An Appalachian Trail virgin asks . . .

[ping1]

I want to avoid the throngs of hikers on the southern Appalachian Trail in March in April. If I start at Springer Mountain in mid-February, how cold will the Appalachian Trail be in Georgia and North Carolina? Any other comments on an early start?

[Tinker]

Minus 10 to plus 75 sounds about right to me. I did Georgia in March and only experienced 28 or so to nearly 90. (In other words, it varies greatly and ymmv).

It often proves quite futile to try to avoid the throngs by leaving early. Often, foul weather wll force you to take a zero day or two, three, four, etc. and often others who started later than you did will catch up.

In the interest of minimizing interaction with others I have decided on doing a SOBO when the time comes.

If you are dead-set on a NOBO trip, you might be better off starting later (mid-April). You'll need less gear so your pack will be lighter and you will enjoy not having to keep things from freezing and thawing them out. You can lag behind most of the NOBOs and still finish in plenty of time before the snow hits Katahdin.

[Spirit Walker]

Another option would be to start in the middle (i.e. Harpers Ferry) in early April. You'd be ahead of the March hikers for quite a while, and by the time the bulk of the hikers reaches there, the crowd has thinned out considerably. Hike north to Katahdin, then flip south and finish.

Starting in February doesn't just mean three or more months of cold and snow, it means carrying a very heavy pack with cold weather gear and extra food. In 2010 in early-March the Smokies were almost impassible. Besides deep snow, there hadn't been any crews to clean up winter storm damage -- and there was a lot. It means no spring flowers for half your hike. No green along the ridges. Little wildlife starting out. No swims in streams for half the hike. Not being able to clean up in the evening because it's too cold. It means very short daylight hours and very long nights which also translates to low mileage for the first couple of months. (Carry lots of books and batteries for your flashlight.) It is more likely to mean spending a lot of time in town to avoid storms, and thus spending a lot more money. Bottom line - you decrease your chances of finishing if you start too early. Do you want to enjoy your hike?

Truth is, the hiker horde isn't that great a crowd. Not anymore. If you want to hike solo, you can by avoiding shelters and choosing to camp instead.

[rjhouser]

You could start early May?

[DapperD]

I want to avoid the throngs of hikers on the southern Appalachian Trail in March in April. If I start at Springer Mountain in mid-February, how cold will the Appalachian Trail be in Georgia and North Carolina? Any other comments on an early start?I think as other's have said and from what I have learned from thru-hikers here on Whiteblaze is that starting too early is risky. There is the possibility of really bad weather, especially once you start getting higher up in the mountains of North Carolina. On the other hand, I guess one could possibly luck out, and it might not be too bad and they will be able to make good progress. I think it is really hard to tell. If you are a fast hiker, then starting in February would probably not be a wise choice, as you would most likely wind up arriving in New England too early. This could possibly make hiking much harder and much more unpleasant up North. You can wait till May, but then the heat will be increasing, and you will probably wind up having to contend with very hot conditions somewhat more than if you were further along North during the hottest months of the season. Personally, I think an early March start would be good, providing the weather chooses to cooperate. By starting then, I think you will be at the forefront of Northbound thru-hikers beginning their hikes, as I believe the majority of Northbounders set out from Springer between the second half of March and the first half of April.

[DavidNH]

ping 1... I'd advise against a February start. Expect temps to zero or below at elevation. Snow is a likelihood as well as very icy conditions. It could also be in the 50's. While I can't back this up, I would venture that those starting early to mid feb from Springer lose any advance time by waiting out winter storms.

If you really want to avoid crowds go south bound in July.

[Lone Wolf]

yeah. go SOBO. it's more rewarding as far a thru hike goes

[Slo-go'en]

Sure, start in Feb if you like being cold and wet for much of the hike. If you manage to maintain any kind of steady pace, your following the worst of the spring weather all the way north. If you don't maintain a steady pace, you might as well have started later and saved a lot of time and money. I don't know what the completion rate for early starters are, but it's not good.

Yes, the shelters are a bit busy for the first 100 miles or so from mid March to mid April, but it thins out and speads out pretty quickly after that.

[niners]

We started Feb 16 this year and the weather in February ended up being some of the best we hiked in on the whole trail. Temps in the days were generally in the 50's and the nights around freezing. We hit no snow until March 6 in GSMNP. We got hit hard in the park, and walked in slush for the next few days. From then until April 7th we walked in snow and cold temps off and on, but nothing to keep us off the trail.

My point is that you just can not know what the weather is going to do. Plan your trip, but be prepared to take a day or two off if needed. If I had it to do all over again I think we would leave a week earlier.

As far as completion rates for early starters, most (80%) of the people I met in GA, NC, and TN finished by the first of August. We finished July 25.

[jesse]

There's a reason the throngs of hikers are not out there in Feb.

[stranger]

Here is how I see it...if you start in mid-February, you will potentially have 8 weeks of cold weather, and in some cases very cold, for the start of your thru-hike. I don't know how much experience you have with long-distance hiking or cold weather...however I have plenty of experience in both. For me, the combination of the cold AND long-distance is a receipe I personally try to avoid. The cold is great...in short bursts, and I love long-distance hikes in more reasonable weather. It's one thing to have to get up everyday and hike, it's quite another to have gear frozen, posthole or snowshoe through deep snow, having your water freeze, have short daylight, etc..If you want to avoid crowds a much better option IMO is starting from Springer in late-April. Another option is starting around 1 April, say at Delaware Water Gap, hike down to Harpers Ferry, then head to Springer with 270 miles under your belt in very later April or early May. You will avoid the crowds, have some trail legs, and still not have a time problem by starting 'late' cause you can jump MD and PA when you get there. Or Sobo...definately the more interesting hike IMO.

[bamboo bob]

I found SOBO to be lonely and boring. NOBO was fun. I like to meet people. Even the crazy ones and goofy ill prepared ones were fun. The really annoying ones can be avoided by hiking away from them.

[Blissful]

I have done both ways. I love both ways. But if you are a social person who needs to be around people to make your hike worthwhile then NOBO is a better choice.

[TEXMAN]

I started on Feb 15th in both 2009 and 2010..


Hit snow in 2009 but made it thru the smokies and it was good after that but still freezing cold on Roan MTN when we got there....
In 2010 the smokies had so much snow several of us had to turn back and wait a couple of weeks

Also ..if you start in FEB the daylight is short and the darkness is long so be prepared to spend 12 hours in your tent in freezing temps ...you won't be playing cards or doing much socializing at those temps.
but you will be sleeping with your fuel and boots and cell phone in your sleeping bag so they aren't frozen in the morning...


Old Man River

see my journal at www.trailjournals.com/OMRIVER (http://www.trailjournals.com/OMRIVER)