unorthodox hiker looking for similar partner to hike in snp and va At sections

Hi im Joe and im 35 and live in Richmond,Va. I have a wife 2 kids a dog and a house payment. So right now thru hiking is pretty off the table but i have been doing sections for the past two seasons. This was my first real exposure to hiking and i am just now at a point where im really happy with all of my set up. I have done all of SNP except the last 15-20 to Front Royal. The last few seasons I have been hiking with 1-3 other people. Dont get me wrong they are great people and decent friends but i cant stand to hike with them. Honestly this was my dream and I shared the idea with one of the guys in hopes to get someone to go out with me for my first exposure. Since then he has tried to take the lead and kind of boss me around and i dont play that crap. Not that i cant take direction but there is no compromise i mean its all his idea or nothing at all needless to say we bump heads .The issue is that our goals and expectations are different and thats where we butt heads. Also this guy has the same amount of exp as me but he knows every dang thing. Any way enough crap talking. So whats unorthadox about me. I dont fit your average hiker mold. I am husky I wear a 38 pant and a xl-2xl shirt. I am not meant to be a small person my genes just are not going to allow it. That being said i am a brick s hi t house and i have alot of heart and in the pocket i can and will do the dang thing. in a world of ultra light and everyone wearing size med clothes seemingly in this activity i stand out a bit. I also am working on quiting smoking cigs. Tough to break . So anyway im comfortable in my own skin. My expectations of hiking and finding a partner are. Someone that is not so worried about miles at this point some one that wants to stop smell the roses a bit see the sights. Someone that is going to be just happy to be out there and not complaining . Someone thats going to make smart moves and not let their pride get in the way of their brain telling them your being stupid. Someone that wants to drink a couple beers on trail if the situation allows for it. Im basically looking to chill be social and see some awesome sights and yeah sometimes it feels good or is needed to bang out some miles but to be honest I work doing HVAC and these are typically 3-4 day weeekend trips im not trying to go physically kill my self all weekend to then shuffle back to richmond and hate myself and body all day monday at work because im exhausted and about killed myself looking to start in late march-april and like to go atleast once a month thru to july skip august back out in sept and october early season depending on weather. If you are local to my area maybe meet up get a beer talk some stuff out see if we mesh or if our goals are similar. thanks Joe

You might consider just hitting the trail. Lots of different sorts out there, most happy to meet a fellow who is weekend hiking and has a car for a lift into town for a beer and resupply. If the company doesn’t suit then just go your own way. Local hiking clubs if available. I’m comfortable with my own company, haven’t found a regular partner, so I happily go alone or with my pup. Anyway, no need to find an excuse not to go, just tell your friend you are looking forward to some solo hikes to become more comfortable with being alone. No need for drama or hurt feelings on either side.

Enjoy your hike!

+1 - to this. Where I work there is hundreds of folks, in the school system. They all know what I do on vacation and weekends, hike , camp etc.. I gave up along time ago trying to find somebody to hike with. I guess we are kinda a rare breed? Maybe one reason for all the heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure, obesity, ghout, lazy staying in their comfort zones types! Whatever, I go solo wherever I go and if I want to meet like minded people there already out there. You don't need nobody else that way you do your own thing, the way you want it! And FWIW I'm a plumber not teacher, 35 years + in the trade.

To find someone not worried about miles, it might help if they knew how many miles per day is normal for you.

Per above, go solo—you only have to consult with one person when making decisions. :)

If you meet somebody simpatico on the trail, fine... if not, that's fine too.

i think the biggest issue is logistics of getting a ride pack to the truck a t this point lol
im convinced to go solo which is what i really wanted to do to start with

" I think the biggest issue is logistics of getting a ride pack to the truck a t this point lol im convinced to go solo which is what i really wanted to do to start with"

So, why not do loop hikes or ones that follow a simple "out-and back" route? As I do "out-and-back" multi-day or multi-week hikes, trails look a bit different to me depending on the direction in which I happen to be going at a particular time. I just enjoy hiking and camping out in the woods by myself.

Or, if you are trying to cover as many miles of the AT as possible, rather than simply enjoying the experience, you could pay a shuttle driver to get you set up before each of your hikes.

It sounds as if at this point in your life you may not be able to devote more than 3 or 4 nights per non-winter month to backpacking. At that rate it will take you a long time to hike all of the Appalachian Trail through Virginia, much less complete the rest AT. So why not simply hike for fun, or perhaps set yourself a different goal, such as eventually hiking all of the trails of SNP, or perhaps of completing all good 2-4 day loop itineraries that are located in National Forests/National Parks relatively close to where you live?