Mental Prep for a Thru Hike

[Slo-go'en]

Another one that made sense to me came from Dixie AKA Homemade Wonderlust. She said remember that hiking is not a job.

Hiking may not be a job, but thru hiking is. It's a short commute to work, the hours are flexible and the work environment is (usually) great, but it's something you pretty much have to do every single day. For months and months. Many, if not most, of those who embark on this journey have never done anything like this before and have no prior experience.

I don't know how one mentally prepares for this. You end up either loving it or having the blind determination to finish no matter what. Everyone else goes home before the end.

[DownEaster]

You end up either loving it or having the blind determination to finish no matter what. Everyone else goes home before the end.

"No matter what" isn't a tenable attitude. A broken ankle can't be overcome with blind determination. Injury is an all-too-common reason for getting off the trail. You can try again later (maybe even the same year if you didn't start too late), but that's determined by your body before your mind.

[rickb]

"No matter what" isn't a tenable attitude. A broken ankle can't be overcome with blind determination. Injury is an all-too-common reason for getting off the trail. You can try again later (maybe even the same year if you didn't start too late), but that's determined by your body before your mind.

A broken ankle and it’s game over.

But are such injuries really that common?

Is it really just dumb luck that some people — like Warren Doyle and virtually all members of his so called expeditions — don’t get injuries, or can find a way to work through them?

[Slo-go'en]

No matter what - baring serious injury. Hard to say where injury ranks in the list of reasons for ending a thru hike. Broken bones aren't real common, but it does happen. Take a bad step, fall the wrong way and that's it.

[sadlowskiadam]

I went into my thru hike with this mindset: a thru hike is a series of many short hikes (4-7 days). I viewed each resupply as the end of each short hike. This mindset gave me something to look forward to each week (town, food, shower, rest, etc.). I found that if I focused on how many miles I had left to "finish the trail," I would become discouraged and have a more negative attitude. By focusing on the now and short term, I believe a thru hiker will have a more positive outlook and will allow you to get through the tough moments on the trial (there will be many). Best of luck.

[evyck da fleet]

A broken ankle and it’s game over.

But are such injuries really that common?

Is it really just dumb luck that some people — like Warren Doyle and virtually all members of his so called expeditions — don’t get injuries, or can find a way to work through them?

It doesn’t need to be a broken ankle but any type of serious sprain or ignored overuse injury that requires several weeks of rest to heal that will send people home. I haven’t met anyone who stayed around a town for three plus weeks to recover from an injury to continue their hike.

[Shrewd]

It doesn’t need to be a broken ankle but any type of serious sprain or ignored overuse injury that requires several weeks of rest to heal that will send people home. I haven’t met anyone who stayed around a town for three plus weeks to recover from an injury to continue their hike.

No but many go home.

A buddy of mine had to go home for over a month after an injury in Virginia.

He flipped and started sobo from Katahdin; I actually saw him again a few days before I hit Monson.

I myself took a week off in Philly, but that was more for morale than recovery

[MuddyWaters]

A broken ankle and it’s game over.

But are such injuries really that common?

Is it really just dumb luck that some people — like Warren Doyle and virtually all members of his so called expeditions — don’t get injuries, or can find a way to work through them?

Broken? No.

Sprained? sure.

We had a couple of young guys racing us one day to a shelter that only had 6 spots. We had been leapfrogging during the morning.

One of the guys passed us up while we were taking a break and took off running down the trail when he got about a quarter mile ahead of us. We could see him through the trees because there were no leaves. Also saw him start to hobble. After we finished our break and begin hiking, about 15 minutes later we passed him up he just stood on the side of the trail and looked off over the edge away from us, and didn't say a word. I really really wanted to say "how'd that work out for you."?

[DownEaster]

You don't even have to take a fall or plant your foot wrong. There are plenty of injuries from just walking those 4 million steps that can take hikers off the trail: infected blisters, plantar fasciitis, degraded knee cartilage, strained ligaments, and slipped/herniated/prolapsed spinal discs. Quite often it's "blind determination" causing hikers to aggravate recoverable wear and tear into hike-ending injury.

