1. Why are you hiking the entire AT? Its been a dream of mine since my days in scouts. I was always intrigued that there is a trail that goes all the way from Maine to Georgia.
2. How long have you been planning the hike? I started planning over 2 years ago for this hike.
3. Are you going by yourself and if so why? Yes, I had several people express interest in joining me but it never panned out. There are lots of other hikers on the AT so i am sure i will have no problem meeting other hikers.
4. Why are you starting in Maine rather than Georgia like most people? The only place on the trail that closes during the year is the northern terminus, Mt. Katahdin and that is in October. This late in the year to do a thru hike you would have to start up north.
5. How long is the AT and how long do you expect to take to complete it? The AT is approximately 2180 miles long. The average thru hike takes 6 months. I hope to do it in 4-5 months but i am not on an official time schedule so if it takes longer then so be it.
6. How much weight will be in your backpack? My base weight (weight of pack without food or water) is 12.8 lbs. This weight is subject to change based on weather conditions. Water weighs 2.2lbs per liter and i will be carrying 1-4 liters of water based on the state and amount of rainfall. My food weight is about 1.75lbs per day. Typical food carried at any point will be 3-5 days. So anywhere from 15-25lbs will be normal.
7. How will i get food and water? Water is easy; i have a uv light steripen which kills all contaminates. If there is debree in the water i will filter it through a coffee filter. Water will be gathered from springs And streams along the trail. I will resupply food at towns along the way. Typical duration between towns is 3-5 days.
8. How will you know where to go or keep from getting lost? The trail is very well marked with white 2" x 6" blazes. Most of the time the blazes will be on trees but may also be on rocks or posts. An issue will be when the trail is flooded and i cannot see the blazes on rocks. I hear some areas are not blazed well but i will figure those out when i get there. I am carrying a trail guide which i split in half so at the halfway point i will get the second portion. The guide shows elevation profiles, distances to everything i will ever want to know down to the tenth of a mile, and maps of towns. On the town map it even lists all restaurants as well as providing prices/accommodations for hostels, hotels, and motels along the way. Lets just say it is very thorough.
9. What is a thru hike? A thru hike is hiking an entire trail from end to end. You will get different variants of the definition such as completing it within 1 year or not taking any extended breaks. For example, a person hiking the trail over the period of 3 years doing it sections at a time is a section hiker.
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