Welcome, please, introduce yourself

#30

Bazinga! here. Completed my section hike August 21, 2017 (eclipse day). Started in February of 2013.

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#31

Awesome! Congrats and welcome! :+1:t2:

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#32

That’s awesome you’re getting out there with your daughter-this inspires me & gives me hope that I too will hit the trail with my daughter one day!

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#33

Hammock Hanger - Journalist

An addicted long distance hiker. I try to get in a 500 mile walk every season either in the States or Abroad. As my name specifies when wilderness camping I sleep in a hammock. I have been doing so since the early 90’s.

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#34

I’ve been doing 100 - 300 mile backpacks in the Northeast every summer I can for 20 years. Depending on how long I can get away, this usually means The Long Trail, an AT section, The Cohos Trail or (once) the Northville-Placed Trail. I’m still hoping to get away for longer and more predictable periods so I can expand with longer trips and one’s further from home.

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#35

Hi - verrrryy novice hiker here. Most of my hiking came with a rucksack and M-16 in my Marine days! Also, and as such, no trail name. Thanks to Leif for the invite.

I’m trying to figure out a good hike in New England area…

Thanks in advance!

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#36

Hello! I’m Ahavah, and I am a SAHM in SE Missouri. I’m originally from Asheville, North Carolina, where I hiked the Blue Ridge Parkway and sometimes parts of the AT. I haven’t really done much hiking since moving to MO, but I’m trying to get back into it. I’ve learned that I am very close to the Ozark Trail, so we have recently started exploring that. I hope to one day complete a thru-hike of both the OT (short-term goal) and the AT (long-term goal).

I’m also slowly building up my gear. I think I’m mostly interested in going ultra-lightweight. While I still need a tent and sleeping bags to go camping with my three kiddos, I’m actually more interested in trying out hammock camping for myself. I look forward to getting to know everyone, and to learning from all of you! I’ve been posting for a little while on TJ if anyone wants to check it out. My guestbook is very empty yet. :wink: Thanks for the great resources!

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#37

Completed AT thru hike in 2016, i.e., GA - ME March 9 - August 23 at age 61. Trail name was “Hooshr” I kept a journal at www.trailjournals.com/hooshr.

Look forward to learning from and sharing experiences with fellow hikers

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#38

Welcome Aboard Hooshr ! I have read many of your entry’s from 2016. I was pleased to see your pre hike training greatly assisted in your ability to finish without injury. Proper training and discipline make it happen.

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#39

Tipi Walter here from the NC/TN mountains! My journals are exhaustive but I’m just starting to explore these TJ Forums—and a vast improvement from the old forums. Hello to all my fellow TJ “journalists”. Oh and here’s a link to my 2017 TJ—

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#40

Hi, I’m Mark, I’m a day an overnight hiker. I’m going to thru-hike the AT in 2019. Lot’s of reasons why but mainly to find my self again as after 27 years of working for the corporate machine has simply burnt me out. I have also been diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis a few years ago which ended my obsession with long distance running. Getting sick has opened my eyes to a lot of things and hiking has been my escape to think about and to plan the next stages of my life. The AT is my kick start to the plan… Shameless plug if you don’t mind. Check out blog to find out more about me… https://thepurposefulhiker.blogspot.com

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#41

Hi everyone! My name is John, and I am from Canton, Ohio, home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame for you football lovers. I am a Firefighter/Paramedic by trade, and I am returning to my love of the outdoors and hiking and many, many years off. I have a plan to thru-hike the AT in 2020, and have set up my trail journal at www.trailjournals.com/buckeyebif. I’m in the infancy of acquiring my gear, and am looking for any and all suggestions/recommendations. Thanks in advance, and I look forward to reading everyone’s posts!

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#42

Semper Fi hizzizle!!

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#43

The Appalachian Trail thru hike has been a distant dream of mine since first viewing the white blaze, etched into a tree on a section of the trail in the Smokies, while hiking with my wife, some 15 years ago.

We both retired in early 2013, spent two and a half years cruising The Great Loop, and the last year and a half RV-ing from Connecticut to Washington and the Canadian Rockies.

Family and friends kept asking us “what’s next?”. Why, the Appalachian Trail just seemed to be within the natural progression of our retirement adventures. Although my wife will not be hiking with me, she, willingly, will be my hike ground support crew, without whom I’m certain, I would have difficulty navigating all the backstage dynamics to have a successful endeavor.

We’re currently home in the panhandle of Florida through the Holidays, with the children and grandchildren. Backpacking gear is being collected and training has commensed. Very little elevation changes here, as expected, compared to our day hikes in the Rockies, Glacier NP, Canadian Rockies and northern Cascades.

I’ve chosen an April first start date, not too early, and hopefully, not too late. Our plan is for me to hike to Harper’s Ferry, NOBO, then drive RV north to Maine and hike south from the northern Trail terminus, Mt. Katahdin. Several family and friends have voiced desires to join me for a day/s on the Trail. I hope everyone is flexible, as I envision timeline logistics and planning, more than a week or two in advance, will be unrealistic.

I have never had much discipline to contribute to a personal journal of any kind, short of a ship’s log, so this first entry is just a start of a beginning a new adventure, backpack hiking the AT.
I look forward to gleening as much information from past and present hikers as I can.

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#44

Hi all! My trail name is Froot Loop. I completed a NOBO hike of the AT in 2012 starting March 7th and finishing August 12th. I kept a journal for the first month or so of my hike but it became hard to keep up. I did keep a physical journal for most of the hike and hopefully will go back and add the entries I missed.

Froot Loop AT 2012

I also made a photo montage of my hike here:

Froot Loop AT Hike video

I worked selling outdoor gear for three years after I hiked and am now a Firefighter/EMT and volunteer SAR in Virginia. I am still an avid hiker and have now started hiking with my two dogs.

If anyone has any questions about gear, hiking, or anything else I am happy to give my help. But the best advice is always to hike your own hike :wink:

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#45

Hi. My Trail Name is The Georgia Peach. I started hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2016. I’ve hiked 1,032 miles from Amicalola State Park and Falls in Georgia to Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia. I plan to continue my hike northward to MT. Katahdin in 2018.

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#46

I am Mountaineer and enjoying my section hikes on the AT.

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#47

Welcome Mountaineer! My section hikes have all been in/near the Shenandoah National Park in the past year. Might I have passed you at some point?

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#48

I’m retired Air Force, currently residing in Paris, Texas. I’ve hiked sections of the PCT (1000 miles), the AT, the Colorado Trail, the Ouachita Trail, and the Florida Trail. I’m currently gearing up for a winter hike of the Florida Panhandle and planning on hiking the AT next year.

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#49

Is your hike going to be in 2018?

1 Like