What is a Thru hike?

[Malto]

We have had many threads that debate whether purple blazing is allowed or rainbow blazing. But I have seen few clearly lay out what exactly they view the principles to be that would qualify them to say they thru hiked. This is a Straight-forward forum so please don't critique others choices. So what is a thru hike?

Maltos Rules. (Based on a very snowy PCT)

1) Continuous and unbroken single set of footprints from start to finish.
2) all detours and closures are followed.
3) when snow covers the trail it becomes a route not a trail, meaning you can get from Point A to Point B by the shortest fastest route that approximately follows the trail. (This is more a navigational rule)
4) better alternates such the Eagle Creek alternative will be followed if it is better, not just because its shorter.
5) resupply cut offs such as the Warner Springs in by south road and out by north road can only be used if the total distance is greater than the trail cutoff and there are no significant missed landscape.
6) no slack packing, flip flopping.
7) if you find yourself off trail, you get back to the trail, not back to where you lost it. (Think Chin Musics Pearisburg dilemma.)

what says you?

[Rasty]

What I will do in about 8 years. No slackpacking for me. No skipping sections. No alternate trails unless as a re-route for safety reasons.

[Dogwood]

I must bare my soul. I flip flopped one 90 mile section on the PCT and did a flip flop of the CT. Pray for me.

[Meriadoc]

My rules for a thru hike:
Hiking the entire official trail. (Mostly out of an insatiable sense of curiosity)
Blue blazes under 10 miles are permitted if the blue blaze trail is harder or longer. Example: Gulf Hagas' 5 miles instead of the 0.7 miles on the AT. I wouldn't take the Creeper Trail.
After the initial thru hike of a given trail, more leeway is permitted, for example, aqua blazing part of Shenandoah would be acceptable to me if I did a second thru hike of the AT.
And it always comes down to a judgement call by me, after all, it is my journey!

My rules for who is a thru hiker:
Someone who intends to hike the entire official trail and covers more than 1000 miles. Being cut short against one's will does not remove the title of thru hiker. They are just thru hikers who hiked more than 1000 miles before being stopped by circumstances outside their control.

[hikerboy57]

for me,anyone who walks the entire trail from springer to katahdin.
flipflops once only
slackpacking-yes. jpd is a thru hiker
aquablazing ,no.
no blue or yellow blazing except to avoid dangerous circumstances.
hitching into town-absolutely.
you simply have to walk the entire trail

[Kookork]

To me an ideal thru hiker starts his hike in one end and walks toward the other end uninterrupted and will never be seen anywhere outside the trail, side trails , resupply towns or resupply routes carrying his/her stuff. No slack packing, no flip flop and does not leave the trail except in official reroutes or real emergencies. zero days allowed. The only blaze he/she follows is mostly white rarely blue. No other color of blazing allowed.

[JustaTouron]

Whatever the hiker in question feels is his/her own thruhike.

HYOH.

[Old Boots]

If you have hiked the trail from Springer to Katahdin, and in your own mind are a thru-hiker, you are a thru-hiker. That is what hike your own hike means. There is no standard or definition provided by any other authority. Btw i believe it is much more difficult to be a section hiker. It requires more motivation and dedication of time and resource.

[MuddyWaters]

A thru hike, is a continuous, un-interrupted traverse of a complete trail.

The definition becomes difficult, because very few do that. Everyone takes time off in town now and then, and not just for re-supply, for rest and fun. These things make the hike EASIER (whether mentally or physically), and thats the rub.

So people make allowances for their own indiscretions, while saying someone elses doesnt apply.

So, a thru hike, is whatever someone wants it to be apparently.

[Malto]

Oldboots and justatouron,
Did you guy read the opening post? It was asking what YOU view a thru hike to be. Got it, everyone hike their own hike, that's not the point. Define the rules/principles that defined what YOUR thru hike was, is or will be.

