Money worries...

[Sly]

With a bus, all you need is a few hours.

You're talking to the Greyhound King! I probably have as many bus miles as trail miles. Maybe more!

A standard ticket from Bangor to Tampa is $159, Miami $173.50- 7 day advanced to either $97.

[mindi]

I think they may be able to if you are in default, Jim, so be careful.

I asked around on the yahoo women's hiker board, and a woman who had direct deposit had her entire account frozen and her paycheck taken for student loan debt. I'm not sure if it was savings or checking, though.

Thanks for the tip, Star. I'm going to see if I can find one of those somewhere and load a bit on it for emergencies/getting home, then do the rest in traveler's checks.

Spirit, I'm definitely not planning on buying my ticket now for just that reason. I don't want to have the pressure of an end date in my head while I'm on the trail. I just want to make sure I have enough budgeted out so that I can make arrangements when I'm at or near the end of my hike. I figure as long as I make it to the big K before it closes and I have enough to get home somehow, I'll be fine.

Now off to work, blechh!

Mindi

[Jim Adams]

Mindi,
I took a deferment on my loan while I hiked. Don't know if you have that option. Debt card-You can always put the account in someone elses name. I am just being pushy because the card works so well out there.
geek

[berninbush]

Mindi--

If your loan is in default, have you tried talking to a credit counselor? Student loans are just about the "kindest" debt there is in terms of working out a schedule where you can repay. The WORST thing to do is just pretend the debt doesn't exist and fail to pay anything. This ruins your credit and, as you have noted, makes your assets vulnerable.

There are ways to get loans deferred (as Geek noted), and there are "graduated" payment plans that let you make small payments now and larger payments later when you have a higher-paying job. But the longer you put off checking into these options, the worse your credit score gets and the less likely you are to be able to work something out. I would strongly encourage you to look into this before you go out and hike; it would be one less worry on your mind.

[Blissful]

Questions - Is taking a debit card a good idea? And I'm gueessing it's pretty easy to access ATMs in towns - though there might be charges inferred for withdrawals (?) And what hostels take cash only? Most? (is there a list on that? - maybe the ADLH book ?)

[general]

you can always hitch hike home. it would definantly add some excitement to the end of your trip.

[eric_plano]

The upside for a debit card is you can pull 10-20$ above your balance at grocery stores and convenience stores w/o an atm fee.

[map man]

From reading a lot of trail journals, it's apparent that many thru-hikers form strong bonds with other hikers that they are reluctant to break. It's real common to have groups form, anywhere from three friends on up, and the bigger the "pod" the slower the hike tends to get and expenses can mount in even greater proportion than days hiked.

Here's how it works. In a given group one hiker might already have it arranged to spend a couple days or more with family in Waynesboro. The close hiking friends don't want to leave him behind so they slow down, or more likely, spend extra time themselves in town in a motel. Expenses mount. A few days later another hiker in the group has an already planned meeting with a friend to sightsee in Washington DC for a couple days. The rest of the group slows down and agrees to wait for her in Harpers Ferry. More money for lodging, restaurant food and so on. And for the low budget hiker it's REALLY hard to go hang out at the nearest trail shelter while the rest of the group is enjoying themselves in town. Even if other hikers agree to pick up the whole cost of lodging, if enough of these stays add up hard feelings can start to surface if you can seldomly pay, even among friends.

What I'm saying is not meant to discourage you from forming close friendships (or to leave friends behind every time a situation like this arises) because for so many hikers that's one of the most valuable experiences on the trail. It's just something you might think about when trying to set a realistic budget. But hey, I've read plenty of accounts of hikers deciding to stay with the close friends, knowing the higher spending will mean they won't go all the way to Katahdin, and having very few regrets.

[mindi]

That's a good point, map man. I've actually thought about the whole 'peer pressure' issue when it comes to controlling my spending on the trail. I can see how it would be difficult to go back to the woods when your buddies are living it up in town, eating out, having a few beers, and staying in a motel.

