crown Plaque does not require membership.
That said, I'd agree that there are certainly more Triple Crowners than are listed on the ALDHAWest website.
Ron
bulldog49
11-22-2010, 15:58
Chance,
I believe everyone has a successful hike, no matter how far we walk.
Just allowing oneself to start walking is a great success in its own right.
I also believe the AT, PCT and CDT never truly end.
The trails (and wild places) are still there long after we have pasted by.
Hopefully we can return often either in person, thought or spirit.
Peace,
John L.
p.s. Try checking with ALDHA West. http://www.aldhawest.org
What a pretentious load of crap in response to a simple question! :rolleyes:
Odd Man Out
11-22-2010, 16:15
How about taking it a step further (literally and figuratively). Has anyone hiked the full length of all 11 national scenic trails?
There are 11 national scenic trails? Holy crap, when does this addiction end!?! :-)
It seems to me that there are an awful lot of long trails in the U.S., I speculate that different people taking care to make a complete list would include or exclude different trails for different reasons, and then if you add in all the trails around the world --- "holy crap". In a good way.
While I think it's true that we shouldn't let others set our goals for us, after I finished the PCT I found the idea of the triple crown to be a nice, cleanly defined goal to shoot for, so I've appreciated having that sort of "out there".
I would speculate in terms of the O.P.'s question and responses thus far that the answer to "how many" might be in the 100 to 200 range??
I did some checking and found that:
Records from the last 15 years (2009 to 1994) are posted online (on ALDHA's website). I believe ALDHA West is also 15 years old too.
Triple Crown Coordinator is currently: Brian Tanzmanl (
[email protected]). You can contact him from a link on ALDHA's website (look under the contact link).
I copied and pasted the following article directly from ALDHA's site too:
The Triple Crown Award is recognition of the dedication, commitment, and achievement of those who have completed the three major National Scenic Trails; the Appalachian Trail, the Pacific Crest Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail. ALDHA-West is the only organization that officially recognizes the accomplishment of these few intrepid hikers. At the ALDHA-West Gathering, held each fall, the Triple Crown honorees are recognized and awarded plaques noting their achievement.
Operating on the honor system, ALDHA-West gives equal recognition to thru-hikers and section-hikers and assumes that those who apply for Triple Crown status have hiked the entire length of all three trails. Reasonable alternate routes or required road walks are considered viable substitutes for an official route, assuming one exists. ALDHA-West does not consider issues such as sequence, direction, speed, duration, frequency, or whether one carries a pack. If you have reached this incredible level of hiking, then you too are entitled to be recognized at our next Gathering.
If you have completed the Triple Crown and would like more information on receiving your due recognition, please download the Triple Crown information letter, (http://sn114w.snt114.mail.live.com/mail/pdf/TripleCrown_Application_2010.pdf) or contact Triple Crown Coordinator (
[email protected]).
We hope to see all of you at the Gathering, whether a Triple Crowner or not!!
***
Hope this helps.
John L.
Odd Man Out
11-22-2010, 19:34
There are 11 national scenic trails? Holy crap, when does this addiction end!?! :-)
From the NPS Website:
* Appalachian National Scenic Trail * Arizona National Scenic Trail
* Continental Divide National Scenic Trail
* Florida National Scenic Trail
* Ice Age National Scenic Trail
* Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail
* New England National Scenic Trail
* North Country National Scenic Trail
* Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail
* Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail
* Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail
So hiking all would be the undecuple crown?
http://phrontistery.info/numbers.html
How about taking it a step further (literally and figuratively). Has anyone hiked the full length of all 11 national scenic trails?
http://www.walkingdownadream.com/
http://www.thenewstribune.com/2008/10/16/509934/16-years-16000-miles-hikers-quest.html
and the update:
http://www.nstphotoproject.com/
What kind of crown do you get if you hike one of the long trails 3 times?
I don't mean to get pissy about Triple Crowners, I will be one next yr when I finish up the 800 miles of the CDT I didn't get to hike this yr, but I personally know at least 25 hikers who will claim to be Triple Crowners, who I KNOW FOR A FACT, because I hiked with them or at the same time as them on the same trail as them, that DID NOT HIKE all of the trail(s) as they are so claining!
sasquatch2014
11-23-2010, 19:10
I don't mean to get pissy about Triple Crowners, I will be one next yr when I finish up the 800 miles of the CDT I didn't get to hike this yr, but I personally know at least 25 hikers who will claim to be Triple Crowners, who I KNOW FOR A FACT, because I hiked with them or at the same time as them on the same trail as them, that DID NOT HIKE all of the trail(s) as they are so claining!
