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Contents of this Pre-Hike Page:

The Original Plan:

OK, so here's the plan: I have been accepted to medical school, I paid all the deposits and fees that I could find in advance. I've paid my first month's rent and security deposit on my new apartment near the school.

Step 2: I bought the gear, and made my battle plan. I've modified this plan many times since the first days in February 1998. It's now January 1999 and I'm looking at a combination of the Ultra Light backpacking philosophy and what I call "deal with it as it comes along." philosophy. Some would also call this the "by the seat of your pants" method of planning a thruhike. I tend to believe there is a lot to be said for testing your improvisational skills by not planning far ahead.

Step 3: I made arrangements (Actually Jim N. did this.) to get me and my stuff to the trail head on

Springer Mt. in Georgia. I also arranged to get my butt (and other salvageable body parts) back to Boston.  (Thanks John G!) I'll probably take an Air-Tran flight or some other "we usually get you there before the alligators eat you" airline back to Philly. There I will load up the car and drive across country to medical school.

Step 4: I planned my shelter design, gear list, food list, emergency plan, contact plan, post office drop plan, basic timeline, and journal / distribution list. Here they are:

After my first AT weekend hike, 15 years ago with the Boy Scouts, I decided I wanted to thru-hike the entire trail. One reason or another prevented me from accomplishing this until now. I decided this is my last chance to do the whole thing in one shot until I decide to retire.

The plan is very simple: I plan to start around February 25 on Springer Mountain in Georgia. I will hike North with Jim N. for the first month. Near the Smokey Mountain National Park, I will say goodbye to Jim, and he will return to NJ and become my support person. I'll continue to hike north to Mount Katahdin, Maine.

I hope to reach the halfway point at Harper's Ferry by April 15th. My goal is to do at least 20 miles each day after the first week. I plan to start with 10 miles per day as the minimum for the first week. Of course snow in Georgia may alter this plan since I'm using a February starting date.

I need to press hard in the south to give myself some time to get through the sharp mountain rocks of PA and scale the steep slopes of NH. I don't know if I can maintain 20 miles/day over the rocks of PA and I'm quite sure I won't do 20 miles/day on the slopes of the NH White Mountains.

My goal is to summit Mt. Katahdin on July 1st. I must finish by August 1st. (I have to drive out to Missouri for medical school soon after.)

I hope to have this page updated regularly. If you want to send me a message, feel free to post it on this site or send it to the distribution list using email. Jim will hopefully keep me informed. I have worked a communication method out for emergency messages.

If you have a life-threatening emergency, call 911. Don't call me; I'll be on the trail!

We will be mailing several food drops ahead, but I plan to purchase most of the food from local stores.

I decided to go stoveless, using a plastic containers to re-hydrate freeze-dried foods while hiking. This saves on the weight of fuel and the stove, and will save time when it comes to preparing the food. Less cooking time, cleanup, fueling, etc. This means I can hike longer days and can go further in a shorter period of time. Thus, I can make much more mileage on less weight. The fact that I will carry less weight will also make it easier to go further in a day.

I hope to be in Harper's Ferry, WV by April 15-30th. Since this is about the half-way point, I should be right on schedule to summit Katahdin on July 1st if I get to Harper's Ferry in this time frame.

I hope to start the 100-mile wilderness of Maine sometime in mid-June. This will allow me to finish by July 1st. July 1st is the goal for my Katahdin summit date. I must summit by August 1st, so I'll walk through the night a few times if it starts to get near that date. This is reportedly the section that provides the most isolation and back-to-nature feelings. I hope I have time to enjoy this section by
taking in the surroundings.

When I hit this section, communication may break off. That's only because there isn't any way to make contact with civilization once I enter the wilderness.

Gear:
Shelter:
$25 tent (4.5'x5.5') (Seam Gripper and Waterproofing applied)
1 length 50' nylon cord
Polarguard (10 deg.) mummy bag (OR) fleece blanket with zipper (depends on section of hike)
1 emergency trash bag
2 reflective mylar emergency bags
Ridgerest closed cell foam pad

Packed Clothing:
Bug net face mask
No-See-Um jacket with face shield
Polar Fleece jacket
Polar Fleece sweatshirt
Polar Fleece sweat pants
Polar Fleece Socks (sleeping/in camp)
Polar Fleece baklava (hat/scarf) (lost in ME/NH area)
Nylon Jacket Shell ($9)
Ex-Officio Nylon Pants
3 Pair of Smart-Wool Socks
Pack lined with Garbage bags to ensure water-proofness

Dining Room:
Plastic Permaware Spoon (Size = Big Mouth)
1 Quart Flexible Plastic Bowl
1" Spiderco Knife (rusted after 1 week)
2, 2-Liter Soda Bottles for water (stronger than Platapus)
2 Plastic Bottles filled with Chlorine Bleach
    (5.25% Sodium Hypo-Chlorite) re-labeled for water treatment
Zip Lock bags

Hygene:
Soap
Toothpaste
Toothbrush
Toilet Paper
Plastic Mirror

Emergency:
1 Mini-Mag Flashlight
4 AAA batteries
Duct-tape (small, re-rolled length)
Bic lighter (signal fire device)
50-ft Nylon Cord (see above)
Knife (see above)
Plastic Mirror (signal device)
Whistle (signal device)
Compass (to ensure the stars are in the correct location and entropy hasn't reversed)
2 spare Garbage bags

First Aid Kit:
Ibuprofen, Benedryl, Immodium AD, Multi-Vitamins, HydroCortisone Ointment, Tri-antibiotic cream, Water Purification Tablets, Alcohol wipes, 2 Cravats, Adhesive Tape, Band-Aids, Duct Tape, Steri-strips, 4"x4" gauze, 5" x 9" gauze, Tweezers, Nail clippers, Insect repellent, Sun screen

Repair Kit:
Sewing needle
Thread
Duct tape

Office:
AT Thruhikers Guide
AT Databook
Notepad and pencil
Pre-Addressed Postcards to Journal Author
Stamps

Click here for other "fun with tarps."

It would be less work to call home at every payphone and check an answering machine.  The inexpensive phones weigh 1/2 pound.  It will cost a minimum of $20/month to carry the phone and never turn it on. (They can stay in standby for about 2 days without using them.)  It will take charging time to charge the battery at least once/week.  This will have to be done for a few hours so I'll have to rent a hotel room or something to charge the phone.  The phone service will cost $1.21/minute to use.

The contracts they advertise on the web site have a 1 year subscription rate and a $175 backout of contract fee.  That means I would have to pay more money for a monthly service because I'm not guaranteeing them income for a long time.

The alternative is for me to get a couple of new battery packs for my ham radio and lug it along with me.

I prefer the weight of a couple of telephone long distance calling cards that give me near 10 cent/minute rates.

If we need help, we blow on the whistles, flash with mirrors and flashlight, or light a bonfireto get attention.

Cell phones only cover the populated areas since nobody wants to use them in the wilderness areas.  If they don't work in the wilderness areas, what's the point of having it?

Digital phones don't cover anywhere outside of New England and a few select cities across the country, I'll never use it again.

Hikers walk past every section of the trail every day that we'll be hiking so we don't have to worry about getting hurt and not getting help. They're a waste of money, pack weight, and time.  I'm not bringing one.

Source: Bell Atlantic Mobile

You may send first class letters to the post offices on this list.  I will leave a forwarding request at each post office when I get my mail.  The request should send any letters that arrive late to the next post office on my list.  Letters should be addressed with the following format: