View Full Version : Head-start thru-hike from HF, VA beginning in April rather than May
Hello All,
I am currently planning a head-start thru-hike for 2014. I am most interested in doing a head-start type hike to maximize both seasonal beauty and solitude: starting at Harpers Ferry, W.Va., traveling north to Katahdin, returning to Harpers Ferry and continuing south to Springer Mountain. The ATC suggests to start this hike in mid-May, but I would rather start slightly earlier, like mid to late April. Does anyone have any advice on this type of hike and the pros and cons of an appropriate start date?
Thanks in advance!
Slo-go'en
10-01-2013, 16:39
Yea, you'll be hiking in the worst spring weather the whole way. You'll have lots of rain, mud and bugs all the way through to Maine. You will actually be ahead of the seasonal beauty. Then when you flip, you'll have the worst of the summer heat and humidity down south. A very bad plan in MOHO.
April and May is the time to do the southern Appalachians to catch all the wild flowers and flowering trees/bushes. There is not nearly as much of that up here in the north and most of it occurs in late June and early July.
Stick with the traditional plan for optimum conditions - leave Springer around April 1st. If you want solitude (which is much over rated) it's easy enough obtain.
max patch
10-01-2013, 16:49
If you want to maximize beauty you want to finish at Katahdin in the fall. Start at Springer April 1 and go NOBO. No law (except in the GSMNP) that says you gotta sleep at the shelters. Easy to minimize contact with others if thats what you want.
Wouldn't starting a SOBO thru around July 1 result in moderate summertime temps in New England, missing. Ost of the humid summer months of the mid Atlantic by entering Virginia around Labor Day, then seeing the fall colors through the South and ending around thanksgiving? That would be my plan for the AT if I thru hike someday. Missing the NOBO bubble would be an added bonus.
Hmmm, I was interested in obtaining a less humid summer in NH and ME and the fall colors throughout NC and GA. Slo-go'en, would you suggest a later start to accomplish what I'm after, say late May/early June? Or am I simply thinking about this the wrong way?
stranger
10-02-2013, 07:45
Harpers Ferry north from April puts you in New England in June - you will get destroyed by bugs and mud will be an issue. If you just go south leaving in mid-June you will have a buggy/muddy start but by mid-July that will pass, much more solitude going south and you can reach NC by fall if you want to.
stranger
10-02-2013, 07:46
Read up on New England black-fly season before deciding
fredmugs
10-02-2013, 09:37
What about starting at Harpers Ferry and heading SOBO. Then going NOBO from Harpers.
Let me answer the question you actually asked -- that is, whether April or May would be a better time to head northbound from Harpers Ferry. If you are considerate to the wishes of the Green Mountain Club (they maintain the AT in Vermont) you will want to avoid getting to Vermont before Memorial Day weekend (they recommend staying off the trails in Vermont during the height of mud season from mid-April to late May). I don't know how fast you hike -- it's 575 miles from Harpers Ferry to the MA/VT border. In any case you will be somewhere in New England in June whether you leave in April or May, and experience mosquitos and black flies then. I predict you will survive. I think your original plan is likely to work fine and I admire your willingness to not follow the herd.
Got a somewhat similar plan for a through hike several years from now. I'd like to leave here on foot and hike the AT South to Springer, leaving on May 7th. From Springer I'd get a shuttle to Atlanta, hop on a Couple of Mega Buses to Blacksburg, Va and get picked up there by my family and brought back here for a week off before setting out on foot again NOBO to Maine. I have a friend living in Maine who would fetch me and put me up for a day or two at the end before I head home. This way I get to see fewer and more dispersed NOBOS and will likely re meet some of them in the finishing leg.
Slo-go'en
10-02-2013, 11:59
I guess I'm a traditionalist. I like the south in the spring and then north in the fall. Not sure if I like the middle part at any time of the year.
The various flip flop options all have different trade offs, mostly weather related. I think getting optimal weather is the most important consideration. The so called "crowds" are overstated and are actually a lot of fun.
I belive the traditional early April NOBO start provides the best overall weather conditions for the duration of the hike, which is why it is the most popular. Doing a "middle out" hike puts you at one end or the other at a less then desirable time of year.
I agree with those that say the springtime crowds are not as bad as some might believe. Just don't leave Springer on a weekend in March or early April.
Frankly, the people you hike with are the best part of your AT experience.
ChinMusic
10-02-2013, 12:38
Unless you are a shelter dweller, The Bubble is a myth.
stranger
10-03-2013, 07:19
It's no myth...but yes, it's most visable at shelters, in town, etc...there are ways to avoid it.
colorado_rob
10-03-2013, 09:11
It's no myth...but yes, it's most visable at shelters, in town, etc...there are ways to avoid it. Yep, definitely no myth, the Bubble is highly annoying and I sure couldn't find ways to avoid the crowds with my spring NOBO hike starting at springer. I wound up doing 703 miles fighting these shelter/campsite/hostel crowds in April and May. I just returned from the next 262 miles in the last couple weeks and my goodness, what a much better experience on the AT. I thoroughly endorse doing something alternative, but your original plan does seem to mess with the worst weather and bugs a bit. To finish next year, I plan on heading north from Front Royal (50 miles south of Harpers) in the mid spring for a couple months, then flipping up to Katadin and heading south just as soon as is feasible. So my point is rather than flip only once, you could do something a bit more complex and break the trail into 4 pieces somehow.
ChinMusic
10-03-2013, 09:34
Like I said the Bubble is myth if you are NOT a shelter dweller. I just lived the life. In GA shelters behind me and in front of me were overflowing. I had campsites to myself on most nights.
colorado_rob
10-03-2013, 09:48
Like I said the Bubble is myth if you are NOT a shelter dweller. I just lived the life. In GA shelters behind me and in front of me were overflowing. I had campsites to myself on most nights. Unfortunately, GA is only a few days n the trail. We each perceive differently. With my April 10th start, I was probably behind the Bubble initially, but caught up and hiked right into it within a couple weeks. I am not a shelter dweller at all, though occasinally use one if it is pouring rain; they sure are handy for that, but you can mostly forget about it if you're in this "mythical" bubble, they are packed. I like using a tent, but alas, I even found the decent camp sites full a lot of the time. Then there are the Hostels. Unless you're a very early riser and get to these places early in the day (meaning short days/miles), I found the hostles nearly always full. Perhaps I was just unlucky. But I sure don't want to have to rely on luck to have a comfy place to spend the night.
If I were doing this all over again, I'd probably go Harpers--> Katadin starting in late April/early May then flip back down to Harpers and head south. I sure did enjoy this last couple of weeks hiking in northern VA enjoying cool, dry early fall weather. Still plenty of folks on the trail, but zero problem finding great places to camp and shelters had only a couple/few people staying on the nights I chose to use those. Delightful, so much more enjoyable to my style of hiking than the standard NOBO blitz in the spring.
stranger
10-03-2013, 21:20
Like I said the Bubble is myth if you are NOT a shelter dweller. I just lived the life. In GA shelters behind me and in front of me were overflowing. I had campsites to myself on most nights.
You're not the one who's lived this life...I've been down to Springer in March and April more than once...yes, I agree that shelters are where the crowds are by far the worst, but there is also the town element.
Even if you camp a mile or so away from shelters every night, it's not uncommon to arrive in towns like Franklin and Hot Springs and have every single hostel and motel full, it's a real possibility. Because especially down south, it's common for peole to spend 2-3 days in town doing the party thing. In 2008 people were sleeping under the bridge in Hot Springs because there was no place to stay.
I got to Damascus a week after Trail Days and there was no place to stay, granted the Place was closed for health reasons...but half the people there were from Trail Days...not hiking.
Teacher & Snacktime
10-03-2013, 21:52
I can tell you that mid april is a wonderful time to head out from HF....warm and quiet. The trails were great, and we saw very few others.
Cookerhiker
10-07-2013, 15:01
I guess I'm a traditionalist. I like the south in the spring and then north in the fall. Not sure if I like the middle part at any time of the year.
The various flip flop options all have different trade offs, mostly weather related. I think getting optimal weather is the most important consideration. The so called "crowds" are overstated and are actually a lot of fun.
I believe the traditional early April NOBO start provides the best overall weather conditions for the duration of the hike, which is why it is the most popular. Doing a "middle out" hike puts you at one end or the other at a less then desirable time of year.
