Have thru hikers become standoffish?

[sbhikes]

I also dont talk gear, or offer advice unless asked about specifics.

This reminds me of an experience I had when I was in the middle of my 1800 mile adventure.

I'm somewhere in the middle of my adventure, and like Tipi said, it's like a forced march. But I don't know if it's so much for the reasons he mentioned as for my hunger. I was always starving. I felt like I was trying to out-run my starvation all the time. It's like a vicious cycle, too, because the bigger mile days you do the hungrier you get so you race your hunger even faster with bigger mile days. Yes, I dreamed of restaurant meals all the time, but not really hotel rooms. I just wanted to eat.

So here I am and this guy sees me and he's so excited he just wants to talk shop. Talk gear, mostly. He was so excited about his gear. I'd been out there long enough by now I never even thought about my gear anymore. My gear was just gear. Just a tool. Gear talk was so boring. I wasn't very nice to him. I was curt and I hiked away as quickly as I could. Why? Because the Timberline Lodge was only 5 miles away and I'd been dreaming about their buffets for many miles and I was so very hungry and had eaten pretty much all my food.

Later I saw him again and being more well-fed I apologized for being so curt.

I would have enjoyed hiking with him for a while. I was very lonely. But I was so much faster than him now. I was in this space of having never been particularly athletic, plus being in my mid-40s, here I was doing this incredible physical thing I had no idea I could do. I was loving that part of the adventure. I stood on the balcony of the Timberline lodge and looked at Mt. Jefferson way out in the haze and it boggled my mind that I had been standing there only yesterday. How had this old fat lady walked so far? I really liked that part of my adventure. I didn't want to slow down. I wanted to see if I could do even more.

This approach does have its disadvantages, though. The missed side trails definitely being one, and the missed beauty with your mind preoccupied by your feet and your stomach for another. I wouldn't necessarily disparage thru-hikers for giving in to this experience. You may never get another chance in your life to truly test your own physical power.

[Malto]

I can understand why thruhikers in general may get a rep for being "standoffish". Piper laid out some of the reasons above. let me try in bullet form.
1) Thru hikers will likely run in hundreds of day or weekend hikers. on busy trail days it could be a constant stream of humanity. At some point many may want to just keep moving.
2) Lone Wolf has talked about the rush to get to the finish. In addition I believe a much bigger "rusher" is the desire to get to a meal or shower. As Piper talked, that can be a motivator to keep moving.
3) You get asked the same questions over and over, it gets old at time and often you may not want to deal with it.
4) sometimes you are in a less then social mood or more frequently for me you are in a groove and want to keep moving or there is a deadline to hit such as a resupply or more important the ending of the breakfast buffet at Timberline. (I barely missed it but hit the lunch buffet.)
5) If you are hiking with others, you could be in the middle of a conversation and don't want to interrupt.
6) at the end of the day, you have chores to do and could be dead tired.

I am an extreme extrovert and tend to talk to squirrels on the trail. But there are times that some could claim I was standoffish for all the reasons I listed. It is and was nothing personal, has little to do with thru hiking as I am probably guilty of the same antisocial infractions even on shorter hikers.

[lemon b]

Like many I avoid the AT when I can, however, living so close to the trail head in Becket & Washington, Ma. I do get on trail and run into hikers.As a general rule I don't ask people if they are thru-hiking. Only ones who have mentioned it usual have a need which I'll help with if able. My experience over the years is that thru hikers are no different than anyone else some are aloof some not. I think when perceived as standoffish around here in the Berkshires is just a function that we do have more than our share of tourists and some get sick of being questioned about their hike.

[Offshore]

Like many I avoid the AT when I can, however, living so close to the trail head in Becket & Washington, Ma. I do get on trail and run into hikers.As a general rule I don't ask people if they are thru-hiking. Only ones who have mentioned it usual have a need which I'll help with if able. My experience over the years is that thru hikers are no different than anyone else some are aloof some not. I think when perceived as standoffish around here in the Berkshires is just a function that we do have more than our share of tourists and some get sick of being questioned about their hike.

I don't avoid the trail, but my approach is pretty much the same. I pretty much keep to myself. I say hello when passing on the trail and only chat when all parties are stopped taking a break. If I can help out with something, I do - usually answering questions about local services or giving a ride for resupply or medical attention. I don't view thrus as some sort of superhumans nor do I view them as oddities to be studied. They just people sharing a trail. I've had far more positive encounters than standoffish ones with thrus of all ages.

[Marta]

I just hiked most of the Glacier section with a guy who's working on the third leg of his Triple Crown. He makes a practice of saying hi and exchanging a few words with every single person he meets on any trail. In Glacier he gave up on Day 2, when he reached Ptarmigan Tunnel--too many people. It was too exhausting.

My guess is that they were standoffish for all of the above--you've passed your sell-by date for the younger crowd and it hurts their self-image to share an adventure with someone so much older (if you were female this vibe would be overwhelming); they were exhausted and preoccupied with/worried about/focused on the upcoming section, which is challenging to pack for, navigate, and (in their darkest fears) not get eaten by bears during; they were burned out on human contact after sharing campsites, trails, and scenic overlooks elbow to elbow with the masses for the past week.

