I am looking for someone to thru hike the AT with this summer or next. I would like to try speed hiking it in 3 months from Mid May through Mid August. Not sure if it would be best to go NOBO or SOBO at this time of year, but I am open to suggestiongs.
Jen
As much as I hate people running throught the wilderness hike your own hike. Just remember what a lion of Grizzly keys on when you’re flying through, Have a great run, buy you a beer in Dubois if you have time.
Double Cabin
Jen, if you start Mid May as a southbounder, you’ll need to be not only running, but flying to avoid the black fly soon to hatch. Really bad, so be prepared to wear rain gear and nets and gloves. I met a guy who started down south and averaged 31 miles a day for the first month in '04 (he bragged boldly). He never made trail friends and lost his focus by the second month and stopped. So, “speeding” can be fun, but it has other challenges obviously. All the best on your trip. Oh, and give us plodders a heads up shout as you come speeding up from behind, somebody might shoot you with pepper spray first and ask questions later. ~ Postcard
Postcard
The Maine state bird, the black fly, commands the air most of May and early June. Here in Connecticut more like late April to early June. Of coarse, the mosquito and deerfly populations that take their place make one reminisce of the short lived blackfly.
fishngame
I’m no expert. I timed my NOBO arrival into New England for late June to miss the black flies. But it was a long, wet Spring and there were still a few around even in early July, along with a few snow patches. I got a few bites, despite my bug net (no DEET) and they weren’t too bad for me, a little swelling and minor itching for a couple of days. My partner didn’t get bothered at all. We met one miserable hiker with huge, red swollen bites all over her face. So it depends a little on the hiker. The discomfort lasts weeks for some. One problem is they’re small and stealthy, unlike the much larger deer and horse flies.
Garlic