[4shot]

It doesn’t need to be a broken ankle but any type of serious sprain or ignored overuse injury that requires several weeks of rest to heal that will send people home. I haven’t met anyone who stayed around a town for three plus weeks to recover from an injury to continue their hike.

A broken ankle is bad "luck". And I believe luck does play a part of finishing a thru.

But imo ignoring any injury to the point that it takes weeks to heal is failing to manage the mental game properly. A person needs to listen to their body and take zero's if necessary. Or let go of some "miles per day" plan or "finish by X date' that they come up with on a spreadsheet back at home 2 years before their hike date. Or, worse yet, struggling to keep up with a group ( a situation more typical of the younger hikers). A lot of attempted thru hikes become section hikes because many people get trapped into a schedule that is just not manageable for them.

it's ok to plan for 5.135 months based on some preconceived idea that you take to your starting point. But if you find that is not realistic you either adjust your timetable. Or you go home.

[RockDoc]

I watched in Hot Springs as "thru hiker" Roadrunner bailed on the trail after a phone call in which his grandson said "we miss you". That's all it took....

[Dogwood]

Meditation can be good. It ideally trains your mind to go “through” thoughts without getting stuck in them. This has been more helpful to me in normal life though. On the trail even on the worst days, I was still euphoric at the same time. I still don't understand this. It could just have been the "high" of exercise releasing dopamine and endorphins constantly. But happy is the wrong word for what I felt. It was more just accepting of everything and content no matter what bad things happened. And they happened!

That’s how I’ve felt on my prep hikes but those aren’t months long

You've successfully stayed married, raised multiple children, probably have paid a mortgage or monthly rent, and held a job longer than it takes an AT thru hike. You seem like a solid guy providing for your family. You don't seem to be running away from something but reaching out with intention, with planning, embracing a goal unselfishly. You're ahead of the curve. Apply the repeatedly proven blue print now to the thru hike.

What you've built, what you've committed to, been resonsible for in your life so far isn't attributed to being lucky.

Display what you already have done, how you have behaved to your AT hike. You're more prepared mentally than many.

You don't need to be an AT backpacking guru or know it all to do this.

Meditation is a focus, a calming of your mind and emotions through an awareness. You've already done this probably not realizing it. You displayed it in your video. You've done it in your marriage, raising your children, holding down a job,...Do it also on this thru hike.

[Dogwood]

Meditation can be good. It ideally trains your mind to go “through” thoughts without getting stuck in them. This has been more helpful to me in normal life though. On the trail even on the worst days, I was still euphoric at the same time. I still don't understand this. It could just have been the "high" of exercise releasing dopamine and endorphins constantly. But happy is the wrong word for what I felt. It was more just accepting of everything and content no matter what bad things happened. And they happened!

I went into my thru hike with this mindset: a thru hike is a series of many short hikes (4-7 days). I viewed each resupply as the end of each short hike. This mindset gave me something to look forward to each week (town, food, shower, rest, etc.). I found that if I focused on how many miles I had left to "finish the trail," I would become discouraged and have a more negative attitude. By focusing on the now and short term, I believe a thru hiker will have a more positive outlook and will allow you to get through the tough moments on the trial (there will be many). Best of luck.

This is what you've done already in your marriage, raising children, at your job, paying down a mortgage, investing regularly into savings, etc. You're already on that same track preparing for your thru hike. This is an approach, a mindset, a behavior that works for accomplishing. It works on a LD hike. It builds. Thru hiking is not a lottery ticket get rich quick scheme. Break it down chunk it down day to day moment to moment if it serves you...joyfully with gratitude...stomp your feet in the puddles, smell the pine, laugh at your silliness,...keep rolling along

[show me the monkey]

[QUOTE=Dogwood;2199915]What a lot of men and AT thrus do is talk alot, give advice as of we have "the" answers. We think we have to. I yak alot on WB but in real life I more often shut up and listen, observe.[/Queen UOTE]
Agree with this statement 100%. Most chronic thu hikers will give you advice if asked for, but will not point things out to avoid coming across as a know it all. There are a few notable exceptions however...

