Appalachian Trail -Thru Hike

[imapig]

This exactly. I use to rock climb strap skis to my back and haul them up Franconia back in the day and ski down. Think blizzard of 78. I started out doing sections of the trail for a week at a time. It's hard to find someone to devote the amount of time let alone someone that can. A lot of work but..........................so worth it in the end.

Your awesome

 

[deec77]

Your awesome

I was a outdoors girl while I still could, or young and stupid lol. My granddad would take us hiking and teach us how to survive off the land and my dad taught our kids..... now my middle son is teaching his kids. My eldest granddaughter who’s 13 can drive a quad, and a dirt bike, she’s very proficient with a bow and she can tell what and what not to eat while out in the woods lol. His almost five year son just got a dirt bike w/ training wheels, which he picked up right away, not to be beat out the littlest who just turned 3 has a mini quad and she’s a force to be reckoned with.

~Dee~

 

[deec77]

We’ll time to bring this thread out of the basement. About a month and a week after making this thread I ended up losing my home to hurricane Irene. Then I relocated to South Carolina and just got into a job that was never ending.

Boy have things changed, but I still want to do a through hike… to be honest with you I’ve been so busy working the last decade that I almost forgot about the Appalachian Trail altogether. Then suddenly one day this year I started watching a couple of videos and I started falling in love with the idea of doing a through hike.

I do have a plan and that is to be debt-free in 3 to 4 years. Right now I’m very happy with my job and my current financial situation. I am not happy with my life in general though. I feel like I’m missing something. I know what that is that is the freedom to get in tune with nature again.

I decided I want to retire by 62 and I’m going to be that 70-year-old man that still hiking and keeping active. Looking at my 85-year-old father and watch him deteriorate healthwise since the time he retired I realize his biggest mistake was to sit on his ass and watch TV and do nothing physical. In my opinion that was a huge mistake on his part. But what happens unfortunately with many people after they retire their bodies break down much faster due to inactivity.

I’m going to do the opposite… I want to attempt the triple crown. The Triple Crown is the Appalachian trail, Pacific coast trail and The continental divide trail.

In the meantime enjoy this video. I’ll post more later. This guy kind of inspired me to wanna hike again. I will start small and work my way up because it’s been a decade since I’ve hiked and I know what it takes to get into the physical condition to do a through hike. It is not an easy thing to do, but it is a beautiful challenge and I’m looking forward to the future.

View: https://youtu.be/UHdnXDxORoo

I think the first leg I did was in wanna say Lee, MA if not right around there In the Berkshires. I remember it was on Jacobs ladder but not sure which town lol. I’ll have to watch that later.

~Dee~

 

[patswin]

I Love the idea. I'd go for it. It's like me and my motorcycle trips... there's only so many tomorrows and no guarantees.

 

[Undertaker #59*]

Thread moved back to active at OP's request.

I've watched a lot of vids of people doing this through hike. Fantastic stuff.

 

[deec77]

I Love the idea. I'd go for it. It's like me and my motorcycle trips... there's only so many tomorrows and no guarantees.

It’s definitely a mental event as well as a physical event. Hiking clears your mind....

~Dee~

 

[imapig]

Thread moved back to active at OP's request.

I've watched a lot of vids of people doing this through hike. Fantastic stuff.

Thanks man I appreciate you.

 

[imapig]

This woman has really grown. She’s done the Triple Crown. She started off with the Appalachian hike first. And here’s her series.
This video is broken down to 45 updates. I belong to her channel.

View: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXiz2lWve6AK4uaerP03vXav_HMs1YG6X

 

[imapig]

View: https://youtu.be/1CYLOXYzwzc


Here’s another great video. it’s actually over five hours long.

 

[imapig]

It’s definitely a a mental event as well as a physical event. Hiking clears your mind....

~Dee~

Definitely mental. There’s gonna be times you miss your family. And then maybe not.

 

[imapig]

View: https://youtu.be/SVSvCaRnGHs

This is hiking with Natalie.
She documents her whole entire hike. I really enjoyed her videos except for her breathing snot in and out of her mouth…

 

[deec77]

Definitely mental. There’s gonna be times you miss your family. And then maybe not.

Oh definitely maybe not Although I did the last leg with my youngest brother...... I did north to south he did south to north.

~Dee~

 

[imapig]

I’m currently watching this guy‘s hike.

He does the AT IN 100 days…

View: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYYwNtuG8QTj7eIkalb_jjoZWiz7e9ZVb

 

[imapig]

Oh definitely maybe not Although I did the last leg with my youngest brother...... I did north to south he did south to north.

