Hiking the Appalachian Trail

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
My friend Brandon is hiking the trail and here is his trail journal for anyone interested:


He and his dad were supposed to do it last year and covid shut everything down. So this year they started out April 3 and he's over 100 miles already. His dad made it 25 miles and decided to bail. Brandon is my son's age (38), so his dad has to be at least late 50s-early 60s. He was feeling good and wanted to keep it that way.

I have no interest in hiking AT and know my limitations, so I live vicariously through others.
 

Bann

Doris Day meets Lady Gaga
PREMO Member
My friend Brandon is hiking the trail and here is his trail journal for anyone interested:


He and his dad were supposed to do it last year and covid shut everything down. So this year they started out April 3 and he's over 100 miles already. His dad made it 25 miles and decided to bail. Brandon is my son's age (38), so his dad has to be at least late 50s-early 60s. He was feeling good and wanted to keep it that way.

I have no interest in hiking AT and know my limitations, so I live vicariously through others.

Cool!
I've hiked PARTS of it as day hikes. I liked doing that. I have absolutely NO desire to hike the entire trail or camp along the way staying overnight. I like the challenge and beauty of hiking some of those trails, though. :yay:
 

PrchJrkr

Long Haired Country Boy
Ad Free Experience
Patron
Cool!
I've hiked PARTS of it as day hikes. I liked doing that. I have absolutely NO desire to hike the entire trail or camp along the way staying overnight. I like the challenge and beauty of hiking some of those trails, though. :yay:
Same here. I hiked parts of the AT near Skyline Drive back in my late teens, early 20s and had planned to go back hike the whole thing after graduating high school. I even had a buddy that was all in for it. Ah exuberance of youth!
 

Bann

Doris Day meets Lady Gaga
PREMO Member
Same here. I hiked parts of the AT near Skyline Drive back in my late teens, early 20s and had planned to go back hike the whole thing after graduating high school. I even had a buddy that was all in for it. Ah exuberance of youth!

I never hiked any of the AT until I was in my later 50's and when I was 60!

Last year I didn't get back because of all the COVID crap. I'd like to get back to a few of them this summer. It's always about 15* or so cooler in the woods when you go earlier in the day. :yay:
 

PrchJrkr

Long Haired Country Boy
Ad Free Experience
Patron
I never hiked any of the AT until I was in my later 50's and when I was 60!

Last year I didn't get back because of all the COVID crap. I'd like to get back to a few of them this summer. It's always about 15* or so cooler in the woods when you go earlier in the day. :yay:
The only way I'll ever hike mountain trails again are if the open them up to ATVs. When my daughter graduated CSM it was held at the La Plata campus and I thought I would die before I made it back to the car. This is the same campus I used to attend in the 80s. I don't remember the parking lot being 600 miles from the courtyard. :ohwell:
 

Bann

Doris Day meets Lady Gaga
PREMO Member
The only way I'll ever hike mountain trails again are if the open them up to ATVs. When my daughter graduated CSM it was held at the La Plata campus and I thought I would die before I made it back to the car. This is the same campus I used to attend in the 80s. I don't remember the parking lot being 600 miles from the courtyard. :ohwell:
:huggy:

The ATs in Maryland are a little further than I want to drive usually, and I wouldn't hike them alone anyway. I hike over here at the ACLT trails in PF all the time. They're SO close, and I can still get out and enjoy the hike, the zen and exercise of it all and be back home in a few hours. :yay:
 

Misfit

Lawful neutral
The trail Journal is a good idea. That’s a good way to keep a detailed log and his gear choices look solid too. I hope that he has a Spot tracker, I didn’t see one listed.

The AT is unfortunately a magnet for homeless folks and people hiding from the world for different reasons. I’ve met “hikers” while there that made me nervous so hopefully he hooks up with a good group. I’m sure he will.

We’ll see what he chooses to loose along the way as every ounce counts and you learn quickly what is a necessity and what’s not.

I’ve hiked both north and south of Front Royal on the AT a handful of times and went to the Appalachian Trail Days Festival in Damascus VA a few years ago which was interesting.

It had always been a dream of mine to hike the entire AT but if you have a family to support, day hikes are all most of us will ever do.
 

Bonehead

Well-Known Member
It was a huge logistical issue in the 70s. You had to plan food drops to post offices and hope you calculated correctly. There was very little super light trail gear back then. After a reload for two weeks you could be around 55-60 lbs. Water sometimes was scary too, mostly natural sources and those change. I would probably enjoy it today though too many people.
 
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