Any serious hikers on the forum?

[doogievlg]

I have been silently planning a thru hike on the appalachian trail. I was curious if by a long shot there are any member that have done this or have wise words for me.

 

[TrailBeast]

I have been silently planning a thru hike on the appalachian trail. I was curious if by a long shot there are any member that have done this or have wise words for me.

Yea, take a dual sport bike instead.

 

[cuda20]

Is this a day hike or over night.?

 

[doogievlg]

Is this a day hike or over night.?

This is a six month hike. Roughly 2100 miles from Georgia to Maine.

 

[cuda20]

Wow I do lots of hiking/climbing but 6 months, thats a good one.

 

[doogievlg]

I climb a lot as well. That's actually what got me interested in hiking but sadly I'm not going to be taking climbing gear.

 

[Hemioutlaw]

We hike a lot but six months?
YIKES !!!
Pretty sure I'd be outta a job when I got back------That would be really cool though.
Be sure to bring navigation tools, water filtration and a small lightweight firearm as well as a hook and some line,a snaring device lots of ohio bluetips in waterproof packaging and a flintstone. No not Fred.
Unless the ol'lady is going with I'd bring a nasty dirty pic too. Just saying Ha ha Ha !!!

 

[doogievlg]

We hike a lot but six months?
YIKES !!!
Pretty sure I'd be outta a job when I got back------That would be really cool though.
Be sure to bring navigation tools, water filtration and a small lightweight firearm as well as a hook and some line,a snaring device lots of ohio bluetips in waterproof packaging and a flintstone. No not Fred.
Unless the ol'lady is going with I'd bring a nasty dirty pic too. Just saying Ha ha Ha !!!

I'm not to concerned about finding a job after. If I can't keep my current one anyways. I can usually find work fairly easy. The big thing for me is just the money issue. I have school loans to pay off and a daily driver I still owe on. I'll probably sell the car and pay it off and put the extra money in the bank so the loans for school can just keep going.

As far as the actual hike goes though it is a trail that gets a ton of attention. It is marked very clearly and is in great shape from what I have seen. Shelters are usually within a days walk if I don't feel like camping alone.

I just could not imagine the since of satisfaction you would get after saying you journeyed 2100 miles on foot.

 

[64DartGTinAZ]

Thru-hiking is a different beast.

Have you checked out www.backpackinglight.com? They have a lot of thru hiker stuff there.

For those of you unfamiliar with it, here are a couple of short articles that give you a flavor of how it's different from regular hiking/backpacking:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/backpacking_v_thruhiking.html#.U-ruoFZuGp0

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/complete_thruhike.html#.U-ruolZuGp0

(I read a lot about this when my son was in Scouts...longest hike we did was 10 days at Philmont)

 

[doogievlg]

Yea it's my really backpacking or hiking. Just flat out living in the woods.

 

[WRB426]

I do a lot of day hikes in the White Mountains. Trails are good but mother nature can damage a trail without warning. Emergency gear is the most important part. When hiking in the mountains things can change real quick. The worst storms I've encountered have been on the nicest days. Get plenty of info like your doing and plan. Some huts get full so walk ins can be tough.

 

[doogievlg]

I'm packing as light as possible. Only stuff I am taking for emergencies is flint rope and first aid.