So many start the AT, but so few finish. I assume the 3 main reasons to quit are
- it was too hard
- I ran out of time
- I ran out of money
Does that pretty much sum it up, or is there more to it than that?
So many start the AT, but so few finish. I assume the 3 main reasons to quit are
- it was too hard
- I ran out of time
- I ran out of money
Does that pretty much sum it up, or is there more to it than that?
i was not havin' fun anymore
Mostly, it got boring. I never managed to find a group or friend to hike with for very long. I was 37 at the time -- too slow for the youngsters, too fast for the oldsters.
It had nothing to do with money or injury.
Torn rotator cuff at week 1.
Emergency at home, son needed surgery and than the day before I was going back to the trail I got blood clots in my lungs. A lot of the hikers left the first week because it was just plain terrible hiking weather in rained for the first 8-10 days. I started April 12th, 2015 it was cold too some nights and I remember it hailing and snowing on Blood Mtn. while listing to rifles firing as the army ranger's assaulted the Mtn. doing training exercises. But they did leave plenty of water in gallon jugs before we made the climb up the hill. Army trail Angels are cool.
I have MS which gives me fatigue and weakness problems especially later in the day. So one day I twisted my ankle then the next day i tore a ligament in my ankle. later in the day I just fell apart as core body temperature rose. I had to quit, I could not walk any more.
I think you can throw in a 4th and 5th category to your 3 based on the above responses. 4) Sick (either physically or just plain sick of hiking) or injury and 5) situation at home required getting off trail. Sometimes items 4 and 5 are used by hikers in lieu of item 1 but I think these 5 just about sum them up. i have thru hiked the AT but twice now have had to leave the BMT , which is obviously a much shorter trail,while attempting a thru hike due to item #5.
I quit my thru attempt in the planning stages, 6 months before i started. Basically, i decided there was no way i wanted to hike thru the heat and humidity back there, so i decided to section in spring and fall over two years instead. Worked great! I stopped my first leg at 700 miles in may, as planned, sorta, had wanted to make 900, but too hot for this heat wimp. Got it all done though in cool springs and falls, basically never touched the AT in summer (except mid sept and on)
Probably near the top is "psyched themselves out." Willpower just evaporated. It's on the individual - there are no right or wrong answers - to write his or her own narrative. My "why" is big enough to keep me on the trail once I depart the Hike Inn. I don't "think" that I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it. Maybe it will be "fun" and maybe it will be "boring" or maybe I'll get injured and have to spend a couple weeks reading my Kindle Paperwhite while something heals up. Maybe something will come up at home (It'll only be my wife and she'll be in an RV checking out antique stores in vicinity of the trail where I'm hiking) and I'll have to deal with it. But those are only contingencies. My "what" is Springer to Katahdin between Marcy and October of the year I thru-hike. I'd rather be bored in a green tunnel than sit in a cubicle writing plans.
I suffered dehydration which made my A-fib much worse. My fault. I had fluids in my backpack pockets, but since my pack was wayyy heavy, I was reluctant to take it off to get a drink and then struggle heavily (pun intended) to put it back on. My piss poor prior planning. 2017 will be different.
Let me add that what I hiked I enjoyed, and I met the greatest people.
You and Lone Wolf had similar reasons for getting off the trail. Would you attack the challenge differently if you were to try it again, or is the AT just not the right thing for you at this stage of your life?
In my estimation most folks quit a thru because it was not what they expected. A lot of thru-hikers, before they start, look at the positive things, the freedom, great views, meeting wonderful people, and enjoyable times around a camp fire. They soon find out that it's a hard life. A daily struggle of dealing with being dirty, being hungry, being worn out and wet. Getting up in the morning and having to put back on damp and dirty cloths and having to do it all over again. Being a thru-hiker was the hardest job I ever had.
Grampie-N->2001