View Full Version : Any female flipfloppers out there?
MissMagnolia
11-07-2011, 20:56
I'm a 37 year old female rookie backpacker, looking to flip flop by starting mid-April somewhere between Erwin and Damascus and heading north. From Katahdin I'll go back to my starting point and head SOBO.
At least that's the plan for now and it is open to change depending on the situation.
Is there any chance I could meet up with one or more female hikers planning to hike in that area at that time? Section hikers would be fine, too. It's just that I know I'll be slow when I start (not being in trail shape like the others reaching that area coming from Springer). I don't expect to hike together for long, necessarily, but it could be nice to have some company to start with. I do enjoy hiking alone, but it would be nice to meet up for breaks or at shelters, and especially to go into towns.
I plan to take a lot of pictures and explore interesting side trails and am a slower hiker, but I have endurance and plan to do longer days to make up for my multiple stops. I also plan to tent most of the time (though that could change as well, I suppose).
I won't post exact details of start date and place on here, so if someone is interested and we get into planning details, lets PM.
Hi MissMagolia,
I am also hoping to flipflop-and hike half in 2012 and half again in 2013. I have a couple of women friends who have thru hiked and they both suggest that I begin in Harper's Ferry and go north, then the following year, decide on either a Springer beginning or a SOBO section from Harper's. I may be interested in your plan. Just waiting to see if I am approved for time away from my work for summer 2012. I'll keep checking this post and since I'm new I haven't tried the PM messaging, but would be fine doing PM.
Slo-go'en
11-17-2011, 23:10
I'm a 37 year old female rookie backpacker, looking to flip flop by starting mid-April somewhere between Erwin and Damascus and heading north. From Katahdin I'll go back to my starting point and head SOBO.
Forgive me, but that seems to be an odd plan. Please consider starting at Springer. There will be lots of others starting there in the same shape you are. With in a day or two you will be part of a "hiker pod" which will slowly evolve as you head north. Later, much later, if you think you'll run out of time to get to Katahdin before mid October, then flip up north. Harper's Ferry is a good place to flip, as it's about 1/2 way and you'll be getting there around late June or early July. That's when it's starting to get beastly hot and humid for the mid atlantic, but getting to be good hiking in Maine.
But if you start somewhere in the northern half of North Calrolina in mid-April, you will meet thru-hikers, but the ones that started in March. They will gotten thier trail legs by then and be starting to move right along. Meanwhile, your struggling to get from one shelter to the next. Also, the weather in Northen NC in mid April will be more unsettled then it would be about 3 weeks later.
chiefduffy
11-17-2011, 23:54
+1 on what Slo-Go'en said. Especially about the weather
MissMagnolia
11-19-2011, 18:31
Okay, you've got me rethinking my plans. I just really don't want to be in large groups and I can't leave till mid-April so I'm not sure I can make it to Katahdin in time.
Slo-go'en
11-19-2011, 22:08
Okay, you've got me rethinking my plans. I just really don't want to be in large groups and I can't leave till mid-April so I'm not sure I can make it to Katahdin in time.
The crowd is starting to thin out in mid April. It's unlikely there will be 50 others starting out on the same day as you are, like might happen on April 1st. But there will be enough others starting that you won't be alone, which is a good thing.
As for not making it to Katahdin in time - I assume you mean by the time it closes in October. Starting 3 or 4 hundred miles north in mid-April isn't going to get you to Katahdin significantly sooner. In fact, starting there (NC) might actually reduce your chances of getting very far at all. Trust me, you don't want to jump into the middle of N.C. and start hiking. Much better to work up to it. You'll see why when you get there. Anyway, the wild flowers and flowering trees through NC are at thier best during the month of May. You don't want to miss that.
In any event, a mid April start at Springer still gives you nearly 6 months to complete the trail. Finishing up the trail in NH and Maine during Sept and early Oct is a really good thing. Good luck and hope to meet you at the Gorham Wal-Mart next fall..
stonedflea
11-19-2011, 23:02
i started april 19th and i think we had a good group size. there were a lot of us, but it was a welcoming number, not an overwhelming number. i got to harper's ferry july 9th and flip flopped a few weeks later from the nj/ny line. i have been told by quite a few people that august is the prime month to hike in maine, and the weather for the most part was gorgeous, although very muddy.
don't worry about how slow you will or won't hike. you'll never know what your speed will be until you get out there. you could fare better or worse than you currently imagine. you could find a really good group that motivates you (but doesn't push you, necessarily) to do more miles than you would do if you were alone.
i would suggest starting at springer as well. :)
I didn't know the name "Flip Flopper", but I guess I plan to be one. Both because of cold/wet weather up north in September and October, and because of scheduling with my sister who lives in Maine, I plan to flip in Harper's Ferry... However, I'm starting my hike northeast of Montgomery, Alabama in March. I'll be 65, so I won't be going fast. I should be in North Carolina during the peak flowering time - I am an avid gardener so I might have some problems staying on the trail and staying focused! hahahaha
I'm also survivalist, will be hiking ultralight, and starting close to home...
