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forest service recommends staying off the AT 1/22-1/26

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    • Mountain-Mike wrote:

      One hiker didn't heed the warning, & needed rescue.
      foxcarolina.com/story/31039172…timated-24-inches-of-snow

      max.patch wrote:

      Were either of them thru hiking? If so do we know trail names?
      Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    • SarcasmTheElf wrote:

      Mountain-Mike wrote:

      One hiker didn't heed the warning, & needed rescue.
      foxcarolina.com/story/31039172…timated-24-inches-of-snow

      max.patch wrote:

      Were either of them thru hiking? If so do we know trail names?
      don't know their trail names, but i THINK that the hiker from maryland that got lost near albert mountain (mountain mikes link) is a thru hiker.

      i found his facebook page, he graduated from college last month, and he "likes" top of georgia hostel and mountain crossings. on the mountain crossings facebook they have the below picture of him. in the narrative it says he bought the jacket he is wearing and a pair of socks there. he thanked them for their help, and said the jacket came in handy in the 10 degree weather.

      [IMG:https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xft1/v/t1.0-9/12552856_1095530357148214_3329415989034601803_n.jpg?oh=bfd8c85d33ea0f84072748f16338f6b1&oe=573210AF]
      2,000 miler

    • Mountain-Mike wrote:

      Are these people trying to get the "Darwin Award"? It may be the south but it does snow in winter. Even with a march start a hiker should be ready for snow. He (one in article I posted) got lost because of the weather. I would hope an "Experienced hiker" would have a map & compass with him & be able to figure it out.
      Or know when to hunker down in town or a hostel.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • max.patch wrote:

      SarcasmTheElf wrote:

      Mountain-Mike wrote:

      One hiker didn't heed the warning, & needed rescue.
      foxcarolina.com/story/31039172…timated-24-inches-of-snow

      max.patch wrote:

      Were either of them thru hiking? If so do we know trail names?
      don't know their trail names, but i THINK that the hiker from maryland that got lost near albert mountain (mountain mikes link) is a thru hiker.
      i found his facebook page, he graduated from college last month, and he "likes" top of georgia hostel and mountain crossings. on the mountain crossings facebook they have the below picture of him. in the narrative it says he bought the jacket he is wearing and a pair of socks there. he thanked them for their help, and said the jacket came in handy in the 10 degree weather.
      Hey, if he's still feeling frogy after that ordeal, he could come to NJ and add "long walks on the beach" to his resume. :D

      ibtimes.com/winter-storm-jonas…osures-high-tides-2277553

      The post was edited 1 time, last by Socks ().

    • Mountain-Mike wrote:

      I'm glad they are alright too. but their stupidity put rescuers at risk. Does local SAR have snowshoes or other heavy snow gear. How hard would it be for one of them to slip & injure themselves. Not to mention the cost to tax payers.
      i can say anything more than a couple hundred yards in snow shoes is freamin' work, much less a full b!own rescue and Yup, people needs to learn what there getting themselves into before asking someone else to bail em out, pretty basic rules and some common sense goes a long way to self rescue, more times than not they end up being walked out anyway.

    • I just have to vent that far too many of the facebook hiking page comments are more or less "oh my God! How can you backpack in the snow?!?! How dare you do that! You'll die, You're an idiot! Blah Blah blah...

      Some of my responses have bordered on trolling.
      Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    • Winter hiking should never be ignored at the expense of 3 extra ponds of duck feathers, that's a little over a quart of water. Sometimes people get rediculous with weight savings style and what they're not willing to carry, most are perfectly able bodied to carry the additional load, problem is winter camping/hiking requires the mind as well.

    • I'm here to tell you that I've made stupid, winter, mistakes.
      Let me tell you about one from a number of years ago.
      Kathy and I drove up to NY's Catskill mountains for a 3 day backpack.
      We had a route planned and a general destination for each of the 2 nights.
      When we parked the car at the trail head there was only a couple of inches of snow for as far as we could see.
      We decided not to start off in our snow shoes so Kathy strapped hers to her pack, stupid me decides hot to bring them.
      Well, needless to say, half way up the mountain and the snow was mid-thigh deep.
      That turned into a very long, and exhausting, trip for me.
      Lesson learned! Coffee.gif

    • Sometimes people are stupid and sometimes they just get into situations they don't know they're getting into, not everyone has a smart phone that has a signal and can get weather info any time, if one gets caught in a winter storm you can't see where the trail is and the white blazes are covered by snow, I was caught in such a storm between Hampton and Damascus...the problem here may have been stupidity, but I choose to give them the benefit of the doubt until known otherwise.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.

