Second Edition (2023): More advice and tips; Paperback finally available.
You may have read that only 25% successfully finish a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. There is no foolproof way to make sure you will succeed where others fail but this book can help improve the odds.
Author Jeff Blum was new to long-distance hiking before he successfully thru-hiked the A.T. in 2019 (he also successfully hiked the PCT in 2022). This book is his attempt to give back to the hiking community that he loves so much by organizing and presenting all of the useful things learned as part of his research for those hikes. You'll also find tips and advice from his and fellow hikers' personal experiences.
Blogs, forums, Facebook groups, and YouTube can be fun, informative, and inspirational sources for your pre-hike preparation, but the information you glean will be spotty at best and wrong or even dangerous at worst. This book, in contrast, can serve as your one-source, complete guide for hiking the Appalachian Trail or any other long-distance hike. Topics covered include:
And much more. Even experienced long-distance hikers will find some new and helpful information in this book!
Thru-Hiking The Appalachian Trail is a great place to start your preparation for an epic long-distance hike.