Originally Posted by
4eyedbuzzard
While I ultimate chose NOT to hike, I was in a similar situation to yours back in the early-mid 1990's. 35-40 years old, mid-career, 4 young children. I had left a thru at around 500 miles in the late 1970's. My wife was supportive, but truthfully with some reservations (don't under-estimate how tough it is on the spouse that "stays behind" while one is away fulfilling what is ultimately a very selfish endeavor). We were pretty well off financially, but even so, the opportunity cost when added to the spousal burden was what eventually made it a no-go. We figured the opportunity cost of the hike was somewhere around 7 to 8 months of lost income coming directly out of savings. Ongoing fixed/family expenses, PLUS the cost of the hike, all had to come out of savings. A half-year worth of income today is a LOT of money 20 years from now at compounded interest. The attempt (and that is what it is, an attempt, with about a 25% success rate) would have cost about $30-35K OUT OF SAVINGS at the time. If I had taken the full 6-7 months time off, I would have roughly $135K less in retirement savings today. That can delay retirement by many years - and those years grow much more valuable as you get older.
We (mostly I) weighed all the considerations, both identified and possible:
Burden on spouse, children, family.
TRUE long-term financial costs to family and self.
Burden on hiker (homesickness, guilt leaving spouse/family).
Probability of success (due to injury, trail burnout, family issues).
Positive/negative effects of thru-hiking vs section-hiking.
Made the decision not to go and just section-hike more. Regrets? Or, more accurately, wondering what if? Sure. Life is a series of choices. Lots of them. You can't do everything or choose both roads. So, you always wonder what if. The possibilities are endless. But potential outcomes are both good and bad. And you'll never know.
Dogwood brings up the advances in tech that can potentially lessen some of the "being away" aspects of doing this. To what degree this helps, I don't know. I doubt it would change my decision making, but it may for others.
Everybody's desires and situation are different. Good luck on your decision whichever way it goes.