Thru Hike Budget

[goldielocks]

What are you planning to save/budget for your thru hike?

Does your budget account for gear replacements on the trail, resupply stops, zero days, etc.? How many zero days is your budget taking into consideration?

[jjozgrunt]

I have a 156 days to do EtE. Looking at about 12 zero's and 10-20 extra stops in town when I resup, if I feel like it. I can and do regularly hike up to 14 days without beds and showers so not a high priority. I'll resup every 3-5 days. No real idea of food costs in the USA but I gleaned off previous questions about this, that $2-3/mile is about average. But in the end the walk and my body will guide me. So that is what I'm planning on but obviously more in reserve if required.

My wife is flying over towards the end and then after we are going on a 6 week holiday over there.

[moldy]

5K for all expenses after I depart.

[trailmercury]

8000 from doorstep in Wisconsin back to my doorstep.
half maildrops/half town resupply, maildrop food costs not factored in 8000, shipping costs are
my goal is two showers per week, so the campground/hostel/motel cost will be more than average I would think...
My twelve y/o son is joining for long sections, so that's an extra mouth and body in town...

TM

[Puddlefish]

I planned on $1,000 a month, with an empty credit card to get me off the trail in an emergency. Took only a few zero days the first month, and didn't spend much more than than $700. Second month I hurt myself and took a pile of zero days trying to recover, maybe ten. Spent about $1,300 that month.

Mostly it depends on how fast you hike, but don't rush to save money, because that won't work either. Met quite a few guys who rushed out fast and took two or three zeros at Neel(s) Gap to recover from blisters. If you do get dinged up, take the zero day to recover sooner, rather than later.

[Deacon]

I planned on $1,000 a month, with an empty credit card to get me off the trail in an emergency. Took only a few zero days the first month, and didn't spend much more than than $700. Second month I hurt myself and took a pile of zero days trying to recover, maybe ten. Spent about $1,300 that month.

Mostly it depends on how fast you hike, but don't rush to save money, because that won't work either. Met quite a few guys who rushed out fast and took two or three zeros at Neel(s) Gap to recover from blisters. If you do get dinged up, take the zero day to recover sooner, rather than later.

These dollar figures seem right on the money. I found I consistently spent $800/month.

[Slow Trek]

Two of us hiked from Springer to Harper's Ferry. No zero days,Mountain House suppers,Dollar General for lunch and breakfast. Cheap motels,several hostels,and nice restaurant meals when we could. 6800.00

[Engine]

I'm budgeting $10,000 for two of us, but that's just the hike and doesn't include gear (OUCH!) or travel back from Maine to Amicalola.

[pmrs88]

On my thru this year I spent just over $5000. It took me 5 months and 4 days so I was pretty much bang on $1k per month. This included buying one new set of shoes at around $150 and a particularly expensive 4 day trip to D.C. in which I spent around $600-700 (my phone broke and I had to buy a new one which definitely wasn't budgeted for).

I should point out that that budget did not include ANY of my original gear. That was all additional expense before I started hiking which probably amounted to around $1500-2000.

It's worth mentioning that I tended to eat cheaper foods like ramen and Knorr rice sides which definitely kept the costs down.

[missmek]

What do you find yourself spending most of your money on (excluding initial gear purchases)? How expensive was the average hostel or cheap hotel?

[Slo-go'en]

What do you find yourself spending most of your money on (excluding initial gear purchases)? How expensive was the average hostel or cheap hotel?

#1 food, #2 lodging.

When you add in restaurant meals, the cost of food is significant. On the low end, go to a Dollar General and buy enough food for 3-4 days. That will give you an idea of what it will run you. The Dollar General is the hikers friend. Figure $30 every time you go into a restaurant, including fast food.

Hostels can range from donation ($10 min suggested) to $50+, with a $20 average. Motels can run $50 to $100+.

