Need help

[Slo-go'en]

I'm sure there are a lot of factors in your parents not wanting you to go. Your age is a big one, then there is the time of year (not a good time, even for Georgia), the distance you have to travel to get there and finally the expense of such a trip. And that is assuming you already have the proper gear to handle March weather in the Mountains, which can be bad.

I'm guessing you have a school break in March which is why you want to go then. Even so, you'd be best off waiting until summer and doing trips a bit closer to home for a few more years.

[Night Train]

Encourage your parents to read the WB forums with you, the more knowledge they gain about the hiking culture, the better chance of them being comfortable with your desire to hike.

[Malto]

You may not want to hear this but I wouldn't encourage my 15yo to solo on the AT. I had both of my sons on many backcountry trips in the Sierra at that age so they had quite of bit experience but this is a whole different animal. Agree with suggestion to include one of them or another adult.

[larkspur]

this might not be the best idea for you, but what I did was find a friend that was already doing things like this and planed a day trip with him and didn't tell my parent until the day before, and jut go out no matter what they thought. but, the obvious problem is that this might seriously backfire on you in some way

[MuddyWaters]

I am 15 years old, I am pretty experienced in hiking and the outdoors. My parents on the other hand have very little experience with this kind of stuff.

The main issue is, as an adolescent, you cannot be responsible for yourself, an adult must be.
You cant even seek medical help for yourself.
You really need a parent or legal guardian with power-of-attorney rights.

That said, when I was 15 me and my 16 yr old brother were fishing 20 miles offshore by ourselves.
No one wore seatbelts back then either.
Its a different world today

[jdc5294]

I really wish my parents would've let me do stuff like this when I was 15, I'd be better off now for it.

[fredmugs]

NONE OF YOU should be offering advice to a 15 year old. This thread should be shut down.

[bigcranky]

NONE OF YOU should be offering advice to a 15 year old. This thread should be shut down.

Yeah, didn't see that he was 15, that's kinda young. (No offense, man.)

[4eyedbuzzard]

NONE OF YOU should be offering advice to a 15 year old. This thread should be shut down.

The advice he has been given pretty consistently is that he is a minor and needs to talk to his parents and seek their permission.

[jdc5294]

NONE OF YOU should be offering advice to a 15 year old. This thread should be shut down.

Someone needs to watch some George Carlin.

[Dogwood]

Do you think your parents would object to you doing a hike w/ the Boy Scouts or a professionally accredited led hike w/ NOLS or reputable Guided Hike? National Outdoors Leadership School http://www.nols.edu/about/ Going this route, al least at the beginning, by building up your parent's confidence and trust in you, your desire, and who your with in the forest(as well as you building up experience to attempt a long distance hike), might open the door for them to accompany you as a family on hikes AND POSSIBLY GET THEM TO FINANCE A HIKE. Who knows, maybe they'll get interested in backpacking themselves and that will open up the door to all of you having valuable shared experiences. Take it forward to the AT in a short amt of time.

[BuckeyeBill]

I backpacked the Grand Canyon for the first time when I was 15 as part of a school trip. (The boys did the Grand Canyon, The girls went to France) It was organized by two of the science teachers in our school system. Our grade point average had to be at a certain level and all our teachers had to sign off that missing three weeks of school wouldn't drop us down too far. We left in March and explored the entire area around the Grand Canyon (Four Corners, Zion National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area etc) When we started our hike down into the Canyon, we were standing in snow the was above stop signs. Once we hit the bottom of the Canyon we were in shorts and t-shirts.
AS part of the prep for this trip we had to attend weekly training meetings and our parents were required to attend several of them as well. We rented our packs and other equipment and dehydrated a lot of our own food. This trip got me hooked on hiking and backpacking and I saved my money to purchase my own gear for future trips. As you can see we had to have parental and school permission to go on this trip and I would advise you to talk to your parents about it. I would never allow a 15 year old to wonder around the woods without an adult. Do you have any coo Uncles that may be interested in making this trip (He may have have a child your age that may want to go too).

Good luck

[ams212001]

I backpacked the Grand Canyon for the first time when I was 15 as part of a school trip. (The boys did the Grand Canyon, The girls went to France) It was organized by two of the science teachers in our school system. Our grade point average had to be at a certain level and all our teachers had to sign off that missing three weeks of school wouldn't drop us down too far. We left in March and explored the entire area around the Grand Canyon (Four Corners, Zion National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area etc) When we started our hike down into the Canyon, we were standing in snow the was above stop signs. Once we hit the bottom of the Canyon we were in shorts and t-shirts.
AS part of the prep for this trip we had to attend weekly training meetings and our parents were required to attend several of them as well. We rented our packs and other equipment and dehydrated a lot of our own food. This trip got me hooked on hiking and backpacking and I saved my money to purchase my own gear for future trips. As you can see we had to have parental and school permission to go on this trip and I would advise you to talk to your parents about it. I would never allow a 15 year old to wonder around the woods without an adult. Do you have any coo Uncles that may be interested in making this trip (He may have have a child your age that may want to go too).

Good luck

+1, my love for travelling started in 9th when I was fortunate enough to go to DC on a class trip. I am sure a trip like that is a logistical nightmare, but I never knew because all I needed to do was pay, follow directions and show up. It is nice to have others take care of the technical details when you are learning how to explore. I know there are travel groups that specialize in taking teenagers abroad on backpacking trips for weeks to months at a time with highly trained guides.

You can get very creative in your travel ideas, but your parents are going to be your best support system right now so see how you can work with them. They still have the final word though.

[BuckeyeBill]

+1, my love for travelling started in 9th when I was fortunate enough to go to DC on a class trip. I am sure a trip like that is a logistical nightmare, but I never knew because all I needed to do was pay, follow directions and show up. It is nice to have others take care of the technical details when you are learning how to explore. I know there are travel groups that specialize in taking teenagers abroad on backpacking trips for weeks to months at a time with highly trained guides.

You can get very creative in your travel ideas, but your parents are going to be your best support system right now so see how you can work with them. They still have the final word though.

In our school system, the DC trip is done in The 7th and 8th grades. They usually have two greyhound style bus loads of kids. 12 of us went to the Grand Canyon and i think 8 girls went to France. One requirement for the France trip was taking french class. I wish more schools would organize trips like these as they are very educational and you always remember them.

[Dinendir]

NONE OF YOU should be offering advice to a 15 year old. This thread should be shut down.

If you read the posts of windels11, than I do think that he has a better chance in the woods than many 18 year olds that decide impulsively to thru-hike. At least he sounds mature, and he has found the way here, so he knows what he's getting into. Being young doesn't mean being irresponsible or helpless.