It’s not like I was crazy strong to begin with but I just finished the AZT a weekish ago and I just went through a simple routine with no weight on the bar and I couldn’t curl or OH press the bar whatsoever! I could curl and OH press the bar the very first time I ever touched weights 5 years ago. Any idea what’s going on with that and how to recover? Seems paradoxical definitely looks and feels like I actually gained muscle mass.

Howdy, I am walking with two of my friends from stylus to Springfield this summer; we have a general idea of our plan but nothing specific yet. I WOULD LOVR ANY TIPS OR IDEAS for not dying or anything. We are going to pitch tents most days but hotel 2-3 days for shower. I think we are aiming at 15-20 miles a day

I am starting the Colorado trail as my first thru hike in 2 months so im wondering, which is more effective with a short time frame? I am currently a bit above 200lbs down from 216 about 6 weeks ago. Should I continue trying to lose weight or would it be more effective to start weight training at maintenance calorie intake or slightly above? I already get a decent amount of cardio because I work quite an active job where I am on my feet 8 hours a day if that is a factor.

I have been on the Lycian Way for two weeks now, planning to finish the hike on the 9th of May. Two days ago, after a long 30km day, I got hit by sharp pain in the arch of my foot. Some research led me to Plantar Fasciitis. I took two rest days, but the sharp pain is still there when I walk around town. It's not as bad as before, but if's there. When I massage my feet, I can feel the tendon running along my foot cracking under my touch. I had Achilles Heel issues on a hike a few years back and it feels the same.

I am of course devastated. I had been dreaming of this hike for years and it will be hard to get a full month off again to do it. At the same time, running down my body and doing permanent damage never helped anybody.

I have been stretching and icing and massaging my feet as much as I can. Getting insoles in Turkey is not an option, there are none on the trail and flying to Istanbul and back is outside of my time / budget constraints. I can plan some easier days now, but still have to do some harder days later to finish on schedule.

Has this happened to any of you before? Did you continue the trail or did you head back home?

Hey all! I've found myself with about 2 months of free time in April/May of 2025 and I'd like to attempt a thru hike during that time. Does anyone have any recommendations for 1-2 month hikes that can be completed in the early spring? Thanks all!

Going to be in the US next spring and looking to plan a 1 month thruhike from mid-April to mid-May. Does anyone have recommendations for trails/sections of trails that would be suitable weather-wise at this time of year, aka not too cold, wet or snowy?

New tent, old mat. Squeaking combo. Cant really test this when you buy online, and I love both mat abd tent.

I have had this problem before with another combo but that got solved very quickly when I bought a new tent; thats not an option now.

Inhave a BA copper spur HV UL2 and an Exped synmat. I love the synmat among other things because it is silent(!). This combination makes a terrible noise on every move I make.

I could span a sleeping bag liner over te mat but I’d prefer a smart weightless solution. During last night I even thought of coating the mat with silicone spray or WD40; that seems kind of messy though.

Anybody with similar problem and a weightless or near weightless solution?

Thanks

Heya folks. I'll be doing my first thru-hike on the Northville-Placid Trail soon and unfortunately, it's during peak mosquito and black fly season. I'm planning on brining Picardin lotion and spraying down some of my gear. I'm curious what folks experiences have been with using Picardin on trail, and prepping by spraying down clothes or gear.

What should I definitely make sure to spray, and what should I definitely not spray?

Also, can I retreat some gear, say like pants, and also add water repellant spray like Granger's Repel Plus? Or should I, choose my poison and go with one? Pun intended..

Thanks for sharing your words of wisdom!

Before anyone says go to a doctor; I can’t. I’m American and I don’t have health insurance so I can’t afford it.

I’m hiking the PCT and started getting some discomfort in my achilles a few days ago. I’m finally resting at a trail angel’s house. There’s an international doctor hiking the trail that took a look and told me that if I rest it and ice it with 400mg of advil 3X a day that in 4 days I should be good to go. This was coming from not only her medical experience but her hiking experience as well.

It’s not super painful and it only feels painful when it presses up against my shoe super hard and maybe when I first wake up. It’s a little swollen but there’s no ridges or bumps. It started as what appeared to be friction but I guess turned into this. I’ve read horror stories of people taking months to recover but some on FB saying they just rested for a few days and was fine.

I’m looking for anyone else’s experience and advice.

I’m young and tough but would it be plausible to hike the trail in the summer. I can handle the ticks, heat and mosquitoes but I’m worried about the trail being overgrown.

Looking to see if anyone wants to hike segment 1, 2 and possibly 3…Around 2nd weekend in May…??

I know this is going to vary from person to person, but I’m looking into trail runners that would be good for backpacking and thru hikes as it’s a hobby I want to pick up.

Despite all of the warnings about Altra shoes have durability issues, I caved and bought a pair of Timp 5s, and well, they showed up with part of the sole already splitting from the shoe. I do like the fit and feel of them and the way they look, but I’m probably going to take them to REI and swap them out.

My local REI has the Saucony X REI Peregrine 14s in my size and was wondering if those would be good for backpacking/thru hiking. The toe box doesn’t look as wide as Altra and Topo toe boxes do though, but they do have the low drop (lower than the Timp 5) and don’t have that “moon boot” cushioning that I see a lot of thru hikers warning to stay away from for stability purposes.

Does anybody have experience with the Peregrine 14 or should I try a different pair of Altra or go the Topo or Hoka route?

Thanks for the input!

