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Thread: Elevation

  1. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dogwood View Post
    IMHO, this comparing and contrasting trails ad nauseaum especially in regards to micro analyzing elevation change and setting the AT atop the pedestal as the standard by which other trails should be judged often leads to narrow minded pissing contests, um rating systems, that can be problematic and limiting. It's happening here.Don't box me in.
    Oh, get off your high horse. They're three different trails, with different histories, geography, geology, weather, climate, flora, fauna, accessibility, trail culture, local culture, etc. etc. Seems to me it's perfectly reasonable to compare and contrast them any way we like, without judgment.

    whiteblaze.net is "A Community of Appalachian Trail Enthusiasts." Says so right on the banner. It's AT-centric by design.

  2. #22
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    Lots of hikers like maps, and that leads to a fascination, in many, with the numbers and analyses associated with maps. Several of my favorite hiking partners are engineers, and engineers like numbers. One of them is a pilot, and she's the biggest map and numbers geek of them all.

    Engineers also love spreadsheets, and as a former engineering boss of mine says, the worst mistakes in the business are spreadsheet mistakes. When I start seeing numbers out to six or seven significant digits (like 1,462,633' as opposed to 1,460,000') I suspect a spreadsheet was involved and I get suspicious!
    "Throw a loaf of bread and a pound of tea in an old sack and jump over the back fence." John Muir on expedition planning

  3. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by Malto View Post
    Yes, there was an outstanding study done.


    NOBO CDT total elevation gain-457340 ft
    NOBO CDT total elevation loss-457770 ft

    NOBO PCT total elevation gain-753190 ft
    NOBO PCT total elevation loss-752160 ft

    and (once again)
    NOBO AT total elevation gain-628900 ft
    NOBO AT total elevation loss-628620 ft

    So: NOBO Triple Crown gain-1,839,430 ft
    NOBO Triple Crown loss- 1,838,550 ft




    Check out out starting at post 53
    http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/show...+cdt+elevation
    Wow, big discrepancies, numbers all over the place! I would have sworn the AT had the largest total gain, and Guthook says it does (barely), though I think he adds loss and gain together.

  4. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by colorado_rob View Post
    Wow, big discrepancies, numbers all over the place! I would have sworn the AT had the largest total gain, and Guthook says it does (barely), though I think he adds loss and gain together.
    Agreed. I've quoted (inadvertently) AMC's figure of 515,000' several times, so Guthook's numbers were surprising. What all the numbers agree on is that the ATC packs a serious punch into a length that's significantly shorter than the two western trails in the TC.

    Actually, the variance in the data perhaps isn't all that surprising. It's exactly analogous to the question, "How long is the coast of England" -- title and subject of a famous paper by Benoit Mandelbrot. Link to the wiki article about that...

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_Lo...onal_Dimension

  5. #25

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    So Rafe, that's all you could take from my post? If so there are some on high horses in Mass.

  6. #26

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    Quote Originally Posted by rafe View Post
    The fact remains, the PCT (or the bits of it I've seen) is much better graded, in general than the AT. There has to be a reason why typical hiking speeds (miles per day) are significantly higher on the PCT than the AT. It's graded for horse travel, after all. The AT is also a lot older, and some of the gnarliest bits of the AT predate Benton Mackaye's bright idea.
    Yes, ONE possible reason but other reasons factor into PCT paces. This is what I'm saying RAFE, comparing the TC trails, especially in regard to elevation change, and pace, has been hashed out and rehashed already ad nauseam by those more personally informed.

    And, yeah you are doing what I said by measuring the AT up against the other TC trails as if it's the standard.

  7. #27

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    BTW Rafe, getting onto more important comparisons, what's going on in the AL East? How in the heck can the Red Sox have a better away than home record?

  8. #28
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dogwood View Post
    BTW Rafe, getting onto more important comparisons, what's going on in the AL East? How in the heck can the Red Sox have a better away than home record?
    You're asking the wrong person. I moved to this area for career, mountains and ocean. I understand there are some good sports teams here but they're just not something I follow or care about.

  9. #29
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    The question is probably meaningless, since the elevation gain will depend on what length scale you measure it at. The coastline paradox suggests that there isn't a single correct answer.

    ETA: Didn't see Rafe's earlier post, which says essentially the same thing.
    I always know where I am. I'm right here.

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