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calamity_jane
03-12-2005, 10:37
Hey, guys

We're planning to do a thru-hike in 2007 - yes, a long way off. I see tons of stuff out there about how to make sure that life on the trail is comfortable and enjoyable - so, I'm confident in my ability to plan for life on the trail.

However, I see very little out there about how to plan for life that continues back home while you're on the trail. In other words, how to make sure the mortgage is paid, the bills are paid, the house is secure, bank accounts are locked down... health insurance, life insurance... power of attorney for someone to handle affairs in your absence... all that logistical, legal stuff. We've had some thoughts and are starting to make plans, but if anyone has any learnings, I'd be most appreciative!

Thanks!

Frosty
03-12-2005, 12:09
Hey, guys

We're planning to do a thru-hike in 2007 - yes, a long way off. I see tons of stuff out there about how to make sure that life on the trail is comfortable and enjoyable - so, I'm confident in my ability to plan for life on the trail.

However, I see very little out there about how to plan for life that continues back home while you're on the trail. In other words, how to make sure the mortgage is paid, the bills are paid, the house is secure, bank accounts are locked down... health insurance, life insurance... power of attorney for someone to handle affairs in your absence... all that logistical, legal stuff. We've had some thoughts and are starting to make plans, but if anyone has any learnings, I'd be most appreciative!

Thanks!In my case, my wife is handling things. Others have used parents, siblings, close friends. Give that person six months worth of bill payments before you leave.

If you have absolutely no one, bring your checkbook and some envelopes. You CAN write checks and mail them from the AT.

Doctari
03-12-2005, 12:31
I don't thru for another 15 years (or so), but because I tend to obsess about stuff SO:
I asked my local bank (small LOCAL, not one of those damn national megaliths) if they could handle that for me, they could. All I nedded to do was supply them with: a list, access numbers, & a form (or something) giving them reliese to do my payments for me. Then on departing, or at least a few weeks afore I leave, do a change of address naming the bank as payer. Natch, having direct deposit of all incoming funds helps :jump
And: I have a check card/ATM card from them, plus they do traveler's checks at a reasonable rate for payment of stuff I need on the trail.

I hope to never use this as it would mean my wife was gone, but I checked anyway as we shall be in our mid 60s by then, so ya never know.

The handling of money will most likely be different in 15 years, but you only have 2 years, so this may be an option for you.


Doctari.

Youngblood
03-12-2005, 12:35
Hey, guys

We're planning to do a thru-hike in 2007 - yes, a long way off. I see tons of stuff out there about how to make sure that life on the trail is comfortable and enjoyable - so, I'm confident in my ability to plan for life on the trail.

However, I see very little out there about how to plan for life that continues back home while you're on the trail. In other words, how to make sure the mortgage is paid, the bills are paid, the house is secure, bank accounts are locked down... health insurance, life insurance... power of attorney for someone to handle affairs in your absence... all that logistical, legal stuff. We've had some thoughts and are starting to make plans, but if anyone has any learnings, I'd be most appreciative!

Thanks!That is a real problem. Maybe someone needs to start some kind of house sitting service for thru-hikers.

I am single and when I did my thru, my adult son was living with me. I gave him power of attorney, had mortgage payments automatically taken from my checking account, tried to prepay most of the routine bills and had my son screen my mail. A couple of years later I was wanting to do another thru but didn't because he wasn't living there anymore and I was too worried about leaving the place empty... it was a different situation. Sometimes it seems our 'things' own us more than we own them.

Youngblood

chris
03-12-2005, 19:57
I've got a pretty simple life, but what I do might help you plan a little bit.

1) Bills. I write out checks and give them to my mother (who gets my mail when I'm away). For the credit cards, I just write checks for $200 and pay the rest off when I get back. This summer, though, I might try doing the automatic bill pay thing or pay via the internet. I don't usually have more than 3 bills a month, so this isn't too big of a deal.

2) Bank account. Do nothing. It won't go anywhere and you'll want to get at the money in it.

3) Car. Tough call. In the past, when I lived in the midwest, I parked my car at my mother's place and called it good. This year, I'm either going to find someone in the area to look after it, or just leave it at my apartment complex (and deal with battery issues later), or find a long-term storage garage to put it in.

