Are you ready for your thru hike? Need help - Stop in!

[pyroman9]

The obi 1p Elite was fantastic. I loved it. However, on the trail you think you will use it all the time... and you never use it... haha. So i ended up sending it home when i got into VT. I just sheltered it the rest of the way, if needed my poncho acted as a tarp tent and I kept my footprint for a ground cloth to protect my neoair. Had no problems with sending it home to save weight.

[canoe]

I guess by the time you got up north the crowds pretty much thinned out and shelters werent too full

[Hairbear]

I'm a healthy MOM type... u know eat ur veggies & all that. I do like to eat the "colors of the rainbow". Blue=blueberries etc... Ha ha!!

by the looks of the pic in your avitar,its working well for you girl.

[gizzy bear]

cool video!!! great job on the hike AND the video AND your service as well...my boyfriend and i are doing the hundred mile wilderness in aug/sept...very excited!!! on a scale of 1-10, 10 being hard...what would you rank that part of the trail? just curious... and we decided on the pocket rocket ... my boyfriend was given one of the knock offs and it seems to work very well... do you have any experience with those?

[bfayer]

I guess by the time you got up north the crowds pretty much thinned out and shelters werent too full

That and if you can hike 20 to 60 miles a day, you can just keep walking till you find one with space Old slow people like me need a tent.

[gizzy bear]

That and if you can hike 20 to 60 miles a day, you can just keep walking till you find one with space Old slow people like me need a tent.

yeah...i'm hoping my hover round can get me out of any tight spots...i figured if it can handle the grand canyon, like on the commercial....

[Malto]

Hello everyone,
My name is Bomber - I thru hiked the Appalachian Trail this past year. I am currently proudly serving in the USAF and itching to get back on the trail and hike somewhere.... unfortunately i have lots of training left and will unable to for some time.. So I figured I could offer some help.

Before hiking the trail I worked at two different outdoor retail stores, I have also climbed the grand teton, aconcagua (22,851ft), and many other mountains. I am knowledgeable about the gear and techniques. That being said though I will give you my opinion and reasoning on whatever you ask, this does not mean it is the best/only way. Just my way. I will try and present other ways when I am able to.

The trail:
Start Date: March 15th, 2012
Finish Date: July 4th, 2012
Average miles per day: 20+
Longest day: 62.4 miles
Total Days: 112 days
Pack base weight: 11.65 lbs (varied earlier on)
Gear List: http://www.geargrams.com/list?id=5703

.

Think long and hard before doing anything like the increase in mileage just to prove a point. While you may want to prove something it is also a good way of inviting an injury. Going from doing a high of 33 miles to doing 62 over an extended day IMHO is inviting an early end to a hike or at least a holdup waiting for recovery.

To bomber, not second guessing your decision, just would not recommend others repeat it.

[HikerMom58]

by the looks of the pic in your avitar,its working well for you girl.

Thanks Hairbear... you are always so kind to me & I luv ya for it!

[pyroman9]

Gizzy - it is wet... muddy... all depends on weather... EASY IF dry... if not... its not as much fun... ha Pocket rocket was amazing, no complaints.

GG- Your very right - I would not advise that at all, keep in mind hike your own hike. I wanted to challenge myself and push myself to my limits. I did. I was lucky, it was risky. The biggest risk was being extremely exhausted and still hiking. That hike/climb down into duncannon is not a easy trail, do it after 26 hours and i literally do not remember doing it, i just remember that it existed. It was a choice I made to challenge myself - but i would not tell anyone to try and repeat my feat.

[dancingbear]

what did you have for water storage ? platypus, water bottle , nalogen, some combo ?

[pyroman9]

Water is a very touchy topic on the trail and everyone seems to have different views. I will give you two of them - mine and others

Mine: I used aquamira drops for treating my water. I carried them the entire way... I used them maybe a dozen times and that was it, I never got sick. I was smart about where i got water, and tried to only drink out of good water sources. I was a fan of "Cameling up" which is a theory that I had along with a few other hikers i was with. I would drink a excess amount of water at a good source and then hike nearly dry or even dry to the next source. Risky yes, but there is some logic. A deer does not carry a canteen and yet it survives? Why? Because when it is thirsty it just goes to the source. We have guidebooks (yes not always accurate but mostly) that tell us where the water sources are, so can't we do the same thing as a deer? This was a weight savings of 2.4 lbs per Liter, that is a lot of weight! However sometimes i knew water was scarce and did carry water in a dasani water bottle. They are cheap and light - nalgenes are heavy and expensive! No need for that. A liter platypus is handy as i used it for evenings when i was cooking a hot meal - That would give me 2 liters of water - .5 to cook and 1.5 to drink. I worked it out that I drank a liter before i went to bed and drank the other .5 when i woke up. With time comes your way of doing things.

Now as for others views on water: FILTER EVERY DROP OR YOUR WILL GET GHARDIA!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Personally I laugh at this theory - my friend who i hiked with had a gravity filter (I forget the model but a higher end one) and he filtered every single drop of water. Guess what? He got Ghardia. People have learned to live in fear of all sorts of stuff. You have an immune system for a reason and it does its job well if you allow it to. But some hikers do not care and will carry a pump or something crazy and filter all of the water. I have nothing against them - just do not think that its needed. Most thru hikers i ran into at the end of our hikes said they often drank spring water directly and really nice creeks sometimes.

