Where to LASH next?

jimmyjam · Sep 22nd 2015, 11:24am

OK I have three AT sections left to complete the trail. They are NOC to Niday Shelter (south of Dragon's Tooth) , Elkwallow Wayside (SNP) to Harper's Ferry, and Killington to Katahdin. It looks like my next available time would start mid June. Which should I do first? I can possibly hike into fall, so I am not ruling out doing all three if my feet knees and hips cooperate.

hikerboy · Sep 22nd 2015, 11:43am

Killington north will be muddy and buggy in june

max.patch · Sep 22nd 2015, 11:51am

i would really try to do killington-katahdin when you can hike that section in the fall. so i would not do that section with a mid june start.

between north carolina and virginia? from personal experience its gonna be hot either place. so here's the difference as i see it....with a mid june start there will be no thrus except for an occasional late starting straggler in north carolina. there should plenty in virginia. so...seems to me the choice is between solitude and company (relatively speaking, of course). your choice.

Drybones · Sep 22nd 2015, 2:41pm

This may be my next one...Lost Coast trail...follows the ocean in CA. My son and his wife did 25 miles of it and sent some photos...I'm thinking 2-3 weeks maybe this spring.

jimmyjam · Sep 22nd 2015, 3:35pm

I am leaning towards doing the HF section first as a warm up as its only 72 miles. Then jump up to Kilington and hike nobo ahead of most of the crowd. Then do the southern piece last ahead of most sobos.

OzJacko · Sep 22nd 2015, 6:48pm

I would only strongly recommend Killington to Katahdin as your last section. Even for a Lasher, finishing on Katahdin is special.

jimmyjam · Sep 27th 2015, 10:03am

I have talked to Danger Dave and I am probably going to walk sobo from HF into the SNP with him in May. That's about it for my planning- I'll wing it from there.

rafe · Sep 27th 2015, 11:10am

June can be a hot month anywhere you go. One of my most miserable (seriously hot!) section hikes was from Bear Mtn. (NY) up to Great Barrington MA, in late June 2005.

Astro · Sep 27th 2015, 11:42am

rafe wrote:

June can be a hot month anywhere you go. One of my most miserable (seriously hot!) section hikes was from Bear Mtn. (NY) up to Great Barrington MA, in late June 2005.

Not as hot as July and August, which I am doing 95% of the AT in.

rafe · Sep 27th 2015, 11:58am

Astro wrote:

rafe wrote:

June can be a hot month anywhere you go. One of my most miserable (seriously hot!) section hikes was from Bear Mtn. (NY) up to Great Barrington MA, in late June 2005.

Not as hot as July and August, which I am doing 95% of the AT in.

Usually you can count on some cooling by early or mid August. But not always... August in southern Vermont in 2002 was also nasty hot. August in northern Vermont this year was rainy and cool -- downright chilly at the summit of Jay peak.

Socks · Sep 27th 2015, 1:03pm

June's always a crap shoot in the N East, it can be 98 and a heat wave, or 77 sunny and beautiful.

Dan76 · Sep 27th 2015, 2:59pm

jimmyjam wrote:

OK I have three AT sections left to complete the trail. They are NOC to Niday Shelter (south of Dragon's Tooth) , Elkwallow Wayside (SNP) to Harper's Ferry, and Killington to Katahdin. It looks like my next available time would start mid June. Which should I do first? I can possibly hike into fall, so I am not ruling out doing all three if my feet knees and hips cooperate.

rafe wrote:

June can be a hot month anywhere you go. One of my most miserable (seriously hot!) section hikes was from Bear Mtn. (NY) up to Great Barrington MA, in late June 2005.

Section hikers carry my greatest admiration.

JimBlue · Sep 27th 2015, 3:58pm

In Texas the first 2 weeks in August are the hottest days. So ya know.

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