Time Limit

[GriZZiLLa_Ga-Me09]

Well shucks. I don't have any time limits but this thread has been real informative.

Last time I headed north from Springer Apr. 3rd. Outside of regular zeroes I had about 24 days off the trail completely for injury, work, trail days. I estimate 3-4 weeks of zeroes besides that. I ended up not finishing due to "time limit". With Maine cold as hell in early Oct. and Baxter park closure I ended my hike Oct. 11th before entering the 100 mi Wilderness. The time off for work really cost me. Not only the time at work but the lack of miles achieved once back on the trail due to having to rebuild Trail legs.

I was was planning on starting early March this time around to give myself plenty of time to take it slow early on, still take lots of zeroes, and finish sometime in September. After reading this thread and others since joining whiteblaze a couple weeks ago, I'm not so sure on my starting time. But I still wanna take it slow in the beggining to avoid I just and take plenty of days off. I think I'll be all right starting early April again

[Fireplug]

I met a girl on April 1st last year at Springer. She finished Aug 14th. 4 months and 2 weeks. But she did push out some 30 mile days

[Tahoeturner]

My start date was March 18th. I recall several cold, snowy, high wind nights, frozen water bottles in the morning, etc. Having said that, I wouldn't hesitate to start again on that date. The snow never lasted long on the ground. The worst of it was not being able to sleep with wind shaking my tent all night long. There's nothing like hiking a few miles in the morning before sunrise while your breath condenses in front of you. At age 66, I had no trouble averaging 16 to 22 miles per day at the start (I trained a lot before my start). You should have plenty of time.

[The Roaming Gnome]

My start date was March 18th. I recall several cold, snowy, high wind nights, frozen water bottles in the morning, etc. Having said that, I wouldn't hesitate to start again on that date. The snow never lasted long on the ground. The worst of it was not being able to sleep with wind shaking my tent all night long. There's nothing like hiking a few miles in the morning before sunrise while your breath condenses in front of you. At age 66, I had no trouble averaging 16 to 22 miles per day at the start (I trained a lot before my start). You should have plenty of time.

100% agree. I live in South Florida. Being in cold weather is a real treat. Over the holidays I was hiking in the Smokies and it was a brisk 22 degrees in the mornings and mid-sixties in the afternoons. I'll take hiking in the cold over the heat anyday.

[andsoshewalks]

i have a mid-august deadline bc i'll be starting a new semester. i'm giving myself 5.5 months, which i'm sure will be plenty. i might take less zero days than others but that's alright!


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[rafe]

100% agree. I live in South Florida. Being in cold weather is a real treat. Over the holidays I was hiking in the Smokies and it was a brisk 22 degrees in the mornings and mid-sixties in the afternoons. I'll take hiking in the cold over the heat anyday.

Cold by itself is mostly bearable. Combine it with wind or precipitation, it's a lot less fun. Mostly I find cold rain to be the least pleasant outdoor condition.

[George]

Anyone else on a time limit by chance? My enlistment in the military is coming to an end a very convenient time, right about the end of Feb. But I am enrolling in the fall semester of the college i want to go to which starts mid Aug. I've read that the AT can take between 5-6 months but, if it ends up being 6 months i don't believe i will have enough time to get back to school before finishing.

Anyone else have a similar conflict or maybe someone with experience on this issue could shine some light on it?



In any case I'm super excited and have been waiting to take this adventure for a long time!

when you get into Virginia take a look at your timeline, if it looks tight, jump ahead 2-3 weeks - do this part during winter break from school when the trail will be mostly empty instead of packed

[handlebar]

