Thinking about the different long distance trails here in the US, why are PCT hikers so much faster, and their miles per day (mpd) so much higher on average than AT hikers? Myself I did a handful of 20s and only 1 30 on the AT, and I was faster than most. This is…
Category: AppalachianTrail
Composting Privvies – how do they work?
During my summer as a Maine Appalachian Trail caretaker, I was “privileged” to take part in an event called “a mixer”. All 4 caretakers, plus some MATC volunteers, converged on the Horns Pond shelter area for a mid-year roundtable summit, a bit of a swim, and some hard, disgusting labor. Horns Pond is high…
2002 Caretaker season logs – Piazza Rock, Maine
I found my old logbook from when I was a caretaker at the Piazza Rock shelter area on the Appalachian Trail in Maine. What a terrific experience, it really opened my eyes to Leave No Trace as a philosophy, and the overall effect that small impacts have when multiplied by hundreds. I spoke to hundreds…
1997 AT Mileage
I started southbound in June of 1997, with too much pack weight, bad boots, and a few unrealistic expectations. By Hannover my fasciitis was so bad, I had to get off the trail. Here’s a Google doc spreadsheet of my campsites and mileage. I believe this will be useful to someone planning. Maine is hard,…
1999 AT hike mileage
In 1999 I completed my AT hike, having done 450+ miles in 1997, getting off the trail in Hannover due to crippling plantar fasciitis. I’ve created a Google Docs spreadsheet of my camp locations, miles per day, and a running average of miles/day for the whole trail. Also included is my miles over a 7…