The joys of hike your own hike.. you come up with what works for you! NO NALGENES though! Get a dasani 1 liter bottle - replace it every few weeks so it does not get moldy. Great stuff!

[Malto]

To bomber, not second guessing your decision, just would not recommend others repeat it.

Gizzy - it is wet... muddy... all depends on weather... EASY IF dry... if not... its not as much fun... ha Pocket rocket was amazing, no complaints.

GG- Your very right - I would not advise that at all, keep in mind hike your own hike. I wanted to challenge myself and push myself to my limits. I did. I was lucky, it was risky. The biggest risk was being extremely exhausted and still hiking. That hike/climb down into duncannon is not a easy trail, do it after 26 hours and i literally do not remember doing it, i just remember that it existed. It was a choice I made to challenge myself - but i would not tell anyone to try and repeat my feat.

Pyroman, my post wasn't addressed at you at all. I hike my hike and I even hiked a few others hikes as well just for fun. The biggest risk wasn't the hill down to Duncannon, it was an overuse injury. While this section is likely the absolute easiest one to do high miles on and you did it slow enough to reduce the chance of injury, you advertise this like a badge of honor when in reality it was frankly pretty stupid given the mileage you had done to date. I don't want to see someone else end their their hike doing a similar "mile hero" day.

[Son Driven]

Hey Bomber, way to go. I also served in the USAF 75-79 and in my 3rd week of training, I did 14 miles today. I plan on adding a couple hours a day going up and down a bank on the Minnesota river once my ankles loose their soreness from from hiking through all the frozen boot steps in MN. I plan on being more leasurley, and enjoy the trail, I plan on taking sundays off to read, write. If I hit Springer by the 1st of March, averege 15 miles 6 days a week I should finish around Sept. 1. Unless I end up with unforseen zero days due to illness or injury.

[Son Driven]

Hey Bomber, way to go. I also served in the USAF 75-79 and in my 3rd week of training, I did 14 miles today. I plan on adding a couple hours a day going up and down a bank on the Minnesota river once my ankles loose their soreness from from hiking through all the frozen boot steps in MN. I plan on being more leasurley, and enjoy the trail, I plan on taking sundays off to read, write. If I hit Springer by the 1st of March, averege 15 miles 6 days a week I should finish around Sept. 1. Unless I end up with unforseen zero days due to illness or injury.

[canoe]

Pyroman, my post wasn't addressed at you at all. I hike my hike and I even hiked a few others hikes as well just for fun. The biggest risk wasn't the hill down to Duncannon, it was an overuse injury. While this section is likely the absolute easiest one to do high miles on and you did it slow enough to reduce the chance of injury, you advertise this like a badge of honor when in reality it was frankly pretty stupid given the mileage you had done to date. I don't want to see someone else end their their hike doing a similar "mile hero" day.

WOW can anyone say envy? While I could never do 62miles(probably neither can you) I do think 62 is a fantastic badge of honor. A little crazy A little risky. Life is a risk. We choose which risks we want to take. BUT still... a grand accomplishment. ease up GG

[Malto]

WOW can anyone say envy? While I could never do 62miles(probably neither can you) I do think 62 is a fantastic badge of honor. A little crazy A little risky. Life is a risk. We choose which risks we want to take. BUT still... a grand accomplishment. ease up GG

Actually canoe, no doubt I could do this but that's not the point. I learned the hard way about pushing too hard. I pushed too hard on one of my training hikes and it almost cost me my thru hike. It took a cortisone shot and several weeks of rest to recover. This is the voice of experience, not envy.

[canoe]

DOnt know how old you are gg, but bomber is a young hiker. In very good shape, very fit, carrying a light pack. Maybe his situation was much differant than yours.

[pyroman9]

Ok kids, CANT WE ALL JUST GET ALONG!!

Canoe and GG settle down now... settle down...

GG - As you said its risky - But i knew the risk - I took them into account - and i went for it. It was my choice and I do not regret it. You mention that I act as if it is a badge of honor? Hell yea its bragging rights! It is a major mind game when you hike for that long non stop... by the way i was soaked to the bone and freezing all night from wet fields and rain. That terrain was mellow, but not so much when its raining, wet, and cold. So yes I do hold my head high when i talk about what I achieved. However, I will also say it is foolish to attempt and i would not advise anyone to match me. I would though advise everyone to push the limits, go outside the comfort zone, do something crazy. (Most people are here by hiking the trail). This was my journey, and I wanted to push myself well beyond what I thought I could do... and I did.

And canoe... be nice! Thanks for the nice words though - although "Very fit" I think your just trying to be nice now! haha

[Malto]

Pyroman, enough said..... Glad you had a great hike and thank you for your service. This was not challenge to you at all. Sorry if it came across that way.

Canoe, you know not what you are saying.

[canoe]

Pyroman, enough said..... Glad you had a great hike and thank you for your service. This was not challenge to you at all. Sorry if it came across that way.

Canoe, you know not what you are saying.

Your right