Resupply - Appalachian Trail

imported
#1

Can any A.T. hiker tell what would be the most food supply carried at one time (in days) I plan on buying as I go on next years thru-hike, all I know for sure is the amount needed in Main’s hundred mile wilderness. Thank you.

A.T. Cherry

Newbe

#2

You might get the book called, The Appalachian Trail Food Planner by Lou Adsmond. It is a detailed listing of the trip with number of days to resupply with locations designated including interium locations. It was published in 2001. There may be more stores now than when this book was published. The book recommends that you not take any more than 6 days of food and sometimes 3 days of food. Monson to Katahdin it was recommended that you take 10 days of food.

Margaret

#3

I resupplied as I went, and the seven days-worth of food I carried in the 100-mile wilderness, which was plenty, was the most food I carried at any one time. There were some stretches where I carried 5 and 6 days-worth, and many three and four-day supplies. Usually, people tend to over-supply in the beginning–which is better than not having enough–but then you’ll get more proficient at figuring out what you’ll need for the next stretch. And that’s basically how I broke it down; I planned one section at a time, a section being the distance between one resupply and the next. You’ll spend some quality time sitting on the floor in the grocery store, counting breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks, then more quality time on the concrete out in front of the grocery store, getting rid of unwanted packaging, putting things in zip-locs, refiguring, and being watched and usually smiled at by local shoppers. And there will probably be second trips back into the store when you decide you’d feel better having a few extra Snickers bars, just in case. Planning as you go is part of the fun.

ramkitten

#4

I’m almost into NJ on this year’s hike. Haven’t had any real problems resupplying as I go–I have zero maildrops. I think five days is the most I’ve carried so far. Be aware that going totally as-you-go sometimes means resupplying at gas stations; you won’t always have a big grocery store to choose from if you have any particular diet restrictions. If I could plug a different website, Baltimore Jack updates a resupply article and puts it on Whiteblaze, which you may want to check out. But so far so good for buying as I go.

0101

#5

If this book suggests that you pack ten days of food outta Monson, I haveta question how good or current it is…nobody carries that much anymore. Most folks go from Monson to Abol Bridge in 6-7 days (8 days max) and many opt to re-supply at White House Landing, about half-way thru the section, which means they can leave Monson carrying a lot less food/food weight.

There’s a lot of information at www.whiteblaze.net (look at the “Articles” section of the site; in addition to re-supply information, there are also useful articles on hiking on a budget, tips for sending maildrops, etc.)

B. Jack

#6

Ramkitten,

 I am hoping to resupply as I go.  I am just worried about some of the places having a crap selection.  Have you run into any really bad resupply towns?  Any that you can recommend?  I'm not picky, just usually hungry.

gang