Trekking the Appalachian Trial

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I’ve been contemplating hiking the AT for the past…oh…10 years or so.

Living in the Georgia for the past few years has made it even more of a distraction, as I can smell the trailhead. I’ve only tortured myself once, driving into North Georgia with an old girlfriend to stand on the trail for a few seconds, then forcing myself back into the car before I tried to make a run for New England.

Making the entire trek would, of course, be heavenly, but a month-long chunk is more realistic.

I’m hoping to stir up some discussion between folks who have AT experiences and others (like me) who very much want to have them.

My current ponderings…

Is going solo a viable option?

I’d love it if my girlfriend and I could do it together, but her enthusiasm level may not be as high as mine when/if the opportunity comes along. I’d be willing to go with a group, but the idea of confronting the miles alone appeals to me more than enduring potentially unpleasant company.

A friend of mine was hiking a stretch of the AT when she and her companion encountered a man wearing nothing but a hunting knife tied to his thigh. After attempting to grab at one of them, both women bolted and were able to out run him, leaving much of their gear. The possibility that he was merely a thief with a unique (and seemingly effective) MO is valid, but the other possibilities certainly make a solo trip much less appealing.

Would I/we want to take my dog?

She is no Kujo, but I think that her company would be an asset, whether or not she ends up diverting danger or we’re put in a position for her to sic balls.

2

First off, I’m highly supportive of anyone who wants to hike the AT. However, I can give you zero advice, as I have zero hiking experience. I did want to comment on the following:

I completely pictured the scene from a recent Best Buy commercial, where a husband and wife are walking into the store, and she says, “Now, we’re just going in to buy the VCR and then we’re done, okay?” The husband looks at her, looks at the store, and runs arms-a-flailing into the store, giddy as a schoolboy.

Then I transferred that to picturing you doing that the entire way to Maine.

3

Ok here you go I’ll give you as much detail of my hike of the AT:

My wife and I hiked the trail in 1998. We started on Springer Mountin in August and were at the top of Katahdin in late September. We planned the trip for 6 months before and yes we brought our dog… He’s a Rhodesian Ridgeback, fiercly protective of the family, and was a wonderful companion. The only problem was we had 30 pound packs and that left little room for Dog food. So for almost 2 months we all ate the same things, except he hated the trail mix - excuse the pun - but loved everything else.

The key honeydew is planning. The We had the entire trip planned out. We had the guide map, a planned destination protocol, and walky-talkies, plus food, clothes, tent, bags, and our walking sticks (highly recomend those) And a good pair of hiking boots. I used, and still have Merrill 45 degrees trail hikers, my wife has Northface - trail hikers.

You must plan the trip, tell people where you are going, and make sure you have someone you can call, and check in with, even if it is only a collegue.

Rationing and training are the two things that kept Mrs.Phlosphr and I in check on those days we didn’t make our 40 mile a day goal.

The trail is 2160 all together and we did it in just under 60 days. On those days where we lost time, rain, thunder, just playing around - we had to make up the time.

We did a lot of fishing, but maining in the early morning and late at night, because during the day we were naturally hiking!!

We do have some good stories of some of the colorful people we met along the way, but mostly we met nice people wanting to know if we were doing the whole thing or just a part of it.

We met a couple from Oregan who just as chance would have it had the same pace of my wife and I, we did the most of Maine with them. We still keep in touch to this day…

I don’t know about the naked guy you spoke about, but there certainly were parts of North Carolina and Virginia where I could not get the movie Deliverence out of my head. Real rural areas, where people were pretty “interesting”…

Our dog can be quite intimidating, he’s not too big about 75 pounds but he has a menacing look when something isn’t right. And one night in Virginia we camped in the rain. When at about 2:30 in the morning, we heard a deep growl coming from Grisshom - he didn’t like something in the woods. I went out side with my Glok 9mm - another thing you may want to have with you, just in case, but you have to get pre-permits for each state, which is not easy - anyway, grisshom was growling and we heard what sounded like teenagers or something partying in the woods not too far from our camp. They were carrying on and having a grand ol’time. I dismissed it and went back to bed.

In the morning, we found their camp site with half dozen teenaged kids all passed out. No tents, no nothing except damn near 100 cans of Natural Light Beer and a lot of fowl, marijuana smelling air around them. As we were very far from a road, we decided it was best to get breakfast down the trail a bit. We had no idea how those kids got out there, but hey no harm no fowl…

Anyway, you have to be careful, keep your wits about you and plan the trip. It is certainly not something you can do on a whim…

I didn’t check for spelling so forgive any errors.

