are there no standards?

[lloyd528]

As I read through all the books about thru hiking along with the trail journals found online, I get the impression that there are no real standards for a thru hike...it seems like the philosophy out there is to "Hike Your Own Hike"....slack pack, blue blaze, flip flop, yellow blaze. What I am curious about is this....are white blazers who avoid slack packing and flip flopping in the minority? Are the white blazers usually older hikers? Does anyone have a problem with these alternative ways of hiking to avoid the demands of weather, trail and weight? Are there no overiding ethics out there?

I'd love to hear from you... Lloyd

[full conditions]

I absolutely could care less what anyone else does on their hike. The time when a thru hike is considered interesting, much less particularly impressive, is long since past. Thousands of people have hiked the trail in all manner of ways and none of it is of interest to anyone except themselves. So then, to whom would these standards be of any interest? It becomes something akin to comparing a drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway - nobody cares how you did it - its only of importance to you.

[ChinMusic]

If the 2000-mile patch is your goal you are supposed to pass all the white blazes (within reason) on the trail, with no requirement of direction, weight on your back, or order.

If enjoyment of the trail is your goal, do whatever pleases you and ignore folks that decrease your enjoyment.

[lloyd528]

Where do most thru hikers draw the line with each other or are there no lines?

Another words, can you hitch hike to catch up with friends and be guilt free?

[ChinMusic]

Where do most thru hikers draw the line with each other or are there no lines?

Another words, can you hitch hike to catch up with friends and be guilt free?

That is something you can only answer for yourself.

If you skip a section you should not put in for a 2000-mile patch, but that is on the honor system. No one is going to "bust" you.

Different people have different goals. Some do not want to slack. Some want to complete the path in the same direction without breaking it up. Some want to set speed records. It's all good.

[Lyle]

I will add that I couldn't care less if someone hitch-hikes to skip a portion of the trail they do not find appealing, or to catch up to friends if they have been held up for some reason. If I were part of the group who were actually hiking the trail that year, it would probably annoy me if this person continued to present himself as a thru-hiker. That would depend upon how much was skipped, obviously.

I am not a purist by any stretch, I don't care if you hike a blue blaze trail occasionally, even road walk occasionally, but to actually skip many miles of the walk is different, in my opinion, and shouldn't be ignored. I would consider it appropriate for the person who did the skipping to acknowledge the fact. If he/she chose not to, that is their decision, but I would loose some respect for them and their honesty. Could still be a perfectly fun person to hike with.

[bigcranky]

Another words, can you hitch hike to catch up with friends and be guilt free?

No, you can't. Sorry.

[Ender]

As far as defining thru-hiking, the standards are yours and yours alone. Just don't try to make your standards someone else's standards, because that's their business not yours.

For the 2000 miler patch from the ATC, they have criteria that you can find on their website.

[Deadeye]

Since I'd rather chip in than work...

If you walk from one end of a trail to the other, the exact route ain't all that important. Routes change, and there are many interesting sights on side trails or alternate routes.

For me, the exception is yellow-blazing. Riding a car ain't hiking.

[Tabasco]

Yes, there are standards. And they can be found in our own Mags' book, HMHD : Hike My Hike Damnit!

[Graywolf]

Looks like a lot of self centered mindness has worked its way from our busy hustle and bustle world to the freedom of the trail.. So typical of humans. So typical..

Actually, I miss reading the older journals of past where friends were made along the way and hikers helped other hikers..Just isnt that way any more from the sounds of this and other threads..: Hike your own hike attitude..What happened to the days of community on the traill.. Does the Trail Community even exists anymore..sad, so sad..

[lloyd528]

So far I get the feeling that some feel yellow blazing is over the edge and others could care less. That's fine but are all trails in the U.S. "Hike Your Own Hike" trails or do some, like the Pacific Crest Trail, have a different attitude about slack packing, flip flopping, etc. I guess my question is, given the unique nature of the Appalachian Trail, and it's large hiking community, is it more forgiving about who is a thru hiker and who is not. That's what I am getting at...then I'm out.

[shwn354]

i think the "hike your own hike" philosophy has more to do with not letting the opinions and judgments of others define your time in the woods. i personally have not got the impression that just because hikers walk according to their own standards that they are less willing to help others or make friends. It's not like a city street where everybody passes each other with their eyes to the ground. The trail community was alive and well when i went thru two years ago anyway. maybe it's disintegrated since then.

[lloyd528]

Looks like a lot of self centered mindness has worked its way from our busy hustle and bustle world to the freedom of the trail.. So typical of humans. So typical..

Actually, I miss reading the older journals of past where friends were made along the way and hikers helped other hikers..Just isnt that way any more from the sounds of this and other threads..: Hike your own hike attitude..What happened to the days of community on the traill.. Does the Trail Community even exists anymore..sad, so sad..

Graywolf, I am trying to read in between the lines here.... Are you saying that the "Hike Your Own Hike" is annoying or do agree with those who say that hiking is a personal thing?

[shwn354]

everyones hike is their own personal journey. They all meet all kinds of people. Some you only know for a short time, others longer. The hike is the real journey, in whatever form it takes. The AT merely facilitates the voyage.

[lloyd528]

I think I am beginning to get it....the AT should be thought of as a journey and not as a physical feat of endurance where there are those who "really did it" and those who couldn't really cut it (and call themselves thru hikers). If you got to Katahdin and started on Springer, you made it..you completed the "journey"...you are a thru hiker even if you got there in a different way. I think the moderator had the best advice for me...go to the ATC and look at their definition of a thru hiker. I think I will do that and stick as closely as possible to their definition if I want to be big on standards. I will also take others advice....don't look down upon someone who hikes without a pack.....that will be tough for me but I will try. Maybe after I get started my "hang ups" about standards will fade. Thank you all for your points of view.

[buff_jeff]

I don't care what anybody does and I'm not going for one of those 2,000 miler patches.

I am still a "purist," however. I try my best not to skip anything. Well, I skipped a quarter mile of the trail through a farm field in PA and road walked...but, besides that I haven't yellow blazed, blue blazed, whatever. I've enjoyed hiking this way immensely, but how others hike is their business.

[SGT Rock]

It's just hiking. No rules, no scores.

If you want to impose rules on how you hike, it is your business.

[SGT Rock]

No umps or refs either. There are some that like to say how you should hike to be "legitimate" though. Watch out for them.

[SGT Rock]

What happened to the days of community on the traill.. Does the Trail Community even exists anymore..sad, so sad..

Not everyone hikes for the "community experience" some of us start in January and go for days without seeing another human. And we like it that way. Some of us even conceive of changing how we hike the "standard thru-hike" to avoid the crowds of other hikers.

Don't get me wrong, I like people and generally would do anything for anyone in need, and can hold an interesting conversation with just about anyone. But I (and I suspect others) find a lot of the "trail community" a bit annoying to be stuck around all the time.