4) Apartment. This year I'm just going to lock the door, leave the key with the managers, and be done with it. I'm not too worried about someone breaking in, but if they did they wouldn't find much of value. With a house, you might try finding someone to house sit for you. If you live in a college town, this is easy. There are always international students that need housing over the summer and you can help them out.

For me, personally, the best plan is just to leave the stuff behind and don't worry over it. It is just stuff. Your time is much more valuable.

orangebug
03-12-2005, 21:59
The biggest deal with leaving a car is getting water into the brake lines from humidity. For the battery, simply disconnect the ground cable. Consider removing the rotor from the distributor to disable the car from common car theives. Storing it in a garage would be highly recommended. Alternatively, sell it and get a new one -avoiding insurance and taxes.

Durable Power of Attorney for health care should be considered, just in case of accident. Of course, any adult should have that. Review your will and insurance policies.

Even the big banks can help arrange bill paying and such. However, you might want to use a close advisor, such as an accountant to assist if you don't have family.

wd40
03-12-2005, 22:19
Although I have yet to hike the AT (NOBO next Feb 2006) I once had to live overseas in Paris, France on business for 6 months straight. I had no pets to worry about and called all my creditors, utilites, banks, etc... I pre-paid my utility bills for 6 months (they charged me a minimum of $100.00 per month since I wouldn't be using anything while I was gone). I didn't want to shut any services off (except for mail and newspapers) in order to save on the required deposits for-reconnect fees. All my utility companies were very understanding and worked with me. I programmed my TV to come on at 7:00PM and shut off at 11:00PM, bought 4 cheap plug-in appliance timers to turn lamps on and off (set roughly the same as the TV) . Had my hard-line phone forwarded to a voice mail (I don't own a cell phone) and checked my voice mails every few days. Banks didn't care as I used Travelers Checks and Check Card and paychecks were direct deposited. As far as my car was concerned, I was lucky to have an attached garage and stored it inside. Disconnected the battery, removed the tires and put the car on blocks, locked and covered it. I only have 1 credit card which I only use in an emergency for car rentals (paid by cash or on my check-card when I returned it) and never did have to charge anything. I had a neighbor who had a spare key and made a walk through at least once a week. Notified the local police that I would be gone for 6 months and if any problems arose they could contact my neighbor or my family who could contact me through work or at my temp apt in Paris. Never had a problem. When I returned I disconnected my timers, reprogrammed my TV, called all my utilities ( even had $$ to spare which was credited to future bills, retreived my spare keys, re-started the newspaper, got my held mail (WOW, that was one huge mailbag but the post office only held the important stuff no junk mail). Oh yeah, almost forgot I had cleaned out my fridge except for things like ketchup, beer, wine, hot sauces and other non-perishables and gave alot of frozen food away to my neighbor before I left. I had to go shopping and re-stock my fridge (I like to cook). Other than having my lawn cut by a neighbors son, once every 2 weeks (pre-paid him too) I had no problems at all except I had to replace my car battery even though it was disconnected. It's all in organization and planning. Just thought I'd put my .02 cents worth in.

smokymtnsteve
03-12-2005, 22:39
OB,,,you know cars haven't had rotor buttons in the distributors for a few years now,,,so if you have a recent year model car ... ;)

weary
03-12-2005, 22:44
Hey, guys

We're planning to do a thru-hike in 2007 - yes, a long way off. I see tons of stuff out there about how to make sure that life on the trail is comfortable and enjoyable - so, I'm confident in my ability to plan for life on the trail.
However, I see very little out there about how to plan for life that continues back home while you're on the trail. In other words, how to make sure the mortgage is paid, the bills are paid, the house is secure, bank accounts are locked down... health insurance, life insurance... power of attorney for someone to handle affairs in your absence... all that logistical, legal stuff. We've had some thoughts and are starting to make plans, but if anyone has any learnings, I'd be most appreciative!
Thanks!
I sense it's getting easier with direct deposits and automatic bill playing -- and almost universal ATM machines. In 1993 I wandered around a lot of trail towns looking for ATM machines that would take my card.

Houses are best left to relatives or friendly neighbors, or, even better, a responsible handiman type.

The big problem may involve none recurring bills, like credit cards. I've thought of setting up a credit card budget and creating an automatic bill paying account that would at least equal the likely minimum. With a bit of intelligent guessing one could avoid over paying, while also avoiding excessive interest.

