Have you ever backpacked before?
Chris is an experienced backpacker who completed a solo thru-hike of the AT once before in 2005. He has also section hiked a large portion of the PCT and spent time working as a backcountry ranger in the high Sierras in California. Jenna has done a few backpacking trips, the longest being a thru-hike of the Lone Star Hiking Trail in Texas with Chris in 2017.
How long will it take?
We plan to set foot on the trail in February 2021 in Georgia and spend the next 5-6 months hiking north to Maine.
How much will your packs weigh?
We will each carry a base-weight of about 20lbs for the winter portion of our hike. Your base-weight is the weight of you pack, excluding consumables (water and food) and what you’re wearing. Check out our gear overview for more details.
How do you plan to stay safe on the trail?
The key is to follow the Leave No Trace principles, beginning with: plan ahead and prepare. As an added bonus, Chris has formal training as a wilderness first responder. In a normal year, the most serious risks include hypothermia, nasty falls, dehydration, Norovirus, and Lyme disease. Now, we have the additional risk of COVID-19. Beyond standard wilderness survival methods, we are taking additional measures such as: tent camping as much as possible, social distancing, wearing masks during resupply, minimizing time off the trail, and resting in private quarters when we we are in town.
How are you funding the trail?
We live a pretty frugal lifestyle to begin with, which helped. We set a budget goal and began setting funds aside. We cut back on expenses, sold everything we could (including the car), moved out of our rental, and put all our belongings in storage. Obviously you miss out on certain securities by losing out on a half a year of income, but in this instance, we agreed that the reward would be greater than the sacrifice.