View Full Version : Thru Hike in less than 90 days
nbeaty64
03-21-2012, 10:17
Hello,
I'm a recent college grad and I've always planned on doing a thru hike. The obsticle that I face is that I was quickly hired as a teacher, so teh average time of 5-7 months isn't an opption. The summer that I will have is right at 92 days excluding any changes. I would simply like to know how long it took some of you and if you think this would be a possibility.
Thanks
Monkeywrench
03-21-2012, 10:23
The math is simple. You would have to hike 24+ AT miles (plus side jaunts to shelters, streams, towns for resupply) per day, every day, with no breaks in order to do that. Do you think you could do that?
The answer- you have . Look to the question---5-7 months. Hike as much as you can and enjoy as much . You also picked a profession were you can pick up were you left off .A three month vacation paid by the taxpayers is not a bad deal!
You'll probably find that you enjoy doing two 3-month section hikes more than a lot of thru hikers enjoy one long hike. There's less burn out, fewer financial issues, and better weather (assuming you have the summers off).
Granted, you'll have to repeat the initial 2-week break in period the second year, but that's a small price to pay for the benefits.
Why are you hiking? To be able to call yourself a thru hiker (If so, attempt it in 92 days and be miserable or find someone to slack you the entire way) or to enjoy backpacking the AT? (if so, do two sections)
max patch
03-21-2012, 10:39
24 miles per day every day. even on resupply days and days of torrential downpours.
take one day off a week for rest and resupply and you need to hike 28 miles per day every hiking day.
possible? yes, for a very, very few individuals. almost impossible for us mere mortals. plan on taking 2 years to complete the trail.
nbeaty64
03-21-2012, 10:48
The answer- you have . Look to the question---5-7 months. Hike as much as you can and enjoy as much . You also picked a profession were you can pick up were you left off .A three month vacation paid by the taxpayers is not a bad deal!
Yes, a two year section hike does sound more reasonable, and you will never hear me complain about having a paid summer break.
plenty of people who are fit & have a 'i want to hike most of the day' mentality have finished on that timeline.
If you're not one of those people then just do it in 2 sections.
Congrats on finishing your degree and landing a teaching job. Enjoy your hike.
I say don't plan a timetable or mail drops and such.
Just pack light and resupply as you go, and get off the trail when it's time to start your job.
Ever done long distance hiking before?
The record is 46 days, fully supported.
Feral Bill
03-21-2012, 12:32
You also picked a profession were you can pick up were you left off .A three month vacation paid by the taxpayers is not a bad deal![/QUOTE] Don't worry, the taxpayers will more than make it up in unpaid overtime and out of pocket spending.
garlic08
03-21-2012, 14:11
I made my AT thru hike at age 52 in 106 days and I'm not an endurance athlete or even close--just consistent and experienced. My longest day was 29 miles. I only took three zero days, so you don't have to take one day off every week as is commonly thought. 92 days is not out of the question for an athlete with some trail experience. At some point, that experience is really the key--you can't get waylaid by blisters or sunburn or poison ivy, or take days off waiting for new gear to arrive, and you have to be efficient at resupplying and taking care of personal business in towns. Good luck!
That would be one heck of a hump.
Ever done long distance hiking before?
The record is 46 days, fully supported.
And by fully supported, this means insoles that address all areas of the foot!
92 days is QUICK. Add a 1 to the front of that and that's my goal.
Whatever you decide, let us know how it works out.
Have great hike and start to your new career!
:)
southern fossil
03-21-2012, 14:58
The answer- you have . Look to the question---5-7 months. Hike as much as you can and enjoy as much . You also picked a profession were you can pick up were you left off .A three month vacation paid by the taxpayers is not a bad deal!
Just so we are clear tax payers do not pay for out "vacation". We are paid 10 months!!
Just thought I would clarify that! :)
Just so we are clear tax payers do not pay for out "vacation". We are paid 10 months!!
Just thought I would clarify that! :)
Teachers aren't paid near enough for the importance of their jobs to ourselves, our families, and our nation - no matter how many months.
rocketsocks
03-21-2012, 18:05
Hello,
I'm a recent college grad and I've always planned on doing a thru hike. The obstacle that I face is that I was quickly hired as a teacher, so the average time of 5-7 months isn't an option. The summer that I will have is right at 92 days excluding any changes. I would simply like to know how long it took some of you and if you think this would be a possibility.
ThanksOn the home page see:hiker advise (left column),then find (AT hiking rates section by section)at the bottom,this should give you a good idea of what is generally thought but by no means set in stone.:welcomehave a great hike.
stranger
03-21-2012, 18:37
92 days is 'quick' but it's far from 'unlikely'. I know a few people who have 'comfortably' hiked the AT in 90-100 days. Hiking in summer means fewer hikers around, more daylight, less people in towns to distract - all very good for making miles.