[Neemor]

I budgeted $1 per mile on the AT and $4K on the pct.
After doing both, I'd say: it is so so nice to have the extra money if you can swing it. I only ended up spending $3k on the pct, but it was much easier knowing I had the money in case something happened.
Being able to buy that burger with a fried egg and coffee or beer (if that's your thing) can make a thru so much better


After the AT I did a 2 part money oriented video: https://youtu.be/7S6WMFgl31w


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Wiki]

To answer OP's question I'm looking to follow the 1K a month model, though the truly daunting tasking is ensuring I have enough money saved up to cover all my bills while I'm hiking.

I've found my company has a reasonable Leave of Absence policy that will allow me to take all of my vacation and personal time....so I'm currently banking up as much of that as I can in an attempt to get paid while I hike.

[garlic08]

Ditto #1 food, #2 lodging. My breakdown by rough category: Trail food $800, town food $700, lodging $800, gear replacement $400, travel to/from $700. Came out to $1000/month for a 3.5 month hike, which is my average on other long trails as well. I had budgeted $5000, so I had a good contingency fund which felt very comfortable.

I shared lodging costs with a hiking partner. We only zeroed three times, but didn't spare expenses for good restaurants and lodging when available, which was pretty often on the AT.

My friend's food costs were appreciably higher than mine. I was more frugal at grocery and restaurant stops. I was happy with raisins, he'd buy dried blueberries, for example. I didn't drink alcohol on the hike, which can make a difference for some.

[WalkWithUs]

We are budgeting ourselves around $10,000 (two of us hiking the trail) and expecting to complete it in just over 5 months. We'll see how it goes but figure $1000/month is pretty reasonable. That should cover our resupplies, gear replacement (unless something expensive breaks) and zeros. As others have mentioned, depending on how many zeros you take or how lavish you are when getting into towns can significantly increase your costs.

We aren't really one to plan our zero days ahead of time. If we encounter a cool enough town or just need the rest we will take the zeros. Otherwise we want to press forward.

[trailmercury]

To answer OP's question I'm looking to follow the 1K a month model, though the truly daunting tasking is ensuring I have enough money saved up to cover all my bills while I'm hiking.

I've found my company has a reasonable Leave of Absence policy that will allow me to take all of my vacation and personal time....so I'm currently banking up as much of that as I can in an attempt to get paid while I hike.

Me too...I'll be getting paid vacation the first 8 weeks of the hike if I don't take any days off after the first of the year...My LOA also lets me keep my benefits for 90 days so health insurance too...Will probably use COBRA after that.

I cannot wait until April 3rd!

[PaulWorksHard]

I spent $5000 for a 141 day thru hike. I took 11 zeroes and spent 35 nights in hostels/motels. For the most part, I got resupply packages mailed to me and did not buy trail food in towns along the way. My food in resupply packages cost about $12/day. Buying along the way would have cost significantly more. As the hike went on, I stayed in towns more frequently and started eating two entrees for dinner at restaurants. Restaurant meals consumed a big part of my budget. Hostels cost from $10 - $35. Best deal was at Appalachian Dreams where I paid $20 for a bunk, laundry, shower, dinner and breakfast. Motels varied from $40 - $85. CT, VT, MA and NH were expensive for lodging.

[josh_ATL]

I hiked about 1200 miles last year and ended up spending about $1000/month. That included hotels/hostels, food and gear replacement.

[Jeff]

Two points many thruhikers don't anticipate:

1. New England is more expensive than down south...especially lodging.

2. An injury like a sprained ankle or contracting Lyme Disease can keep you in town for several unplanned zero days...very expensive especially if not anticipated in the hiker budget.

[Greenlight]

I'm not stepping foot on the trail without $6000 for expenses. This is on top of the normal monthly expenditures such as mortgage, utilities, etc. This should be plenty for food, gear replacements, and very few zero days in towns. I'll go to town. I'll eat at the AYCEs, I'll do laundry and take opportunistic showers but at the end of the day, most zero days, I'm climbing back up into the woods to sleep in my trusty hammock. It doesn't ask me for money every night.

What are you planning to save/budget for your thru hike?

Does your budget account for gear replacements on the trail, resupply stops, zero days, etc.? How many zero days is your budget taking into consideration?