Springer to fontana, 2 weeks?

[darkage]

Hi all, I've said in other threads in 2k8 "Happy new years btw everyone" i plan on hiking along with my brother the section from springer to fontana ... will 2 weeks be enough, keeping in mind were big guys, and not in the best of shape ... I've calculated its i think 186 miles or so ... by 14 days is around 11-12 miles a day ... this does sound doable as my brother and i averaged a few sections around here between 5-8 every 3 hours ... 5 miles in 3 hours i remember was all up hill ... we can move on flat land an mild elevation's, but we get winded going up hill for a distance as this is where most of our stops come ... But yeah, is 2 weeks more than enough or should i be planing on a few days of "mini vacations" to recover from sections along the way?

I'm going if it kills me, let the mountain cleanse me and put me back in shape!

[Roots]

This is the exact section I am doing in April. It is actually 163.1 miles to Fontana Dam Visitor center. I would suggest going to trailjournals.com to look at '07 journals about this section. I would definitely get The Thru-Hiker's Handbook by Dan 'Wingfoot' Bruce. It has all the trail mileage, shelter info, hostel info, etc. in it.

The GA/NC section you are talking about is considered some of the roughest sections south of New England. My husband and I have done from Wayah Bald to Fontana and it was by no means easy, but we did it. We train quite a bit. Have you ever hiked any on the AT? If not, you're going to love it. It is extremely challenging, but definitely worth it. I am giving myself 3 weeks, give or take some days. I know that if things can go well, it will probably only take 15 to 17 days. There is a lot to consider, but you have definitely come to the right place for such a question. These people KNOW what they are talking about. Good Luck and maybe I'll see you out there.

[darkage]

Hi, and thanks ... I have two books currently off the thru hiker's guide's .. I've grown up in PA and as a kid hiked north an south of PA, 309 and bake oven knob up into jersey thro the lehigh gap ... So we've done quite abit of PA and just wanna get a good grasp on starting in georgia as we don't have the time for the thru but can peice it together over time ... 3 weeks is along time ... might need to adjust my route to keep it under 2 weeks ... Thanks again for the quick reply ...

[pyroman53]

I'm from Bethlehem originally (born and raised and hiked alot there) and me and another guy from PA just hiked Amicaoloa to Unicoi Gap in September. Took 6 days for those 60 miles. Nice and easy...enjoyable. We're both in decent shape (gym twice a week) but we're not out to prove anything either. Coulda done more per day but it woulda been painful. After day 5 we coulda done 13-15 miles per day as we were starting to get our legs.

By the way, it took about 12 hours drive to get to Dahlonega from Bethlehem, but you'll love GA hiking. Fantastic woods, really well built and maintained trail, even some stretches with rocks (the drop into Unicoi Gap coulda been PA with all the rocks). From what I recall from "back in the day", PA is much flatter - GA doesn't stay flat for very long before you head back up or down.

[SGT Rock]

You can do it.

[Nest]

I did it in 10 days in June 07. Since you are only a few years older than me, and have hiking experience you shouldn't have any trouble. I met a guy in his late 50's on my second days and we pretty much hiked together the entire time. So it's not just my age.

[darkage]

Very nice, I'd love to do springer to fontana in one shot over the course of 2 weeks ... You say ya did it in 10 days ? ... that leaves me 4 days for an overnight or two if i find a really nice spot i just wanna soak in for an extra day .... May i ask about how many miles a day you managed? ... If i go over 2 weeks by a few days i'm cool ... anything could happen while down there ... I've been reading journals here an there and most people even in the snow/raid/fog manage 10-12 along that section .... lots of ups an downs i hear ... the work is rewarded by some awesome scenary tho i hear also at the tops of the mountains ....

[Pedaling Fool]

Hi all, I've said in other threads in 2k8 "Happy new years btw everyone" i plan on hiking along with my brother the section from springer to fontana ... will 2 weeks be enough...

What time frame are you planning this trip?
2 weeks in this section will not be a walk-in-the-park, but there are plenty of places to bail-out if you see your time expiring. I say go for it, it's much different, in a good way, from the rocks of Pa. You won't regret it.

[Pedaling Fool]

FWIW, check out this article by mapman:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/show...578#post170578

[max patch]

Heres a few numbers for you to ponder.

Baltimore Jack was asked this question a while back and said most people take 14-17 days; a lot of people do in in less.

Mapman analyzed a bunch of trail journals and came up with an average of 15.8 days.

You can use the search funtion if you need or want to see the details.

FWIW, on my thru I took 15 days. If I was on a "schedule" I could have easily done it in the 14 day window you are talking about.