I guess it is going to come down to asking myself if hanging back with the group and spending the money is going to stop me from reaching my goal. If the answer is yes, then I'm going to have to pass, as hard as it may be at the time. I'm looking forward to the social aspect of the trail and making new friends, but not at the expense of not being able to finish my thru and enjoy my time in the woods. For some people, the goal of Katahdin and maximizing their time in the woods is less important than the social scene, and that's great too. All part of the HYOH philosophy, I think.

I want to pay my own way and not feel that I owe anyone on the trail, especially those people who I may form bonds with along the way.

I want to add that even though I will be hiking on a budget, I'm not planning on taking advantage of hostel owners and others who help me out along the trail. I read threads about that on here and it really saddens me that people can be so cheap when someone is going out of their way to help you finish a hike out of the kindness of their hearts. Just another reason to curb my spending it towns...when I get to a special place like Kincora or Miss Janet's or any of the other wonderful places that I read about on here, I'll be able to give a respectable amount for their services.

[Heater]

I originally wanted to go last year ('96) but decided to wait, pay off some debts get others to a reasonable level on payments and set myself up to be able to pay that (1) debt while I am away. I also wanted to have enough to afford to Hike without worrying about funds while hiking and enough to tide me over until I get back. Health Insurance? Something to think about there.

I hope to go in '98. Thats a 2 year delay from original plans but I think it will be worth it. NO worrys! I may only get to do this once.

[Roland]

Poor Austex is trapped in a time warp.

[hopefulhiker]

A lot of the hostels will let you do a work for stay... You can do a couple of hours of work in return for the fee.. The other thing is to avoid towns, except for the hiker feeds. I enjoyed doing the Hard Core Trail Maintenance last year and they feed you for that.. Trail Days has a supper and there are lots of kind people along the trail willing to fix you dinner sometimes. One thing is to try to stay healthy. I had to lay off the trail and it costs extra money.... I had planned this trip several times all my life so money was not a big issue for me.. Health was though.

[Undershaft]

I am in a situation much like yours, Mindi. Money for the upcoming hike is my biggest concern. I have debt, both credit card and student loan. Last winter, when I decided 2007 was the year to hike, I came up with a financial plan. Basically I have sent MASTERcard every cent I could afford for the past 6 months and will have that debt eliminated after next months payment. Student Loans are another thing. I don't know if it is possible with your loans, but with mine I can pay ahead. My payment is $120 a month, but I have started sending them $200 a month. This means that for every two payments on my loan I am 1.5 payments ahead of schedule. By the time I leave for my hike I will be six scheduled payments ahead of myself and I won't have to make loan payments while I'm hiking. Mayhaps this will work for you? As far as getting home from Katahdin, I haven't figured it out either. I'm going to just wing it, but I have a lot less miles to travel than you.

[Jack Tarlin]

Don't take the hostel "work stay" thing for granted. Quite a few places are cutting back on this, as there are simply too many people looking to stay for free, plus most hiker's work ethic is so poor that it's simply not worth it for the hostel, i.e. they don't get anywhere near two hours real work out of the hikers. Plus, even if there are places giving out work stays, those slots might have been taken by the time you arrive.

In short, if you stay at a hostel, be aware that there MIGHT be the possibility of working off your stay, but never take this for granted.

[mindi]

My personal belief is that you should be helping around the hostel ANYWAY, in addition to paying what is usually a paltry fee for what you get. Most of these people are letting you into their homes and going out of their way to make hikers comfortable. To me, it's just common courtesy to offer to help out and to clean up after yourself, in addition to payment. Not to mention, it helps out the hikers behind you if you are taking care of the place and leaving the owners with a good impression of hikers in general.

In a place like the AMC huts, where a night's stay is more expensive and they cater to tourists, I might consider doing a work-for-stay if there's something available, since it seems to be pretty accepted. But I think I'd feel like I was taking advantage if I tried it at a hostel. If I can't afford the small fee or I don't feel like pitching in or helping out, I won't stay in one.

Mindi

[Heater]

Poor Austex is trapped in a time warp.

Nothing to it really.

It's just a jump to the left. And then a step to the right. With your hands on your hips. You bring your knees in tight. But it's the pelvic thrust That really drives you insane. Let's do the time-warp again.

[mindi]

You're going to get a Rocky Horror trailname if you keep it up..