Thru-hiking Thread

Love this shit. Good luck man. Just trynna get a word in so I can follow this thread haha. For what its worth, a panel off of a plastic, gallon milk jug has a super flat profile and can serve as a pretty stable splint in an emer situation

Just did my first thru hike last summer. I did the pacific northwest trail about 1200 miles. Minimal stuff, I sent home a lot of stuff i never used. Like my stove stand, rain pants, the brain of my pack, etc. Stuff that rly wasn't essential to walk sleep and eat didn't really need to be carried. Started off in boots with my pack weighing about 50 pounds, usually hiked 15 miles or so a day. Ended the trip in Chacos with a pack of about 40 pounds for usually 4-5 days of hiking 20+ days very comfortably. Shoes are probably one of the most common issues of new hikers, finding the right pair that works for you is essential. It seemed 80% of people I met were in altra shoes of some sort, or a hiking sandal.

light and fast are your friends. Like literally stuff to sleep, a long sleeve and pant layer, light down jacket layer for cold, and a light rain jacket for the occasional rain. The sawyer water filtration system is the standard. Grab yourself a set of evernew bladders for it, the squeeze bags provided immediately rip, and platypus doesn't guarantee compatibility. If it rains a lot get an hiking umbrella. I knew people who didn't bring a stove or fuel and cold hydrated everything. Which was a little to extreme, I like warm stuff.

Met a dude who has hiked 10,000+ miles in crocs, it is all about finding what works for you.

and leukotape for chaffing. It is a runners tape specifically designed to prevent blisters. Works way better than mole skin or athletic tape or duct tape or what ever bull shit you use.

I've backpacked probably in the area of 4-5,000 miles, including several of the "major" trails.

The biggest piece of advice I can give you is do not buy hiking boots. For all on-trail trips, trail runners are your friend.

Trekking poles are awesome. Use them. They will save your ankles many times and will increase your overall speed.

Get a backpack that really fits. They usually come in S, M, and L. Go to REI or another store and get measured. Then try on every pack and "hike" around the store with it on. Most reputable stores will have sand bags or some other type of weights you can put in the pack for this purpose. Don't buy the pack online. Gregory packs work really well for me. Osprey packs do not (although Osprey has the most amazing warranty out there). Find what works for you, and this cannot be figured out online.

For all general backpacking, a 55l pack is appropriate. There's a saying that regardless of how big a pack you buy, you will fill it. This is true. Plus, bigger packs weigh more. 55l is, in my opinion, the correct size for general thru-hiking needs.

Whiteblaze.net is a great resource. Every question you can think of has already been asked and answered, at least half a dozen times.

I've had a lot of fun backpacking, both on-trail and off. It's a great way to meet new people, enjoy nature, and stay active. Everyone will tell you "how" to backpack. Don't listen to them. If you enjoy hiking 5-8 miles per day, awesome, do that. If you enjoy hiking 30 miles per day, awesome, do that. Those who say you're going too "fast" and "won't see anything" are full of crap. When I was hiking long days I saw far more wildlife than those who hiked 7 miles to the next shelter and hung out for hours and hours. This is due to wildlife being most active in the early mornings and in the evenings. My longest day backpacking, while carrying a full pack, was 52 miles. My longest week, similarly carrying a full pack, was 210 miles. I've also done some very short but super memorable days. Just do whatever makes you happy. It's a super cheap hobby and there is no way to do it wrong.

iFlipI've backpacked probably in the area of 4-5,000 miles, including several of the "major" trails.

The biggest piece of advice I can give you is do not buy hiking boots. For all on-trail trips, trail runners are your friend.

Trekking poles are awesome. Use them. They will save your ankles many times and will increase your overall speed.

Get a backpack that really fits. They usually come in S, M, and L. Go to REI or another store and get measured. Then try on every pack and "hike" around the store with it on. Most reputable stores will have sand bags or some other type of weights you can put in the pack for this purpose. Don't buy the pack online. Gregory packs work really well for me. Osprey packs do not (although Osprey has the most amazing warranty out there). Find what works for you, and this cannot be figured out online.