[darkage]

Greetings,
We were planing for the last week of may to head down to gainesville by bus ... I'll check out the links now and look it over ... i appreciate the info ... This is something i wanna do, just abit apprehensive about it i guess .... 2 weeks, no woman .. no kids/computer ... just me an the outdoors, i absolutely love camping/hiking ... I planed to restock on basics in town, walk into towns during the mornings, shower/laundrey and back on the trail ... i'm not looking at staying in hostels or motels unless its a monster storm from hell .... 14-18 days is within my limits ... 14 was just more or so the cutoff, a few days extra won't hurt as i work for myself so if i'm late ... i'm late ... 2 weeks is just the general time frame i told the wife ...

Are the towns along the way easy to restock/shower/laundrey .... I have two books with all facilitys from trail .. but from anyone who's done it, was the experiance ok and quick thro here ? .... I'd be more into saving all the time i can in town and spending it on top of the scenic points ....

[Pedaling Fool]

Greetings,
...walk into towns during the mornings, shower/laundrey and back on the trail ... ...

Are the towns along the way easy to restock/shower/laundrey .... I have two books with all facilitys from trail .. but from anyone who's done it, was the experiance ok and quick thro here ? .... I'd be more into saving all the time i can in town and spending it on top of the scenic points ....

Not sure what you me by: "walk into towns during the mornings, shower/laundrey and back on the trail"
The only town I stop in through this section is Franklin, it's probably the easiest to get to, despite being 10 miles off trail. It's easy because of Ron Haven, real hiker friendly. The only other places I stop are Neel's Gap and NOC, not really towns, but you can do a limited resupply and eat at a resturant.
Other options, which I've never been to are:
Suches, Ga. 2 miles from AT, 20 miles from Springer
Helen , Ga. 10 miles from AT, 50 miles from Springer
Hiawassee, Ga. 11 miles from AT, 67 miles from Springer
Robbinsville, NC 10 miles from AT, 148 miles from Springer

It's a pretty remote area.

[Heater]

Are the towns along the way easy to restock/shower/laundrey .... I have two books with all facilitys from trail .. but from anyone who's done it, was the experiance ok and quick thro here ? .... I'd be more into saving all the time i can in town and spending it on top of the scenic points ....

Check out B-Jacks resupply articles.

Here

[Pedaling Fool]

Check out B-Jacks resupply articles.

Here

That's good info, Jack did a damn good job. Although, something to keep in mind, if you go into too many towns it reduces the chance of you completing this section in two weeks.

[darkage]

[quote=john gault;487648]Not sure what you me by: "walk into towns during the mornings, shower/laundrey and back on the trail"
quote]

I'm new to planing and hiking away from home and the AT away from PA ... All responses will help me getting there and having a safe trip ... i appreciate it.

I will certainly be checking out the re-supply articles ...

[darkage]

I wouldn't mind staying out of town entirely but i'm not sure i could carry 2 weeks worth of food, and i hear people arn't too fond of bathing and stone washing clothes on the trail ... Maybe if i lived off bisquit mix's and raman noodles and muffins using a small wood stove to save weight on fuel ? ... Looking into one of those MSR hubba's, the single version ... I've yet to find a pack i like and can maintain the weight i'm gonna be having, the packs i use now in PA i've hit around 43 lbs for weekend hikes ... but thats also packing MRE's ... and a heavy tent ...

[Newb]

I'll be going from Unicoi north starting 12 April for 2 weeks. Hope to see you!

[Roots]

The good thing is that you are not going until May. Starting around the end of March, trailjournals.com will have people journaling about their thru-hike. They will be giving fresh & new trail news through their journals. You can read all accounts of info through them. Actually, there are some starting in Jan. (Sgt Rock is starting at the end of Jan.)

It makes for a lot of reading, but it is so much fun reading everyone's experiences when going through the section that you'll be going through soon.

[darkage]

Kk, cool ... I'm still trying to research if carrying enough food for 2 weeks is actually doable or if spending atleast one night in a town must be planed, still looking around for a nice pack ... And prolly enough food for 2 1/2 weeks just in case i suppose ... Thats alot of ramon noodles and muffin mix eh ...

[Nest]

Kk, cool ... I'm still trying to research if carrying enough food for 2 weeks is actually doable or if spending atleast one night in a town must be planed, still looking around for a nice pack ... And prolly enough food for 2 1/2 weeks just in case i suppose ... Thats alot of ramon noodles and muffin mix eh ...

When I did my hike through there last June I went into town, bought my food, and went back to the trail. If you plan it so that you camp fairly close to the road where the town is, you can get in early. To give you an idea, I made it in and out of Franklin in less than an hour. Caught a ride to Ingles, then walked over to the outfitter. When I was done I caught a ride back to the trail. You could probably call some hostels or motels and see if you can come in and pay a little for laundry and a shower. If you did that you could do laundry, shower, buy food, and get back on the trail only loosing a couple hours.