AT Thru-hike Plan

imported
#1

I’m in the early stages of planning an AT northbound thru-hike.

I’ve factored in some difficulty rating found and the time it will take (180 days +-) to trek 2,174.1 miles. So far, what I’ve come up with for a reasonable range per day is from 5 to 7 miles a day though the White Mountains to 13 to 15 miles a day in Pennsylvania.

I figure that if I can manage it this way, I will even out the amount of body pain to ignore. If theres a few good days, then a longer than planned hike is possible and so is a day off.

I’m looking for a rational way to approach it for enjoyment and to finish the thru-hike. The numbers work. It’s the 59 year old body that needs a plan.

Trek’ah-T

#2

Too much planing can spoil a good thing. You have to be flexiable and be able to go with the flow. Don’t let the things that you can’t control get the best of you.
Why are you only allowing yourself 180 days? Allow more time. I was 66 when I did my thru. Took 201 days. That’s less than 11 miles per day.
Just take it easy in the begining. Listen to your body. Don’t let others dictate how fast you hike.
Happy trails.

Grampie

#3

I think that regardless of age, the first 250mi of the AT northbound are difficult on your feet and tendons. So, my suggestion is to basically dayhike this stretch with your thruhiker pack and gradually add weight until you are up to carrying 5 days of food. Spend the nights trailside/shelters but have some support to help smoothe aches/pains. The AT has gotten easier over the years and really is enjoyable-it should not be masochistic. Too many people quit because of foot/tendon problems and they are easy to avoid. If you are over 50, more than 30lb overweight or have a chronic condition,consider modifying your start so that you can complete YOUR journey. Happy Trails, Mike

mike

#4

i agree with the others, plans are made to be broken and nowhere is this more true than the AT. and those who attempt to stick firmly to plans they concocted in march invariably end up miserable and either learn to ditch the plan and write a new one with their new knowledge or they quit.

not that plans are bad, but if you have never done a long distance hike you have no idea what to expect and how you will adapt to the lifestyle. and that is one of the best parts about the journey, the adaptation and the growth.

i would suggest going out with no plan but to TAKE IT EASY in the early going. take days off whenever, stop early, dont push it and dont think about miles only think about your body. 6 may look horrible on paper, and some other hikers may be pushing for 12, but if your body is saying no, listen.

then when you are two or three weeks in you can sit down and write out an itinerary if you need to. it will be much easier and realistic.

if you want an idea, though, i will tell you how the pacing worked out for me. i am 25 tall and strong, although i smoke. but in the early going i was one of the more aggressive hikers. even still in the first week it was 8-12. in the second, into north carolina but not yet to the smokies i did a couple 15s but needed to balance them with 10-12s. by the smokies i was able to hit 20, but again i needed to balance with short restful days. almost every other. the body was still creaky. the creaks did not work themselves out until around erwin, when i could hit 15 every day. through virginia it became less an issue of how much i could do, i could do 18 daily if had chosen, and more of what i felt like. this varys greatly for everyone. some people get bogged down in VA and some respond by doing 12s, some by doing 25s. some people like to rest. some people cant rest if they want to. the journey from then on will be a mental and emotional, somtimes physical, ebb and flow and this will be reflected in your milage.

not until VT does the terrain factor in to your milage. if you normally pull 18s, youll be closer to 15. in the whites of NH youll be closer to 12, even 10 some days. and in much of maine 12 will be grueling although there is some 15 type terrain in there. even some 18, but forget i said that because if you remember and you start looking for it you will get very upset with me.

so i wrote alot there. hope it helps.

milo

#5

Sure, you gotta plan SOME, so you’ll have an idea where to schedule maildrops, where you can resupply in towns, or how long your total hike might take. The planning exercise can also help familiarize you with the Trail and all its delights, difficulties, and diversions.

But I think 'most anyone who has been out for more than a month will concur that you shouldn’t treat your plan like a Bible or a Military Order. You gotta be flexible and spontaneous.

So as to give myself flexibility, I always carried a couple days extra food. Not just any food, but relatively lightweight stuff I didn’t really like. That way I wouldn’t be tempted to eat it just because I was a little hungry, but it would be there to sustain me if I found myself in the woods longer than I had originally planned. I even heard once about a hiker who took this to an extreme–his emergency “ration” was, um, dry dog food!

Skyline

#6

I did a plan but put in plenty of zero days on the way, and made sure to stop for Trail days. If you do this you should have no problems as you can always ignore a few of your zero days.