For all general backpacking, a 55l pack is appropriate. There's a saying that regardless of how big a pack you buy, you will fill it. This is true. Plus, bigger packs weigh more. 55l is, in my opinion, the correct size for general thru-hiking needs.

Whiteblaze.net is a great resource. Every question you can think of has already been asked and answered, at least half a dozen times.

I've had a lot of fun backpacking, both on-trail and off. It's a great way to meet new people, enjoy nature, and stay active. Everyone will tell you "how" to backpack. Don't listen to them. If you enjoy hiking 5-8 miles per day, awesome, do that. If you enjoy hiking 30 miles per day, awesome, do that. Those who say you're going too "fast" and "won't see anything" are full of crap. When I was hiking long days I saw far more wildlife than those who hiked 7 miles to the next shelter and hung out for hours and hours. This is due to wildlife being most active in the early mornings and in the evenings. My longest day backpacking, while carrying a full pack, was 52 miles. My longest week, similarly carrying a full pack, was 210 miles. I've also done some very short but super memorable days. Just do whatever makes you happy. It's a super cheap hobby and there is no way to do it wrong.

Thanks for the responses!

I personally use a Granite Blaze A.C. 60L. Has always gotten the job done for me. I guess my big worry right now is water. I have a sawyer squeeze but there have been some pretty bad BG blooms and I'm worried that the filtration might not be completley effective.

Also, I'm planning on bringing camera gear. Any experience with that? It's never been an issue on my 3 day hikes, but I'm not sure about 2 weeks.

LonelyI have a sawyer squeeze but there have been some pretty bad BG blooms and I'm worried that the filtration might not be completley effective.

For areas where water is particularly iffy, I would recommend that you purify in addition to filter. I've done this when I was backpacking in areas where I had to get my water from animal stock tanks (think lots of floating cow shit and other nasties). Run it through your filter, then add a few drops of Sweetwater. Let it sit for a bit (15 minutes I believe), and you're good to go.

hippystinxI knew people who didn't bring a stove or fuel and cold hydrated everything. Which was a little to extreme, I like warm stuff.
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I've never been on an extended hike with gear but it's definitely something I'd like to get into. This never really crossed my mind until now that so many places either don't allow campfires or restrict them to specific rings. I get why obviously.

Some resources here if you want to dig through them. The first one is DIY stuff Idk if you want to go that route or whatever. The second and third are strictly ultralight or light backpacking forums with all sorts of stuff. You've probably found them but if you haven't, or for anyone else whos interested.

[URL]https://www.reddit.com/r/myog[/URL]/
[URL]https://www.reddit.com/r/Ultralight/[/URL]
https://backpackinglight.com/

IsitWinterYet17I've never been on an extended hike with gear but it's definitely something I'd like to get into. This never really crossed my mind until now that so many places either don't allow campfires or restrict them to specific rings. I get why obviously.

even with fire bans, iso butane stoves are still allowed. Our friends made their own alcohol stove out of a soda can, and those types of stoves are banned in some spots. It is more of a weight thing. Ccut your metal pot, stove, and fuel and you loose 2 pounds or what ever.

No zippers on sleeping bag, no books. Wedge gear in pack, less sacks is less weight. Small ziplock bag with essentials instead heavy wallet. A one ounce stop and shop plastic bag can work wonders as well as a piece of string for shoelaces if they break. Try to get your pack bellow 20lbs trust me its possible. Last thing nothing beats a thick pair of wool socks at the end of the day.

Just a quick pic from inside a abandoned dredge I did a winter overnighter in.

I can't seem to find the exact setup I bought, which is legit af, but there are some pretty solid UL stove systems here that are very similar: https://www.traildesigns.com/

I'll second backpackinglight.com some intense dudes on there

Maybe you already know this, but repackage all the food you will be reconstituting in the Ziploc bags that can handle boiling water.