4

I, too, have long been interested in making all or part of this trek, so I’ll be following this thread with some interest. I’ve gone so far as to do some preliminary planning and I just wanted to note that there are some good sites on the Web for those wanting information. Being at work, I don’t have them available, but I will try to put them up later.

Phlosphr, thanks for your input, but I gotta confirm one thing: 40 miles per day? :eek:

5

This page is very informative and should be a great help.

Buck 40 miles a day is only a goal more of an average. Some day’s we did only 20 miles others we did our 40. I have my trip log at home, but not here. It varies depending on weather, mood, but we were abnormally aggressive at some times. Black fly season in North Carolina, Virginia, W. Virgina is brutal. They can make you walk quite fast:)

Mind you we are avid year round hikers, and we had a tough train for about a year prior to departure.

I’d be happy to answer any other Q’s as they come. I’ll follow the thread as well.

6

I’ve done day hikes along the AT in MA, VT, and NH. Some of the trails especially in the White Mountains are hella steep (but that’s where the scenery is). I think I’d be bored out of my skull were I to try to hike the whole trail. You’ve seen one rocky, steep trail through the woods, and you’ve seen most of them.

I’d be very reluctant to do the hike solo, not only because of the (low but real) potential for evil doers, but more significantly, it would really suck to be injured or sick on the trail without help. It also helps to have an extra pair of eyes keeping an eye on the map and the trail blazes – it’s easy enough to zone out and walk a long way in the wrong direction.

Most people chase the weather northwards – they start down South in the spring or early summer and try to finish up in Maine before the snow starts falling. Although Phlosphr’s 60 day pace is possible, it’s extremely grueling. Most people take 4-6 months.
Try reading Bill Bryson’s A Walk Through the Woods. Also:

http://www.appalachiantrail.org/hike/thru_hike/index.html

7

Finagle is right, but some people do not have the capability to take 4 to 6 months off from work. As I am a teacher, and my wife is self employed, it was a lot easier to do it in the summer for us. Plus we wanted the cool, breeze of the late summer, early autumn to help us in the end. I started the fall semester late, that year and that was a little disconcerning for the students who didn’t know me, but hey, they got a kick out of our slide show…

8

I’ve been fascinated by the idea of hiking the trail for a while. When I lived in Atlanta, it wasn’t so bad because I didn’t feel like I was within spitting distance of the trail. Now I live in Knoxville, and I know it’s not far (I know, it’s not far from Atlanta either…but I can see the mountains from my apartment balcony here).

I’m considering it as a possibility for the summer after I finish grad school- that’d be the summer of 2004. I have to see how things work out first, but I think it’d be a grand ending to graduate school.

9

That would be a grand ending to grad school…permit me to post my ending -->

Ms. became Mrs. Phlosphr one week after we graduated together.

10

I did about a 150 mile stretch through Virginia back when I was much younger and less lazy. :slight_smile: I loved it. I don’t know if there’s any feeling in this world as pure as waking up in a dew-covered sleeping bag, with the mist still hanging about the ferns you slept in, and knowing that there’s not another soul around for miles and miles and miles.
That being said, I don’t know about going solo, especially for a female. Aside from any crazies you might encounter, there’s always the possibility of injuring yourself and having no one around to help. If you must go alone, I’d be damn sure I had a highly reliable cell phone/radio I could use in just such a situation. If you can’t or won’t take a gun, at least have bear spray and a good stout walking stick with you that could double as a club.
Also, gear can be expensive. I don’t know if you already have boots/pack/equipment, but when I went I had to outfit myself from scratch and it went up to nearly $1000. But if this is something you’ve been contemplating for a long time, and you have the opportunity to do it, then I think you’d be crazy not to. Maybe you’ll hate it, but at least you won’t always have that “what if” lounging around in the back of your head. One last suggestion I have–take a journal and a sketchpad. You’ll be glad you did, I know I am.

11

Just curious, but how did you handle the long stretch of the AT that passes through Shenandoah National Park? I was under the impression that you couldn’t carry a handgun in a National Park, and that there’s no such thing as a permit that will allow you to do so.

12

Munch: Ha!..I know that commercial.

I have managed to scrounge together a decent pile of gear over the years. I was an avid backpacker in college. I am one of those stubborn external-frame users, but my pack is as old as dirt and has seen better days. Maybe I’ll finally make the leap to an internal frame, but that should be the only gear expense…unless I hike alone, then I’ll have to pick up another smaller, lighter tent.

