Hello WB! Long time lurker here coming out of hiding to ask for a little help.
I just got the go-ahead to plan a 3-4 week section hike next summer (likely July but possibly August) with my 10 year old. He's a great hiker and loves backpacking. Had no problem with 10 miles a day this summer when we hiked the Grayson Highlands though I admit he hasn't done longer than 4 days in a row. He did NOT want to leave the trail and has been begging me for a longer stretch... so here we go.
I was thinking about Massachusetts and Vermont, NOBO. Does that seem like a good choice as far as being not too difficult while still being interesting? We live in NC but I will likely be driving my other children to their grandparents' house in NY so I was thinking the northeast was the way to go, since I'll already be up there.
What kind of mileage should I be realistically planning on? 250miles over 30 days? Less? How many zeros should I be planning for? I know there are families that have thru-hiked with kids but we're not going to be able to do 15-20 mile days, especially as I usually carry a good chunk of his gear (he only weighs around 60lbs) and I have a knee that I'm working on healing. I'd like to go with the flow and not push him to do more than he can, but if there are certain "must see" areas, I want to make sure to plan our start point in a place that would enable us to see them.
On that note, I can probably get rides to start and end points... but I always have these (probably irrational) fears of not being able to find the trailhead, especially when I'm directing other people. So, suggestions for an easy start point? (For example Damascus and Mt Rogers Headquarters were easy to plug into a GPS this summer... I get a bit nervous on back roads).
Thank you in advance!
Pic just cause it made me laugh.
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