Everyone knows that the ONLY way to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail is to start in Georgia and go north, right?
Wrong.
Here are five good reasons to consider thru-hiking southbound from Maine to Georgia of the typical northbound hike.
- Weather: Starting in Maine around June 15 – July 15 gives you plenty of cool nights at the height of summer. You’ll have cold weather down south if you finish at Christmas or later, but nothing you can’t handle. You’ll also be Walking with Fall, and have about 2-3 months of leaf changes as you work your way down.
- Solitude: no hordes of hikers hogging the campsites and shelters. If you want more solitude, a SOBO is the only way to go.
- Knock out the hard part first: “Getting to Maine means you’ve done 90% of the miles and 10% of the work” as the old saying goes. Come prepared to hike from day one though, because the hike up Kathadin is the largest single day of vertical gain of the entire trip.
- No end dates to worry about: while it’s technically true that you can climb Kathadin after October 15, realistically your chances of doing so dwindle with each passing day. Springer Mountain never closes.
- It’s all Downhill: Maine is higher than Georgia, so it’s all downhill. That’s what I told myself at least.
What do you think? Agree or disagree?
Hi,
I hiked about 390 miles northbound and over 2100 southbound in 06. A stress fracture in my foot ended my NOBO attempt, two months rest, and I headed south starting June 28th.
You make great points. Walking with fall is certain to be a #1 tied with no competing for space or being part of the ‘pledge rush’ of 20 mile a day party’ers.
You missed pointing out the bugs. They’re significant in Maine. Also, you must start “with your stuff together”. (100+ miles to the first town, fewer chances to re-gear at outfitters early on.) Southbound you will not have as large a “trail family” either. Sure, solitude is nice, but only once did I see as many as 6 sobo’s in one place – once in 5 months. Southbound was awesome, but now that I’ve done it fully that way, I’d go northbound starting late (like April 18).
To be sure, either way, it’s an amazing experience and you’ll end with new life-long friends. Schedule goes out the window the moment you get on the trail, so which ever way, get out there.
–Pi
Pi,
Yeah – I was concentrating on most of the positives, but there are certainly negatives to go along with it no matter which way you go. Bugs, mud, and the fact that there’s not a gear store 35 miles from the beginning to bail your butt out are certainly things to consider. You better have your act together if you’re planning on going southbound.
No kidding about the schedule. We were already off track about 2 days into it! I sweated waaaaay too much over that stuff when I thru-hiked. Never again.