Daily budget on the AT

[10-K]

It wouldn't bother me to slackpack downhill all the way to Kathadin.

I just like being outside in nature and walking as many miles as possible every day (see, I can hear people disagreeing with that even...)

I don't care about what anyone else does really. I mean, I respect all hikers the same. I don't elevate someone who touched every white blaze, , carried their pack up Kathadin, and never went into town one time to any higher status than someone who slackpacks and goes into town every night.

I mean, big whoop..... hiking the AT is an awesome, amazing experience that few do. On the other hand, it really is walking from town to town every few days and going to a store for something. Not exactly a death defying, blood curdling, backcountry wilderness experience.

[Papa D]

It wouldn't bother me to slackpack downhill all the way to Kathadin.

I just like being outside in nature and walking as many miles as possible every day (see, I can hear people disagreeing with that even...)

I don't care about what anyone else does really. I mean, I respect all hikers the same. I don't elevate someone who touched every white blaze, , carried their pack up Kathadin, and never went into town one time to any higher status than someone who slackpacks and goes into town every night.

I mean, big whoop..... hiking the AT is an awesome, amazing experience that few do. On the other hand, it really is walking from town to town every few days and going to a store for something. Not exactly a death defying, blood curdling, backcountry wilderness experience.

You have great style and I wasn't at all being critical. My spartan carry it all style is just my style for long distance hikes and was especially so on my thru-hike. As a section hiker and occasional trail runner (with a credit card and a few funds) I also do pretty much whatever I want. However, most would agree that too much civilization would detract from any hike though. I think this is especially true of a thru-hike which to me is still seen as at least a "quasi-wilderness" experience (I know - very little true wilderness areas). What if someone had a camper van follow them around the mountains and meet them at every road crossing, take them to a restaurant, a full service hotel for the night, then plop back on the trail each morning in clean laundry -- they would technically be thru-hiking but so much of the experience involves living outside for many days in a row - figuring out how to "make it" and since this whole post started with the OP saying he had VERY limited funds, it seemed to me that his style would nearly have to involve inexpensive bulk food, lots of days without bunks / showers, hitch-hiking, etc. -- the full treatment -- and the style could be celebrated too.

[Sly]

However, most would agree that too much civilization would detract from any hike though. I think this is especially true of a thru-hike which to me is still seen as at least a "quasi-wilderness" experience (I know - very little true wilderness areas). What if someone had a camper van follow them around the mountains and meet them at every road crossing, take them to a restaurant, a full service hotel for the night, then plop back on the trail each morning in clean laundry -- they would technically be thru-hiking but so much of the experience involves living outside for many days in a row - .

While I agree that slackpacking everyday and staying in a motel every night would take away from the wilderness aspect of a thru-hike, however, it seems some people go to lengths to avoid towns as much as possible.

To me thru-hiking isn't only about the trail, but discovering America. On a 5-6 month hike you're lucky if 20 days are spent in town. Yukking it up with the locals and having a good dinner and a few beers is usually a good thing. Sure it will probably add $1000 to a thru-hike but, imo, it's worth it as you may never visit that part of the country again.

[Papa D]

While I agree that slackpacking everyday and staying in a motel every night would take away from the wilderness aspect of a thru-hike, however, it seems some people go to lengths to avoid towns as much as possible.

To me thru-hiking isn't only about the trail, but discovering America. On a 5-6 month hike you're lucky if 20 days are spent in town. Yukking it up with the locals and having a good dinner and a few beers is usually a good thing. Sure it will probably add $1000 to a thru-hike but, imo, it's worth it as you may never visit that part of the country again.

yes - agreed - balance is important - as a south-bounder in '85, I was lonely as all get out at the end of my hike - anybody to talk to was a treat.

[Mountain Mike]

While I agree that slackpacking everyday and staying in a motel every night would take away from the wilderness aspect of a thru-hike, however, it seems some people go to lengths to avoid towns as much as possible.

