Tentless and Hamockless Entire Thru-Hike?

[4shot]

one other compelling reason to have a shelter...if you are sick (contagious type) it is better to tent/hang by yourself out of respect for other hikers.

I remember we caught up with a section hiker last year in the 100 mile wilderness. when we caught up to her, she was in a shelter. It was starting to rain so we got in the same shelter. She was coughing/hacking/wheezing and informed us she was sick. We were in no real hurry so for the next 2-3 nights when we stopped at whichever shelter, she would inevitably show up and ask if we could "squeeze in one more" meanwhile coughing and sneezing her lungs out. Really rude if you ask me...she had her own tent but was apparently too lazy to set it up. (Not too sick to put it up as she was well enough to hike the same miles we did.) and she wasn't a kid either, probably in her early 50's. Our trail name for her became Typhoid Mary. There was enough in our group to fill the shelter so we didn't exactly exclude her but it may have been the most selfish, rude display of behavior I witnessed on the entire journey.

I went by the shelter guidelines...if it said 6 people, I didn't try to get in one but I wouldn't "squeeze one more in" either (unless it was one of the few that seemed to be off on the capacity estimate in a conservative manner). For the most part I avoided them unless it was weather related.

[Deadeye]

totally unreasonable. NEVER count on shelter space. you need to be self-sufficient

+1, in fact, you can't always count on a shelter being where the map/guide says it is. They have a nasty habit of burning down at most inconvenient times.

[hikerboy57]

With a Sept 1 start, there is a pretty darn good chance you will have shelter space every night (and often the whole shelter to yourself). However, like everyone else said, having some kind of personal shelter is prudent.

I would recommend a bivy sack. Not only does this give you an emergency shelter if you need it, but it can be used inside an AT shelter for added warmth and protection from the weather, such as rain or snow blowing into the shelter.

this is good advice, the mountains get pretty nippy during the time you'll be out there, and even is you find a vacant shelter, you may want the extra protection from the elements.

[Doc Mike]

If you continue to enable those people who would choose to do this by building more/better shelters then people will continue to exercise this type of stupidity.

[CowHead]

It's your call HYOH but as stated before the risk might out weight the comfort zone, my tent weights less than 2 lbs and those stormy days it sure comes in handy

[Ender]

And it really doesn't take much to be prepared... a 3 ounce cuben tarp from zpacks, and you're good to go. There's really no excuse to not do it. Especially when, if you come upon a full shelter, it's not their responsibility to make more room for you just because you don't have a shelter of your own.

[Gaiter]

Another vote for carrying some form of shelter... like lw said, you need to be self sufficient
my first long hike i started with a rain poncho that had grommets to set it up as a shelter... plus its multifunctional (if its big enough, it will cover your pack too!)
my second long hike i just went with the ground cloth and rain fly of my tent, now i've switched to an appy trails tarp

[Dogwood]

With a Sept 1 start, there is a pretty darn good chance you will have shelter space every night (and often the whole shelter to yourself). However, like everyone else said, having some kind of personal shelter is prudent.
.....

BUT, he needs to consider, even with a Sept 1 SOBO start date, at the beginning of his thru he will encounter the AT thru-hiker masses heading NOBO. So, perhaps AFTER he passes the main NOBO hoards he might encounter more open shelter space. Until that time he might be competing for shelter space with these other hikers!

[Skidsteer]

Is it reasonable, considering I am starting a late, September 1, SOBO thru-hike that I decide against bringing a personal tent or hammock and just stay in the shelters the entire hike?

It's about as reasonable as Bill Gates using food stamps.

[weary]

take a small tarp at least....what happens if you walk into a storm in the middle of the day and no shelter near. geek

Geek is right. Plus people do wander these hills 12 months a year. The shelters are rarely full after the peak season. But the word is "rarely", not "never."

[Spirit Walker]

During the autumn months, scouts and church groups go out on weekends. I've seen full shelters in MD in November.

During the week you'll likely be able to use shelters most of the time, but you may decide not to. They are colder than a tent, dirty, and full of mice. And the floor is a lot harder than the ground. I'd rather tent it unless it's actually pouring.

[Tinker]

If you don't carry your own shelter, you need to be prepared to lay down in the mud and go to sleep in the pouring rain.

Or worse - break a leg on icy rocks during the time of year that few people are on the more remote parts of the Trail without having portable shelter?
I know, bad things only happen to other people.
Don't get killed out there. At least bring a poncho sized tarp and a waterproof bivy sack.

