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  1. #1
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    Default Section Hiking Etiquette

    Planning on doing a NOBO section beginning in Damascus after trail days. This will be our first hike. At the risk of being roasted, other than the golden rule, what are helpful tips to section hikers from a thru hikers perspective? TIA

  2. #2
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    https://lifehacker.com/the-hikers-gu...tte-1827102953
    https://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/sho...ight=etiquette

    Section hiker, thru-hiker, Triple Crown hiker -- it doesn't matter.
    Indeed, on the Trail, off the Trail; it doesn't matter -- "don't be a self-centered jerk" covers about 90% of it.
    Last edited by GoldenBear; 11-14-2019 at 18:17.

  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by GoldenBear View Post
    https://lifehacker.com/the-hikers-gu...tte-1827102953
    https://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/sho...ight=etiquette

    Section hiker, thru-hiker, Triple Crown -- it doesn't matter.
    Indeed, on the Trail, off the Trail; it doesn't matter -- "don't be a self-centered jerk" covers about 90% of it.
    Yep. That covers it.
    The older I get, the faster I hiked.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by ghetto-okie View Post
    Planning on doing a NOBO section beginning in Damascus after trail days. This will be our first hike. At the risk of being roasted, other than the golden rule, what are helpful tips to section hikers from a thru hikers perspective? TIA
    you're no different than a so-called "thru-hiker". it's just walkin'

  5. #5

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    All I can say is really bad timing. 100's leave NOBO out of Trail Days. Talk about crowds and standing room only at campsites. In fact, the whole state of Virginia suddenly fills up as groups of 20 or 30 are dropped off at every trailhead in the state. It takes a while for things to settle down again and the crowd to disperse. I'd wait a week or two..
    Follow slogoen on Instagram.

  6. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by ghetto-okie View Post
    Planning on doing a NOBO section beginning in Damascus after trail days. This will be our first hike. At the risk of being roasted, other than the golden rule, what are helpful tips to section hikers from a thru hikers perspective? TIA
    Quote Originally Posted by Slo-go'en View Post
    All I can say is really bad timing. 100's leave NOBO out of Trail Days. Talk about crowds and standing room only at campsites. In fact, the whole state of Virginia suddenly fills up as groups of 20 or 30 are dropped off at every trailhead in the state. It takes a while for things to settle down again and the crowd to disperse. I'd wait a week or two..
    This. Ever been to a rodeo to watch the bull riding competitions or participated in Pamplona's Running of the Bulls? It's kinda like that but many more bulls.

    Re: start at least 100 miles from Damascus and come back to Damascus to finish the skipped segment.

    Although your party may feel no different, no more entitled than wannabe AT thru hikers Thru hiker Gods dont feel the same.

  7. #7
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    Thank you! I've been reading a lot of thru hiker's books and most of them sort of down section hikers because of their behavior or just because they believe they're superior. We're definitely not ******** but I wanted to see if there were "unwritten" rules. I appreciate your help

  8. #8
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    Although your party may feel no different, no more entitled than wannabe AT thru hikers Thru hiker Gods dont feel the same.[/QUOTE]

    We definitely know we're not thru hikers nor are we pretending to be. I can speak for my group in saying that we have the ultimate respect for thru hikers. We have no intention on giving anyone a bad experience with us around. Maybe I'm over thinking it.

    Starting at trail days is something we just want to experience. Our plan is to be there 1 day and hike out.

    Thanks again!

  9. #9

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    Section hiking is underrated. You don't lose your enthusiasm, you don't get bored, you don't start to hate your hike.

    Truth be told, most of the so called thru hikers are really section hikers.

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by Slo-go'en View Post
    All I can say is really bad timing. 100's leave NOBO out of Trail Days. Talk about crowds and standing room only at campsites. In fact, the whole state of Virginia suddenly fills up as groups of 20 or 30 are dropped off at every trailhead in the state. It takes a while for things to settle down again and the crowd to disperse. I'd wait a week or two..
    Or leave Damascus SoBo and you will be going the opposite direction of the crowd.
    The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
    Richard Ewell, CSA General


  11. #11
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    No different from basic hiking etiquette. As long as you don't hog the shelter or other common spaces, fail to pack out your trash, make disparaging comments, or generally act like a jerk, then most thru hikers will be happy to be sharing a trail with you. When I was thru-hiking, if I ever got exasperated at shorter-term hikers, it was for those same behaviors that would annoy me from fellow thru-hikers.