To that same effect there are many who have completed all three trail and don't say a whole lot about it.
If I'm recalling this correctly, I think I remember Nimblewill Nomad telling me it was his goal to thru-hike all the national scenic trails.
LOL! Easy Bulldog. I think I understand where K.B. is coming from. His statements are largely made with good intent although they did seem a bit pretentious.
While I think I understand K.B.'s intention when he made the statement, "I believe everyone has a successful hike, no matter how far we walk", I would add to the thought. If it's someone's goal to complete a thru-hike and they have committed themselves to acheiving that goal, and then not follow through, no matter how one might rationalize, justify, explain away, or think about their hike as being successful, in some measure there exists failure because the goal is not achieved.
Like I posted previously, it seems to me, it's become more commonplace and acceptable in MANY hiking circles to say one has completed a trail when THEY HAVE NOT! I did not arrive at that opinion by reading it in a book, overhear it in a conversation, or by discussing it on the internet! I gleaned that info by noticing what MANY are doing and saying on the Triple Crown trails!
And, I don't care how or how far someone hikes! I am a strong advocate of HYOH. BUT, I ALSO STRONGLY BELEIVE IN TELLING THE TRUTH ABOUT WHAT ONE DID HIKE! I don't enjoy, look the other way, or complacently accept hikers lying! It seems, at least to me, again, gleaned from being out there hiking with some of these folks who are claiming to have completed a Triple Crown trail, or claiming to have completed the Triple Crown, that the honor system ALDHA relies upon is being abused more often than they realize!
Yeah, you are absolutely right Sasquatch.
stranger
11-25-2010, 10:55
Dogwood, can you please explain how one would 'abuse' ALDHA's honesty policy? What do people get out of abusing this system? Their name on a list somewhere? This is not an issue mate, the question is...why is it an issue for you?
I think you may not advocate HYOH as much as you would like to believe. Just like a purist secretly gets upset when someone takes a blue-blaze to town because they 'have' to hike another 8 miles...a true advocate of HYOH wouldn't be concerned about what other hikers are doing, including what they say, unless it's causing another person discomfort or pain.
You sound experienced, and you could or could not be telling the truth about your so called experience : ) These trail exaggeration are nothing new my friend, some of us have been on these trails for 20 years, it's always been the case...
Finally, I disagree with your point about all hikes that end prematurely have an element of failure. Sure, many of them do...but all? First off, most hikers who attempt thru-hikes have no idea of what they are getting into, therefore their goals are not realistic to begin with. Many of them realize this and decide to leave the trail. Other people may start out with one goal, and that goal could change after a few weeks. Are you saying that once you 'commit' to a long distance hike, you have to finish to be considered successful? What does commit mean? Perhaps it means something different to you than another person...again, I wouldn't be concerned with others definition of committment.
I hope you do not believe life is that black and white...maybe for you it is, and maybe you have nothing else in your life other than hiking (perhaps you will claim you have plenty of other things in your life, and you could or could not be genuine). However, for many hikers, and many accomplished long distance hikers...hiking is not the be all end all, there is more to life for some people, and if they discover that somewhere along a National Scenic Trail and decide to get off the trail, I woudn't concern yourself with it. After all, HYOH right?
And congrats on closing in on your Triple Crown achievement...assuming your comments are genuine : )
Many fair questions Stranger. I'd like to answer them for you if you will listen with an open mind.
You ask how one would ''abuse' ALDHA's honesty policy? The answer is so simple I don't understand why you ask this question in the first place. - BY NOT BEING HONEST?
What do people get out of abusing this system? Another direct question. The answer to this is more complicated, but I suppose, in large measure, those who do abuse this honor system by misrepresenting what they hiked are feeding their pride, vanity, and ego. I suppose you could ask this same question about why people sometimes lie/exaggerate about other things about themselves. Some, if not many folks, want others to think of them as something they are not. In this case they misrepresent/exaggerate/make false claims about what they hiked. And, yes some do enjoy seeing their names on lists and/or like to boastfully point this out to others! Let's not be naive.