I think it depends on experience, whether or not you know 'what it feels like' to hike 26 miles back to back, 'how it feels' to walk across the road in the rain and keep hiking in soggy socks when a $40 motel is 3 miles down that road, with a pizza place across the road, etc...
I've always felt that there is a big difference between say 90 days, and 100-105...just seems to be that threshold there. And remember as others have said, you won't hike every day, so I would budget on a 6-6.5 day week, certainly not 7 days.
A 3 month hike is epic regardless, have fun!
92 days is doable at your age if you pack light, have a BMI of 19-23, and have been physically active.
You would also want to do it, rather than stop for beer and pizza and stuff.
The answer- you have . Look to the question---5-7 months. Hike as much as you can and enjoy as much . You also picked a profession were you can pick up were you left off .A three month vacation paid by the taxpayers is not a bad deal!
Just to clarify...teachers don't get paid during the summer. Why do you think so many of them are painting houses during July and August.
miloandotis
03-21-2012, 20:50
Teachers aren't paid near enough for the importance of their jobs to ourselves, our families, and our nation - no matter how many months.
+1 that!!!
k2basecamp
03-21-2012, 21:00
Okay i dont know where you teach but i teach to june 18 and have to be back to start on august 28.
All the teachers i know get about the same.
Anyways 2 summers would be the prudent thing to do. If you haven,t been doing a lot of backpacking or say running marathons you're asking for a stress fracture.
Good luck.
hikerboy57
03-22-2012, 07:44
will you enjoy yourself hiking 25 miles a day for 3 months?
It's certainly possible - - I regularly hike 24 mile days and have done a couple of 200 mile weeks but this is truly unusually fast and I doubt that I could do 12 - 182 mile weeks in a row and you would be trekking at this pace. You will also miss a lot of the "culture" of the AT which is integral to the trail experience. Now, if you asked about a 4 MONTH thru-hike, I would suggest that that is STILL fast but much more of a reasonable idea - - that would be mostly 20-22 mile days but would still allowfor a few nero-days, a couple of restful town stops, etc. Truthfully, the answer is up to you: You'd need to start in excellent aerobic shape and have no problems including feet, water, etc., your re-supplies and gear change-outs would have to go smoothly and quickly - - obviously, you couldn't have any newbie nonsense going on (heavy stupid gear) - - the light side for sure. Check out Garlic's post - he did it in 106 days and has his routine down pat. My suggestion would be to Southbound - all of the speed records have been set in that direction and while it is regarded by most as a "harder way to go," for a fast person, the overall up/down grades probably net out a little easier - - see how far you get - - if you don't make it in 90 days, you might just have to come back for a couple of weeks and touch-up.
max patch
03-22-2012, 11:22
I think anyone who wants to say that a 90 day thru is easy needs to keep their mouth shut unless they have actually done it.
Well, nbeaty64, if your progress is proportional to the way other hikers have done it before you would hit certain landmarks along the way like this if you took three months to NOBO thru-hike:
Georgia border: day 5
Fontana: day 9
Damascus: day 22
Waynesboro: day 38
Harpers Ferry: day 44
Delaware Water Gap: day 54
Kent: day 61
Glencliff: day 74
Gorham: day 79
Stratton: day 84
Katahdin: day 92
You might check yourself against this rate of progress if you're trying to figure out enroute if you're on pace to complete in the time you are hoping for. If not, I would say hiking for three months and just getting as far as you happen to get has plenty of appeal.
stranger
03-24-2012, 09:23
I think anyone who wants to say that a 90 day thru is easy needs to keep their mouth shut unless they have actually done it.
I don't believe a single person on this thread said a 90 day hike would be easy
Unless you naturally enjoy endurance athletics, you probably wouldn't like the pace of a 92-day thru-hike. Hike to northern Virginia or maybe Pennsylvania. Hike on next summer.
BTW, I teach in the south where summer heat changes time off. Our summer runs from May 23 to August 1 this year. It seems 10 weeks is pretty standard.
I've only hiked overweight and obese, over the past 10 years. Curious what it might be like to hike as a lightweight.
Say over a 100 mile trail, with 5 miles of cummulative elevation loss and gain...
If at 230 pounds with 40 pounds of stuff I can do 14 miles per day,
and at 180 pounds with 30 pounds of stuff I can do 18 miles per day...
What might I expect to cover at 165# with 15# of stuff ? 21 miles per day ???
Theory being that effort is a product of total weight x distance per day? Incidentally, I found hiking lighter alot more pleasant, at the same total effort. Less pain. I think when alot of people say that the lightweights doing 25 miles per day aren't having fun they are at least partly mistaken, because they are probably basing it on what it might be like to hike 25 miles when overweight, rather that 25 miles per day at an ideal weight.