Unless one is relying on credit cards to finance a hike. I would think about just simply setting up an automatic payment plan to pay any credit card balances for the months I'm likely to be away, and rely entirely on ATM cards for living expenses on the trail.

Remember you can just buy a few stamps or cards at trail town post offices and get $50 in cash with an ATM these days, thus avoiding cash withdrawal fees.

Most libraries now have internet access. Set up credit cards so you can get on line balances and statements and you can handle payments yourself.

That leaves only utility bills to worry about. May be your banker will have to handle that one.

A thru hike is likely to be only seven months at most.

Weary

smokymtnsteve
03-12-2005, 22:56
Just get rid of all that stuff, sell/give away everything, cut your pocessions and obligations to a minimum, just like your pack weight, and then after you think your finished, cut down a little more.

I think this is part of "being on the trail" discovering what is nescessary and what is actually unnescessary in our lives, and what do we really want and need in our lives, do we really want all those pocessions??? what is important, what can we live without, what would we be happier without?

simplify, reduce, not just your pack weight...but all the other things that weigh you down in life...

Sly
03-12-2005, 22:58
Online banking.

Spirit Walker
03-12-2005, 23:45
Re: House - you can sell it, rent it out, find someone to live in it as caretaker or hire someone to take care of it for you (i.e. mow lawns.)

Insurance - expensive if you're over 35, but possible if you're willing to spend the money.

Cars - issues include when is insurance payment due, registration, inspection - some won't let you do it early, so you have to find friend or family to take care of it for you. Find someone to drive the car occasionally too. When is your drivers license due to expire?

Mail - have someone monitor your mail so if something unexpected comes up, they dan let you know (i.e. jury duty, IRS notice, bill from a closed account, etc.)

Bills - easy with on-line or automatic payments. We had our credit card with an automatic debit each month. Pre-wrote checks to pay off our final phone, electric and gas bills. Prepaid storage. We left a few signed blank checks, just in case.

Other issues - credit cards -bring a spare, just in case. If it expires while you are on the trail, you are screwed, as they won't forward it to you while you are hiking. You have to do a formal change of address, in writing to the bank. They won't forward it to your new temporary address. Also, if the machine eats it, you are out of luck. Bring a spare.

Have you read the Thruhiking Papers, part 2 ("Is there a faster way out of here?" http://trailwise.circumtech.com/atlthruhikingisthereafaste

orangebug
03-13-2005, 00:07
OB,,,you know cars haven't had rotor buttons in the distributors for a few years now,,,so if you have a recent year model car ... ;)The "Bug" is based on my 74 VW Beetle.

I guess you might wish to remove an ignition wire from the coil, or have those gone away also?

Tim Rich
03-13-2005, 08:31
The "Bug" is based on my 74 VW Beetle.

I guess you might wish to remove an ignition wire from the coil, or have those gone away also?

In newer electronic ignition systems (at least GM), the coil sits directly on top of the distributor, so I don't think there's a connecting wire.

Some newer cars don't react well to being tested for emissions after being stored with a disconnected battery. Many have to have 20, perhaps 50, miles on them to have sufficient on-board diagnostics to talk with the emissions test computer.

wd40
03-13-2005, 17:31
I never had a major problem with my car when I returned. It's a 1989 Nissan 240SX and at that time had over 200,000 miles on it (that was in 1996). I might not have mentioned it in my previous thread, but I filled the gas tank as full as I could get it without overflowing, disconnected and removed the battery then wrapped the cable ends. I also topped off all fluids, changed the oil, removed the wheels and tires, wrapped up the rotors and spindles with paper bags (to keep dust out, didn't use plastic to reduce condensation) put the car on blocks, locked and covered it. When I returned 6 months later I re-mounted the tires, bought a new battery and fired it up. The exhaust did smoke a bit until I changed the oil and filter again then it stopped smoking. That was almost 9 years ago and I'm still driving the car, and it has 285,000+ miles on it and running strong.

I noticed that some of the above threads were concerned about credit card payments, understandably so if you carry any kind of a balance. In my case, I ALWAYS pay the balance off every month since I've only used my card twice in the last 10 years, and that was for emergencies. If I had to use the card, say on the AT, I would use computer banking and transfere funds at re-supply.