Why are these issues important to me? Let me be CRYSTAL CLEAR!!! I DON"T CARE WHAT, HOW, OR HOW FAR SOMEONE HIKES!!! I don't even remotely care if someone hikes a blue-blaze. I've hiked blue blazes myself. I ABSOLUTELY DO STRONGLY BELIEVE IN HYOH, BUT I ABSOLUTELY DO BELIEVE WE SHOULD AT THE SAME TIME BE HONEST ABOUT WHAT WE HIKED! I can't make it any plainer than that. Perhaps, the reason why some folks have a problem being honest with others is because they have a hard time being honest with themselves and the Universe/God/Source/whatever!
Maybe some don't care what others say. I do! I believe what we say(words) can harm, cause discomfort, and cause pain! I believe words also have the capability of creating positive beliefs. Beliefs are the groundwork for actions. I don't like it when someone lies to me. I don't like it if I'm dishonest with myself! I do look at motives. I do look at intent. I examine my own conscience. Maybe, some others do not. Maybe, some others will complacently shrug it off when they lie to themsleves and to others. Maybe, some shrug it off when others lie to them. I will not! AND I think that bothers the people who do lie and don't want their lies exposed!
Yes, I agree with you that exagerrations/lies/misrepresentations, however watered down, soft, and easy to swallow, or harsh, we wish to make them sound are nothing new, but that doesn't make them right or OK or jusify complacently standing aside and letting them continue. Complacency, IMO, is a form of compliancy! Again, liars don't want their deeds exposed. As the saying goes, "one lie leads to 10 more." Why? Liars don't want their deeds exposed.
As far as you bringing into question my experience or genuiness I think my posts on WB, actions, on and off the trail, conscience, and beliefs should speak for themselves. I will tell you that I'm comfortable enough with myself and who I am that I have liittle need to represent myself other than who I am and what I've done, whether it be perceived as good or bad. I really don't care if you question who I am, what I've done, or anything else about me because you don't know me. There are some on WB that do know me, I've hiked with, and some who I consider dear friends. Perhaps, you should ask them about me?
Stranger, consider the people who set goals for themselves like: obtaining a high school/college degree, losing 30 lbs of body weight, summitting Mt Everest, saving enough money to buy their first home, etc. If they drop out of high school/college before obtaining their degree, don't lose 30 lbs of weight, Mt Everest is never summitted, enough money is not saved to purchase that first home, etc are those not times when someone failed to acheive their goal? I would, yes! Setting the goal to completing a hike, at least to me, is in the same category of not acheiving a definable goal. Let'as not get so hung up with the word failure! There are elements in every one of those incidences where we can say we did acheive some measure of success or, at least, learn something, but yet failed to fully accomplish/realize our original goal. Why the problem with me saying someone failed to acheive their goal of completing a hike. Is it that we afraid of the word failure? Is it that we so often don't acheive our goals or even set goals that we now have to avoid admiitting that we have not obtained them/some of them or even have them?
I absolutely unequivically agree that folks define committment in different ways!
I know of no hiker, no matter hardcore, that doesn't have some resemblance of life off the trail, and that includes me. However, you would know that about me if you knew me or even read a handful of my posts on WB. I have only mentioned things about myself because it is you, Stranger, who has questioned my integrity and character.
Let us not use the term HYOH to cover up, justify, rationalize, or explain away questionable hiking behavior or sketchy hiking statements as has sometimes been the case.
stranger
11-26-2010, 00:52
Dogwood, first off you were the one who mentioned other hikers 'abusing' the ALDHA honesty policy, that's why I raised it.
Second...I never questioned your experience or integrity, I was simply pointing out that if you are going to come on Whiteblaze and call out others...they you can also be called out.
Personally speaking...I think you've done everything you've claimed to do, and I have no doubt you are 800 miles from being a Triple Crowner...but that's not the point. The point is...you could be exaggerating or lying, and there is no way to know for sure. I don't doubt your sincerity mainly because I cannot see why you would lie about it, however I do take your point that some people may.