To me thru-hiking isn't only about the trail, but discovering America. On a 5-6 month hike you're lucky if 20 days are spent in town. Yukking it up with the locals and having a good dinner and a few beers is usually a good thing. Sure it will probably add $1000 to a thru-hike but, imo, it's worth it as you may never visit that part of the country again.

If you have the budget & time yes. Trail towns are awesome. Fondly remember doing laundry in Damascus & spliting a 6 pack while rocking & dancing to 70"s music. After a late breakfast & beer at Dots it was north on the trail.

[garlic08]

...To me thru-hiking isn't only about the trail, but discovering America. On a 5-6 month hike you're lucky if 20 days are spent in town. Yukking it up with the locals and having a good dinner and a few beers is usually a good thing. Sure it will probably add $1000 to a thru-hike but, imo, it's worth it as you may never visit that part of the country again.

Well said, Sly. My feelings exactly. Some of the high points on my CDT hike (besides meeting you) were seeing Logger Days in Darby, MT, the folk festival in Helena, meeting Santa Claus at the motel in Lincoln, the free milkshake in Leadore, ID, grilling my own dinner in Lima, eating pie in at the Pie-O-Neer Cafe in Pie Town, etc. I can't imagine missing those experiences to save a few bucks. A good thru hike is definitely a sort of tour.

On the slackpacking argument, my only contribution is that the fuel use bothers me a little. I met a couple on the AT who drove two cars out from the West Coast and were shuttling themselves to town every night. Gas cost $4 per gallon that year, too. I can't imagine their fuel use and cost driving two cars the length of the AT twice. And I admit I'm a little concerned about carbon footprint, drowning polar bears, and all that. I don't think a little slacking now and then detracts from the AT experience, but I can't help but feel a little smug that I never did it. I accepted rides to town and really respect those who never even did that.

[Papa D]

Somehow this post has gone from budgets to slack-packing - this is probably my fault because I suggested that if one was more of a purist (and didn't hire taxis and drink top shelf liquor with the locals, for example) they would spend a lot less money

[10-K]

Somehow this post has gone from budgets to slack-packing - this is probably my fault because I suggested that if one was more of a purist (and didn't hire taxis and drink top shelf liquor with the locals, for example) they would spend a lot less money

Yeah, I went off on a tangent too. But really - I don't have a preconceived notion of what constitutes "good, proper AT hiking".

One thing I did do is walk by every white blaze....

I do agree that that the mind set you've described is what's going to be necessary to hike a thru with that amount of money.

[thepokerkid227]

Yeah, I went off on a tangent too. But really - I don't have a preconceived notion of what constitutes "good, proper AT hiking".

One thing I did do is walk by every white blaze....

I do agree that that the mind set you've described is what's going to be necessary to hike a thru with that amount of money.

I plan on sticking to my mindset as much as possible too, hopefully I succeed

[10-K]

I plan on sticking to my mindset as much as possible too, hopefully I succeed

I'm rooting for you. It really would be cool if you started a journal online at postholer.com or similar site and posted an update from time to time.

[ChinMusic]

While I agree that slackpacking everyday and staying in a motel every night would take away from the wilderness aspect of a thru-hike, however, it seems some people go to lengths to avoid towns as much as possible.

To me thru-hiking isn't only about the trail, but discovering America. On a 5-6 month hike you're lucky if 20 days are spent in town. Yukking it up with the locals and having a good dinner and a few beers is usually a good thing. Sure it will probably add $1000 to a thru-hike but, imo, it's worth it as you may never visit that part of the country again.

Too long a thread for me to read. Saw your post and had to give you props.

Dead on, man.

[thepokerkid227]

Want to say thanks for all the input!