[bfayer]

Yep. I've witnessed people without tents not able to get shelter space on rainy days before. One time, the tentless dude was really annoyed that people weren't moving out into the rain with their tents so he could have a shelter space, but no one budged, with one person in the shelter outright calling him an idiot for not being smart enough to have at least a tarp. It was a little ugly, but the guy hiked on to the next shelter maybe 6-8 miles away. I always wondered if that next shelter was full too...

Years ago when I was young (and I mean a lot of years) I was in GSMNP and it was a misty wet night, right after dark a guy walks out of the woods looking like a skinny wet cat that just fell into a lake. The shelter was full.

He walked up to the shelter and through his chattering teeth he begged us to let him in because he did not have a tent. Everyone else told him "so what" and one offered him a plastic ground cloth.

Being young I said "you can have my space" I packed up and set up my tent in the rain. It was not a bad night, but in the morning I had to deal with a wet tent and packing up in the wet mist.

As people were leaving I told one of the other guys "I was worried about that guy, I thought he might have hypothermia" The guy laughed at me and told me that guy had been pulling the same act at every shelter he came to, always showing up after dark and always shivering and every time some sucker gave him space.

That was the last time I gave up space to someone that did not have kids.

Just a story, pack what you want.

[Seatbelt]

The only way that I can imagine this working is if you are hiking so slow that you stop mid-day at the next shelter while no-one else is there and call it a day. Even then you can find somebody occasionally who is taking a day off or weekenders doing the same thing.

[stranger]

I think there are a few things to consider here:

1. The risk taken by not carrying a personal shelter
2. The hassle of having to use shelters all the time
3. The pressue put on others if the shelter is full on a rainy night to move outside
4. The lack of respect for others to put them in that situation
5. You only have to run out of luck once to have a miserable and dangerous night

My friend hiked the AT in 1995 with just a tarp, he never used it and slept in shelters, hostels or motels every night, he ended up using the tarp as a groundsheet in shelters, just a 5 x7 tarp, tiny considering he was 6'3"

In 2008 I hiked with this jackass who didn't carry a shelter, his logic was to hike to the next shelter if one was full, I asked him what he would do when the next shelter was full, he replied hike to the next one...and yes, he pulled a few 30+ mile days because of this. During an argument one night about the pressue put on other hikers by him not carrying a shelter, he refused to acknowledge any of it...he kept saying, I'm self sufficient and I will hike to the next shelter or hostel, etc..

A week later, at Mountain Harbour Hostel in TN, I'm sitting outside sorting my pack and I hear the lady tell him the hostel is full and he is welcome to set up his tent and use the shower...he then says, "well I don't have a tent so what are you going to do with me, I'm at your mercy" She then gave him a spot in the onsite caravan. I later heard he pulled this crap with hikers during rainstorms when shelters were full.

Even if you could safely hike the AT without a personal shelter...why would you want to do this? I only stay in shelters when I have to and always wish I was in my tent. Do you really love mice and dust that much? Are you afraid of tenting? Many hikers are.

Finally, using shelters all the time would mean having to hike shorter and longer days, nearly every day. I always said my perfect day is around 22-23 miles, what if a shelter is at mile 18 and mile 30? Stop early or hike on, only to sleep in a dark box with mice running around?

Sounds like a really bad idea, because when push comes to shove, in the rain, with a full shelter, you are probably going to ask for space and make everyone feel uncomfortable because YOU decided to be inconsiderate to other hikers. Especially when tarps are 5 ounces these days!

[DLANOIE]

Is it reasonable, considering I am starting a late, September 1, SOBO thru-hike that I decide against bringing a personal tent or hammock and just stay in the shelters the entire hike?

This should be under the hiking humor section...

[ScubaSteve]

Thanks everyone for your colorful responses

[4shot]

Thanks everyone for your colorful responses

are you going to tent or hang on your hike?

[DavidNH]

And what if the shelter is full?

If you are thru hiking or even just section hiking the AT, you need to carry a shelter of some sort. Don't count on space in a shelter even if there usually will be space.

Bring shelter.. It's a couple of pounds. Shelters and a luxury, not a necessity. period.

[Dogwood]

...guy walks out of the woods looking like a skinny wet cat that just fell into a lake.

It was kinda funny picturing that. LOL.