Date: 2010-01-11
To: Questions
Miles today: 0.0

Well since I cannot think of anything interesting to say now about my preparations, I¢ll use this third entry to answer some of the questions I¢ve gotten from friends and family about what life on the trail might be like.Where is the Appalachian Trail?Though most people have heard of it, it¢s easy to forget that a lot of people aren¢t sure exactly where it runs. The trail itself is a continuous footpath officially running about 2,178 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mt. Katadin in Maine. It crosses through 14 US states with elevations varying from 124 ft. to 6,625 ft. It is estimated that 3-4 million people each year hike a portion of the Appalachian Trail (AT), and less than 2,000 of those attempt ¢thru-hikes¢ or attempting to walk the entire length of the trail in a single year.Are you going with someone else?Technically, no. I am planning to begin ¢solo¢ but that does not mean that I will be on my own by any means. Every year about 1,500 hikers begin thru hiking in the northbound direction (NOBO- walking from GA to ME) and the most popular time to begin is in March-April. Since everyone is heading in the same direction, along a single path and sleeping in the same shelters along the trail, people who start this time of year will rarely be alone. And chances are I will fall in with other hikers who have a similar pace and end up hiking with them.What about the bears?Yes, there will be bears as well as many other animals on the trail such as deer, moose, wild ponies, mice, skunks, porcupines and more. Black bears typically avoid people and encounters normally only occur when someone has fed them in the past and they have come to associate people with finding food. I will plan to be bear-safe while on the trail by hanging my food at night and keeping all smelly things away from where I sleep (myself excluded of course). And at the end of the day, its important to remember that this is their home that I am a guest in so I plan to be respectful and keep my distance from any animals I¢m lucky enough to see.Are you taking a gun?No. I have no interest in carrying a gun and it would just be wasted space / weight. I think that instincts are your best defense from creepy people / situations. The trail and its community seem like a very safe place where people look out for one another. I might, however, consider carrying a small pepper spray for personal protection and to ease my parents concerns.Where do you go to the bathroom and shower?Well, this is the not so glamorous side of hiking (was there a glamorous side??). There are privys (very basic toilets) located occasionally along the trail near the shelters, but when they aren¢t around into the woods it is. As far as showers go, about once a week I¢ll probably take a day off in towns in order to relax, eat lots of food, resupply, do laundry and yes- clean myself up with a nice shower. From the sounds of it, everyone gets pretty smelly and gross, so no one really notices. So as they say, if ya can¢t beat em¢¦ Do you eat what you can get off the land (leaves, berries, etc)?Haha, no. I¢m not gonna go all Bear Grillis and head off into the woods with only a knife, flint and roll of duct tape to see how long I can survive. I¢ll be bringing a small stove and pot to cook with along the trail for my breakfasts/dinners (although it won¢t exactly be gourmet cooking- meals will be of the ¢just add boiling water and wait¢ variety). I will, however, have to resupply in towns and carry enough food/supplies with me to last probably between 4-7 days at a time depending on the section.Well, those are all the questions I can think of now.. and this entry is pretty long, so until next time ¢¦