View Full Version : Length of Time on Trail
Bob Baker
05-11-2005, 07:14
I was just wondering how long it took you guys to hike the AT. I was hoping to do it in one summer (<3 months) so I didn't have to miss any school.
I was just wondering how long it took you guys to hike the AT. I was hoping to do it in one summer (<3 months) so I didn't have to miss any school.
Bob:
There will be a lot of naysayers, but as long as you're not a twinkie eating, soda slurping, tv watching kind of teen, you can do it. You'll have to be fit when you start and determined throughout. I would also add that <100 days might be a more realitic goal for a fast hike.
MileMonster
05-11-2005, 08:11
As Mowgli said, you can certainly do it but you'll have to hit the ground running and stick with it. For example, if you hike 25 miles per day (a good clip to walk every day) six days per week and one 10 mile town day per week, your weekly ave will be 22.8 mpd. At that rate it would take 96 days to complete the thru with no zero days. Keep in mind if you start out with shorter days you'll have to make it up later. Not much time to stop and smell the Trillium, but depends on what you're after.
I started my Thru with a deadline looming in late August and it created a bit of stress the first few weeks. When I cleared this deadline I really felt the calm and freedom the Trail has to offer. Turns out I finished in the early part of July, but the idea that I had to do certain things at the the beginning made it less enjoyable.
max patch
05-11-2005, 09:17
A 91 day hike with 1 zero day a week for resupply and rest will require you to hike 28 miles per day every day the other 6 days of the week.
Its not impossible and has been done by others, but it is a rare individual that can hike at that pace every day.
Get done what you can get done and if you don't finish this year then go for it next year. The trail ain't going anywhere.
Really wouldn't have much to do with smelling the roses, but more to do with perseverance in hiking in nasty weather and discipline in getting up early in the morning.
Your hiking pace doesn't have to be fast, but long hours would be the key. This way you would reduce the chance of injury.
Hike from 5 to 5 which is 12 hours. Average 2 miles per hour with breaks and you have 24 miles per day. Not unreasonable for a warrior!
Trail Yeti
05-11-2005, 11:01
you can do it that fast if you want...just be careful not to get an overuse injury...however, I took my time and "smelled the roses", took side trips etc....
Its the journey of a lifetime...why rush?
Kerosene
05-11-2005, 11:39
Note that if you're hiking that quickly you will soon outpace other groups. You'll be starting later than the pack anyway, will eventually catch up and pass the pack, and finish ahead of the pack, so your "social" thru-hiker experience will be different. Like max patch said, the Trail will be there next year. If I had 3 months I would do an extended section without a fixed schedule.
Why don't you spend three months on Vermont's Long Trail? The only thing I regret about my thru-hike is that I did not spend more time.
Why don't you spend three months on Vermont's Long Trail? The only thing I regret about my thru-hike is that I did not spend more time.
Woah, that would be something. 3 miles a day. Sounds pretty good to me!
Bob Baker
05-11-2005, 14:47
From what I see you guys are about evenly split. Lets say I did take a leisurely(I know I can't spell) pace how far could I get and where would you reccommend to hike. I live in Maryland but going either direction shouldn't be a problem.
Uncle Silly
05-11-2005, 17:16
I was just wondering how long it took you guys to hike the AT.
i'll tell ya when i get there! :jump
--UnkaSylli
VA->ME, VA->GA
Let try to paraphrase myself in answering the standard "I want to hike the AT incredibly fast" question.
Most people cannot physically keep up that pace.
Most people who physically can, mentally find they don't want to.
The odds are very, very high that you won't complete a hike that fast.
If you still want to give it a whirl, go for it.
From what I see you guys are about evenly split. Lets say I did take a leisurely(I know I can't spell) pace how far could I get and where would you reccommend to hike. I live in Maryland but going either direction shouldn't be a problem.
You could (fairly easily) reach either Katahdin or Springer in 3 months, if you start at Harpers Ferry. Another option would be to start at Rockfish Gap, which is the southern terminus of Shenandoah National Park. You could then walk north the nearly 1400 miles (plus or minus) to Katahdin. That would give you just a shade over 100 miles per week to play with. If you started when school lets out, you'd be in the thick of the northbound herd too. Depending on what you like, that could be good or bad.
icemanat95
05-11-2005, 17:35
An AT thru-=hike is the trip of a lifetime for most of those who attempt it. Trying tol force it into an artificial schedule is a good way to kill the experience dead. Wait on it until you have the time to do it proper justice. Clear a good six months on your schedule, make sure you have sufficient funds and/or credit to carry you through without having to worry about running out of money, and then hike.
I fully support people looking to take on the challenge of a summer thru-hike (90-105 days) BUT only if they are truly prepared for the tremendous mental and physcial hurdles. I just wrote a response to a similar query saying they should "go for it" and not listen to the naysayers. However, if you are on this site asking whether you should do it or not, well then I'd say your not fully committed to the idea.
So going with an extended long section would probably benefit you more. You can cover a whole lot of ground in 3 months and could do anywhere from 900-1300 miles pretty easily and not have a dealine. The suggestions to start at Rockfish or Harpers Ferry are good ones. The other alternative is to start at katahdin in late may/early june and head South with the first group of SOBO's, in which case you'd still have the southern half/third to finish at a later date (possibly in the spring or fall). Anyway you do it, you can't go wrong
You could (fairly easily) reach either Katahdin or Springer in 3 months, if you start at Harpers Ferry. Another option would be to start at Rockfish Gap, which is the southern terminus of Shenandoah National Park. You could then walk north the nearly 1400 miles (plus or minus) to Katahdin. That would give you just a shade over 100 miles per week to play with. If you started when school lets out, you'd be in the thick of the northbound herd too. Depending on what you like, that could be good or bad.
Just go hiking. This is solid advice.