    Most etiquette is self-explanatory, like not littering, etc. A couple things that I learned along the way that were a little less obvious (at least, not obvious to me when I started section hiking in the years before my thru, since I had absolutely zero backpacking experience) were to use my headlamp's red light setting at night to be less disruptive to others, to yield right-of-way to a hiker moving uphill, and to minimize erosion by using rubber caps on trekking poles and not cutting switchbacks. If you've done some research and have some experience, none of that will be new to you, but thought I'd offer some more specific and obscure examples of etiquette that were not as immediately obvious to me as simply "don't be a jerk."

    Enjoy your hike!!
    A.T. 2018 Thru-hiker
    Follow along at www.tefltrekker.com

  12. #12
    Occasionally lucid
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    Hiking southbound TO Trail Days or FROM Trail Days will likely be a more pleasant experience.
    GA -> ME
    '86 -> '89

  13. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by Hikemor View Post
    Hiking southbound TO Trail Days or FROM Trail Days will likely be a more pleasant experience.
    There are quite a few people who hike to Trail days, starting a few days north or south. The whole area is congested that weekend and a week on either side of it.
    Follow slogoen on Instagram.

  14. #14

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    There was one common difference with section hikers during my thru: They tend to stay up late, start late, make a bit more noise, and just sometimes complain about thru hikers moving around too early. It really was never an issue. My rule was that after sunrise it was ok to talk softly but in a normal voice around camp. After sunset it was not ok. Section hikers sometimes had different ideas.

    This is really nitpicking. I only bring this up because someone asked. We all walk, eat, sleep and ask how the water source is flowing. No different.

  15. #15

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    Identity politics and tribal consciousness can play out on the trail unrelated to Political affiliations. Many hikers have to label themselves and then force knowledge of that identity on others. Different categories trend towards having greater camaraderie with others whom they identify. Cliques can form. Dont let that be your organizing guide for your hike.

    Everyone is not the same on trail, taking the same approaches, have the same time on trail, etc. Embrace that diversity and escape from hardline Tribalism and Identity politics. Everyone and everything has value. Find ways to be gracious finding ways to always be grateful. It makes for better hiking experiences including personally being more agreeable.

    If crowded AT shelters every night, and all that can entail, becomes overwhelming don't make it your daily camping site(CS) modus operandi. Stay elsewhere for a break. Plenty of CS's. As a cautionary point I would make it a point not too because the Trail Days rowdiness and human congregation consequences(spreading of viruses for example) can then extend to the AT.
    Last edited by Dogwood; 11-15-2019 at 00:39.

  16. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by FreeGoldRush View Post
    There was one common difference with section hikers during my thru: They tend to stay up late, start late, make a bit more noise, and just sometimes complain about thru hikers moving around too early. It really was never an issue. My rule was that after sunrise it was ok to talk softly but in a normal voice around camp. After sunset it was not ok. Section hikers sometimes had different ideas.

    Sweeping generalizations aside, unless someone says they are a through hiker or section hiker it can be difficult to tell who is what. Though their time may be limited to a few weeks a year, section hikers can have many years of AT experience and a pretty deep understanding of trail etiquette. Thats not to say some section hikers and thru hikers opt to behave poorly and demonstrate their lack of understanding, however it is difficult to say one group is different than the other in this regard.

  17. #17

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    To keep in centered to etiquette...things people typically do not like
    If you are a family large enough to consume a large portion of the shelter, tent
    dont bob down the trail with a speaker blaring
    leave lid closed on trail toilets
    dont use the shelter as a kitchen
    dont litter
    if you take a dog keep it from barking the entire time in camp
    Trail Miles: 4,927.6
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    Sheltowee Trace: Complete 2020-2023
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  18. #18
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    Default

    Section hikers, like myself, tend to be older, less fit and probably have a better credit score. Otherwise, it is a false dichotomy. The same rules apply to everybody.

  19. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by Traveler View Post
    Sweeping generalizations aside, unless someone says they are a through hiker or section hiker it can be difficult to tell who is what.
    After a couple of months on the trail it’s not hard to tell. Living in the trail grind for a while changes your body, your thoughts, motivations, etc. You can spot it right away as they are coming down the trail. It’s really no big deal. Hardly worth discussing. But section and thru hikers each share slightly different challenges. A thru may feel a bit jealous when a section hiker talks about what they will be doing next week when off the trail. A section hiker generally has a good hiking plan, while a thru hiker tends to wing it more often. Section and thru hikers rarely do similar daily mileage, and therefore are more familiar with different groups of people out on the trail.

    And very often the section hiker has better hygiene.

    And yes, sometimes these differences lead one hiker to feel superior over another. It’s no different than the real world. If that offends someone then they aren’t fully mature yet. This has been going on for all of time. The good news is that overall hikers are very easy to get along with.

  20. #20

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    Basic good manners and a positive attitude will take you a long way on the trail, just as they would anywhere. Don't be intimidated; remember that everyone was a noob at one point. Just enjoy yourselves and learn what you can.

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