MissMagnolia
12-19-2011, 20:55
Thanks, Slo-go'en. I hope to meet you in Gorham as well. If I flip I'll probably do it the more traditional way and yes, I've decided to start on Springer.
MissMagnolia
12-19-2011, 20:56
i started april 19th and i think we had a good group size. there were a lot of us, but it was a welcoming number, not an overwhelming number. i got to harper's ferry july 9th and flip flopped a few weeks later from the nj/ny line. i have been told by quite a few people that august is the prime month to hike in maine, and the weather for the most part was gorgeous, although very muddy.
don't worry about how slow you will or won't hike. you'll never know what your speed will be until you get out there. you could fare better or worse than you currently imagine. you could find a really good group that motivates you (but doesn't push you, necessarily) to do more miles than you would do if you were alone.
i would suggest starting at springer as well. :)
I appreciate your comments and advice. I have decided to start at Springer and it will be pretty close to April 19th.
MissMagnolia
12-19-2011, 20:58
I didn't know the name "Flip Flopper", but I guess I plan to be one. Both because of cold/wet weather up north in September and October, and because of scheduling with my sister who lives in Maine, I plan to flip in Harper's Ferry... However, I'm starting my hike northeast of Montgomery, Alabama in March. I'll be 65, so I won't be going fast. I should be in North Carolina during the peak flowering time - I am an avid gardener so I might have some problems staying on the trail and staying focused! hahahaha
I'm also survivalist, will be hiking ultralight, and starting close to home...
Wow, you're more hard core than I am. I'll probably still flipflop in Harper's Ferry, but I'm planning to start at Springer now, near the end of April.
MissMagnolia
12-19-2011, 21:00
Hi MissMagolia,
I am also hoping to flipflop-and hike half in 2012 and half again in 2013. I have a couple of women friends who have thru hiked and they both suggest that I begin in Harper's Ferry and go north, then the following year, decide on either a Springer beginning or a SOBO section from Harper's. I may be interested in your plan. Just waiting to see if I am approved for time away from my work for summer 2012. I'll keep checking this post and since I'm new I haven't tried the PM messaging, but would be fine doing PM.
Hi Trish,
It looks like I'll be starting on Springer Mountain after all and I'll see from there how fast I go and whether I want to flipflop in Harper's Ferry or elsewhere. Good luck with your hike as well.
jacquelineanngrant
12-21-2011, 15:25
Okay, you've got me rethinking my plans. I just really don't want to be in large groups and I can't leave till mid-April so I'm not sure I can make it to Katahdin in time. In 2010 I started April 18, totally out of shape, tok a bunch of zero days and still summitted Katahdin on Oct 3. You'll be amazed at what you do once you're out there a while. This year I'm hiking thru again with my boyfriend and we are starting on April 11. Best of luck to you!
What does the experienced crowd have to say about starting at Springer early April and hiking to HF then flying N to Katahdin and hiking south to HF for a complete thru hike?
jacquelineanngrant
12-22-2011, 14:28
What does the experienced crowd have to say about starting at Springer early April and hiking to HF then flying N to Katahdin and hiking south to HF for a complete thru hike? I prefer the grand finish at Katahdin. Just a personal preference.
Slo-go'en
12-22-2011, 17:26
What does the experienced crowd have to say about starting at Springer early April and hiking to HF then flying N to Katahdin and hiking south to HF for a complete thru hike?
With an early April start, getting to Katahdin by the end of September is very do-able, and you really don't want to miss out hiking in Maine in the early fall.
If however, you get to HF in early July and its getting wicked hot and your thinking of calling it quits, bumping up to Vermont is not a bad idea. Then when you finish at Katahdin, go back down to Mass and finish hiking south. That way you'll miss the worst of the hot, humid weather in the mid-atlantic, but also miss the worst of the late spring/early summer weather in Maine. Also, getting from Harpers Ferry to Boston and then to Williamstown (MA/VT line) is a lot easier then getting to Katahdin.
