Longest re-supply

[Drybones]

Can anyone tell me the sections that are longest between re-supply and how many days of supplies I should carry in these sections? Thanks.

[Spokes]

Depends on how slow you hike..........

The best thing to do is read Baltimore Jack's five part Re-Supply articles in the left hand column of the WB homepage. They are dated but still relevant. He tells you how much food to carry (+/-) in each section.

I put a copy of them in my bounce box and got them out as needed. They were very helpful.

Don't freak out when you hit the Whites either. You can carry 3-4 days of food and re-supply when you hit each of the notches.

Cheers!

[Monkeywrench]

I think my longest resupply was 7 days, but that's because I decided to skip a town stop.

[garlic08]

As already noted, it's really up to you. How much hitching do you want to do? How much do you like towns, or do you want to avoid them? How fast do you walk? Why are you out there--to walk all day or set up camps for a long time each day? All these answers will affect your food supply.

With some creative hitching and mail drops, I think the longest stretch without resupply on the AT is about 70 miles. That can be one day for an ultramarathoner, or ten days or more for a pokey hiker with an 80 pound load.

My comfortable resupply distance, developed out West on less traveled trails, is 100 miles, so that's what I normally planned on the AT unless the trail went right into a town or restaurant. Like Monkeywrench, I skipped lots of towns that were off trail. I never missed a deli or C-store that was less than a mile away. I carried 100 miles only a few times on the AT, there were so many options. Even the "hundred mile wilderness" can be broken up with supply stops pretty easily.

[Drybones]

By the time I reach Fontana I plan to be at 20 miles per day. I plan a mail drop to get me across the Smokies...will have 6 days of supplies but cross in 5. The Hundred Mile Wilderness is the only stretch I'm concerned about. Are there re-supply places in the HMW? I do not want to make long trips into towns unless absolutely necessary. I have seen posts that say you need 10 days of suppies going into the HMW to cross it?

[Spokes]

..... The Hundred Mile Wilderness is the only stretch I'm concerned about. Are there re-supply places in the HMW? .... I have seen posts that say you need 10 days of suppies going into the HMW to cross it?

Yep, that information is in Part 5 of the Re-Supply article I mentioned earlier. Just click the link for all the details.

Cheers!

[Zipper]

I hiked low miles comparatively and never had to carry more than 7 days of food. 5 was common too. I resupplied (lightly) at White House Landing in the 100 mile wilderness. It's a lovely oasis with giant burgers and pizza.

Good luck!

[Don H]

By the time I reach Fontana I plan to be at 20 miles per day.

Sure there's places where you can do that kind of milage but planning by a certain point to be doing 20 might be a little optimistic. I saw several people who tred to push that kind of pace in the beginning that ended up getting off the trail with injuries. When you get further north and the terrain gets tougher you'll be far below 20 mpd. I hiked with a group between 54 and 74 years old in Maine and no one was doing that kind of milage.

You'll find resupply is fairly easy. Even the 100 Mile Wilderness has White House Landing half about way through for resupply.

Good luck and have fun! It's the adventure of a life time.

[Monkeywrench]

The Hundred Mile Wilderness is the only stretch I'm concerned about. Are there re-supply places in the HMW? I do not want to make long trips into towns unless absolutely necessary. I have seen posts that say you need 10 days of suppies going into the HMW to cross it?

I left Monson on a Sunday morning and was at Katahdin Stream Campground in Baxter Park at lunch time on Friday. If you're thru-hiking, by the time you get to Monson you'll be hiking way more than 10 miles per day so you won't need 10 days supplies for the HMW.

[Spokes]

Sure there's places where you can do that kind of milage but planning by a certain point to be doing 20 might be a little optimistic. .....

heheheeeee............ Agreed. The first thing I thought about when I read that post was--- New Hampshire.

nuff said.