You'll be fine. You will encounter cold weather and some snow in GA, NC, and even perhaps as far north as Mt. Rogers in VA. Keep cold wether gear at least to there. I'd carry a 15 or 20 degree bag and wool long-sleeve tops and bottoms as sleep clothes and a puffy and toque to possibly supplement bag for colder nights. Advice to have traction device such as micro spikes is good. I started Mar 15 and did encounter iced rocks in Smokies where I wished I had carried them. As to weather, snow isn't likely to be a factor for more than a few days. You won't be postholing or trudging thru miles of hip deep snow on the AT. Iced up, slippery rocks and trail will be the issue. You can always take a zero or two in the woods and stretch your food. You can probably send a lot of the cold weather gear home after Mt. Rogers. I found I never hiked in long pants on the AT---wore a kilt from Hot Springs north and ever since. To keep in your time frame and be easy on your budget, avoid zeros. I like to resupply and do motel stops as part of neros: camp at shelter 7 or so miles from town, make your shopping list that night, take off early and get into town before noon, book the motel about 11am or noon (many will let you check in early), shower, switch to town clothes (for me that's rain wrap, rain jacket, flip-flops), do laundry, eat massive town lunch, shop for resupply including frozen meals to nuke in room for dinner, snacks and fruits to eat in town, and breakfast items to eat when you get up early to head back to trail. To save more money do an "In-and-out" town stop: skip the motel, take a "bucket bath" using the sink at the washroom at the laundromat (might have to use a ziplock as a stopper), still eat massive town breakfast/lunch and fruits and veggies, do grocery shopping, and get out of town to a shelter or campsite along the trail in the afternoon. After a few weeks on the trail, I sleep better in the woods anyhow so why waste dollars and time in town. I just spent 52 days hiking the North Country Trail westbound through NY starting in. The Adirondacks and into PA thru Allegheny NF (815 miles) with only 4 motel nights, all neros. The terrain is only somewhat less challenging than the AT. At my pace (15 miles per day average including neros) you can complete the AT in under 150 days with only about 12 motel nights. I did have several nights in State Park campgrounds en route where there were showers, though I feel reasonably clean and refreshed after taking a "bucket bath" well away from the trail or water sources using a gallon ziplock freezer bag a wash basin, a washcloth (my luxury item), and a minimal amount of soap (you can get sample size bars from Dr. Bronners) only on the hands, pits, and nether regions---cold water to rinse off sweat salt suffices on the rest of your body). I. hiked at a faster pace on the Long Trail encouraged to keep up with my 24 year-old hiking partner who I met at a shelter my 3rd night on the trail. While hiking together we averaged about 17 miles per day, and the Long Trail is is as rugged as the Whites on the AT. Considering that I'm"advanced middle age" at 71, you should have no problem completing the AT. It's all a head game for anyone in reasonable shape and with some self discipline. Have a great thru hike!

[pflii]

Like everyone else here has said, you'll have plenty of time. I started Feb 21st, finished July 1st and it was incredible.

I was in a similar situation, starting school in mid-august and was had a hard set "get off the trail" date of August 1st for moving reasons. I had myself on a pretty strict plan for miles but then realized early on that the plan was more conservative than I needed to be and that I could make more miles than that, especially as the days got longer.

One great thing about NOBO is that the days get longer as you develop your legs. Early on, sunrise at 730 and sunset at 530 gives you 10 hours, but by the middle and end you've got light enough to hike without a headlamp by 445am and it doesn't get dark until 9ish. Early on down south there were a few cold days , but nothing that you can't handle if you go into it with open eyes and a warm sleeping bag. Lots of frosty days with rime ice on the trees, but its spectacular when the sun is beaming off the ice. I never used microspikes down south. I carried some, but never needed them (going down klingmans was a bit of an ice chute but it wasn't enough to make us hold up before going into town to put on our spikes). Then again, we got very lucky going through the smokies as early as we did.

Just start off slow and give yourself time to work into things. Don't worry about taking zeros when it comes to making up miles, and definitely don't worry about doing low miles at the beginning. If you feel like you need a day in town to recoup give yourself that time. Nearoing into town is also amazing, give yourself a few miles into town, get in early, go to a hardees with free coffee refills and gorge...idyllic. Nearos into zeroes can also be a great way to recoup, but generally its good to have someone to split a hotel with or do it at a cheap hostel if you're concerned with the budget. You'll have an awesome time, don't stress too much about the miles or the timing early on, by the time you hit Maryland through Connecticut you can easily make up the mileage you may have lost early on. Have a great hike, its a lot of fun out there

[trailsROC]

I will be starting law school in mid/late August, so I am planning to be done by August 1st at the latest. I'm starting on February 25th, which gives me just over 5 months to make that goal. I'm a marathon runner so I'm hoping 17-22 mile days are regularly doable once I get my trail legs. I also plan on doing more Nero days than Zero days to keep up my daily average millage and prevent myself from spending too much money in towns. If you stay focused and this is really something you want to do, just go for it and it'll work out! The trail provides

[FiftyNine]

I am lucky where I'm not on a time limit. I am doing a flip flop starting April 16th. I want to enjoy the experience. I'm normally not a fast hiker anyway. I'm going to try to keep it between 7-10 miles a day to start. What I don't want to do is burn myself out trying to reach mileage goals.


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[johnupton318]

I began on March 13 on Springer and summitted Katahdin on August 28. I did some high mileage days, but that was mostly a comfortable speed. I also took a week off each thousand miles (not planned that way from the beginning, just worked out that way). I also took plenty of zeros. Still did it in 168 days (5 1/2 months). But I would suggest taking as much time as possible! I wish I'd have taken longer. The trail is sorely missed when you leave it.