0
SpeedRacer

Hiking forty miles on the Appalachian Trail. In one day.

Recommended Posts

That is what I will be doing on May 2nd.

I have been accepted to do the Hike Across Maryland, a bi-annual event organized by the Mountain Club of Maryland.

We start at about 5 AM on the Pennsylvania border, and hike the Appalachian Trail for about 40 miles to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

There will be about 6 or 8 points along the way where we can get a brief rest & get food/water.
Speed Racer
--------------------------------------------------

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I've only done the New Jersey portion of the AT. I was 17 years old and carried a 70 lb hard-framed pack on my back. I can't imagine doing that now at 41. B|:D

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
It won't be as bad because 1) I can carry just a light day pack with a water bladder, and maybe just a few snacks, because there will be points along the way to get more food. and 2) The Appalachian mountains in Maryland are not quite as high as they are in some other states.


Anyway, I will be doing 16 to 22 mile hikes in the mountains to train for this.
Speed Racer
--------------------------------------------------

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I did a 50 mile hike in about 16 hours...

Pretty much sucked ass. And I had to carry SLIGHTLY more weight than you.

And be in uniform. I dont think my feet will ever fully recover.
"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

thats cool!

i think i did about 30 miles in less than 6 hours, now thats including fresh underwear, rain-coat and what you consider a fully armed soldier.. rifle, boots, helmets n'all that shit..

enjoy the hike, try not to focus on yer feet, and you'll be just fine! :)

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quote

That is what I will be doing on May 2nd.

I have been accepted to do the Hike Across Maryland, a bi-annual event organized by the Mountain Club of Maryland.

We start at about 5 AM on the Pennsylvania border, and hike the Appalachian Trail for about 40 miles to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

There will be about 6 or 8 points along the way where we can get a brief rest & get food/water.



I did 36 miles of that area in a day years ago. It is a really nice stretch of the. Should be a piece of cake for anyone in good shape as long as they don't try to carry too much. I had about 25 pounds of camping gear.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quote

It won't be as bad because 1) I can carry just a light day pack with a water bladder, and maybe just a few snacks, because there will be points along the way to get more food. and 2) The Appalachian mountains in Maryland are not quite as high as they are in some other states.



I don't care how little you're carrying, 40-miles is still one hell of a day hike!

An average walking pace is about 3-miles per hour, so you're talking about going non-stop for 13 hours straight! That's tough.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Well, I did it! :D Took me a little over 13 hours, but I wasn't trying to beat any records. Sometimes the hard part was going downhill. You can train in the gym & by hiking to make your legs strong for going uphill, but there's really no way to exercise & make your knees more able to take the excessive wear from going downhill.

We started at 5:15 AM wearing headlamps. It was a strange sight: About a hundred hikers entering the AT in total darkness wearing headlamps. By the time the sun began to come up we were already 3 or 4 miles down the trail. There were 8 check points along the way where we could grab water or gatorade or snacks. We got rained on a little bit early in the day, but we were lucky with the weather generally.

I left Pen Mar on the Pennsylvania border at 5:15 AM and walked into Harpers Ferry, West Virginia at around 7:00 PM. The soles of my feet are still a little sore, but I don't think I have any blisters.

Speed Racer
--------------------------------------------------

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quote

Well, I did it! :D Took me a little over 13 hours, but I wasn't trying to beat any records. Sometimes the hard part was going downhill. You can train in the gym & by hiking to make your legs strong for going uphill, but there's really no way to exercise & make your knees more able to take the excessive wear from going downhill.

We started at 5:15 AM wearing headlamps. It was a strange sight: About a hundred hikers entering the AT in total darkness wearing headlamps. By the time the sun began to come up we were already 3 or 4 miles down the trail. There were 8 check points along the way where we could grab water or gatorade or snacks. We got rained on a little bit early in the day, but we were lucky with the weather generally.

I left Pen Mar on the Pennsylvania border at 5:15 AM and walked into Harpers Ferry, West Virginia at around 7:00 PM. The soles of my feet are still a little sore, but I don't think I have any blisters.




Good effort! Congrats.

I usually lose my big toe nails a few weeks later after such a push.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quote

Well, I did it! :D Took me a little over 13 hours, but I wasn't trying to beat any records. Sometimes the hard part was going downhill. You can train in the gym & by hiking to make your legs strong for going uphill, but there's really no way to exercise & make your knees more able to take the excessive wear from going downhill.

We started at 5:15 AM wearing headlamps. It was a strange sight: About a hundred hikers entering the AT in total darkness wearing headlamps. By the time the sun began to come up we were already 3 or 4 miles down the trail. There were 8 check points along the way where we could grab water or gatorade or snacks. We got rained on a little bit early in the day, but we were lucky with the weather generally.

I left Pen Mar on the Pennsylvania border at 5:15 AM and walked into Harpers Ferry, West Virginia at around 7:00 PM. The soles of my feet are still a little sore, but I don't think I have any blisters.



Congratulations! Quite an accomplishment! Well Done!
Fortunately, I'm adhering to a pretty strict, uh, drug, uh, regimen to keep my mind, you know, uh, limber.
--- The Dude ---

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quote

Quote

Well, I did it! :D Took me a little over 13 hours, but I wasn't trying to beat any records. Sometimes the hard part was going downhill. You can train in the gym & by hiking to make your legs strong for going uphill, but there's really no way to exercise & make your knees more able to take the excessive wear from going downhill.

We started at 5:15 AM wearing headlamps. It was a strange sight: About a hundred hikers entering the AT in total darkness wearing headlamps. By the time the sun began to come up we were already 3 or 4 miles down the trail. There were 8 check points along the way where we could grab water or gatorade or snacks. We got rained on a little bit early in the day, but we were lucky with the weather generally.

I left Pen Mar on the Pennsylvania border at 5:15 AM and walked into Harpers Ferry, West Virginia at around 7:00 PM. The soles of my feet are still a little sore, but I don't think I have any blisters.




Good effort! Congrats.

I usually lose my big toe nails a few weeks later after such a push.


Yep, me too. Always the left one as well for some strange reason.

But hey, dude (OP), great effort :)
YAY for you!!!
"There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse."
- Chris Hadfield
« Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. »
- my boss

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

0