Appalachian Trail

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alohakid
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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by alohakid » Wed Aug 02, 2017 11:36 pm

rationtin440 wrote:we did not find anything but we were only out for 2 days
rationtin440 - Stupid question alert: Are there restrictions on where you can pitch your tent/sleeping bag?... you obviously can sleep on the an actual trail, right?... must you be so many feet from a trail itself? I know, I know, stupid question....

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housil
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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by housil » Thu Aug 03, 2017 5:55 am

There are designated tent sites.

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alohakid
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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by alohakid » Mon Aug 07, 2017 2:36 am

housil wrote:There are designated tent sites.
Thanks Olli.

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Treesuit
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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by Treesuit » Wed Aug 09, 2017 2:51 pm

Aloha Kid,

I can provide some input here since I have worked with some US federal land management agencies, mostly US Forest Service and National Park Service, and dealt with people in the back country. All of the recent work was in Washington State where I reside. This is in regards to people doing the Pacific Crest Trail and the Pacific Northwest Trail, sometimes folks will do food caches or have a reliable service drop off food to them along the trail, so it will be ready at a certain place, time and have designated person there to hand off the bundle.

Right now I can't think of the service or the name that does food drop offs, but I remember hearing about this while working in the North Central Cascades National Park, a few years ago. Lots of people come into the park, hiking either trail and need food drops. For a fee there is a dedicated service that will hike out at what ever trail your B-in-law will be at on a certain day and pack a food bundle for them. Its a great service and if you do a google search I think you could find several services that might do this. I bet somebody might do it for the AT, seeing as how there are hundreds of people doing the AT.

Its convenient if you can not get to a town with a post office, and have a food bundle there waiting. Thing is, you have to give the coordinates on which section of the AT your B-in-law is on, so both parties can do a link up.

As for pitching a tent along the trail there should designated areas for that and should be clearly marked. If your B-in-law has a map of the trail system there should be areas available providing they are open or closed to the public. Sometimes camping areas have to be closed off to the public for clean up, maintenance, repairs, etc. Have him plan each day to reach a camp spot and if its closed then have a back up plan. More often than not, people complained that our agency shut them out of an area for no reason, which is not the case. We, as maintenance people, had to close an area because of vandalism, or the campground got full, or the campground got storm damage and we had to clean it out.

Lastly, have a satellite phone or GPS emergency device for accidents. I can't tell you how many calls an agency gets in a summer period because a family member is calling the station because somebody didn't call in on a certain date or that somebody is still out on the trail and they are out of cell range.

Sorry about the long answer guys, but I think you get the point.

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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by alohakid » Wed Aug 09, 2017 7:49 pm

Treesuit - WOW Great info, will pass it on to my bro-in-law, thank you. I've seen videos on YT of folks enjoying a refreshing cold beer at their camp sites... didn't realize alcohol was permitted on National Parks. Satellite phone (includes GPS) is a great idea... did a google search and found a rental for only $24.99 a week... not bad for peace of mind/emergencies. Great stuff, thanks again.

mahalo

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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by BlackDogBob » Thu Aug 10, 2017 12:34 pm

alohakid wrote:Aloha gang - My brother-in-law plans to do the Appalachian Trail next March (by himself)... I will supply him with MRE/rations... my question, those with personal experience, could you please make suggestion/comments on the type of food to bring?

Thanks in advance!

mahalo
The only suggestions I have is to pack light weight. Don't buy cheap gear, get the good stuff and get the stuff that is as light as possible.
Have German,Russian,Canadian,Lithuanian,Dutch, Israeli,Spanish,HDRs,LRPs,French,US RCWs,FSRs,Italian,Croatian, Polish,Aussie, Czech, Malaysian, Swedish, Australian and Norwegian Arctics.

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alohakid
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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by alohakid » Thu Aug 10, 2017 2:52 pm

BlackDogBob wrote:
alohakid wrote:Aloha gang - My brother-in-law plans to do the Appalachian Trail next March (by himself)... I will supply him with MRE/rations... my question, those with personal experience, could you please make suggestion/comments on the type of food to bring?

Thanks in advance!

mahalo
The only suggestions I have is to pack light weight. Don't buy cheap gear, get the good stuff and get the stuff that is as light as possible.
Good advice specially buying good quality gear, thanks BlackDogBob.

mahalo

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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by BlackDogBob » Thu Aug 10, 2017 5:38 pm

alohakid wrote:
BlackDogBob wrote:
alohakid wrote:Aloha gang - My brother-in-law plans to do the Appalachian Trail next March (by himself)... I will supply him with MRE/rations... my question, those with personal experience, could you please make suggestion/comments on the type of food to bring?

Thanks in advance!

mahalo
The only suggestions I have is to pack light weight. Don't buy cheap gear, get the good stuff and get the stuff that is as light as possible.
Good advice specially buying good quality gear, thanks BlackDogBob.

mahalo
My pleasure. Actually, after reading this post last night, I discussed the option with my business partner of sponsoring someone to hike the AT. We would be looking for one male and one female. Will let you know if this pans out.
Have German,Russian,Canadian,Lithuanian,Dutch, Israeli,Spanish,HDRs,LRPs,French,US RCWs,FSRs,Italian,Croatian, Polish,Aussie, Czech, Malaysian, Swedish, Australian and Norwegian Arctics.

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alohakid
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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by alohakid » Thu Aug 10, 2017 6:18 pm

BlackDogBob wrote:
alohakid wrote:
BlackDogBob wrote:
The only suggestions I have is to pack light weight. Don't buy cheap gear, get the good stuff and get the stuff that is as light as possible.
Good advice specially buying good quality gear, thanks BlackDogBob.

mahalo
My pleasure. Actually, after reading this post last night, I discussed the option with my business partner of sponsoring someone to hike the AT. We would be looking for one male and one female. Will let you know if this pans out.
BlackDogBob - That's a fantastic idea. In the case of my bro-in -law, he is going solo on this strip... my sister wouldn't last 1 mile :mrgreen:

mahalo

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Treesuit
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Re: Appalachian Trail

Post by Treesuit » Fri Aug 11, 2017 3:58 pm

Aloha kid,

If your B-I-L wants a cold one while on the trail that is fine, just as long as what ever he packs in has to come out. The old phase "pack it in - pack it out" sure applies every time you go into the back country. I would imagine that there will be some sites out there where he can dispose of trash properly. Including human waste. I say that because even in areas like Rainer NP, and North Cascades NP there are areas where you have to pack out your human waste.

The National Park Service has moved in the direction of handing out waste bags to hikers and campers going into wilderness areas. I know this because I personally handed out a lot of them of people going on the PCT and PNW-T. I wish I could show you some pictures of some of the twenty-somethings when I had to tell them to pack their waste out to a disposal site and then give them some bags. They looked as though I took their favorite toy away from them.

If your B-I-L is starting out at a National Park ranger station, he will probably have go in and and ask about permits, weather conditions, trail reports, etc. That's the best way to find out the most current up to date info before heading out. If he's going to stay at a campground, the NPS has a computer registration system that can actually find out if campgrounds are full or not. If some are full, the staff will know which one will be open by the time he reaches them, or if some are open he could reserve a spot for a night. NOT ALL NPS RANGER STATIONS CAN DO THIS. If he does stop at one he more an likely will given waste bags.

I mention weather reports because more people get lost or injured when the weather changes unexpectedly. Mostly because people did not prepare for sudden changes. Oh, and the alcohol......moderation is the key. :wink:

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