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OptimisticChris
05-27-2011, 23:18
I hiked the AT in '92 under the trail name of Optimistic Chris. That was a long time ago!
My kids are: Anna 11 and Sam 13 years old.
I am thinking of a 4 night - 5 days on the AT somewhere in the northern section. We would be traveling from Wisconsin.

Any suggestions or thoughts on an appropriate section would be appreciated.

Optimistic Chris

mweinstone
05-28-2011, 05:38
i like this question. i allways have answered the same way. ive allways belived i know the best kid section. its where i found the AT, and its where i introduced max when he was 9. the hamburg watershed area has so many cool things for kids wrapped in a tough section they can be proud of haveing hiked and it sets their limits high as its very rough. but the roughness is way offset by the constant barrage of fun attractions including the pinnicle, dans pulpit, pulpit rock, the hamburg resivior, gold spring, stephanie spring, pocohauntis spring, the observatory,windsor shelter, eckvill,the pavillion at port clinton
auburn lookout,ramblin run , hamburg and cabellas, port clinton,the little sussquhanna river,anthrocite deposits, pinnicle cave rated 6.1, the ruins of windsor furnase, slag deposits and tons and tons of history, a helo landing feild, state game land feeding tracts etc etc etc. berries and chokecherries and all manner of feild greens crabapples and honey all for the finding. if ya wanna have the single most fun on this or any other planet, exsplore the area down off the rear of the pinnicle, the side faceing away from the veiws. carfully climb down the bolderfield to the strip of flat at its runout that forms a shoulder before dropping unclimbable again. this pine needled strip , shelterd from just the right whethers, is allmost an onclave of alpine medow of an eastern sort. its really more of a micro climate zone. in the worst winter wind and snow, bare , sunny, dry grassy warm places may be found in the thermal rings formed around the larger trees. ive naped there in several feet of snow by laying down in a feirce wind on a sunny day , and just going to sleep. no bag. if you wake and leave before the rays of the sun chill, you can exsperience the single most valuable spirit healing couple hours of solar napping this earth offers.
i can describe a thousand kid fun things to do in this, or any mile of trail. sleep on the observatory grounds for a wonderful night of starveiwing. walk the streems and search the springs for crawfish and gold. climb professional pitches designed for learners. the pinnicle cave is a chimney move combined with a cave. watch hawks from the many pulpits and learn the history of blast furnase industry and how we used the trail during the occupation of philly by the brittish. find the lesser know and seldom found stephanie spring. meet trail angels in the area like bag o tricks and cammo jack and panzer and mothers finest and jester. be a PA hiker and be the bomb! need more on the hamburg watershed including info on the coolest roadwalk in the north, what i call the shenies of the north, im here for ya.git some!

mweinstone
05-28-2011, 05:49
sorry, made a mistake, the area down off the back of the pinnicle isnt pine needles, its tall grasses layed down by wind and deer making "nests" of shelter. not pine trees.

mhemberg
05-28-2011, 10:49
Small world I am from Lake Wisconsin and just did the same thing with my 7 year old boy and 65 year old dad. What we did is SNP. You can park at the YMCA have the shuttle take you 30 miles south hop out and walk back to your car. SNP is great because there are plenty of places to get water, food, shelter, and if you absolutely need to bail out and get a hotel. There are plenty. I am an amateur so I will only give you a couple of pointers.

1 Don't have you kids carry much. My 7 year old weighs 45lbs and he carried 7lbs. That was pleny up some of the big climbs I carried his pack.

2. Don't skimp on a tent. If the weather goes south you will be thankful we were in the middle of what seemed like a tornado thank god I had a good tent.

Bring a DS and journal for the kids. A half hour a night of playing the electronic crack can buy you some piece and quiet or give you time to set camp

mhemberg
05-28-2011, 10:50
I should have added leave the 65 year old at home

Amanita
05-28-2011, 11:43
Look for a section with lots of shelters or established campsites. Even if you tent having a privy near by makes it much easier.

I don't know how much experience your daughter has in the woods, but have mom or a female hiker friend talk to her about how to pee in the woods. Bring her extra shorts and underwear, it's a pretty steep learning curve.

OptimisticChris
06-07-2011, 23:03
Any more ideas out there... still planning to go.

peakbagger
06-08-2011, 07:16
Strangely enough, the northern section of the 100 mile wilderness. Its relatively flat, lots of streams and lakes, plenty of official campsites and a whole lot of unofficial campsites. The area is loaded with wildlife including plenty of moose. A PITA to get to but worth the trip. If you can afford to go high end, Katahdin Air may be able to fly you in and drop you off. Just plan on 10 to 12 mile days and count back from Abol Bridge. I would definitely not recomend going west of White Cap, as the trail gets gnarlier.