Hey gang. I know it’s a long shot but I’m wondering if anyone out there has had the collarbone plates and screws and has had any success with bigger distances and heavier packs. I’ve kinda limited myself over the past few years to under 40lb packs n trips so that I don’t stand to irritate it, but want to get back into the big stuff soon. Anyone who has had this type of injury and success please let me know. Thanks!

Hi all! I have a short window of 7ish days to thru hike around southern new Hampshire and I've found the new England trail - it's obviously much longer but I'd love to do a section of it! My question is, where would you guys recommend I finish the hike if I'd need to catch a bus to either Boston or DC? I've never been to the US so I couldn't realize which part of the trail might have access to public transportation.

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Would love your help! Thanks :)

I'm planning for a thru-hike next year. I'm a 2E size and I've been struggling to find trail shoes and insoles that are comfortable for all-day walking. Has anyone with similarly wide fan feet had success finding a shoe / insole pair for your thru hike?

I've had some limited success with Altra Lone Peaks, but my feet still pour over the side of the shoe and after the insole breaks in, the rubber edges of the shoe dig in under the edge of my foot.
Superfeet green are soft foam did a great job of protecting the edges of my feet, but the inner heel cup is far too proud and puts my ankle out of alignment. I had hoped that by getting a thicker version of SOLE-wide footbed, I would have a shallower heel cup which would protect my foot edges. The heel cup in the SOLE insoles is much more naturally placed than the super feet, and so that's great.

however, SOLE Wides have the same exact shape as the factory footbed of Altras, and a pretty sharp, stiff, and proud outer foot compared to the superfeet's. This causes the SOLE's to dig in painfully in a similar way to how the factory lone peak's do.

Is there anything to be done for folks with wide-fan-angle hobbit feet?

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On the left side, the SOLE insole digs in where my foot begins to pour over

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OP's wide fan angle hobbit feet

Hello,

I'm trying to get a list together of some things to but in a small market that would appeal to through hikers. It's in Breckenridge near the continental divide trail.

What would be something you guys would want or need in the middle of a backpacking trip.

Any suggestions for multi-day high level hikes in Europe and especially the Alps that are less crowded than the most popular ones. Tour of Mont Blanc is out of the question. Same for Alta Via 1 in the Dolomites. Rather not Haute Route or Tour of Monte Rosa neither.

Tour of Oisans (GR54) and Alta via della Valmalenco are two of the most interesting I've found so far. Any other suggestions?

PS: I've done Tour of Matterhorn and Tour des Combins the two latest years.

Like what it says on the front. I heard for instance that only a handful of people have done a winter southbound Appalachian Trail thruhike.

What would be the worst times of year and directions to do the Pacific Crest and Continental Divide, talking months specifically? I assume it would still be sometime winter.

I have a pair of Nitecore Energy Brick NB10000s (Gen 1) I'm going to be taking on trail in couple weeks. I'm hoping to optimize my charging speed so I can spend as little time on charging as possible.

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On the side of the power bank it says Input (USB-C) 5v ⎓ 2.4A/9V ⎓ 2A

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My understanding is that the 9V ⎓ 2A will charge faster than the 5v ⎓ 2.4A, so I should look for a charging port that has 9V ⎓ 2A on the side right? Does the cable matter or just get something high quality?

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Thanks in advance!

https://forms.gle/4kxsUBZrhUuMfFbx5

My name is McLin Sanders and I am an Entrepreneurship Major at the University of Mississippi. I am starting an outdoor company and would love your feedback. The idea for my company is to prepare an aspiring thru hiker to successfully undertake a thru-hike. I have hiked 3,300+ miles over the past four years.

My website with my adventures: mclinduke.com

My first thru-hike was the Appalachian Trail. While on the trail, my father helped me out logistically. I could shoot him a text to schedule a shuttle driver pick up from the trail or to book a room ahead for me in a hostel. This helped me immensely on my thru-hike because hiking 2,193 miles is hard enough, and if you have to plan out everything in-between, it can be even more difficult. With the stress of planning out town stays alleviated, and with the peace of mind starting the trail knowing you have the correct gear + how to use it, I believe we can make completing a thru-hike easier and subsequently we can expand the long distance hiking community.

Hello community,

I’m planning to hike a ~4 week section of the Croatian Long Distance Trail in May. (Northern half of section C)

I’m curious if anyone has experience with storing food in this area. What have you used? I’ve always hiked with a bear can or Ursack/OpSack. At the moment I don’t have either.

Also would be generally appreciative of any advice you feel inclined to share about this trail :)

Thank you!

I read that roughly 1/3 of the hike is hiked on roads which would be about 900 miles if that information is accurate. So for those who’ve hiked the CDTdid the amount of road walking have a negative impact on your CDT experience?

Just as the title states, I’m curious how much weight people lost on their thru hikes.

Hiya, just wondering how do yall take your trekking poles with you on the plane? Hand luggage? Checked baggage? Wrapped? Is it even allowed at all?

Thx :)

What YouTube channel(s) do you think makes the best thruhiking videos?

I'm looking for a good trail shoe. I don't have the option to try these in store, so I've ordered one of each and will try them on. That said, I'm trying to contrast the feature set/use case.

I know that the Cascadia 16 is supposed to be more stable and made with Gore-Tex compared to the Moab Speed. I worry that the Cascadia might be more "clunky" than I want.

The use case for me is primarily trail hiking, 1/2 to 1 day.

Can anyone help share their thoughts? I know that the feet will decide when I get them on but I'd love to hear your feedback.

I have the month of may free pretty much. I live in montreal and an looking for some ideas to fill my time. I hear the long trail is a no go this early sadly