I am attempting my first thru hike this summer and was wondering if someone could tell me around how many hours I should expect to hike per day. I know mileage depends on the trail difficulty and am trying to plan according to traveling time per day.
LXA
I would say most thru-hikers put in about 8 hours of walking a day (8am-6pm with an hour lost for lunch and another hour lost to pumping water, chatting up passing hikers, fiddling with gear, etc.) If you like to sleep in, or quit early, adjust accordingly!
Matt
I think Matt’s title puts it into perspective. Plan on waking up and hiking with a few breaks thoughout the day at vista’s, gathering water, perhaps a few moments to chat with someone approaching from the other direction or whatever else catches your fancy. Most thru hikers are on vacation and while the luxury of not having a fixed schedule is bliss walking is the order of the day. The meditative state on finds themselves in along the way can be quite pleasant. A word to the wise would be to leave in the best shape as possible. This will kind of flatten out those hills and take your mind away from all the usual aches and pains associated with acclimating yourself to the increase in physical activity.:boy
Stealthblew
On my long distance hikes I usually start as close to sun up as I can and I usually set up camp (throw down a tarp and boil water on an alcohol stove) at dusk. That can mean 12 or 14 hours between camps. Of course, as mentioned above, you will spend a good amount of time eating snacks, taking in the sights and sounds, eating lunch, talking to other hikers, smoking a cigarette, getting water, playing banjo, it really just depends on what you do. I would say start off slow and figure out what your body wants to do without hurting it too much. Once you get into a rythem you can start pushing yourself for longer days if that’s what you want to do.
I agree that hiking can become like punching a clock (not in a bad way). People sometimes say “it must be nice having a four month vacation” and I say I hike like it’s my job. But for me I realized to hike a long distance trail it really does take many full days of hiking which is what I like to do.
On my first hike (PCT 05) I think I started off doing 7 hours a day of actual hiking. And that was the desert of southern CA which is probably one of the least physically demanding sections of any long distance trail. When are you planning on starting the LT, LXA? I’m thinking of starting nobo in mid june.
banjo boy (hiker miker)
Thank You everyone for your input, I am leaving memorial day for Williamstown and will take off the next day.
LXA