I don't think so. I agree that you want to maximize spring and fall hiking but an April 1 NOBO start doesn't cut it. Starting in Spring, even as late as April 1, means you mostly miss the fall unless you take a lot of zero and nero days. Both my GF and I summited Katahdin in mid-September but in different years - fall colors were barely discernible. The forest was mostly green still. And a thruhiker, without a lot of zeros and neros, starting April 1 will probably take less than 6 months.
And then an April 1 start means you're still hiking in the stinking heat & humidity in July. If you reach the halfway point on July 1 at Pine Grove Furnace, then you're hiking the month of July in PA, NJ, NY, CT where not only is it hot, but mosquitoes reign in the latter three states.
I realize not everyone has the flexibility to do what I'm about to suggest, but given (1) wanting to experience both spring & fall conditions, and (2) avoiding mid-summer, especially the month of July, I would start March 20 at Harpers Ferry, hike south to Springer (hiking SOBO here means you avoid the early and larger bubble), spend July hiking in the Rockies to stay in shape, return to Katahdin August 10, hike south to Harpers Ferry. You'll enjoy practically all of spring and fall.
Just Bill
10-07-2013, 22:33
Conure-
If you wanted to stay cooler, as mentioned, a bit later start would be better if you are going NOBO first. I agree that May/June is a bit early to hit the Northwoods. Not impossible by any means, but certainly not ideal. You will see very few folks. May, June, July would put you in better shape heading through VT, NH, Maine. You'd likely run into the southbounders starting, but no biggie. You'd get to VT near the end of the worst mud and likely only flirt with black fly season. But then you've got a hot stretch heading south from Harpers Aug, Sept, and if you're lucky fall colors to finish in Oct. but you'd likely miss them to be honest. You'd also likely miss the summer wildflower bloom in many areas.
I'm a bigger fan of going SOBO from Harpers and leaving earlier. April (or even march if you wanted), May, June to Springer, then Harpers on North for July Aug Sept. (Or June, July, Aug if you start in March and wanted to avoid PA in July) Northwoods in the late summer and fall has to be one of the prettiest around. You have to spend July somewhere, I'd pick PA over VA anyday. The best flowers on the trail are generally springtime down south, the best colors are hands down up north. Speaking seasonal beauty you can't go wrong. You will pass the bubble heading south, but not fight them for space much as most drop in the first month or so before you'll see them. You may find yourself with some NOBO's on the back end, but the herd will be seriously thinned, and three months in you may appreciate the relatively limited company. Finish at big K is a nice bonus, as is scooting over to the Long trail if your feet are still itching or you finish a bit too early for the fall colors.
All of the above assumes a six month pace- however, starting in the middle of the trail, in the easier terrain, makes building your trail legs easier and faster; so if you want them- bigger days will come faster than a traditional NOBO or SOBO hike.
In addition, southern services can thin out or even close up as the season is long over. If you aren't doing maildrops you could find yourself struggling a bit to find stove fuel and other common items as the folks down there tend not to reorder supplies late in the season. Some hostels and other services are limited as well. Going south first assures you that you'll be travelling in both areas when all services are available.
I would seriously consider HFGA HFMA, not sure what the ATC calls it but I call it Having Fun to Georgia, Having Fun to Maine- and it's the best hike in my not so humble opinion.
best of luck
Hi Conure,
Many of the Harpers Ferry Head Start thru-hikers I've talked to who started in May really liked that choice and felt it had many advantages in terms of terrain, weather, crowd avoidance, and other conditions. This version puts you into the stream of early northbounders. There's no way you can keep up with them, and you absolutely shouldn't try when you start out. But, in time, you'll get your trail legs and will be able to keep up with them. Either way, at least you'll have companionship in the shelters at night with fellow long-distance hikers if you feel like it. Many hikers think they want solitude, but most find true solitude lonely, boring, and uninspiring after days or weeks on end. You will encounter day-hikers on weekends if you start from Harpers Ferry in April, but that won’t give you the same connection you would feel with other long-distance hikers.