[BuckeyeBill]

Hiking may not be a job, but thru hiking is. It's a short commute to work, the hours are flexible and the work environment is (usually) great, but it's something you pretty much have to do every single day. For months and months. Many, if not most, of those who embark on this journey have never done anything like this before and have no prior experience.

I don't know how one mentally prepares for this. You end up either loving it or having the blind determination to finish no matter what. Everyone else goes home before the end.

I don't think of thru hiking as a job at all. How can it be? No one is paying me hike. It is just a 6-7 month vacation where you shell out a lot of money. I have never heard of a job where you pay your employer for your labor.

In his book Appalachian Trials, Zack Davis gives some good advice on mental preparedness. One of them was writing down what would happen if you quit and went home early? What would you say to your family and friends? When things are getting rough for you, pullout that paper and read it again.

[Dogwood]

I don't like that description either. Describing LD hiking as a job, saying it that way, can easily be misinterpreted as being similar in a negative way as some people see a job - a toiling affair, despised, the daily grind, got to pay the bills, something imposed from external sources or because of circumstances, rather than a LD hike being an intentional directed chosen choice of joyful appreciation, wonder, adventure and exploration that expands self awareness leading to self actualization and is approached not in a self absorbed vacation like affair but with thanksgiving and consideration of a larger whole.. that yes, includes rising to the challenges, but isn't all about the "work."

[Dogwood]

One of the common reasons given for a LD hike is to get away from that aspect of what a job can mean and yet it can easily be reshouldered as in a burdensome way in taking on another "job."

I don't know if that's the way it was meant by you Slo-go-en but that's the way it can be taken.


A career can be a study and activity in pursuit of an individual life's passion that is financially profitable.

[rickb]

[QUOTE=show me the monkey;2200285]

Agree with this statement 100%. Most chronic thu hikers will give you advice if asked for, but will not point things out to avoid coming across as a know it all. There are a few notable exceptions however...

You may be right, but one thing I know for sure.

The tone and tennor of a live conversation with a lot of thru hikers is way different if you introduce yourself as one who has done one, vs one who has not.

On Whiteblaze, I don’t see that — just a lot of people sharing their thoughts equally.

Now more advice — since I’d hate to pass up an opportunity to agree wholeheartedly with Slo-go’en.

A thru hike is very much like a job!

Even though some aspects of both really suck (let’s be honest), we get up every morning an keep plugging away because of what we get out of it.

Sort of like even the very best marriage, too.

And lest this missive make me a know-it-all, best to know we really don’t know the mind of another at all.

[TheMidlifeHiker]

You've successfully stayed married, raised multiple children, probably have paid a mortgage or monthly rent, and held a job longer than it takes an AT thru hike. You seem like a solid guy providing for your family. You don't seem to be running away from something but reaching out with intention, with planning, embracing a goal unselfishly. You're ahead of the curve. Apply the repeatedly proven blue print now to the thru hike.

What you've built, what you've committed to, been resonsible for in your life so far isn't attributed to being lucky.

Display what you already have done, how you have behaved to your AT hike. You're more prepared mentally than many.

You don't need to be an AT backpacking guru or know it all to do this.

Meditation is a focus, a calming of your mind and emotions through an awareness. You've already done this probably not realizing it. You displayed it in your video. You've done it in your marriage, raising your children, holding down a job,...Do it also on this thru hike.

Thank you.

[Dogwood]

I didn't say that. Show me the Monkey said it.


Understand, it certainly was not not said Slo go en was wrong or that I definitely knew what he was implying. There's no wrong or right in Slo go en's statement... thru hiking can be likened to a job. I said I didn't like that description because it can easily lead to negative similarities. Of course we don't really always know the mind of another which is why this statement was included with the Smiley: "I don't know if that's the way it was meant by you Slo-go-en but that's the way it can be taken.

We should let Slo go en speak for himself telling us the context of his statement. That's what my post's intention was, what was being elicited... letting him further clarify, if he wants.


This isn't about my way or no way or knowing it all or right or wrong. Too much is being taken way out of context with many posts.