[Just Bill]

When Thru-Hiking for yourself; A thru-hike (of any trail) is about the journey, not the destination. Follow your heart. If your heart requires you to be a True Blazer, then that is what is required. If your heart simply yearns for the adventure of walking through the woods for a great distance of time; then minor variations are fine. Hiking 99% of the AT's designated route allows 21.86 miles of variation. Good reasons for me are those listed- a side trail for breathtaking views, natural wonders, or to avoid the unavoidable (weather, trail reroute, etc). As someone who has occasionally built trails for a living, there is good reason to shut them down during construction- for your safety and mine. The AT in particular is more about travel to me; which includes all aspects of the land we travel though, learning of the people who live there, and occasionally going "where the trail takes you." I can certainly find more than enough connection with the woods, and find that connection even enhanced by allowing the trail to let me meet the people that travel it, live near it, and build their life's nearby. As a carpenter, I may detour to see an old house. As a drinker, I may detour to enjoy a unique, one of a kind brew from a local artisan. Food from a local producer. The most amazing thing to me is that 2/3rds of the most industrialized nation on the planet live near the greatest backpacking trail on the planet. For me at least- these wonders of town are just as important as the wonders of the woods- and they compliment each other. If I discover a hidden secret, a local gem along the way; I consider myself blessed by the trail at being fortunate enough to have encountered it. No less blessed than all of the natural wonders I encounter. We thru-hike to learn of ourselves and the land that we travel though- people are roses too- forgetting to stop and smell all the wonders of the trail is the only way I can think of to cheat myself. I learned much on my first trip, simply by hanging out for a few days with Old Man Shaw, sitting at the bar BS'ing with locals, visiting farms, seeing houses, learning how other people live their lives. These encounters have shaped my life almost as greatly as the woods I walked. I remember a time when a vicious lightning storm forced me off a ridge in Mass; I scrambled down a washout to escape. I ended up on a road walk to rejoin the trail; where I encountered the wonderful architecture of that area, almost a trip though an entire season of "This Old House." I still incorporate aspects of those homes into my work today, and consider that detour not cheating, but trail magic. I felt no desire to retrace the small section I missed, only heart swelling joy at the gift the trail gave me. When you Thru-hike for yourself- if you don't feel you have "cheated" then you haven't. When you let the woods lead you, not the guidebook, you'll have a True Hike. Set your own standard, let the trail take you where it takes you- your heart will tell you if you have taken a misstep, not a forum or another hiker. The only time you must be a True Blazer; is if you wish to set a speed record. Put another way- the only time you must do this, is if you wish to hike someone else's hike. If you don't have that desire- then go where the trail takes you.

[The Solemates]

Starting at Springer with a full pack and never leaving the trail for any reason until you get to Katahdin.

[RockDoc]

As others have hinted, a true "thru hike" is an imaginary concept, difficult or impossible to attain.
Independent people avoid situations where others criticize them severely for not adhering to standards set by others.
You should think twice before you buy into this strict, brutal set of rules. It creates a toxic environment in which everyone is judging everyone else.

When people ask me if I'm thru hiking, I say "No, I'm not through yet".

[Old Boots]

Amen, Rock Doc. Another myth dispelled.

[Old Boots]

You might as well ask for the definition of a unicorn. I can imagine one but have never seen one.

[JustaTouron]

You might as well ask for the definition of a unicorn. I can imagine one but have never seen one.

a mythical animal generally depicted with the body and head of a horse, the hind legs of a stag, the tail of a lion, and a single horn in the middle of the forehead

Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unicorn

[Colter]

On all my hikes my #1 thru-hiking rule, like Malto's, is a continuous unbroken string of steps from end to end. That is basically Yogi's rule.

My #2 rule is being honest about what I actually did.

I like the Western trail's attitude of following the corridor, not necessarily the exact trail. I followed the official trail out west with few variations except where snow was a big problem. The deeper it was the more leeway I allowed myself on the width of the corridor. On the AT I followed the actual trail the whole way except for shelter loops and the like.

I hit big snow years on both the PCT and the CDT and did a mid-trail flip on both. I don't regret it because I had a great, successful hike on both trails and who knows what would have happened if I hadn't flipped. Were I to do either trail again, however, I would only flip when I was forced to, and would not base decisions on reports from people who may or may not know what they are talking about. My mid-hike flips (San Juans, Sierra) detracted less because I still started and finished at the borders. I enjoy symbolic beginnings and endings.

I don't expect other people to follow any of my rules except being reasonably honest about their hikes.

[Dogwood]

I'm treading lightly because I feel I would be on thin ice by offering my opinion. Malto, why do I feel we're being set up for a follow up thread? Who would have known Webster has competition?

[max patch]

Its crystal clear what a thru hike is.

This issue only comes up from people who for whatever reason did not do a thru but want to change the definition of the term so that they can say that they did.

[Dogwood]

This issue only comes up from people who for whatever reason did not do a thru but want to change the definition of the term so that they can say that they did.

Max Patch said it first, not me! He's 100 % spot on!