If you began a Head Start thru-hike in April, especially the first half of the month, it would be a very lonely hike, and the landscape is still rather desolate. Most years you would end up chasing winter's tail most of the way north. And you should plan on reaching the Green Mountain National Forest (the Vermont border) not before the beginning of June to avoid the worst of mud season.
This year, we saw only about 30 northbound thru-hikers in Harpers Ferry by April, and all but six were in the last 10 days of the month. We ended the northbound season with 1130.
Recently I talked to a 2013 Head Start thru-hiker here in Harpers Ferry who was getting ready to begin the second leg of his hike. He had done the first half of his hike from Harpers Ferry in May, and actually felt he started too early. He wished he had started the beginning of June or further south, because he had too much solitude. He wanted to be close to the middle of the bubble after having hiked alone so much. This year, even though we did end up with a record number of northbounders reaching Harpers Ferry, we were behind as much as 30% early in the season over last year due to the snow down South in March and April). He did like the weather and everything else about the first half of the hike except the somewhat strange experience of being on Katahdin with all the northbounders when they were finishing and celebrating, and he still had a thousand miles to go.
The idea of starting by hiking south from Harpers Ferry seems to have a natural appeal, but in reality it is the least popular option by those who have attempted it. (The drop-out rate seems high, too). We've gotten negative feedback from some who’ve done or attempted it. It's a very lonely hike, because very few people are walking long distances southbound at that time of year. You meet all the northbound thru-hikers, but in the form of a wave or nod as you pass on the Trail, or a single night in a shelter or in town. It seems to work best for couples.
Also, you can encounter snow in Shenandoah well into April. Ice storms are common in March, even into the beginning of April. In winter and early spring, the park (which in summer has one of the highest concentrations of services on the entire A.T.) is one of the more remote places on the Trail when Skyline Drive is shut down due to snow. Services aren't in full swing well into May.
That's not to say that a thru-hike starting in Harpers Ferry and going south might not be perfect for some--there is obvious enthusiasm in this thread for it.
If you'd like to talk to some people who have completed alternative thru-hikes, email me at
[email protected] and I can send you some names and contact info.
Good luck, and we look forward to seeing you in Harpers Ferry on your thru-hike!
Laurie P.
ATC
ATC suggests Wrap-arounds starting either May in HF or April in Damascus heading north. Any ideas on starting at Bland in mid-April? We'd like to start in April, but Damascus is not as easy to get to via bus (Bluefield WV - then shuttle). We'd be coming back to Bland and heading south to finish.
Biggest concerns are: weather, bug season in NE. We want to avoid crowded shelters and snow as much as possible.
Slo-go'en
01-05-2014, 17:12
ATC suggests Wrap-arounds starting either May in HF or April in Damascus heading north. Any ideas on starting at Bland in mid-April? We'd like to start in April, but Damascus is not as easy to get to via bus (Bluefield WV - then shuttle). We'd be coming back to Bland and heading south to finish.
Biggest concerns are: weather, bug season in NE. We want to avoid crowded shelters and snow as much as possible.
Trial days is middle of May in Damascus, so you don't want to start then, there :) A good place to start is Marion, VA as there is a bus station there and it easy to get to the trail from there. Marion is about 30 trail miles north of Damacus and not too far south of Bland, and due to the proximity of the bus station, is more practical then Damascus or Bland.
I think April is too early to start hiking in VA, but you don't want to run into the Trail days crowd, so starting the first week of May would keep you ahead of the big bubble for at least a little while. But even with Trail days, there are way fewer thru hikers out since many of them never made it that far or are spread out.
Thanks. Wouldn't starting at Marion put me at Mt. Rogers? I know we don't want to be there early in the season. :eek:
Trial days is middle of May in Damascus, so you don't want to start then, there :) A good place to start is Marion, VA as there is a bus station there and it easy to get to the trail from there. Marion is about 30 trail miles north of Damacus and not too far south of Bland, and due to the proximity of the bus station, is more practical then Damascus or Bland.
I think April is too early to start hiking in VA, but you don't want to run into the Trail days crowd, so starting the first week of May would keep you ahead of the big bubble for at least a little while. But even with Trail days, there are way fewer thru hikers out since many of them never made it that far or are spread out.
Wow. That is a great starting point! Thanks!!!!