Date: 2009-09-13
To: Resupply Information
Miles today: 0.0

Here is a rough list of all the places I resupplied and how many days in between it took. Hope some of you future thru-hikers may find this info useful! If you have any questions about maildrops, feel free to email me! For almost all of my maildrops, I included items that I wouldn't be able to find at the grocery store or didn't want to buy whole boxes of, including my own dehydrated dinners, extra ziplocs, dried milk, emergenC packets, contact lenses, gatorade packets, Clif bars that I got online during the REI sale for 3 cents each!, a few Q-tips, freeze dried fruit that I added to oatmeal. I didn't send myself candy or other items I could easily find even at a small convenience store. I supplemented my maildrops at grocery/convenience stores with tortillas, oatmeal packs, poptarts, grits, cheese, pitas, hummus, candy, snacks, desserts, toilet paper, hand sanitizer, etc. - Amicalola State Park to Neels Gap: 4.5 days (I shipped my pack down to the Hiker Hostel and included food in the box)- Neels Gap to Hiawassee, GA: 4 days (I had a maildrop at Neels Gap and supplemented at the outfitter, which had a good selection of hiking foods)- Hiawassee to Franklin, NC: 3.5 days (I had a maildrop at the Blueberry Patch Hostel and supplemented it at a large grocery store in town. Free shuttles to store)- Franklin to Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC): 2.5 days (resupplied at large grocery store. Ron Haven provides free shuttles)- NOC to Fontana, NC: 2.5 days (there is a small selection of food at the outfitter at NOC, but we stayed with a friend in a nearby town and were driven to a large grocery store)- Fontana to Gatlinburg, TN: 4 days (I would recommend a maildrop at Fontana, I had mine delivered to the Fontana Lodge. There is a small store but had just opened for the season when we got there and was very sparse.)- Gatlinburg to Standing Bear Farm: 3 days (sent extra food from Fontana to outfitter in Gatlinburg and supplemented at large grocery store)- Standing Bear Farm to Hot Springs, NC: 2.5 days (I had a maildrop at Standing Bear and supplemented at small store at Standing Bear. Curtis may also shuttle to small gas station)- Hot Springs to Uncle Johnny's (Erwin, TN): 5.5 days (I had a maildrop at Elmer's Sunnybank Inn in Hot Springs and supplemented at a great outfitter in town)- Uncle Johnny's to Roan Mountain, TN: 4 days (I had a maildrop at Uncle Johnny's and supplemented at a grocery store in Erwin. Uncle Johnny provides shuttles to store)- Roan Mountain to Damascus, VA: 5.5 days (I had a maildrop at Mountain Harbour B&B in Roan Mountain. The folks at the B&B shuttle to a small general store for a small fee)- Damascus to Troutdale, VA: 4 days (there are small convenience stores and a Dollar General in Damascus, right on the trail. The hostel in town may shuttle to a larger grocery store)- Troutdale to Atkins, VA; 3 days (there is a small store and restaurant in Troutdale with maybe enough food to get to Atkins. You can also probably mail food from Damascus if it will arrive in time)- Atkins to Pearisburg, VA: 5.5 days (Atkins only has a small, very expensive convenience store at the gas station where the trail crosses. I had a maildrop at the Relax Inn, paid the $5 fee, and stayed at the Happy Hiker Hollow Hostel which picks up hikers at the gas station)- Pearisburg to Daleville, VA: 5.5 days (there is a large grocery store and Dollar General within walking distance from the trail)- Daleville to Montebello, VA: 6 days (there is a large grocery store in Daleville within walking distance from trail)- Montebello to Waynesboro, VA: 2.5 days (I had a maildrop at the Dutch House B&B. There is also a small general store in town)- Waynesboro to Front Royal, VA: 6 days (there are convenience stores and a large supermarket in town. Trail angels pick up from the trail and drive hikers to town)- Front Royal to Bear's Den: 3 days (the owner of the Front Royal Hostel, which is in walking distance of trail, provides shuttles to large grocery store)- Bear's Den to Harpers Ferry, WV: 2 days (I had a maildrop at Bear's Den. There's also a small selection of candy bars, pasta sides, and snacks)- Harpers Ferry to Free State Hostel, MD: 2 days (there is a 7-11 in Harpers Ferry and no larger stores within walking distance. If sending a maildrop, I recommend sending it to the ATC Headquarters rather than the post office)- Free State Hostel to Boiling Springs, PA: 4 days (I had a maildrop at the hostel, there is also a very small selection of snacks and candy at hostel)- Boiling Springs to Duncannon, PA: 2 days (there is a post office directly on the trail in Boiling Springs. I resupplied at a small convenience store/gas station)- Duncannon to Port Clinton, PA: 3.5 days (supermarket workers in Duncannon provide free shuttles from The Doyle to the grocery store and back. I had a maildrop at The Doyle and supplemented at the grocery store)- Port Clinton to Slatington/Palmerton, PA: 2 days (I highly recommend a maildrop in Port Clinton as there are no stores in town except for the Peanut Shop, which just has candy, and the outfitter, which has a hiker box and VERY small selection of food. I had a maildrop sent to the Ye Old Backpacker, just off the trail)- Slatington to Delaware Water Gap, PA: 3 days (Slatington has a small grocery store about a mile away and a convenience store which is in between the laundromat and library)- DWG to Mohican Outdoor Center, NJ: 1 day (there are a couple convenience stores within walking distance of the trail)- Mohican Outdoor Center to Unionville, NY: 2 days (I had a maildrop at Mohican)- Unionville to Pawling, NY: 7 days (there is a small, expensive general store in Unionville, not far from the trail or Mayor's House. This is a long stretch but there is a small convenience store ON the trail 4 days in to replenish snacks and candy)- Pawling to Kent, CT: 1 day (Tony's Deli is located just 0.5-mile off the trail)- Kent to Salisbury, CT: 3 days (small grocery store in Kent)- Salisbury to Dalton, MA: 4.5 days (great supermarket in Salisbury, not far from trail)- Dalton to North Adams, MA: 1.5 days (convenience store in Dalton)- North Adams to Bennington, VT: 1.5 days (large grocery stores in N. Adams less than a mile from the trail)- Bennington to Manchester, VT: 3 days (Bennington has a small market)- Manchester to Killington, VT: 3.5 days (there is a decent sized grocery store in Manchester and several convenience stores)- Killington to Hanover, NH: 3 days (I had a maildrop at the Inn at Long Trail, not far from the trail. There is a large grocery store in Rutland)- Hanover to Glencliff, NH: 4 days (there is a co-op on the trail in Hanover which has everything)- Glencliff to Gorham, NH: 7 days (I had a maildrop at the Hikers Welcome Hostel in Glencliff. There are no stores close to the trail although if you stay at the hostel they provide shuttles to the store. There is also a post office directly across the street from the hostel. This is a long stretch but there are small places to resupply along the way: Lincoln, Crawford Notch, and Pinkham Notch. Also, if going from hut to hut, you can probably get breakfasts, lunches, and dinners at the huts)- Gorham to Andover, ME: 3.5 days (there is a Walmart and Rite-Aid in Gorham. White Birches provides shuttles around town)- Andover to Stratton, ME: 4.5 days (I recommend a maildrop in Andover; I had one sent to Pine Ellis and supplemented at the VERY pricey and small general store in town)- Stratton to Caratunk, ME: 3.5 days (there a couple small stores in Stratton to resupply)- Caratunk to Monson, ME: 2.5 days (there is nothing in Caratunk except for a post office. A small maildrop in Caratunk wouldn't be a bad idea. I was planning on one but ended up getting picked up for a wedding so I ended up resupplying at a grocery store near home)- Monson to Abol Bridge: 6 days (there is a small, pricey general store in Monson and a small resupply selection at Shaw's, a hostel in town. I had a maildrop sent to Shaw's and bought candy and snacks at the general store to supplement)- Abol Bridge to Katahdin: 1.5 days (the general store at Abol Bridge has enough food to last until Katahdin)