Alternatively the southern Long Trail in VT around Stratton Mtn has several ponds and plenty of wildlife.

Blissful
06-08-2011, 09:43
Lots of youth hike the northern 100 mile wilderness, if you have the $ to get there. We saw plenty of youth groups. Shaws will shuttle, but it will cost.

I think southern PA and Maryland is neat too. Maybe start at Pine Grove Furnace and go to Harper's Ferry. There's a pool at Caledonia and snack bar. Also history along the way, good camping and nice shelters, etc

ctlizard
06-27-2011, 12:11
I hiked the AT in '92 under the trail name of Optimistic Chris. That was a long time ago!
My kids are: Anna 11 and Sam 13 years old.
I am thinking of a 4 night - 5 days on the AT somewhere in the northern section. We would be traveling from Wisconsin.

Any suggestions or thoughts on an appropriate section would be appreciated.

Optimistic Chris

Have you found anything yet? I would be interested in this as well. We were hoping to get out this year, but it didn;t happen (a surprise number three on the way). However, when my oldest was about 5, we did an overnight in the Mount Everett State Forest in Mass. It has a lot to see and it wasnt too bad a hike. He had a Kelty external frame pack and carried water, gorp, and some clothes. He had a great time and wasn't too tired. There is actually a nice loop there that comes out via a bridle path at Berkshire School.

Also, up in Vermont, there is a relatively easy section around Stratton Mountain you could do as well.

Lastly, if you want a spectacular hike, I'd recommend the presidentials in NH. Given your kids are a little older, they could probably handle this. There was a loop we did (before kids, though) which went up Mt Liberty(a rough climb, but there is a campsite short of the summit). Once you get up there, though it is more or less a ridgewalk in the "alpine zone". Absolutely stunning views...most of the time. The biggest issue here is the weather (it ended our trip a couple days early when we went). I would not hesitate taking my 9 year old on that hike (though I'd end up with the 70-80 pound pack). The loop would be starting from the Liberty Spring Trail, first night at Liberty Spring Campsite (remember to bring your cash). This is a rough climb due to elevation but not bad as far as distance. Take lots of breaks. From there, finish the short amount to the ridge line (you can turn right on a spur trail up to the summit of Liberty, if you wanted). Heading North, you'll hit Haystack, Lincoln, and Lafayette. The nice thing here, is if the kids (or anyone else) needs to bag it, there are a lot of spur trails headed off the ridge. Of course, you probably remember all this from 92.

All that being said, I recommended these because I have done them, vs just looking at maps. Only you can be sure what your kids can handle, of course.

Good luck and let us know where you end up going!

The Snowman
06-27-2011, 12:39
Bear MT NY to rt 4 in CT is a nice kid section. Lots to do and see zoo, NYC skyline, bridge over the Hudson. not to hard trail not to easy eather

weary
06-27-2011, 13:59
I hiked the AT in '92 under the trail name of Optimistic Chris. That was a long time ago!
My kids are: Anna 11 and Sam 13 years old.
I am thinking of a 4 night - 5 days on the AT somewhere in the northern section. We would be traveling from Wisconsin.

Any suggestions or thoughts on an appropriate section would be appreciated.

Optimistic Chris
There's no sections of the AT that are not doable by healthy 11 and 13 year olds. People tell me the trail in Maine is the hardest. All three of my kids hiked almost all of Maine by the time they were 13. My youngest climbed Katahdin at age 5. His youngest son got within a quarter mile of Katahdin's summit at age 6. He just didn't want to hike uphill any more and my son wisely didn't insist. When he got back to camp he promised to try again "when I'm 10."

An 11-year-old grandson hiked with me in 1993 from Harpers Ferry to Vermont. Two years earlier he had hiked all of Maine with the exception of Katahdin. Some AT sections are easier than others. But all of the trail is suitable for healthy kids. And for healthy 65-year-olds for that matter. The key is to let old people -- and kids -- set the pace. I was a mostly sedentary 64 when I walked from Springer to Katahdin. I was slow on the uphills, but mostly caught up on the downhills.

Kerosene
06-27-2011, 17:12
I'd seriously consider the section north of Damascus covering Grayson Highlands. Simply beautiful, very accessible, surprisingly easy, and wild ponies.