How important is the AT hike to be a wilderness experience?
The herd of hikers striking out from Springer this spring will mean anything but a wilderness experience.
Recall the Trail was meant to be a wilderness opportunity to escape the eastern cities.
”Remote for detachment, narrow for chosen company, winding for leisure, lonely for contemplation, it beckons not merely north and south, but upward to the body, mind and soul of man.”
This quote is frequently miss-tied to Myron Avery. A shame.
So, will you choose to have a wilderness experience?
Or how much assistance will you need?
Three things come to mind....
Most hikers today, do so without the trail guide and opt for a (fill in the blank) hikers guide that simply offers info on food, lodging and other items off the trail. Sounds like a Fodors guide.
That's a shame since it is more about off-trail amenities and less about the actual trail.
Second is the dependence on technology. No compasses are found, but the cell phone and related apps take away from the wilderness.
This means more hikers do not have the basic skill set to do long distance backpacking.
And third, I believe there is not an appreciation of the volunteers. I think this stems from a bit of entitlement, that is, the Trail is there for them. This leads the hiker to bitch and moan about things that go wrong while on the trail instead of accepting the reality of long-distance hiking on a "wilderness" trail. Further, the second most question I got while on the trail was the statement from "Earth People" that the wished they had the time to go backpacking for 4 or 5 months. Yes, hikers are elite!
Oh yeah, one more thing: the FNT people, (or Fastest Known Times). This is related to all three. First the hikers are concerned about running the trail and do not have time to "savor" the experience. These runners need support, the amenities found off the trail plus technology, further extracting them from the wild. And then there is the entitlement, caring less about fellow hikers, the volunteers and everyone else since to do so will impact their time.
I blame this on Outside magazine and a bit on Backpacker.
So, do your hike, but be prepared, and then give back to the hiking community.
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