Late may start

[windels11]

Sadly plans have had to change because of school obligations. I was wondering if it's still possible to start a NOBO hike in late May after I graduate. What would the average miles per day be and if there is any data, what is the success rate of hikers starting this late.

[full conditions]

Its possible. I did my thru starting May 15 but I had to just
W the whole time and finished in the nick of time. If I had it to do over, I'd do a flip flop and enjoy myself. That's my recomendation.

[Malto]

Easy enough to calculate mileage. You had minimum 4 months which would mean about 18 miles per day. Call it target 20. You will not lose days like hikers are now to snow and with less people will be less distractions which I think helps your cause. Only you can answer whether you could achieve this. Previous long distance hiking experience, good fitness, lightweight pack and a driven personally will all help you succeed. Or wait a few weeks and go SoBo.

[Slo-go'en]

Shouldn't be a problem. Do you have to be anywhere before the middle of October? If not you have 5 1/2 months which is plenty of time. The only down side is you'll have hotter weather sooner which is both a blessing and a curse.

[windels11]

I've been thinking a lot about my choices and I'm just torn between starting right after I graduate like I was talking about. Or wait till the next year because a big thing that I'm really looking forward to is meeting all of the people. And I feel like starting that late will kind of take me away from that whole experience.

[Slo-go'en]

Um, I just noticed you said LATE May. That does make a difference. If it were early May, like May 1st you wouldn't be too far behind the bulk of the crowd, but late May you would definitely be a straggler.

Consider a flip flop then. Start in the middle. Sounds like there will a sizable number of people doing that this year.

[egilbe]

I'd recommend a flip flop, too. You start in the easier part of the trail and work your way up to the hills in NE. You'll be at Katahdin before it closes for the year. Then go back to your start point and head South and enjoy the fall colors.

[map man]

If it's a priority to hike among other NOBOs then start at Waynesboro VA in late May. For your first three or four weeks, though, don't try to keep up with any particular group of NOBOs -- they'll have their trail legs and you won't. Then if you get to Katahdin go back and finish the southern part of the trail if completing it all is important to you.

Or you can wait until mid to late June and go SOBO from Katahdin in the heart of the SOBO hiking bubble, such as it is. You'll meet a lot of NOBOs going the opposite direction in your first eight weeks of hiking.

If you do decide to start at Springer you would have about 4.5 months to finish. That would require an average of around 16 miles per day. If you took a dozen zero days along the way then you would need to average about 17.5 miles per day on the days you did hike. When you consider that you would take a little time to work into that pace and you would also go slower between Glencliff NH and Stratton ME, you would need to average around 19 miles per hiking day on the rest of your hike.

[full conditions]

I think many of us become fixated on doing a thru hike in the traditional way and miss the potential enjoyment that alternative itineraries have to offer. I know that I was guilty of this kind of tunnel thinking. If you have five months or so available to hike, then you have a bunch of alternative ways of skinning that cat. Check out the ATC's alternative itinerary list on their website - some pretty decent ideas there.

[Seatbelt]

I doubt you will be alone. I have met several "thru-hikers" during my section hikes mostly in May or June that started in mid to late May. Have no idea how soon they finished or if they made it.

[Butch_Lodi]

No way your going to average 20 miles a day. Cut the trail in half. Start at Harpers Ferry and do the northbound leg then return to Harpers Ferry in the fall for the southbound half.

[bigcranky]

+1 on starting at Harper's and heading north. We met a couple of thru hikers who did that this summer when we were in Vermont, and they didn't seem to be enjoying their hikes any less.

The major advantage is less stress -- there is no real deadline to finish, so you don't have to knock out 20s from the gate. (You can do that if you want, of course.) You also get to "finish" twice at two pretty cool locations.

[Astro]

The Koltrain to Maine started in mid-May after graduation and did it in 100 days. He really enjoyed the people he met, but he was moving fast (nearly 22 miles a day).

https://koltonthomas.wordpress.com/

[BillyGr]

Also the option to simply start NOBO, then if you get to a point and see that you are running too late to get to Maine in time, jump to the northern end at that point and go back South to wherever you were when you jumped.

[illabelle]

Agree with MapMan, start at Waynesboro. The bubble will be a little behind you coming up from Trail Days, and you'll be in the thick of it just about the time you get used to hiking. Shenandoah is a nice place to start the trail anyway.

[Just Bill]

If I remember right- you were the high school age fella from my neck o' the woods?

If so- a four month thru isn't outta the question for you. (June, July, Aug, Sept.) if that's what you want..

You're too young to drink at the bar- and not interested IIRC- so you won't get bogged down in towns.
You'll miss the spring slog through snow and frequent zeros, you'll move slower getting started, but nowhere near as slow as a typical NOBO.
When you do catch up with folks, they'll be the ones interested in hiking, not so much in partying and you'll make better friends.
Being young, you'll get your trail legs quick enough most likely. 2 MPH for 10 hours is 20 a day.
A plus and minus- you'll feel a bit rushed/pressed to catch up. That'll keep you motivated to move, but the feeling of being in a hurry could take away from the trip.

All that said- it's up to you. I agree with the others on a flip flop if you don't want to push it, but I think you could start as far south as Damascus and still have a good trip and easy to reach spot to finish.

The good news- there is no bad option

[Malto]

If I remember right- you were the high school age fella from my neck o' the woods?

If so- a four month thru isn't outta the question for you. (June, July, Aug, Sept.) if that's what you want..

You're too young to drink at the bar- and not interested IIRC- so you won't get bogged down in towns.
You'll miss the spring slog through snow and frequent zeros, you'll move slower getting started, but nowhere near as slow as a typical NOBO.
When you do catch up with folks, they'll be the ones interested in hiking, not so much in partying and you'll make better friends.
Being young, you'll get your trail legs quick enough most likely. 2 MPH for 10 hours is 20 a day.
A plus and minus- you'll feel a bit rushed/pressed to catch up. That'll keep you motivated to move, but the feeling of being in a hurry could take away from the trip.

All that said- it's up to you. I agree with the others on a flip flop if you don't want to push it, but I think you could start as far south as Damascus and still have a good trip and easy to reach spot to finish.

The good news- there is no bad option

i started writing a similar post. Why do folks that can't do something declare that others can't do it either????? Does it make them feel better?

[10-K]

If I were going to hike the AT nobo I'd start the first week of May (I've said that many times), finishing in late August or early September.

The advantages are just too many.

(But I doubt I'd ever go nobo. I'd rather start in ME and hike back to TN.)

[July]

If I were going to hike the AT nobo I'd start the first week of May (I've said that many times), finishing in late August or early September.

The advantages are just too many.

(But I doubt I'd ever go nobo. I'd rather start in ME and hike back to TN.)

I know what you mean 10-k, like an old horse finding his way back home to the barn.

[CalebJ]

i started writing a similar post. Why do folks that can't do something declare that others can't do it either????? Does it make them feel better?

I was just wondering the same thing. Plenty of people -can- jump in with 20+ miles out of the gate. Not everyone, but there are certainly those who can. If you're in good condition, packed light, and motivated, there's no reason in the world a 4 month hike is unreasonable to attempt.