What takes the most money away form your hike is it gear or food or ware you sleep. I am trying to make plans to take a year off and go try the trail.
boy who wannders
Hiking the at - Appalachian Trail
system
#2
Towns - that’s what costs most. Even staying at hostels where possible, it is really easy to spend money in town because you are so hungry for ‘real’ food. Pizza, beer and ice cream add up quickly. The less time you spend in town, the less you’ll spend.
Get decent gear so you don’t have to replace it midway, but this can be done for under $1000.
Food - if you go for ramens (10 for $1.00) and lots of peanut butter and mac n cheese, it doesn’t have to be expensive. Maildrops can allow you to buy food in bulk and on sale, but can add to the cost if you have to mail any distance. We were spending $20/box so we didn’t do many mail drops.
Transportation to and from the trail can cost - especially if you have to go home for weddings, graduations, etc.
Where you sleep - except for the Whites, camping is free on the trail. If you minimize town time you won’t spend much. One way to do that is to camp just outside town, go in and take care of business (shopping, laundry, eating a couple of good meals) and leave that same afternoon, camping a few miles from town.
I have known hikers who hiked the whole trail on $500 - but they were lucky in that other hikers were willing to subsidize them to some extent - giving them extra food, treating them to ice cream, etc. Other hikers tried that, got labeled as mooches, and were ostracized.
On Whiteblaze’s FAQ there is a good article by Weathercarrot on how to hike the AT cheaply - and he knows whereof he speaks.
Ginny
system
#3
If you take a whole year off, then town is going to suck up your money pretty fast.
If you hike the trail in 4 months, then food would probably be your biggest expense.
It all depends on how much time you spend in towns and how many town meals you eat/week.
Tell it like it is
system
#4
hiking is free…trail towns and away from trail “vacations” such as DC, NYC, or the beach getaways are what consume the money the quickest. I also agree with Ginny, maildrops are actually more expensive when you factor in you can get ramen for most likely 18-20 cents at any trail town, but maildrop costs for a 10cent ramen add up to probably as much as 50 cents. maildrops are important, but i would most likely buy at a trail town maybe 100 miles from where i expected resupply to be hard and ship from there for a lower cost than home.
extras, such as creating parties along trail, extra rooms, or even private rooms, which you will want at times, costs.
i spent about 4k in 04 to hike nearly 800 miles. i went to DC, i rented a car, and i got beer several time for my friends, because sometimes you have to create yer own trail magic. this year, i pretty much spent the same thing and only hiked half the time and a quarter of the miles. we had a ball. i have people i expect to hike with again, and again that i met this year. and i accomplished what i was expecting to accomplish.
it all depends upon yer discipline if you want to go on the cheap. you may not want to use hostel services that in my oppinion are for a fee. some folks seemingly skate on offering gas money for rides, or helping out in extra ways even when you pay the $15 to $20 donation.
i expect to pay when i stay, and for folks like miss janet, i work for stay and drop her a hundred, cause many take advantage of her good natured attitude. hell, i even slackpacked this year…i must be growing. hehehe.
One way you can save is to buy foods that you would eat at a restaurant and cook it yerself in the woods. i personally love doing this.
be sure, the cheapest i have heard in the last 3 years for a completed thru was $1100. Waldo took 12 zeros. that is amazing, and nearly impossible for the vast majority of inexperienced, or even 1st time Long distance hikers.
folks laugh, because i have spent more in 2 years enjoying hiking what most would hike 2 trails. it’s just a matter of what you intend to accomplish, what yer body can handle, and yer mental state of mind as you get to places you have never been before. you’ll be pulled by the vortex of towns, friends, and adventures that have nothing to do with hiking. loads of folks this year were dropping big money to see star wars, eat 2 times at 2 different restaurants for dinner, and then eatting again just because they were hungry. most who have hiked for a long distance can understand the urge to splurge. so beware. be disciplined, or save as much now, so if you drop a buck, you won’t feel like you lost anything along yer way. i encourage enjopying yer hike, so be sure to carry 5k if you plan on doing more than hiking.
oh, most folks i met this year had 4-5k when i met them and were worried to death about how fast they were spending money. i met most of them at mile 350-460. people who have been there understand.
burn