[stonedflea]

to be completely honest, i read about two pages' worth of posts and then skipped to this last page just to make sure everyone continued to be off-topic. no one can really tell you what kind of budget will work for you because only you know your comfort level, hiking plan, etc.

all of these people throwing out $5k+ figures don't seem to be able to fathom a thru on anything less, but to me, i'd stay in a hostel every town on $5k.

it all depends on how you're willing to hike. i met a guy on the trail this year who supposedly started with $25 in his pocket, and he'd hike and then do handyman work when he'd get into town. he would come off the trail for a few days, if not a week, at a time and then he'd power through his miles to catch up to everybody else. there was a joke going around that his base weight was a kilo, hahaha, but i don't really think his mileage was drug-induced, unless you count adrenaline.

i do think it would be a very good idea to go with the $1/mile minimum. 10k mentioned setting aside $7k for a thru but expecting a large chunk to be there when you got off trail... while this figure is really high to me, his general concept behind it is solid: what are your plans post-trail? how will you get back home (are you budgeting a flight, train ride, rental car, etc. into your figure?) do you have an apartment to come back to, or will you be immediately facing a move? do you have a job to pick back up with your first day off-trail? having an "emergency fund" set aside for those kind of things is something worth thinking about.

with that being said, here are a few things that helped me save money:

i) publicize your plan. in general, they said if you tell people about your goals, you're more likely to obtain them because it's no longer a private idea. if you tell yourself you're going to lose 20# this year, the only person expecting you to do it is yourself, whereas if you tell a group of friends, they will be expecting you to at least try to lose those 20#, and they will more than likely consistently ask about your progress. four months out, when i was still on the fence about my thru, i went ahead and facebooked it to help myself finalize my decision. i created an event and invited all the people i could think of that might be interested in it and immediately began getting positive, supportive feedback.

ii) ask for help. once i'd created the facebook event, i updated it every week or so as i'd finish a book about the trail or buy a new piece of gear to keep people up to date about my progress. then i mentioned that any and all help, thoughts, and prayers would be greatly appreciated. people came out of the woodwork to help. i didn't realize it, but i had friends who had moved to areas right along the trail after college who welcomed me in with open arms once i got to their neck of the woods. between those couple of friends, they saved me at least $100 between the laundry, showers, food, and overnight stays. also, i found that people were very willing to send "care packages." i would post my next town on facebook, and leave it up to others if they wanted to send something or not, but i got a few cash contributions and lots of homemade cookies and brownies along the way.

iii) make connections & talk to locals. i LOVE locals. and locals, for the most part, tend to at least like hikers. i found that they are most all very willing to help out hikers in need, whether it's just with a ride, food, or perhaps even a place to stay. when i was in damascus, the one hostel that would allow dogs wouldn't answer my phone call when i got into town. i wound up staying with a friend from the area the first night in town, and when she dropped me off in town the next day, the hostel still wouldn't answer my call. a friend who had been hiking with his dog introduced me to a local who he'd met the night before, and the family was super nice and allowed me to pitch my tent on their yard for two nights. they even wound up having a big bonfire for hikers on saturday night. i began talking to a group of people in the shenandoahs on july 4th and they invited me to their cookout, where they grilled me with questions concerning my hike for hours. they gave me and my dog steak and potoes, italian sausage, and built us a huge fire in the pavillion that night before they left, but not before they gave me $60 in cash just to help out along the way. i met a lady in pennsylvania who offered us a retreat from the heat wave for three days and she and her husband slackpacked us over lehigh gap.

good luck on your hike. no matter how much you wind up spending, it will be the best-spent money of your entire life.

[Don H]

I think the cautions expressed here are due to concern of running out of money. Most anyone who has thru-hiked has know people who had to get off the trail due to lack of funds.

[cabbagehead]

Save $5k. Overestimate. The price of peanuts and oatmeal is unpredictable.

[Rickman]

Anybody know about ATM's? Where they are located on the trail?

[Winds]

ATM's actually on the trail - Oh I hope not!

The A.T. Guide does a fine job of listing ATM locations throughout the A.T.