Which way to go?

[Horsa]

Hi everyone,

due to my work/university schedule, i have to start my thru-hike attempt at the beginning of May and i am not sure which direction i should go.
I think both ways have their advantages but i am kinda stuck here...
Furthermore, i have to decide pretty soon, as i have to book the flights from Munich, Germany, and back.

Reaching Mt. Katahdin before October 15 should not be an issue here. I plan to average about 16-17miles/day.

Please help me out

[Lone Wolf]

early may is too early to go southbound. go northbound

[fiddlehead]

Started one year on May 9th.
Finished Oct 14th that year (1995)
You are young. Why not?

It is not a bad time to hike. The crowds will be gone. There won't be too many full shelters, hostels, or hotels like you'd have 6 weeks earlier.
You will have to keep moving though and not spend a lot of time in towns.
I limited myself to 2 nights, but tried to do it in one normally that year I believe.

You probably won't catch serious thru-hikers until VA somewhere, although there will be lots of stragglers who decided it's more fun to party than run for Maine.
The trick is not to get caught up in their game.

[Horsa]

Alright,
thanks a lot!

[wornoutboots]

I hiked with these Sobo's last year for a while, they started early on June 1st & had a great time, believe it or not, they even paddled the North Forest Canoe Trail before walking the AT back home to Atlanta

http://trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=350077

[steveinator]

I'm in the same boat. I decided to head northbound. Its not worth trying to go south amongst flooded streams, muddy paths, and lots of bugs. I'm going to try to get in good shape so I can start off at a reasonable pace, then if I run out of time I'll flip flop it to make sure I get katadyn before it closes.