There isn't much better than multipurpose gear. When I go solo my trekking poles become my tent poles: https://www.tarptent.com/protrail.html

Comfort items outside of a repackaged bottle of whisky are for pussies.

Good luck bro! post pics! personally ive always wnted to thru hike the AT. already done the whole northeast part

.frenchyGood luck bro! post pics! personally ive always wnted to thru hike the AT. already done the whole northeast part

Thanks man. I've had a few free weekends and have some overnight/Two day treks two make sure my gear is where I want it to be.

threads wanna get way more into this, done like 5-6 days at a time before on the east coast

I am all about the 5 day trips. So I don't have much to say about these longer excursions. I did bump into a group of people that were doing the PCT and we camped with them. A few things I picked up from them was to distribute things that are more of a luxury like milk and cheese (get these freeze dried of course). They also mailed a ton of supplies ahead of time, especially the herbs. One of the guys also had an air mattress that looked more like an inflatable pool toy. He said it was made for backpacking and is more durable. It was the lightest sleeping mat that I have ever seen

iFlipI've backpacked probably in the area of 4-5,000 miles, including several of the "major" trails.

The biggest piece of advice I can give you is do not buy hiking boots. For all on-trail trips, trail runners are your friend.

Trekking poles are awesome. Use them. They will save your ankles many times and will increase your overall speed.

Get a backpack that really fits. They usually come in S, M, and L. Go to REI or another store and get measured. Then try on every pack and "hike" around the store with it on. Most reputable stores will have sand bags or some other type of weights you can put in the pack for this purpose. Don't buy the pack online. Gregory packs work really well for me. Osprey packs do not (although Osprey has the most amazing warranty out there). Find what works for you, and this cannot be figured out online.

For all general backpacking, a 55l pack is appropriate. There's a saying that regardless of how big a pack you buy, you will fill it. This is true. Plus, bigger packs weigh more. 55l is, in my opinion, the correct size for general thru-hiking needs.

Whiteblaze.net is a great resource. Every question you can think of has already been asked and answered, at least half a dozen times.

I've had a lot of fun backpacking, both on-trail and off. It's a great way to meet new people, enjoy nature, and stay active. Everyone will tell you "how" to backpack. Don't listen to them. If you enjoy hiking 5-8 miles per day, awesome, do that. If you enjoy hiking 30 miles per day, awesome, do that. Those who say you're going too "fast" and "won't see anything" are full of crap. When I was hiking long days I saw far more wildlife than those who hiked 7 miles to the next shelter and hung out for hours and hours. This is due to wildlife being most active in the early mornings and in the evenings. My longest day backpacking, while carrying a full pack, was 52 miles. My longest week, similarly carrying a full pack, was 210 miles. I've also done some very short but super memorable days. Just do whatever makes you happy. It's a super cheap hobby and there is no way to do it wrong.

You’re a man of many trades, top secret hacker, skier, backpacker... damn

Bump for a decent thread and it's about that time

planning on doing the John Muir Trail this fall...so stoked to get out there for a couple weeks

rsvpplanning on doing the John Muir Trail this fall...so stoked to get out there for a couple weeks

My friends peg leg and happy baby did the john muir (JMT) last fall. Just a heads up permits are hard to get apparently. A lot of people want to do the JM and getting permits weeks before is standard at some campsites. They have probably 10,000 miles between the two of them, and they said that the 200 miles of the JMT is just unreal. Views the whole way, not a lot of road walking.

hippystinxMy friends peg leg and happy baby did the john muir (JMT) last fall. Just a heads up permits are hard to get apparently. A lot of people want to do the JM and getting permits weeks before is standard at some campsites. They have probably 10,000 miles between the two of them, and they said that the 200 miles of the JMT is just unreal. Views the whole way, not a lot of road walking.

absolutely, gotta start planning it out ASAP. Luckily my brother got a permit for the Whitney Portal thru the lottery system, so we're gonna be heading NoBo