Do we have any Appalachian Trail backpackers on the board?

LSUTigerhead did the entire Appalachian Trail and documented it on here. Im pretty sure the thread is archived in the sticky at the top


ETA: LINK

I did Amicalola falls to Unicoi Gap last year.. currently planning the next section to hopefully Fontana this year

Blue Velvet has done it. Odds are he's banned. There is a old thread on here all about it

I hiked it about 10 years back. I've gotten my boss into it now and we go back every spring and fall to do a section.

I live near the AT in WNC and hike it regularly. Most recently from Springer to Franklin. What would you like to know? I live within a 40 minute drive to the AT in Georgia as it passes near Hiawasee. I own about 100 acres there off Fodder Creek. If you're looking to take a zero day and drink some beer, shoot me an email. The AT through Georgia consists of about 80 miles. 40 miles a day seems unrealistic and I wouldn't want to move that quickly even if I could. How much does your pack weigh?

In regards to your cheap Walmart gear question....I used cheap Walmart gear for many years. I am 29 now and have been blessed enough to be relatively secure financially speaking(for a 29 year old anyway)and if I am being honest, expensive gear doesn't always mean better. I remember when I first started to make "real" money, one of the first things I did was upgrade my gear. I found that I hated most of the really expensive stuff. Not all of it was bad or anything, it just didn't feel right to me or that the cost was worth it over a similar "cheap" product. The best piece of advice I ever got when it came to hiking was to hike your own hike. That applies to gear as well. In the summer months, I still hike with my old Ozark Trail 40 degree bag. Works like a champ after a lot of use and abuse.

My gear list for a winter or cold weather weekend trip consists of these items:

ULA Circuit Pack
Warbonnet Blackbird Hammock(Whoopie sling suspension)
Hammock Gear 20 degree with overstuff UQ/TQ
Wilderness Logics Tadpole Tarp
Ozark Trail Head Lamp($12 at Walmart and has a red LED plus strobe)
2 1L Smart Water Bottles(varies depending on location and water sources)
Sawyer Water Fitler Gravity System
Snow Peak 500 ml Titanium pot
Snow Peak Long Handled Spoon
Some First Aid Kit my wife put together and makes me bring
Fancee Feest Alcohol stove
Heet Antifreeze as fuel for stove
Usually some assortment of Packit Gourmet dehydrated meals
Various snack foods(jerky, snickers)
More TP than I ever need. Remove the cardboard tube to save weight.
Travel toothbrush
Travel toothpaste
Alite Backpacking chair
CCrane Pocket Radio



I can go into my clothes layering system if you'd like.