Trail Angel- best locations

[Toolumpy]

Won,t make it hiking this year but may be able to do some food feed somewhere in May or June or July. Any ideas on the best places where this would help out the most?
Would hammock by my car for sleeping.
Not talking about a mass feed just some on the run food supplies to help out. Driving from Michigan so it can't just be the spur of the moment idea.

[HikerMom58]

Hey Toolumpy... There's a group of hikers coming up called the Summit Sisters. They are a nice bunch. If you would like, you could come to Daleville VA. in early June- ish. I think that's about when they should be arriving. You can crash at my house and we could do something together for the them and all the others. Let me know....

[yellowsirocco]

The farther north the better. There is trail magic all over the south. And hikers in the south are pampered these days. You can make it all the way into Virginia without having to hitchike with all the shuttles around. Trail magic in the south is not really magical. Where people would best appreciate it is after they have been out for a few months and hiking has become a job.

Personally if I was going to drive that far I would go for a hike and see some stuff.

[RED-DOG]

Go to the Church of the Mountains Hostel in the Delaware Water Gap the last week of may and the first week in June.

[Southerner]

If you waited until July, you could do whatever it is you are thinking about doing in southern Maine. A good place, just thinking off the top of my head, would be the Maine Rte. 26 (Grafton Notch) crossing, which is just north of Old Spec and just south of Baldpate. Going at that time, you would catch a good number of northbounders gearing up for their final push and a good number of southbounders who would just be starting to hit their stride. Both groups would be appreciative as the northbounders likely wouldn't have seen that sort of thing in a while and southbounders tend not to see that sort of thing much at all. It would also be a cool area for you to hike if you got a chance to stretch your legs.

[Crusinsusan]

WOW! So *this* is trail magic....how cool of you!

[FatHead64]

Won,t make it hiking this year but may be able to do some food feed somewhere in May or June or July. Any ideas on the best places where this would help out the most?
Would hammock by my car for sleeping.
Not talking about a mass feed just some on the run food supplies to help out. Driving from Michigan so it can't just be the spur of the moment idea.

Vicksburg - not far from me - and I work in Portage.

[SCRUB HIKER]

If you waited until July, you could do whatever it is you are thinking about doing in southern Maine. A good place, just thinking off the top of my head, would be the Maine Rte. 26 (Grafton Notch) crossing, which is just north of Old Spec and just south of Baldpate. Going at that time, you would catch a good number of northbounders gearing up for their final push and a good number of southbounders who would just be starting to hit their stride. Both groups would be appreciative as the northbounders likely wouldn't have seen that sort of thing in a while and southbounders tend not to see that sort of thing much at all. It would also be a cool area for you to hike if you got a chance to stretch your legs.

I like this idea. Grafton Notch has a big parking area right by the trail for whatever grilling or whatnot that you plan to do, and Bethel, Maine is about 17 miles away, so you could supply out of there. You could maybe even offer rides into Bethel at the end of each day, because I think it's an awesome town but a prohibitively hard hitch for most hikers so they don't bother to go in. As for you, you can either direction out of the Notch and you're richly rewarded within 5 miles. Old Speck or Baldpate, take your pick. You can hammock anywhere around there; it's all densely wooded.

In mid-July, you'd get a mix of NOBOs and SOBOs, and they won't even be having their usual d***-measuring contests because the SOBOs won't be able to play the "I've been through the Whites and you haven't yet" card. They would definitely both appreciate it. I was NOBO and I caught one hiker feed later on in Maine but otherwise I didn't see any planned trail magic in NH or Maine. People would be happy.

There's also the issue that, for the OP driving from Michigan, it would be a much more scenic drive to get to Maine via the Dacks, Vermont and New Hampshire than, say, having to head south into the mid-Atlantic region. If I were coming from Michigan and looking to reward myself at all for the trip, I'd go to Maine.

[Blissful]

Personally I'd go do some on the Long Trail in Vermont... :) :) That would be totally unexpected and totally appreciated. That is a tough trail.
Or hit the SOBOers. NOBOers get enough if it, they don't appreciate it anymore after VA. After I saw the give-me attitude by hikers by MD while I was riudgerunning, it made me swear off of it except for those I knew were NOT expecting it.

[Keystonehobo]

I went last year and dropped off some donuts at the del. gap. The thru hikers loved them.

[Cookerhiker]

To minimize your driving time from Michigan, I'd suggest one of the PA road crossings east of the Susquehanna River - perhaps the Rt. 501 crossing by the 501 shelter. At that point, hikers are several days out of Duncannon but still 24 miles from Port Clinton. Another possibility is PA Rt. 309 and still another is Lehigh Gap - right before the toughest ascent in PA - oh maybe that's not a good idea.:o Because PA is a PITA to many due to the rocks and it will be hot & humid, thruhiker will greatly appreciate cold drinks as well as any other snacks.

[Toolumpy]

Thanx for all the replys folks. Great information