Money Questions

[neo]

go to dollar stores.savalot stores,stay in cheap or free hostels,make do with gear ya already have,i only stayed in a hotel once every few weeks,you can still eat in town
if ya go to cheap all ya can eat places,if you spend 6 monthths on the trail thats 100.00
bucks a week,eat lots of mac and cheese,lots of raman noodles,hope ya have a great hike,neo

[neo]

almost forgot yogi,yogi,yogi,and yogi,lots of people at picnic grounds love hearing about your hike,free food with out asking,work for stay helps,stealth
camp to avoid pay shelters in vermont /nh neo

[jmaclennan]

very doable. my partner in '03 had about that much i think. he wound up working in dalton, mass for two weeks as a short order cook to make money though. working here and there along the way is possible (not just work-for-stay either). be careful in nh and vt with the huts and whatnot. i didn't pay once there so it can be done. i'd say be as frugal as can be at first and then if you're still in good shape you can spend more freely later on (as opposed to the other way around). a good reason to do this (besides the obvious) is that i found (in my experience) that toward the end i wanted towns more (where more money gets spent). i plowed through towns in the south without thinking twice (i was nobo) and spending only what i needed to resupply. up north i was getting soft and needed a bed and non-trail food. if you fritter away money early on, you won't be able to do that. good luck!

[neo]

if ya eat nothing but raman and mac and cheeese and bulk oat meal ya may have a lot of money left neo

[neo]

you can always gigalo if ya have to lol neo

[rocket04]

I thru-hiked in '04 for less than that, and I also didn't feel like I deprived myself too much. I never stayed in hotels/motels/B&Bs (only once at the Long Trail Inn, splitting with 4 people), only in hostels. I ate as much as I wanted in town at cheap places and buffets. I bought new shoes, a new pack, a tarp, and a few other things. In the end, as somebody said, the $/mile figure is probably not that helpful, the length of your hike is probably a better indicator. I did my hike in 4.5 months, which likely makes it cheaper for me than for somebody who takes 7 months. So you can keep that in mind too, but I'd advise not to rush yourself too much on account of money.

[fiddlehead]

I imagine $3 a day is possible but then, who would want to do it? You are (most probably) going to crave protein when you get to town and it is more available (unless you hunt/fish while hiking) Protein costs money.
Now "Wall" (PCT speed hike record holder) did the PCT without cooking but he had to pay a small fortune for some of his candy bars at machines in some resorts. ( I have a feeling these girls were good looking and possibly took some handouts)
I know of a beautiful girl who travelled the world for free for 11 years. (without working)
Anyway, point is, you can hike very cheaply, but it's sometimes better to have that steak (or huge bean burrito for the vegetarians) when your in town....... and try to limit the beer you carry out of town to a 12 pack. (your hike may be lots more fun) fh