I also am not questioning your personal life outside of hiking, I am merely pointing out one could do so if they desired, and again people can choose to be genuine or disingenious. You are right, I don't know you and you don't know me. But if you are going to talk about hikers who you claim are talking **** about their accomplishments, then you should be prepared for others to do the same to you. What goes around...
In terms of our different views on what constitutes failure, or alteast being unsuccessful, you presented some examples...To give another example...would you advocate staying in a marriage that's terrible and abusive because at one stage in your life, you committed to this other person who has since changed, or circumstances changed? I say get out! Staying in the marriage is a failure in my view, abandoning it takes courage and determination...it's much harder to do. I guess we have to agree to disagree on this....like we have done in the past on other issues : )
To summarise...I am not questioning your integrity, I was playing devil's advocate, or atleast that was my intention. I was actually going to contact you around the John Muir Trail based on some of your past posts, as I have a number of questions about it, etc...I understand for you it's irritating when others lie about their hiking resume, I guess I would have to say 'it's just hiking'...people can often tell who talks the talk and who's walked the walk, bull****ters aren't going anywhere, becoming irritated by them is a winless battle.
So again...I'm not attacking you, I was simply trying to prove a point. I trust you understand this and good luck with the rest of the CDT.
Chance,
I believe everyone has a successful hike, no matter how far we walk.
Unless you get struck my lightning or get squished by a big rock or a large mammal eats you or you **** your pants.
This kind of attitude is fine to have as a personal philosophy but it's a little disrespectful to people who enjoy the trails in a different way by more or less saying their accomplishment as they see it is invalid. If someone wants to risk failure by defining success in a specific manner you should be open to acknowledging their potential for failure because to not do it is to disregard their personal success.
I hike so I can drink beer. And eat burgers. But mainly for the beer.
I don't mean to get pissy about Triple Crowners, I will be one next yr when I finish up the 800 miles of the CDT I didn't get to hike this yr, but I personally know at least 25 hikers who will claim to be Triple Crowners, who I KNOW FOR A FACT, because I hiked with them or at the same time as them on the same trail as them, that DID NOT HIKE all of the trail(s) as they are so claining!
LOL.. That's what some others are going to say about you when you apply. He didn't hike the whole thing! Of course, they don't know all of what you did, when, and neither do you, so stop troubling yourself over someone elses hike.
stranger
11-28-2010, 22:49
This kind of attitude is fine to have as a personal philosophy but it's a little disrespectful to people who enjoy the trails in a different way by more or less saying their accomplishment as they see it is invalid.
How is this disrespectful? How does KB's statement make others accomplishments invalid? I am confused by your statement.
stranger
11-28-2010, 22:50
whoops I was trying to quote, how do you quote anyway : )
AUhiker90
03-13-2011, 00:28
I met a hiker who was as big of a purist as they come and from my understanding he has a double triple crown and when i asked him about the triple crown he said "triple what im just out for a walk."
isawtman
03-24-2011, 03:31
How about taking it a step further (literally and figuratively). Has anyone hiked the full length of all 11 national scenic trails?
Bart Smith is the only person to hike all 11 National Scenic Trails, although
Eb Eberhardt is slated to complete his last two trails this summer. He has already hiked 9 of them. His website is
www.nimblewillnomad.com
Eb hikes the trails in a thru hike fashion while Bart is reportedly a section hiker.
regards from me, Tman
tjforrester
04-08-2011, 17:38
Actually there's no requirement to be a member of ALDHA-West to be listed. One simply has to submit their details to the Triple Crown Coordinator. Also getting a Triple Crown Plaque does not require membership.
That said, I'd agree that there are certainly more Triple Crowners than are listed on the ALDHAWest website.
Ron
I know at least one. (grin)
tjforrester
04-08-2011, 17:49
Actually there's no requirement to be a member of ALDHA-West to be listed. One simply has to submit their details to the Triple Crown Coordinator. Also getting a Triple Crown Plaque does not require membership.
That said, I'd agree that there are certainly more Triple Crowners than are listed on the ALDHAWest website.
Ron
Ron, something tells me we know each other, some murky distant memory. Were you Falling Water, PCT 2007? I think we met in the desert, after you'd done some crazy long day and looked about dead. I went by HH back then.
Best,
Skid