AT Section Hiking - Training and Preparation For Each Hiking Year

Recently I read several Facebook posting about AT Thru Hiking and AT Section Hiking and one of the issues I have to deal with each year is how to get in shape for the AT Sections I will hike in the coming year.

In late April and early May of 2016, I hiked my remaining AT Sections in North Carolina and Georgia with Greg and Fred.  Fred has Thru Hiked the AT in his 50's, hiked it again in his 60's and now is Slacking and Backpacking for the 3rd time in his 70's.  Fred hiked our missing North Carolina AT Sections as he had already completed Georgia for the third time.

After hiking in New Hampshire in 2015 and again this year I realize its extremely difficult to train to New Hampshire and for the most part Maine too as these two AT states are so much more difficult than anything else I've encountered in the other 13 States I've hiked.

My training is for the most part year round, except during the colder months of January and sometimes February.  I also prefer not to train in the rain, especially if I can choose when to hike or not.  I've used Golds Gym in the past and mainly use their treadmills.  If possible I prefer the ones that can elevated more than 20 degrees.  Many of their treadmills also have a negative 5 degree setting.  Other than working on a treadmill and varying the elevation, I

really like the Versa Climber. This device allows me to work both my arms and legs as if I was climbing a ridge or cliff, like Webster Cliff in the White Mountains.  I carry my day pack when I use this device.  It's the only piece of equipment that I've used that I feel gets me somewhat ready for New Hampshire and Maine.

Most of my training in Maryland is at several of the local State Parks.  Patapsco Valley State Park and Rosaryville State Park are my two favorites and both are within 40 minutes of my home.  PVSP provides some degree of elevation and some of the trails are rocky too.  Rosaryville State Park is an 11 mile loop and trail is mostly for mountain bikes and horses.  Both parks have their advantage and being close make them ideal to work on getting my legs, knees, and hips back in shape each year.   Yes, I am basically re-training my body each year I hike, but I've found that in the past 2 years muscle memory in my legs and lungs come back much sooner.

My routine is as much outside and on trails as much as possible with Golds Gym being a fallback for rainy or real cold weather.  I always begin my training with my Osprey day pack and always start out carrying 1 1/2 liters to 2 liters of water.  I always have my rain jacket, wool gloves and wool hat just in case and of course snacks.

Day 1 is always a 2 to 3 mile walk in my local park in Crofton.  My our Town-home I can walk to the park on the side streets and then its a short walk through the woods to the asphalt trail the runs around the entire park.  If the grass isn't too wet I will walk around one of the football fields and angle walk up and down the small hill behind the field.  Yes, I carry my Black Diamond snap trekking poles but only use them going up or down and not when its level.
Day 2 is the same as Day 1 but I may add another 1/2 mile.
Day 3 I head to PVSP and start a climb off the asphalt road near the dam.  The climb is only 300 feet and it normally takes me 5 to 7 minutes.  Most of the time I take 1 short stop to catch my breath but lately I've been able to make this short climb without stopping.  We'll see if this is true in 2017.  I try to hike at least 4 miles and I generally take a short sit down break after the 1st hour.
Day 4 I head to Rosaryville State Park, trying to avoid weekends as there is a lot of mountain bike traffic on weekends.  There isn't much elevation in the park and the path is pretty much rock free.  This gives me a chance to pick up my pace and I try to hike at least 6 miles, hiking in about 3 miles and then turning around and hiking out.
My 5th day is my do nothing day and sometimes early in my hiking conditioning I will also take off day 6 too.

On day 7 I am back in PVSP and I am hiking 6 to 8 miles.
Day 8 I hike in Rosaryville again and also try for 7 to 8 miles.
My routine with these two parks continue for 2 to 3 weeks and I will use the Versa Climber as part of my routine a month before I head to NH or ME as I want my legs ready for the tough terrain up there.

Last year I wanted to do some conditioning around Harpers Ferry, but never seem to find the time.  It's about 2 to 2 1/2 hours drive to Harpers Ferry and there are two areas I feel would be good training for NH and ME.  The first one is hiking the AT from the parking lot near US 340 heading south across the bridge and up to Loudoun Heights and the MD/WV border.  Its only 2+ miles but I get to climb 700 feet over those 2 miles.

The other is from the parking area on Weverton Road, hiking north and up Weverton Cliff to the Ed Garvey Shelter.  Its only 3 miles with a 600 foot climb.  I could hike Loudoun Heights on the first day, spend a night at a Hostel and then hike Weverton Cliff on day 2 and head home.  I will consider this before my NH hiking in July of 2017.

Part of my training is to cut down on the size of the portions I eat and to make sure I have plenty of fluids in my body before I hike each day.  I've discovered that when I drink between 12 to 20oz of water or Gatorade before I hike I don't get as tired during the day.  On training days when I've not hydrated I am more tired at the end of my hike.  This is especially true on the backpacking hikes in the morning before we start.  I now always carry Gatorade power with me.

Taking a day or two off every 5 days works for me as at 75 and about to be 76 next April I need more time to recover and rest.  This training routine works for me as I never want to push myself too fast to get ready for Section Hiking each year.  The more time I allow my body to get in shape the better I tend to do when I hike.

In conclusion, find a training method that works for you and your age and then modify it as needed.  If you are younger than me you will not need as much time to get your body ready to hike each year and always listen to what you body tells you.  Last year after about 2 hours of hiking my left ankle felt sore and I had to stop and check it out.  After several hikes I decided to use my "flexible" ankle braces and I wear them on the outside of my hiking socks.  I ankles feel better and its all because they have more support when I hike.  I wore them everyday hiking in the Whites of NH and in ME and they provided me the additional stability I needed.  I remove the braces as soon as my hike is completed.