Hi Miss Magnolia,
I see that you've decided to start at Springer, but I thought I'd share my flip flop experience anyway. I started around Roanoke, at McAfee Knob on May 2, and hiked north from there. I didn't mind going much slower than the thru hikers - I loved meeting so many of them! There was always someone new at each shelter up until the Shenandoahs, where I started to keep up with some of the thrus who had slowed down to enjoy the Shennies. Keep up meaning I'd see them at the shelters. I usually preferred to hike alone at my own pace. Then by Pennsylvania I was seeing a lot of the same people and was in the "bubble" - which I also loved. I took a week off at Delaware Water Gap to spend at the beach with my husband, so when I started in NJ I met a whole new group of thrus. I loved being able to see the progress of those I'd met before via the shelter logs. I hiked all of Massachusetts SOBO just because of where friends were who could help me off trail, so that also allowed me to run into a few folks who had gotten ahead of me because of my week off. By the time I got to Maine, in late August, I was running into some of the hikers I'd met in PA, plus plenty of new ones. I ended up summiting Katahdin on September 23 with two lovely women thrus who I'd first met way back in Virginia.
I got back on the trail SOBO on September 29 and it was decidedly quieter, but I enjoyed the fall foliage and ended up connecting with a couple of very sweet SOBOs and we hiked together on and off from Damascus to the NOC. By then, the company was much appreciated! I finished on my own at Springer on November 19.
What I loved about my flip flop hike was the number of hikers from the class of 2009 who I met, and the freedom to hike my own hike partly because I was meeting new people every day and not feeling like I had to keep up with any particular group. I had plenty of solitude, which meant I saw a ton of wildlife, but I also felt very much part of a community, and even when I was alone, I usually recognized the names of lots of the hikers in the shelter logs and loved to "catch up" with them virtually.
I was 41 when I did my hike and I wasn't a particularly fast hiker. I hiked 20+ miles on only 18 days and mostly hiked between 15-18 miles, and sometimes far fewer. I took my time so I could soak in the scenery, and I loved the way my hike worked out.
Just wanted to share that, and best wishes with however you do your hike - it will be fantastic!
Zipper
VA-ME VA-GA '09
DebbieinNH
01-18-2012, 01:33
Hi,
Did the GA< NC< TN section last year and plan to start in Damascus April. I will be hiking with Wandering Gnome so there will be at least two of us going slow as we regain our trail legs. If you decide to start in April let us know.
I sure would NOT start in North Carolina you have heard good advise there. That section is tougher than GA even though at the start GA will seem tough it really isn't just hard to do until you develop trail legs.
Pippi
MissMagnolia
01-22-2012, 20:47
With an early April start, getting to Katahdin by the end of September is very do-able, and you really don't want to miss out hiking in Maine in the early fall.
If however, you get to HF in early July and its getting wicked hot and your thinking of calling it quits, bumping up to Vermont is not a bad idea. Then when you finish at Katahdin, go back down to Mass and finish hiking south. That way you'll miss the worst of the hot, humid weather in the mid-atlantic, but also miss the worst of the late spring/early summer weather in Maine. Also, getting from Harpers Ferry to Boston and then to Williamstown (MA/VT line) is a lot easier then getting to Katahdin.
I like that, too! I'll keep that in mind since I'm starting around April 18th.
MissMagnolia
01-22-2012, 20:49
Thanks Zipper! I loved reading about your hike. I can see the appeal and I won't worry too much if I get too far behind because I can flip and then meet some new people.
MissMagnolia
01-22-2012, 20:51
Hi,
Did the GA< NC< TN section last year and plan to start in Damascus April. I will be hiking with Wandering Gnome so there will be at least two of us going slow as we regain our trail legs. If you decide to start in April let us know.
I sure would NOT start in North Carolina you have heard good advise there. That section is tougher than GA even though at the start GA will seem tough it really isn't just hard to do until you develop trail legs.
Pippi
Hi Debbie. I'm glad I asked on here. I appreciate the responses and good advice. Looks like I'll be starting on Springer about April 18th. I'll be buying my plane ticket next payday.
Anyone out there ever started or thought about starting at Waynesboro for the Shenandoahs? Would like to chat if you did or are, seems brilliant but what do y'all think?
Anyone out there ever started or thought about starting at Waynesboro for the Shenandoahs? Would like to chat if you did or are, seems brilliant but what do y'all think?
I started just south of there (about 200 miles) because of support from friends in Charlottesville and loved it as a way to begin. I think it would be a great place to begin a flip flop!
Thanks Zipper! I loved reading about your hike. I can see the appeal and I won't worry too much if I get too far behind because I can flip and then meet some new people.
You're very welcome! You're going to have an amazing hike no matter how you slice it! Best wishes!
kathysmith2k7ataol
01-30-2012, 19:44
I am interested in starting slow too. Would love to share the experience. Please contact me.