Tomato head

#7

Well, I for one encourage everyone to make a baseline plan. Like it was posted, you should have some idea where to resupply, and how to resupply (store or mail drop). Also, to let your family know when to expect to be where.

I’d also suggest that planners look at Roland Mueser’s book on Long Distance Hiking. There is a table of roughly the daily mileage to expect in every state. As you may have already figured out, the southern states are tough for two reasons. First, most of us are not yet in prime hiking condition, and secondly, the mountains there are high. So, plan on taking it easy through Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Mileage generally picks up for Virginia through Massachusetts. Then, it starts to back down again for the final three states.

Peaks

#8

If it’s any comfort, I will be 60 in March. I have not yet put together my maildrop list (tenatiive that is). There are all kinds of suggested maildrops out there. You can go through the journals of some of last years and before hikers that are around your age and see what they did to give you an idea but bottom line is you HYOH.

I am startng the approach trail about 3/10 with no expectations of daily milage. I want this to be an enjoyable experience without pressure. I also know my limitations and have no reason to push myself just to do what other people have done. So I guess bottom line is that my planning revolves more around equipment and food not miles.

Sleeveless

#9

Failing to prepare to preparing to fail.

The more planning you can do ahead of time the more money will will save in the end.

Planning will also boost your confidence. And the difference between athletes is confidence.

Officer Taco

#10

gotta disagree. obviously maildrops will change things, but the original question didn’t mention anything about them. But then you can always call the person at home to send out only the next two or three, so you wouldn’t have to plan so much.

There are too many variables to account for when planning something as long as an AT thru-hike. Can you plan a week off for a twisted ankle? weather will certainly speed you or slow you down. What about an extra day in town if all your friends are there? But instead you have to say ‘oh, sorry guys, I’d like to join you in the hot springs, but my schedule doesn’t call for it.’ that schedule doesn’t sound too much fun. Assuming no mail drops, the only planning needed is how much food you’ll need to the next town.

Since six months was approximated, that’s a pretty fair time frame, so why map out anything more. If you get to Virginia and are only averaging 7 miles a day, then you’ll know to speed up a little, doesn’t sound too difficult.

0101

#11

planning is great, but just remember to be flexible about it.

being reasonably young and vigorous, i goofed off a lot and still made it to katadhin in 6.5 months. but the older crowd seemed to pass my group and be days and days ahead. why? because they got up in the morning, hiked slow and steady all day, every day, with a few nearly zero or zero days tossed in.

i think the formula was about 12 miles per day, every day to finish in 6 months. but you figure that you need some easy days in the beginning, georgia, north carolina, and tennessee and some easy days up in new england and that you’ll be in shape to make it up in virginia and the rest of the midatlantic states. whatever you do, don’t get caught up in the race to keep up with everyone else. your body’s needs will dictate how fast or slow you’ll be hiking.

so it’s great to have a plan, but it’s also good to have a plan b.

zero

#12

I couldn’t agree more with zero. It’s not the plan that’s going to get you there, it’s how you use each day. Go at whatever pace is comfortable to you, and after a month of it, it’ll be easy to know whether you’re allright or you need to pick it up a little. It’s why people date the registers.

0101

#13

Find someone from last year on TrailJournals who’s about your age and temperament, and use their experience as a plan.

I did that last year for NH and ME using Skeemer’s 03 journal. I picked him because he liked to stay in hotels and because he’s old like me. He was hard to keep up with, but I knew if I did I would find a hotel at the end of the day.

…JoJo

JoJo Hiker

#14

Hey…! Yooooo………! You guys are helpful. I just checked this forum for the bad news. Thanks! All of it is encouraging and I want to answer all ‘cause it was ALL helpful.

I started with the idea years ago and kept returning to books and sites on the AT. A few months ago I took it a step farther, literally! I measures my step, rounded off low, and plugged in the length of the trail, then hours, then days. Am I over doing it? Not for planning a trek like this at 59, next year.

Then I considered what I’ve read about the White Mountains, and determined that the month of July is a good time to be hiking through.

My plan starts on or about the middle of February in Georgia. Actually I have 3 start dates that range over a four and a half week period. That way I can determine whether I’m on track, or trail or falling behind my predetermined window for NH.

I start out with an ambitious 182 days trek, but can reach my arbitrary goal in 208 days. If all goes well, I will have enough zero days have to rest this old body.

Physically, I’m on the mark, I just need to tone a few body parts for long distance pack. One concern was February in Georgia. From what I read, it averages 27 degrees with snow. They called that cold. It’s -20 with the wind chill here today. We call that a sweater day in Central New England.

Thanks for the feedback!

Trek’ah-T