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Hiking The Appalachian Trail – What, ALL of it . . .

The Appalachian Trail is more than 2,000 miles long, stretching from Georgia to Maine, passing through Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine . . . wow, you may think that sounds like a long way and you’d be right, it sure is a helluva long way, and though the majority of hikers attempt a small section of the Appalachian Trail at one time, there are a growing band which have managed to complete the entire Appalachian Trail in one go, these are known as thru-hikers, ‘cos they hike all the way through without stopping (well, they stop each day for a rest of course). That was a very long sentence, which I suppose is representative of the length of the Appalachian Trail, or the AT as it is affectionately known in hikers code (and probably those who don’t spell too well).

Of course, planning for a thru hike, or even extended hike of the Appalachian Trail is a long job, about as long as hiking along the trail itself . . . there are so many things to think about. The AT is highly regarded to be the most popular hiking trail in the world, but not many people attempt to do the whole thru hike, an estimated 1500 – 2000 hikers give it a go each year, but only around 200 – 300 are successful, that’s around 12% . . . hmmm, looks like the odds are against you unless you find out all that you possibly can about Hiking The Appalachian Trail before you set off.

The Appalachian Trail is mostly wilderness but also passes through roads and towns, you even have to cross the odd river.

Thanks Zach for a little advice on what NOT to do when preparing to hike the Appalachian Trail . . . wonder how he got on.

Preparing to Hike The Appalachian Trail

Enough of this silliness, now let’s get down to the real business of how you can prepare for possibly the hardest yet most enjoyable few months of your life, a thru hike of the Appalachian Trail.

The first thing you’ve got to remember when you’re going to hike the Appalachian Trail is that it was designed to be hiked, that’s what it’s there for, so it does have the necessary resources for hikers to enable them to hike long distances along the trail.  This does not, however, mean that you can expect a little five star luxury at the end of each days hiking, that ain’t what hiking is all about, no sireeee.

When you are preparing to hike the Appalachian Trail you do need to think about the day to day stuff, what to take with you, how to replenish your food supplies etc, but you also need to make sure that you are fit enough to make the trip. Walking 15 – 20 miles every day with a 30 lb backpack is not easy, not unless you’ve done plenty of training first to get yourself “hiking fit” anyway. Many hikers find that they only manage around 10 miles each day at the beginning of the hike, gradually building up to 12 or 15 miles per day, and eventually do fit in the odd 20 or even 25 mile day once they get into the rhythm of it.

Did you notice on the beginning it said GA-ME, that’s ‘cos he’s hiking from Georgia to Maine.
Hiking The Appalachian Trail – Where To Start

The Appalachian Trail runs from Georgia to Maine, thru hiking the trail takes around 5 – 7 months so it’s crucial when you choose to start your hike so that you’ve reached your destination well before the winter sets in. Most hikers choose to hike north from Georgia to Maine, simply because spring usually arrives much earlier in the south so they can get cracking earlier in the year.  You can hike from north to south if you prefer, these thru hikers tend to start a little later in the year.

The Appalachian Trail is marked with white trail blazes, so although it’s always a good idea for hikers to carry a map and compass with them, the majority of the AT is well marked and you won’t need to use it. When you come across a blue trail blaze it’ll be directing you to a side trail where you’ll find shelters, parking areas or viewpoints.  There are more than 250 campsites and shelters spread along the hike, spaced at around a day’s hike apart, most have water so that you can refill your water bottles, some will even have toilet facilities – if they have ‘em, use ‘em.

Of course, nobody can be expected to carry 6 months food supply with them in a backpack, so it’s important that you work out how you’re gonna replenish your food supplies. Most thru hikers on the Appalachian Trail carry enough food for around 4 – 7 days, then either stock up at the next town along the way, or have food boxes posted to themselves in readiness for their arrival.  Trail towns get to be a pretty welcome sight when you’ve been hiking in the wilderness for any length of time, and many of these towns are used to having hikers passing thru and have hiker oriented accommodation available . . . sometimes it’s nice to spend the odd night in a nice warm bed, after eating a nice hot meal which has been cooked for you. It kind of sets you up for the next stage of your hike along the Appalachian Trail.

The Appalachian Trail Hikers Role of Honor

Thru hikers (the ones who make it) complete the entire Appalachian Trail in one season, it generally takes between around 5 and 7 months, although it has been done in as little as 3 months. There are some trail runners who have completed the Appalachian Trail in a much shorter time, but they don’t usually have to carry anything with them and rely on vehicle support so that’s bit different than hiking the trail yourself.

Anyone who completes the Appalachian Trail is given the name of “2000 miler”, whether you’ve completed it in one go as a thru hiker, or completed it in sections as a section hiker.  There were 11,000 “2000 milers” at the last count in 2010, but I’m sure that the number of hikers who have completed the Appalachian Trail will have risen a bit by now, it rises every season. Out of all “2000 milers” it’s estimated that about 75% of them are thru hikers.

Beautiful isn’t it . . . are you tempted?