I’m not too worried about my personal safety being threatened by other people.
That is a risk at any time in this day and age, and I’ve rarely let that risk prevent me from doing something by myself, if that is how I’d like to do it. But the injury argument is certainly a strong mark in favor of having a companion I’d be fine with carrying a firearm, thanks to Phlosphr for the heads-up about the permit red-tape.

13

This site is the best for info on thru-hiking hiking the AT. It has all kinds of cool stories from people who have done it, and tips for people who want to do it.

Appalachian Long Distance Hikers Association

http://www.aldha.org/

One article on there (see link below) tells of a family of four (mom, dad and two kids, age 8 and 11) who did the whole trail together. Amazing!
http://www.aldha.org/witcher.htm

14

If you have the time and resources, do it! Though I’ve hiked a few miles of it here and there, I always said I would go all the way thru but never got around to it. Physically, I could still do it; but with a job, wife, three kids and a mortgage … I’ll never have the time until I’m too old. I just have to settle for 2 or 3 days hikes now.

Before anyone blasts me for this, NO, I WOULD NOT trade my wife and kids for a chance to hike thru; but I wish I had done it when I was single.

15

I’ve done most of the trail sections in VT, NH, and ME, even built some of them as well as some of the shelters along the way. I’ve spent a lot of time with thru-hikers and by the time the northbounders get to NH they are quite a different breed. Nothing wrong, just spending that much time on the trail has some side-affects.

Many hikers start out solo and group together fairly quickly. You’ll probably not be hiking alone for long unless you want to. It actually offers some advantages as it’s convienent to be able to seperate and regroup as needed due to injury, down-time, or other off-trail needs.

I’d definately advise doing a few longer distance hikes (1-2 weeks) just to get the hang of the daily routine.

The AT isn’t really a wilderness trek; you’re going near some of the most heavily populated areas of the US. There’s many towns, road crossings, parks, etc along the way. I don’t think there is any good reason to carry a gun on a thru-hike and many reasons not to carry one. Keeping your wits about you is always a good idea.

One more good website is http://www.trailplace.com/ , run by a guy named Wingfoot. He’s a little odd, but the site is a wealth of info for a potential thru-hiker.

16

I would like to quickly address the issue of guns on the thru-hike. I know plenty of people who carry one. They don’t advertise it, or where it on the outside like dirty harry or anything like that.
Telemark said:

This opinion vary’s with some people but when it comes to the safety of my wife and family, having my sidearm made me feel better. I never used it of course, and I never felt threatened, but situations can arise where having it could make one feel a lot better. For instance, whilst in Grad school in Arizona - the state where I got the gun, and where having one is not frowned upon - I was hiking on the Usury Mountain state park with my then fiance. It was getting dark and we encounterd a rather large mountain lion. Now some people go their entire lives without seeing one, we unfortunately did not have that option. I did have my gun. The large male crouched down, with ears back, I am sure we startled him as much as he startled us. To make a long story short, I fired a round into the air, and he bolted down the ridge.

Had I not had the sidearm, I would have been much more intimidated, and afraid. So I have the gun not just for naked knife weilding psychopaths but for general hungry animals as well.

Early out said:

At the entrance to every national park we checked in at every ranger station. Some asked us if we were carying a firearm and others didn’t. Of those that did Shenandoah was one of them. I presented the proper paper work i.e my carry lisence and nothing more was said. We were hardly a threat, two late twenties hikers doing the the entire Appalachian trail.

As for thru-hikers on the trail, my wife and I met up with a couple in NH who we finished the trail with. They were only doing the New England portion and when they found out we had started in GA they were pretty inpressed. We were a little rough for wear but our spirits were high throughout the entire trip.

I was amazed we had no sprains, a few cuts and bruises, but nothing to really slow our pace. For my wife and I it was a wonderful experience, we are best friends because of it as well…

As for sideffects telemark describes, I’d say the only one was a positive one. We got so used to saying hello to everyone, on the trail, and we kinda brought that back to our home town, waving to people we see all the time, and smiling at people we don’t know… that kind of thing.

17

I second the rec of the Bryson book, A Walk in the Woods. We had it on tape during a recent driving vacation. I still chuckle at the memory of his companion chucking all of his “real heavy fucking shit” on the first day of the hike.

Uh - I guess you want to avoid overpacking.