[Freak on a Leash]

Sometimes people just don't want to talk. It's as simple as that. It's one reason I don't like staying in shelters and hike alone. I like being alone. I don't like answering a million questions. I find that people are way too nosy for my tastes so I tend to keep to myself. It's nothing personal, it's just the way I am.

[Gry]

I didn't have any issues on the trail with hikers being standoffish. Nearly everyone I met were extremely polite and helpful. Only times people seemed to be standoffish were when sensitive subjects were brought up.. Religion, miles done that day, politics, ultralight equipment. I did find it strange with the hike your own hike mantra that if your trail name, or lack of resembled a real name you would be asked constantly "no trail name?" Or have strangers attempting to brand you.

[lonehiker]

They were stand-offish because they didn't need anything. Had they needed a ride (or whatever) they would have been your best friend....

[Cookerhiker]

I don't get to the AT too often these days, but this past April I met thruhikers in both the Smokies (Low Gap where I hiked up the side trail) and Grayson Highlands. Can't say I detected a standoffish manner at all but our conversations were brief. At Low Gap, all the hikers were young. Now I didn't attempt a long conversation or talk about my hiking experience, rather I just asked a few things about their hike - when did you start at Springer, how far you going today, see any bears, etc. At Grayson Highlands, we met both young and old hikers - both were friendly enough. Admittedly this experience is just a snapshot but I didn't see a big change from 10 years ago when my 700 miles of section hiking put me in contact with scores of thrus.

In July on a Colorado Trail day-hike near Leadville, the thrus were also reasonably friendly, but again, I didn't initiate a long conversation or talk about myself - not even that I had written a book about the CT. They were appreciative when I gave them the latest weather forecast.

I think it depends on how you approach thru-hikers. Don't assume that they crave conversation with others and their being taciturn doesn't always equate with being standoffish or elitist. Sure, some are but I wouldn't generalize.

[greenmtnboy]

I never kept up with hikers on the trail and don't know anyone who formed friendships with fellow hikers on the A/T or L/T but I'll have to admit that I could be friendlier. Maybe it goes with the independence of hiking and not wanting to be slowed or bogged down by others.

[Spacelord]

If someone introduces themself and immediately starts listing off all the trails and thru hikes they've done, I probably won't make any effort to have a conversation. Sounds super arrogant, like your selling yourself.

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[greenmtnboy]

There are many hikers willing to engage in healthy conversations with other hikers, but most seem to be in a hurry unfortunately; I've thought of dropping that Thoreau quote as there are so many better ones. Plus Robert Louis Stevenson was quite critical of his lifestyle.

[Uriah]

They were stand-offish because they didn't need anything. Had they needed a ride (or whatever) they would have been your best friend....

So very true. As a part-time selective trail angel (but all-round skeptic/cynic/curmudgeon who tends to like people less and less as he ages) I've learned not to offer any gifts or services until I've got a feeling for the potential recipient(s). Perhaps that's not really giving or enacting a random act of kindness (which trail magic probably fails to qualify as anyhow), but who wants to give to ungrateful types or those out to use others?

Instead I (choose to) help the friendly folk, be they on a trail or not. If they smile or are courteous (and at least seemingly sincere), I'll do what I can to make their trip a little more enjoyable. Usual not though. No one forces us to hike long distances, so why the help anyway?

[greenmtnboy]

So very true. As a part-time selective trail angel (but all-round skeptic/cynic/curmudgeon who tends to like people less and less as he ages) I've learned not to offer any gifts or services until I've got a feeling for the potential recipient(s). Perhaps that's not really giving or enacting a random act of kindness (which trail magic probably fails to qualify as anyhow), but who wants to give to ungrateful types or those out to use others?

Instead I (choose to) help the friendly folk, be they on a trail or not. If they smile or are courteous (and at least seemingly sincere), I'll do what I can to make their trip a little more enjoyable. Usual not though. No one forces us to hike long distances, so why the help anyway?

I agree. "Unconditional love" is a false construct, though I hear it quite a bit; even God is not unconditional in love, as it is not helpful to people who have done evil to be showered with blessing unless they come to full amendment of the evil they have done. The worst thing for many is to be showered with stuff that is not needed for that person.

[Oteast]

Great post Praha4, and I like some of your comments:

"This elite group was outside profiling, holding court . . ."

"We could sense we were in the company of greatness."

"AT blue-flame specials . . ."

THRUHIKING VS JUST BACKPACKING
I've done several trips with "thruhikers" on long trails like the AT and the BMT and have come to these conclusions:

**Backpacking is a strange affliction and thruhiking a long trail is a specialized version of an already narrow field. General backpacking for most is a weekend 3 to 5 day trip vs backpacking a long trail like the AT or the BMT. The opposite of thruhking would be expedition backpacking, hence the need for an expedition pack.