    • Drybones wrote:

      Sometimes people are stupid and sometimes they just get into situations they don't know they're getting into, not everyone has a smart phone that has a signal and can get weather info any time, if one gets caught in a winter storm you can't see where the trail is and the white blazes are covered by snow, I was caught in such a storm between Hampton and Damascus...the problem here may have been stupidity, but I choose to give them the benefit of the doubt until known otherwise.
      Being trapped on 3 sides by a flash flood and having to bushwack my way out was my justification for getting a smart phone.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • Astro wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      Sometimes people are stupid and sometimes they just get into situations they don't know they're getting into, not everyone has a smart phone that has a signal and can get weather info any time, if one gets caught in a winter storm you can't see where the trail is and the white blazes are covered by snow, I was caught in such a storm between Hampton and Damascus...the problem here may have been stupidity, but I choose to give them the benefit of the doubt until known otherwise.
      Being trapped on 3 sides by a flash flood and having to bushwack my way out was my justification for getting a smart phone.
      YIKES 8o

    • LIhikers wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      Sometimes people are stupid and sometimes they just get into situations they don't know they're getting into, not everyone has a smart phone that has a signal and can get weather info any time, if one gets caught in a winter storm you can't see where the trail is and the white blazes are covered by snow, I was caught in such a storm between Hampton and Damascus...the problem here may have been stupidity, but I choose to give them the benefit of the doubt until known otherwise.
      Being trapped on 3 sides by a flash flood and having to bushwack my way out was my justification for getting a smart phone.
      YIKES 8o
      Was also glad I brought a compass on that trip. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • PaulMags wrote:

      THere are some people who geniunely love winter backpacking. It can be great. I do it myself..

      But most thru-hikers would be better off waiting until at least March, or better yet, April, and then start.

      A five month thru-hike will get you to Maine by mid- September.
      In the back of my mind in the future I wold love to do an AT Thru (need to finish the last 751 miles of my section first and get the rest of the boys into college).

      While I would love to start mid-April. My possible scenarios would be:
      1. 2nd Week May - 3rd Week of October
      2. 1st Week March - 2nd Week of August


      The first seems most feasible, but I would really want to finish by September. The issue would be which is colder and more (weather) challenging, GA/NC/TN in March or NH/ME in September.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • Astro wrote:

      PaulMags wrote:

      THere are some people who geniunely love winter backpacking. It can be great. I do it myself..

      But most thru-hikers would be better off waiting until at least March, or better yet, April, and then start.

      A five month thru-hike will get you to Maine by mid- September.
      In the back of my mind in the future I wold love to do an AT Thru (need to finish the last 751 miles of my section first and get the rest of the boys into college).
      While I would love to start mid-April. My possible scenarios would be:
      1. 2nd Week May - 3rd Week of October
      2. 1st Week March - 2nd Week of August


      The first seems most feasible, but I would really want to finish by September. The issue would be which is colder and more (weather) challenging, GA/NC/TN in March or NH/ME in September.
      Either way you have a chance of hitting snow. Just a roll of the dice. Given a choice of the two options I would chose #1. You would be after the big bubble of thrus & be hiking through the northeast when fall colors are at their peak. This year would have been a good one for it & I believe most years it would hold true.

    • keep in mind that katahdin is closed when weather conditions dictate regardless of what the calendar says. when i arrived in early october katahdin was closed for 2 days until conditions improved.

      having said that, camping in baxter state park ends october 15. while katahdin may still be open, hikers have to start and end their hike outside baxter state park. given the shortness of the day, and the difficulty of the climb, its more than i could achieve in a day.

      and while i have no personal experience with this, and don't know the logistics work, it is my understanding that shuttlers can be used to make post october 15 ascents easier.

      if i were to start a thru 5/15 in order to assure finishing i bet i'd have to do a flip flop to complete.
      2,000 miler

    • max.patch wrote:

      keep in mind that katahdin is closed when weather conditions dictate regardless of what the calendar says. when i arrived in early october katahdin was closed for 2 days until conditions improved.

      having said that, camping in baxter state park ends october 15. while katahdin may still be open, hikers have to start and end their hike outside baxter state park. given the shortness of the day, and the difficulty of the climb, its more than i could achieve in a day.

      and while i have no personal experience with this, and don't know the logistics work, it is my understanding that shuttlers can be used to make post october 15 ascents easier.

      if i were to start a thru 5/15 in order to assure finishing i bet i'd have to do a flip flop to complete.
      I think they changed the closing date this year adding another week. Like I said it's a roll of the dice.

