Need a Thru 08 partner

**frankc** · 10-01-2007, 15:47

I am going to attempt a first time thru hike in 08. I am looking to leave march/april. I would consider myself an average hiker. I am looking for someone who has also done a lot of research on the trail, and would also be attempting their first thru iike of the AT. I dont mind going to fast or too slow, but I would like to be back before September for the Fall semester. If interested PM me or send me an mesage on AIM, my s/n is Sk8erSpanky.

**Jim Adams** · 10-01-2007, 21:58

frankc,
just go!
you will have a good time. there will be alot of other hikers also starting out and you can find some one that you get along with and hike the same speed. trying to find the right person before your hike usually leads to the loss of a new friend.

geek

**rafe** · 10-01-2007, 22:02

What geek said. You'll have plenty of company at the start. I know of few succesful "pre-arranged" trail partnerships -- except for folks connected by family, marriage, or true love...

**Appalachian Tater** · 10-01-2007, 22:12

What they said. If you're worried about being alone on the trail, don't be. In fact, you may find yourself wanting a little solitude at times, especially on the south end.

**frankc** · 10-04-2007, 14:09

Alright, I guess I can just head out there then, I may end up section hiking it, seeing how taking a semester off of college would put me back another year. The AT will still be there to thru hike when I graduate!

**warraghiyagey** · 10-04-2007, 14:24

Originally Posted by frankc

Alright, I guess I can just head out there then, I may end up section hiking it, seeing how taking a semester off of college would put me back another year. The AT will still be there to thru hike when I graduate!

College will also still be there at the end of your thru. And your college years are not the worst part of life that you may consider extending.
All the posts are right on the mark. It is doubtful that you know or have met anyone that you could leave Springer with and both end up at Katahdin. However it is very likely that in short order on the trail you will meet at least one person that you will summit Katahdin with a couple thousand miles later. Your hiking partner will be on the trail when you get there. And you naturally find each other.
Enjoy.

**Johnny Thunder** · 10-04-2007, 14:31

Originally Posted by warraghiyagey

College will also still be there at the end of your thru. And your college years are not the worst part of life that you may consider

...Here we go again.

**ChinMusic** · 10-04-2007, 14:39

As a parent, I say "GRADUATE FIRST" and then "go see the world".

**Jim Adams** · 10-04-2007, 14:42

Originally Posted by ChinMusic

As a parent, I say "GRADUATE FIRST" and then "go see the world".

go see the world...it will teach you how to graduate!

geek

**warraghiyagey** · 10-04-2007, 14:52

Anything you will do with yourlife will certainly be enhanced by the trail experience, most notably finding out exactly who you are and what you are made of.
Will certainly make the remainder of your college more fruitful and successful.

**earthbound** · 10-04-2007, 15:03

I just graduated from college and I am glad I'm going hiking now. This way I do not have to worry about ending my hike by a certain time or have to return to society and school and deadlines and all of that crap. School is done and now I can just focus on my hike and see where it takes me next. After long hikes there is a readjustment period and going right back into school would be pretty tough, but I do have a friend who did that. Thru-hiked and then went right into school- he still loved his hike!

**Johnny Thunder** · 10-04-2007, 15:04

Delaying college to go on a hike is like delaying a dental appointment to go on a hike.

Advising someone to do either is reprehensible.

**wrongway_08** · 10-04-2007, 15:16

I put off college to go do my stuff, never ended up going. I am making more then some my buddies from school that went through college and I dont have any of that school debt to repay. I have also knocked a lot off of my THINGS TO DO LIST, while some of my buddies are just starting to try and figure out how to do the stuff they kept putting off and repay all that debt.
I am not sayn to not go to college but takn off a year to do the hike wont screw up anything.

What if you die in two years? Would you think:

1) Wow sure glad I got a least 2 years of college in

OR

2) Wow I am glad to have seen the AT and learned all I did while in college for the year.

Either way college didnt happen all the way - at least you did get to do the trail

**ChinMusic** · 10-04-2007, 16:02

With some of these posts Judge Smails comes to mind.....

**warraghiyagey** · 10-04-2007, 16:40

Originally Posted by Johnny Thunder

Advising someone to do either is reprehensible.

Wow, reprehensible. Really? I have two friends that took a year off between high school and college with nothing as grand as an AT hike on their agenda. Both went on to finish in four years and have had great careers. Anything reprehensible about the people around them, family that supported this decision?
Is it written in stone that one must finish college in 4 years straight or else their lives will not be fruitful. They're both happy and well adjusted.
Reprehensible. Really? I took a semester off in college too. Should I start feeling bad about that now? I hadn't before but gee, maybe you're right. I should start feeling awful about it right now.
Think I'll go curl up in a corner and rock back and forth for a few days. Oh the peril of it all.

**Appalachian Tater** · 10-04-2007, 18:17

I think either way could be the right decision depending on several variables. It's probably best to just finish up college and get your degree if you're anywhere near finishing and then go hike. Once that degree is in your pocket, you've got it. The AT will still be there after graduation.

On the other hand, if you're a sophomore and just dropped your major and have no idea what you want to do with your life, and are just wasting time and money in school, hiking the AT is a good way to take a break, buy a little time, and have a little breathing room to think, while still doing accomplishing something. College will still be there after your thru-hike.

My perspective is from spending two years finishing a degree rather than starting from scratch so that I would have the degree. It has definitely proved useful later, both in work and further education, giving me opportunities I might not have had if I had dropped out. I did take a break from school by taking some "fun" classes at another institution for a quarter.

**ChinMusic** · 10-04-2007, 20:01

As an employer, knowing that someone had the ability to plan out, stick to, and accomplish a thru-hike, could have an impact. This may not impress all employers but it would me.

**Appalachian Tater** · 10-04-2007, 22:57

Originally Posted by ChinMusic

As an employer, knowing that someone had the ability to plan out, stick to, and accomplish a thru-hike, could have an impact. This may not impress all employers but it would me.

I have been on a job interview since my hike and we spent a good deal of time talking about my hike. It wasn't on my resume but of course they asked about the employment gap. I agree with that it would impress most employers, especially if you present it correctly, but a degree would be more useful than a hike IF it were an either/or choice.

**Frosty** · 10-04-2007, 23:16

Originally Posted by wrongway_08

What if you die in two years? Would you think:

1) Wow sure glad I got a least 2 years of college in

OR...

This is a terrible way to plan your life, planning as if you were going to die in two years.

Under this idea, it would be foolish to save any money for anything, foolish to worry about long-term fitness or health, foolish to save for anything. It would be smart under the concept of planning as if you were going to die in two years to go as deeply into debt as possible:

If you die in two years, would you rather have traveled Europe on credits cards you now don't have to repay 'casue you're dead, or ... (do anything constructive)

This "plan" only works if you actually do die, not what ANYONE has in mind. If you make life decisions based on "what if I die in two years" and you don't die, your life will be a total mess.

Putting hiking first or college first is a personal decision. I went back to school in my late 20's. Everyone was 18-22 and believe me there is a huge difference between 18 and 28. My classmates saw me as an adult; I saw them as juvenile.

I got better grades in school, but I would never recommend anyone trade in going to college right after high school for hiking the trail.

The trail will be there after you graduate, and your trail experience will be basically the same (no different because you are a few years older) when you graduate.

College may also be there for you, but the experience will NOT be the same, and not necessarily in a good way.

Think hard before putting college off to hike. Put off working after college, hell yeah! As long as you can. But first get that degree.

**Appalachian Tater** · 10-04-2007, 23:18

Course you always regret the things you didn't do and rarely those you did.

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