Yes, this is everything I will need for 6 months.

Here it is, folks. The infamous gear list-
Packed Gear (w/ weight in ounces):
Jansport BigBear 5000 64
Ultra-sil Pack Cover 3.5
Mont-bell Down Hugger #1 35.8
Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight 2 73
Stoic Sleeping Pad 23.9
Katadyn Water Purifier 20.3
Camelbak Hydrotanium Reservoir (100 oz) 6.7
Nalgene (x2) 8
GSI Microdualist (Pot&Dishes&Scrubber) 18.1
Light my Fire Spoon 0.3
Light my Fire starter 1
Compass 0.9
Princeton Tec Headlamp 2.8
Camera 5
Camera charger 2.4
Cell phone (LG ENV3) 4.1
Vibram Five Fingers 11.4
Mountain Hardwear Rain Jacket 12.9
Smartwool Socks (x2) 7
Nylon Rope 1.2
Shovel 4.7
Condiments 1.9
First Aid Kit 10.2
Pocket Knife 2.7
Playing Cards 1.4
Serius Gloves 3.3
Patagonia Wool long underwear- bottoms 7.6
Patagonia Wool long underwear- shirt 5.1
Norrona Fleece 10
Montbell Down Jacket & Ultrasil pack 6.8
TP 1.2
Toothbrush & Paste 2
Data book 3.8
Loose leaf paper & pen 1.2

Total (in ounces): 394.4
(in pounds): 22.76

Worn Gear:
Wool Shirt 9.2
Columbia Titanium Pants 13.5
I/O Bio Underwear 1.6
Smartwool Socks 3.5
Belt 3.6
Watch 4.6
Sportsbra 3.3
Asolo Stynger (boots) 51.3
ID, credit card and money 0.5
Total (in ounces): 91.1
(in pounds): 5.69


This 31 lbs of gear is pretty much going to have to get me to Katahdin. There are a few exceptions.... like my boots. I have a second pair of those that will get mailed to me when the first pair get worn out. I also have short sleeve shirts, socks and another pair of pants that I can get when the conditions arise.

My car insurance just went down!

There are many reasons why 2011 is going to be my year of adventure:
a) I just turned 25 years of age. That's a quarter of a century, folks. I'm not getting any younger.
b) I need to quit my job and join my husband down south. What a better time
to go for a long adventure?
c) I've had many adventures in the past. You'd think this would be enough, but it has only made me want to do more:
2004: Graduated high school
2005: Studied abroad in Mexico
2006: Learned to scuba dive/ went scuba diving in Mexico
2007: Studied abroad in London, England/ backpacked some of Europe/ took a 14 day trans-atlantic cruise/ graduated college
2008: Started rock climbing
2009: Cruised and scuba dived in Bahamas/biked from Michigan to Washington, DC
2010: Eloped/bicycled from Traverse City to Mackinac/ biked my first century
2011: What will this year bring?

My decision to thru-hike:

It started back in summer 2009. I was on a three week bike trip when I heard about the Appalachian Trail. One of the group members had a friend that was doing a thru hike that summer. I didn't know what the Appalachian Trail (AT) or a thru hike was, but I was intrigued.

During Labor Day weekend I flew to Concord, New Hampshire to visit with a college friend. She mentioned something about hiking, so I lugged my backpack and gear with me, ready for an adventure. After the purchase of a map of the White Mountains and a few trips to Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS) we had planned an overnight hike.

The hike was so beautiful I wouldn't even know how to put it into words (or pictures - it was very hard to captured the depth and detail). A couple of miles into the hike we passed a sign for the AT. That started a whole slew of questions, "how long do you think those hikers hike a day?", "how do they get water?", "how do they get food?" and "how long does it take?".

When I got back home I immediately started Googling those questions. Then I went to the library and read guides and memoirs. Then I bought planning and data books and joined online forums. I was sold. I decided to do a thru hike of the Appalachian Trail. Now it was time to tell my husband, family and friends.