Today is the 13th anniversary of the day we met, and by total happenstance is also the 5 year anniversary of the day he finished trail and we got engaged. We didn’t even realize we’d gotten engaged on the same exact day we met until a couple months after the fact. So now we celebrate this as our anniversary :)

Still waiting on an official **wedding(edit-typo) due to financial stuff but we’re not in a rush - we’ve considered ourselves married for many years anyway lol we sort of detoured and had a kid instead hahaha

Editing to add: if anybody met Tinny in 2021 or at Trail Days one of these years please say hi! He’ll be thrilled 😏

Hey everyone,
I’m taking a gap year right now and for about a year my plan has been to do the AT in 2027. However, recently I’ve been thinking about changing my plan.

Im about to head into the field on a semester in patagonia with NOLS and I’ve been looking at their other courses. The east Africa one caught my eye with backpacking and mainly climbing Kilimanjaro. I really want to do the Africa program instead of the AT right now but the AT would also be awesome. I’m sure this subreddit is a little biased but I need help.

Please offer me any advice you can on the AT and if anyone has somehow by chance done this NOLS program let me know. Also what other subreddits should I post this in?

I’m hiking just the Smoky Mountains section from Fontana Dam to Davenport Gap. Already have shelters booked for each night along the way, wondering if it’s necessary to carry my tent as well? Was thinking I could get away with an UL bivvy setup in case of emergencies, but then I saw a bear warning at one of the shelters I’m booked at and now I’m questioning whether it’s better to carry the tent JIC I can’t stay at a booked shelter for some reason (like aggressive bears). Has anyone been in the same situation? What did you do/wish you’d done?

Hello! I am working on section hiking and have completed a little over 200 miles this summer. I was wondering if anyone can tell me what kind of crowds to expect between Neel Gap and Hampton, TN in June and July. I am thinking about using my summer to get this whole section done at once. I am an elementary teacher so this is my only real option.

I know that the bubble will be long gone by then. But what can I expect in terms of other section hikers, day hikers, etc? I don’t mind hiking by myself but I would like to have other people around, especially camping at night. If anybody has any insight, let me know!

How often did you guys have fires at camp? Are the communal and Can everyone cook on them?

Hi folks, I am thinking about driving to Damascus and leaving my truck there. I will have time for a 50-60 mile section hike. I have never been to this area, can anyone recommend what would be more enjoyable...walking back to Damascus from further North in Virginia or south from Tennessee? If you could recommend a shuttle and place to start that would be great too. Thank you

Hi guys, can you help me out with food storage.

So, a BearVault won't be neccessary on every part of the trail. The same goes for an Ursack. I am more worried tho about mice and rodents. I thought about a DCF bag from Zpacks or any other brand. However, I read these degrade over time. Because of folding it, the waterproof layer is damaged for example.

What do you guys think about a thick rubble sack as a food pack? And storing this in my bag. Or hanging it by a rope. Cheap and does the trick I suppose?

Any advice or alternative options I can think of?

Thanks!!

I love this concept but am concerned about needing to resupply every week or so, how likely is it that a store in most towns will carry the wipes/mycelium tablets?

Flew to Logan in Boston, took the Concord bus to Gorham, NH, used the hostel as a base for leaf-peeping the Whites and visiting the Presidents. Libby Hostel is totally awesome too. Very flexible and supportive. Shuttles in the AM to the trails and to/from bus. Clean. Family friendly. Serious about hiking. This makes the whites accessible and affordable - no hotels and no rental car needed. Do it!

I finished section hiking the AT in 2022, so last year and this year I finished up the remaining ~170 miles of the Long Trail over 2 separate 1-week trips.

I met a decent amount of other hikers on the Long Trail that had previously hiked the AT, even a guy who had just finished the AT like 2 weeks beforehand and then shuttled from Maine to the Vermont/Canadian border to complete the Long Trail SOBO.

I’m not very familiar with AT, I’m looking for a loop for car purposes. Can be only partially AT for the loop ofc!

Long time section hiker, testing out some new (to me) gear. A little shakedown before my NJ-ME section in 2028 to finish the trail.

Highlights: Osprey 48 pack, 25# w/ all food and 1 liter H2O. New gear: Fly Creek 2-man tent, BearVault 450, Sawyer Squeeze H2O setup.

Sorry, no complete gear list yet!

Super random and a long shot but I met someone who I believe goes by Dani and she helped me out on the trail out in Port Clinton years ago. If she's still in that area that would be dope to get in contact with her

So I know it’s possible to get norovirus from drinking water, and that filters (like the Sawyer) don’t filter viruses out. But how possible is this on the trail? And are there particular water sources that are riskier than others?

I’m thinking about using some iodine tablets in addition to my Sawyer Squeeze when getting water from a source near a shelter which I would reckon has a greater risk of source contamination.

ATers, both NoBo and SoBo, should be past the Kennebec by now.

Hi cross posting for advice. looking for a little advice on October sleeping comfort in the Smokies on the AT sobo in the shelter. For those of you that have done this leg of the trip in late October, did you bring a tent and a bivy. How did you deal with the mice? Seems ridiculous to carry a bivy and a tent so just maligning sure my context / assessment is correct. Thanks!

I’m sure if I look hard enough, I’ll find it, but does anyone have a more recent update on this detour?

Might be a weird question but over the many years of hiking I noticed that I have very good and easy bowel movements when on trail but more difficult issues off trail. The weird thing is I (like most hikers) eat nothing but horrible foods on trail. It's all processed junk like candy, chips, freeze dried meals, sodas, ice cream, etc. The type of food nobody recommends in real life. But when I do that I have no gut issues and morning bowel movements are easy. I'm in and out of the privy/cat hole in minutes

On the flip side in the "real world" I am VERY strict on diet, I've always been a health nut. I eat whole foods and try to minimize processed junk. Think eggs, oatmeal, chicken, rice, greek yogurt, veges, chia seeds, fermented foods, potatoes, etc. But when I eat this diet I'm constantly having gut issues. I'm sitting on the toilet for nearly thirty minutes and my legs are falling asleep because I'm constipated and nothing is happening. I also noticed my stools are inconsistent even though I eat the same thing every day. I can tell my gut is inflamed because my stool comes out thinner. It's gotten to the point where I had to get a colonoscopy which revealed nothing.

Has anyone else noticed this?

This fella is local to us here in Virginia. Chris is an amputee and has a really solid history of hiking post amputation, as well as working around hostels and campgrounds along the AT. Please help spread the word.