      When I lived in the Northeast I worked a busy schedule. I was on the road from beginning of June to the end of Oct. My friend usually joined me for a week of decompression in ME or NH. Most years weather held off. One year we decided to fly into Rainbow lake to canoe around & just kick back. We had hoped to stay longer but pilot that flew us in said we had to come out on a certain date because his insurance was about to end for the season. First morning we woke to a few inches of snow. The flight in was a quick 15 minute hop. When the time came to leave we arrived at his dock it was piled high with gear from the hunters he was also supposed to pick up that foggey morning. When I asked what time they were scheduled for & it had aready passed. He finallly showed up. His first words to us was we may get our wish. He took 2 of the 3 hunters on his first trip. On his 2nd trip a while later he got the last hunter & rest of their gear. He asked if we knew where the trail was if we had to hike out because he wasn't sure flying conditions would hold out.. After a few more hours he came for us. I not sure if it was for navigation reasons or ice, but the long flight time was because he had to follow the Valley out through the HMW. It was amazing! At times the mountain ridges disappeared in the clouds above us as bald eagles soared below. It took about 45 minutes to get out.

      Snow wasn't to bad for hiking but most likely closed Big K for a few days.

      The post was edited 1 time, last by Mountain-Mike ().

    • Astro wrote:

      PaulMags wrote:

      THere are some people who geniunely love winter backpacking. It can be great. I do it myself..

      But most thru-hikers would be better off waiting until at least March, or better yet, April, and then start.

      A five month thru-hike will get you to Maine by mid- September.
      In the back of my mind in the future I wold love to do an AT Thru (need to finish the last 751 miles of my section first and get the rest of the boys into college).
      While I would love to start mid-April. My possible scenarios would be:
      1. 2nd Week May - 3rd Week of October
      2. 1st Week March - 2nd Week of August


      The first seems most feasible, but I would really want to finish by September. The issue would be which is colder and more (weather) challenging, GA/NC/TN in March or NH/ME in September.
      The first you get to experience the best of the fall colours in Maine but will get a lot of the stops along the way already having had their fill of the season's thruhikers. The second you will get some freaking cold weather until Virginia.
      I would go with the first option if I was redoing it mainly because I sort of did the other first time. I agree mid to late April would be my strongest recommendation.
      Resident Australian, proving being a grumpy old man is not just an American trait.

    • Mind you having said all that I would seriously consider a southbound hike next time. But I find Springer less than inspiring as a finish point. Harpers Ferry likewise. Some sort of flip flop using Mt Washington could inspire me. Start my hike with a cog railway ride up and finish with another down. I could moon it twice from the inside.
      finger.gif
      Resident Australian, proving being a grumpy old man is not just an American trait.

    • Astro wrote:

      PaulMags wrote:

      THere are some people who geniunely love winter backpacking. It can be great. I do it myself..

      But most thru-hikers would be better off waiting until at least March, or better yet, April, and then start.

      A five month thru-hike will get you to Maine by mid- September.
      In the back of my mind in the future I wold love to do an AT Thru (need to finish the last 751 miles of my section first and get the rest of the boys into college).
      While I would love to start mid-April. My possible scenarios would be:
      1. 2nd Week May - 3rd Week of October
      2. 1st Week March - 2nd Week of August


      The first seems most feasible, but I would really want to finish by September. The issue would be which is colder and more (weather) challenging, GA/NC/TN in March or NH/ME in September.
      You never know from year to year what the weathers going to be like but my choice of the two would be early March start date, I started on 3/12 and had a problem dealing with the heat, the next year might give you a winter storm.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.

    • Drybones wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      PaulMags wrote:

      THere are some people who geniunely love winter backpacking. It can be great. I do it myself..

      But most thru-hikers would be better off waiting until at least March, or better yet, April, and then start.

      A five month thru-hike will get you to Maine by mid- September.
      In the back of my mind in the future I wold love to do an AT Thru (need to finish the last 751 miles of my section first and get the rest of the boys into college).While I would love to start mid-April. My possible scenarios would be:
      1. 2nd Week May - 3rd Week of October
      2. 1st Week March - 2nd Week of August


      The first seems most feasible, but I would really want to finish by September. The issue would be which is colder and more (weather) challenging, GA/NC/TN in March or NH/ME in September.
      You never know from year to year what the weathers going to be like but my choice of the two would be early March start date, I started on 3/12 and had a problem dealing with the heat, the next year might give you a winter storm.
      90% of my AT hiking has been in July and August and the heat has never bothered me that much (as long as I could find water). Now, the cold I had in the GSMNP during March on Spring Break was a challenge.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • max.patch wrote:

      WanderingStovie wrote:

      Winter nights are longer the farther north you go. That might convince me to go SOBO on a thru-hike.
      but depending on when you start, your're gonna finish a nobo at least 2 months earlier which would more than cancel out that difference. for example:
      sunset oct 1 maine is 6:15
      sunset dec 1 georgia is 5:30
      Daylight savings time ends between those dates (first Sunday in November). Today Bangor, ME has 9:40 of daylight and Dalton, GA has 10:25. I would like to calculate the length of daylight for those dates and locations.
      I am human and I need to be loved - just like everybody else does