TREK: A Journey on the Appalachian Trail

[ErichFromm]

Cruising some hikes on youtube last night and the above "documentary" was advertised. About a bunch of guys doing the full Appalachian Trail

Two questions:
* has anyone heard of this and know how to access it?
* are there any similar documentaries out there? i.e., of people doing long hikes. Not so much the survivor type stuff - just hikes like the Shug posts.

It's not as good as hiking myself, but still interesting seeing how others hike and the different environments etc....

[wildlight]

Hi EricFromm
I've been studying the Appalachian trail (AT) for a couple of years now, with a view to doing it. The Southern end is in Georgia, Northern terminus is in Maine. As with any long distance hike, prep is a lot of it. Either that- or you suffer out there through lack of fitness or way too much gear that's simply too heavy. Your body takes a beating, you simply cannot carry the food to replace all the calories burned- so you really get into the fast food in towns. Many people drop off- something like 80% don't complete a through-hike.

But you can always do it in sections- there is a TON of info out there on it.

Cheers
WildLight

[ErichFromm]

I wasn't just referring to the Appalachian Trail but rather any hiking documentaries...

Wildlight: when were you thinking of doing it? Sounds like a one in a lifetime thing... I'd like to do it one day too.

[Turfa]

TREK is available from Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/TREK-A-Journey-Ap ... B0002DFWHQ

It is a good movie...I really liked it, and it is a pretty fair representation of what the trip is like....

[ErichFromm]

Thanks Turfa - looks pretty good. i see in the reviews people refer to other movies of the same: 2000 Miles to Maine: Adventures on the Appalachian Trail etc.

Looks like I've lined up some Birthday presents....

[wildlight]

Hey ErichFromm
A couple of years from now- but not too many after that! Have got Mrs in on it- all good there. I work for myself- so I am figuring my clients will all fall by the wayside. Am just putting together a plan to be able to sustain us for 18 months after we get back (almost sorted)- while I build a new client base. I don't want to do the walk and worry about the life that waits after it ends. But that's all coming along nicely. I have the movies referred to in the previous post and a few more AT, PCT and CTD movies too. Watched a great one this morning on YouTube on the PCT. I have set myself the milestone of completing the AAWT in one hit (have done it all in sections)- before embarking OS.

I am not a fast walker, most likely on the AT I will need to chase the good weather- starting in Georgia in Feb and hitting Kathadin by closing date, is probably beyond the speed I operate at.**especially if one wants "zeros"…** I cannot imagine a 20 mile day, it is insane to think of it! And AT hikers often do WAY more.

Cheers

WildLight

[Franco]

Plenty of videos on that AT on You Tube and similar.
Here is one from Vimeo :

http://vimeo.com/11932737
For the ones not too familiar with search engines, they work with Key Words, the trick is to know what key word to use.
For example if searching for tents you enter "Tarptent" and that will do it...

OK on a more serious note, another trail that has a LOT of dedicated video clips is the Pacific Crest Trail, so just go to You Tube and enter "PCT" or if you like tautology "PCT Trail" as I have done here :
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pct+trail
that should keep you busy for a few weeks.

[Kainas]

Bill Bryson wrote a book about hiking the trail too.

[jacko1956]

Film version of Bill Bryson's book (A Walk in the Woods) in editing phase now.
Bill only hiked about a third of it and film starring Robert Redford and Nick Nolte likely to have a "grumpy old men" slant compared to book.
Also the film "Wild" based on a book by a woman who hiked the Pacific Crest Trail (Cheryl Strayed?) is almost complete. This is starring Reese Witherspoon.
Between the two you can expect numbers on the AT and PCT to rise dramatically over the next 2 years.

[Turfa]

Bill Bryson's book is hilarious...one of my all time favourites.

Not sure what to expect from the movie.

[Kainas]

Film version of Bill Bryson's book (A Walk in the Woods) in editing phase now.
Bill only hiked about a third of it and film starring Robert Redford and Nick Nolte likely to have a "grumpy old men" slant compared to book.
Also the film "Wild" based on a book by a woman who hiked the Pacific Crest Trail (Cheryl Strayed?) is almost complete. This is starring Reese Witherspoon.
Between the two you can expect numbers on the AT and PCT to rise dramatically over the next 2 years.

I thought the book had a grumpy old man slant! I really enjoy Bill Bryson but I only rated that book 2 or 3 stars.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1 ... tion=false