~Dee~

There’s no question I would miss my oldest daughter. She’s my world. Her her husband and I lived together and they’re a big part of my life. You kind of get used to having people you care about around you all the time. That will be kind of tough… but it will be good for them also because I will be out of their hair.😂😂🤣🤣

 

[deec77]

There’s no question I would miss my oldest daughter. She’s my world. Her her husband and I lived together and they’re a big part of my life. You kind of get used to having people you care about around you all the time. That will be kind of tough… but it will be good for them also because I will be out of their hair.😂😂🤣🤣

That for me was easy as I wasn’t married yet and I could just pick times and go. I think id miss all my family now well at least those grandkids... I swear that wasn’t me in the film with the Assuie blue Merle And the English white golden in the background lol. Just make sure you have someone with you k.

~Dee~

 

[imapig]

That for me was easy as I wasn’t married yet and I could just pick times and go. I think id miss all my family now well at least those grandkids... I swear that wasn’t me in the film with the Assuie blue Merle And the English white golden in the background lol. Just make sure you have someone with you k.

~Dee~

Very good chance I might be going alone. I’ll probably will make trail friends along the way.

 

[deec77]

Very good chance I might be going alone. I’ll probably will make trail friends along the way.

Yes their will be people along the way be careful.
There are some sketchy parts just saying,


~Dee~

 

[imapig]

Yes their will be people along the way be careful.
There are some sketchy parts just saying,


~Dee~

I’m more concerned with black bears. Most of them will run away as soon as they smell you or hear you. Unfortunately once in a while you’ll run into one that’s used to humans and unfortunately look at you as a meal. Black bears have been known to eat humans. If it’s black fight back. Playing dead with a black bear is a bad idea. A grizzly bear will fuck your day up but if you played dead you might have a chance to survive…
Polar bear you’re just dead. Unless you have a 50 caliber handy.

 

[spacecrime]

NJ was the worst for black bears. Shennandoah Nat'l Parks second. Smokies too. Places with bears that haven't been hunted in over a hundred years.

I did most of the AT about 20 years ago. Missed the Smokies and Maine north of Avery Peak (~Rte 27).

It's a great time, Trail is actually fairly easy south of NH. It was fun to listen to hikers complain about how steep it was in the first hundred or so miles. I kept thinking 'Wait until you get to the White Mtns in NH Some parts are really boring. Others awesome.

I think about doing it again. At 75 years old and a long hiking season (March thru September) I bet I could do it. I thought about the pacific crest trail but I was in my fifties back then. You need really high mileage days and carrly a heavy pack, not so many re-supply places. The season is only about 3 - 3.5 months long because you can't get past Kennedy Meadows because of snow (clears mid-june IIRC), and have to get to Canada before it snows.

Don't know about now, but teh CDT was brutal back then so I never considered it. A good portion unmarked, few people on the trail, and scant re-supply options, No way I'd do it at my age. I suppose it would be a bit easy route finding now, though. GPSs are much better than they were.

I;m actually thinking more of a pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, going from France near Switzerland (Le Puy en Velay) to Santiago Spain atlantic coast. Been working on learning French and Spanish with the Camino on my mind.

If I don't get off my ass, though, I'll be took old to do anything except take a cab

 

[imapig]

NJ was the worst for black bears. Shennandoah Nat'l Parks second. Smokies too. Places with bears that haven't been hunted in over a hundred years.

I did most of the AT about 20 years ago. Missed the Smokies and Maine north of Avery Peak (~Rte 27).

It's a great time, Trail is actually fairly easy south of NH. It was fun to listen to hikers complain about how steep it was in the first hundred or so miles. I kept thinking 'Wait until you get to the White Mtns in NH Some parts are really boring. Others awesome.

I think about doing it again. At 75 years old and a long hiking season (March thru September) I bet I could do it. I thought about the pacific crest trail but I was in my fifties back then. You need really high mileage days and carrly a heavy pack, not so many re-supply places. The season is only about 3 - 3.5 months long because you can't get past Kennedy Meadows because of snow (clears mid-june IIRC), and have to get to Canada before it snows.

Don't know about now, but teh CDT was brutal back then so I never considered it. A good portion unmarked, few people on the trail, and scant re-supply options, No way I'd do it at my age. I suppose it would be a bit easy route finding now, though. GPSs are much better than they were.

I;m actually thinking more of a pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, going from France near Switzerland (Le Puy en Velay) to Santiago Spain atlantic coast. Been working on learning French and Spanish with the Camino on my mind.

If I don't get off my ass, though, I'll be took old to do anything except take a cab

There was one guy that was like 82 years old that completed thaw AT. Also I just saw on another video someone was like 84 or 86 years of age in the Process. I don’t know if he made it.