Ask crash about hiking the Appalachian Trail

[mjkidd]

[ QUOTE ]
If you're not in shape it might be a mistake to start with the Whites. I'm thinking three weeks in Vermont would be doable by most people.


[/ QUOTE ]

I really disagree with this. Vermont was tough for me, and not all that enjoyable. That might be because it rained most of the time, but I don't know if I would recommend it to a novice. If you want an easy section of trail with great scenery, the last 120 miles of Maine is pretty hard to beat. You're correct that the Whites are tough at any time of the year, and should be approached cautiously. More people have died on Mt Washington than Everest.

[daryn]

i need closure on this mando sighting

[crash]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Yeah I dunno about doing the whole thing but maybe a few weeks in the North. I'm so sicking of grinding poker, I wanna do something interesting.

What would be the best like 1 month segment to do?

[/ QUOTE ]

Maine, starting the first week of August. The whole state is like 300 miles or so, you can easily do this in less than a month if you're in decent shape. You could probably include the Whites in NH if you have a whole month.

The Whites are great, but super-crowded; I much prefered Maine. The first 150 miles of Maine are great, lots of cool spots, but they are pretty tough. It will be difficult hiking, but you should be able to handle it if you're in decent shape and are determined. The last half of Maine is actually one of the easiest sections of the AT, and also one of the most beautiful. There are many glacier ponds that you can swim in -- chilly, but so clear you can see the rocky bottom 5-6 feet down. And the weather is usually perfect: mid seventies, clear, good sleeping weather at night. Cool, but not cold. One night I slept on a beach of a pond, built a fire, and slept in the open under the Milky Way.

And now I'm sitting at my computer doing work. [censored] me to tears.

[/ QUOTE ]

I see only one option for you, a PCT through-hike.

[crash]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
If you're not in shape it might be a mistake to start with the Whites. I'm thinking three weeks in Vermont would be doable by most people.


[/ QUOTE ]

I really disagree with this. Vermont was tough for me, and not all that enjoyable. That might be because it rained most of the time, but I don't know if I would recommend it to a novice. If you want an easy section of trail with great scenery, the last 120 miles of Maine is pretty hard to beat. You're correct that the Whites are tough at any time of the year, and should be approached cautiously. More people have died on Mt Washington than Everest.

[/ QUOTE ]

You may be right about Vermont, I was in a hiking zone by then and cranked right through it like it was nothing.

You're right about the last 120 miles of Maine being awesome, and pretty easy, but it's also pretty remote. Harder to get to, and harder to get to a town if the [censored] hits the fan.

[crash]

[ QUOTE ]
i need closure on this mando sighting

[/ QUOTE ]

dammit man, give daryn some mando closure. he's dyin' over here.

[CORed]

Not a question, but a few comments. I'm a long-time hiker, but I've never done a long hike like the Appalachian Continental Divide or Pacific Crest trail. I'm old enough now that I likely never will.

One thing I want to recommend to any serious hiker is boots with goretex liners. They are fairly expensive -- the pair I have cost over $200, but always having dry feet makes them worth every penny. Yes, there are lots of products that will make leather somewhat water-proof, but they will all break down with repeated soakings. Once you get a leather boot wet, it's hard to get it dry again. With the goretex liners, even if the leather is soaking wet, your socks stay dry. The only way to get your feet wet in these things is to overtop them.

[mjkidd]

I hiked in running shoes. Heavy leather boots with goretex linings are OK and will keep your feet dry if you step in a few puddles, but if it rains for 4 days, they're going to get wet. Everything gets wet. And heavy boots take FOREVER (days) to dry out, while running shoes will dry out in hours. But footwear is really a matter of personal preference. But it seems that most thru-hikers trend towards lighter footwear as they gain more experience. But you should wear what you're most comfortable with. But if you're wearing heavy boots you'll likely get blisters; you'll be blister-free with running shoes.

One thing that is not a matter of personal preference is wearing high-quality wool hiking socks over high-quality synthetic liners. Three pairs of each should be sufficient.

[cbloom]

Ok some questions :

What did you eat most of the time? Did you make fires most nights?

What do you do in the rain? Did you bring a tarp? I'm assuming your tent wasn't waterproof and you probably didn't have a dry-sack ?

Are hiking boots really advised? I've done a lot of hiking in boots and out (but never anything crazy long) and I never got used to boots and prefer just wearing some kind of trail-runner type of shoe. (actually I'm drooling over "ascent shoes" these days which are like climbing/hiking/running hybrids).

[mjkidd]

cbloom -- see my footwear post above. I rarely built a fire, probably did it 10 times the whole trail. It's usually too warm to want a fire. Maine in late August can be nice fire weather, though.

I got wet in the rain. What I tried to do is keep two seperate sets of clothes: hiking clothes and camp clothes. Hiking clothes got wet, no two ways around it; camp clothes were kept in a large ziploc bag and remained dry. When I got to camp -- usually a shelter -- I would change into my dry camp clothes and relax. I usually slept in my tent and cooked/hung out in the shelter. My tent -- and most tents in general -- kept the water out pretty well. If it's really wet out you might get bits of your sleeping bag a little damp, but it's no big deal. I didn't have a dry sack but I know people who did. I think they were generally a little too warm.

I ate a lot of lipton noodles. My standard diet was:
Breakfast: Pop tart, peanuts and raisins. I hated lighting my stove to boil water; most people ate oatmeal. I hate oatmeal.
Snack: candy, or bagel, or whatnot
Lunch: Bagel, Peanut butter, honey, pop tart
Snack: snickers bar
dinner: Lipton noodles, with a packet of ramen noodles thrown in. Add squeeze butter and powdered milk to taste. Stuffing and instant mashed potatoes with gravy and a packet of tuna was also a big favorite of mine. The cheddar broccoli lipton noodles is by far the best and is highly recommended.

[crash]

[ QUOTE ]
I hiked in running shoes. Heavy leather boots with goretex linings are OK and will keep your feet dry if you step in a few puddles, but if it rains for 4 days, they're going to get wet. Everything gets wet. And heavy boots take FOREVER (days) to dry out, while running shoes will dry out in hours. But footwear is really a matter of personal preference. But it seems that most thru-hikers trend towards lighter footwear as they gain more experience. But you should wear what you're most comfortable with. But if you're wearing heavy boots you'll likely get blisters; you'll be blister-free with running shoes.

One thing that is not a matter of personal preference is wearing high-quality wool hiking socks over high-quality synthetic liners. Three pairs of each should be sufficient.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is good advice IMO. I found that Goretex would work for a while, but if you're hiking in rain for days you're going to get wet.

One reason to start with heavier boots is that you don't know how strong your ankles are. Some people are prone to ankle injuries, and it's better to err on the side of more ankle support. mjkidd is correct that experienced hikers often switch to lighter footwear.