** Thruhikers are on a forced march whereby daily mileage is vital and may be the most important aspect of their outdoor experience. This mindset limits their ability to go off trail on blue blaze adventures and to possibly derail the entire hike to explore other trails.


** Thruhikers generally hate deviating from the prescribed path as then they won't be "official" and can't get the patch and recognition.


** Thruhikers generally cannot carry more than 5 days worth of food because their packs are not designed to handle the weight. This complicates matters and results in the following point---


** Thruhikers obsess about the next town and the next resupply. Some will travel fast thru beautiful country on a big mile day just to reach a town and to get a motel room. Instead of pulling short mile days or zero days on the trail in their tents, they often drool over hot showers, soft beds and restaurant meals. For this reason they pour over their guide books and maps and data books to plan their next town trips and resupply, so when I meet them out in the woods they are either coming from a town or heading out to a town. It's depressing.


** And here's the kicker: Thruhikers use up big chunks of time to do their hikes like 20 or 30 days or more but you will never see a thruhiker using that block of time to carry 30 days worth of food and stay out in a wilderness area with hundreds of miles of trails and loops opportunities. For some reason their brains cannot compute such an "expedition"---an uninterrupted month in the backcountry with no laundry mats and no motel rooms and no restaurants and little to no cell service and no battery recharging---just them and their gear and food for a month.

For some reason such backpacking is not official like a completed thruhike and there's no recognition and no patch and yet they all have the time to do such trips. It must be the social aspect and town support and the shelter system which these backpackers find so attractive. It's definitely not about getting an unbroken amount of time out in the woods.

And so it's no wonder backpacking thruhikers can get weird or aloof or snobbish or whatever. They are on a Forced March. They are either coming from a town or racing to a town. Many of them become Expert Trail Gurus and hold court and Will now take your questions etc.

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Most agreed, in 93 when was going through GA->ME, I was ripped by the convention for old school gear: external frame pack, felt crusher hat, cotton T-shirts, wool coat, jeans; many of these folks being ignorant of the fact natural fiber clothing did NOT irritate my skin unlike poly-pro or lycra. Also, was ripped for a heavier pack with lots of repair gear and food, but then I wasn't having to go into every other town either and could enjoy back-country trail camping I had some stretches of 300 miles with no forced town stops and that was without having to do a 20+ mile day-in/day-out death march. See a great campsite in mid-day - no problem. It was all about the journey, and enjoying the events along the way, not making the Big-K wouldn't have killed me. The main thing that drove me into towns for stop was getting some fresh fruit, do some laundry, get a shower and head on. But then again had enough pots and gear I could sponge shower and do laundry well and do it well away from the water sources as well....

Would I go much lighter now should I get blessed with another AT or a PCT thru attempt, probably, as I have found that ultralight gear backpacking is a fun aesthetic on weekender’s and 3-4 day hikes over the years, much like marathoning is to others. Like my 2oz beer-can penny stove, and heavily modified stripped out sub 1lb backpack. Would I continue to eschew hostels and town zeros and stay on the trail, definitely so. In the teen years I used to go "coffee can" camping in the town forest with a couple other close friends. Spend a weekend in the woods come rain or shine with 2 layers of clothes (empty pockets) and whatever could be packed in a standard coffee can riveted to a bandoleer strap (no No 10 cans!). Anyhow it was fun to see what we brought and compare over time and with each other, good times!

Great post!, it needed to be said to HYOH, but conversely, also one should not pass judgement either ("hold court").

[rafe]

I have observed this stand-offishness from time to time. Neither surprised nor offended by it. First time I noticed it was eons ago, so it's hardly a new thing. I think in some cases it's simply a matter of exhaustion, both physical and emotional. They're thinking of home, or Katahdin, or tomorrow's miles, or their next town stop or mail drop... Not really wanting to relate to someone who clearly isn't on the same journey or quest.

[Yankee15]

Honestly, I think thru hikers are a bunch of D-bags.

[Traveler]

I have observed this stand-offishness from time to time. Neither surprised nor offended by it. First time I noticed it was eons ago, so it's hardly a new thing. I think in some cases it's simply a matter of exhaustion, both physical and emotional. They're thinking of home, or Katahdin, or tomorrow's miles, or their next town stop or mail drop... Not really wanting to relate to someone who clearly isn't on the same journey or quest.

I don't believe this is limited to the AT thru hiker. Business travelers who fly over 100k miles a year seldom engage in much conversation and may sit next to you for a four hour flight. Its not that they are unfriendly, its more that they have had most all the casual conversations on aircraft that can be had. The same is probably true for thru hikers, after a while conversational themes tend to repeat.

[rickb]

• parit enim conversatio contemptum, raritas conciliat admirationem
  (familiarity breeds contempt, rarity brings admiration) -- Apuleius.
  
  
  

[Cookerhiker]

Honestly, I think thru hikers are a bunch of D-bags.

Lone Wolf, is that you?