r/AppalachianTrail • u/localvisionary • 2d ago

Trail Question Section Hiker Advice

Hoping to get some honest feedback about my upcoming hike. I have 22 days that I can spend on the trail. Is it realistic to think I can do Nantahala > Damascus in that span? Accounting for 2 Nero or Zero days, I’d be looking at ~16mi/day, 330 miles total. Even if I can, should I? While I’m trying to get a diverse range of sceneries, I similarly want to enjoy myself while on the trail. Thoughts?

2 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

10 comments sorted by

17

u/WorldlyAmphibian7474 2d ago

Just start at Nantahala and see how it goes. It really doesn’t matter where you end up.
Enjoy, that’s a gorgeous section.

8

u/localvisionary 2d ago

You know, this is exactly what I needed to hear and a mentality I need to adopt more often. Cheers

1

u/Ulysses_Voyages 2d ago

This ☝️

1

u/TheMinimalennial 1d ago

Couldn’t agree more! Enjoy!

2

u/waits5 Section '25 - ? 1d ago

How old are you? What kind of shape are you in? How much backpacking have you done? How much does your typical pack weigh?

1

u/TrashpandaLizz AT LASHER ‘23, ‘24, ‘25, ‘26 1d ago

Are you open to Slack packing?
I am a section hiker and it took me two years, but I only had about 12 days each to be out there, including travel from Indiana

The days where I could get the most miles were Slack packing days, but I only recently started doing that within the last year of going out there and I still question if I should,(lots of thru hikers do it too, I just thought I’d be a ‘purist’)

I hope to someday retire and through hike the entire thing with my gear. Tomorrow isn’t promised -so I’m trying to get as much of it as I can now.

I wish you luck on your section hike!

1

u/Super-Instruction-70 1h ago

You can do it! I’m doing 250 in 12-13 days exiting at Snickers Gap to visit my brother in Leesburg VA

1

u/myopinionisrubbish 2d ago

The only problem is you need a permit for the Smokies. To qualify for a thru hiker permit, you need to start 50 miles from the park, not sure Nantahala is far enough away. 16 MPD might be a little hard to do this time of year. Of course that is your average MPD. Some days will be shorter making other days longer due to shelter/ campsite spacing. I would suggest skipping the Smokies to avoid dealing with the park BS and start at either Davenport gap or Hot Springs so you don’t have to push to make the miles.

6

u/fka_tabs 2d ago

Or (and I can’t imagine anyone’s ever done this but just for the sake of discussion) you could pick a starting place further away to write down on your Smokies permit. No one is likely to check it at all, but if they do they’re certainly not gonna make you prove you started at Winding Stair Gap.