AT in 7 weeks or less

“New record - pretty amazing, but not on my to do list.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/08/02/2497747/one-step-at-a-time-for-46-days.html

Averaging 46 miles and 6,000-7,000 calories a day, an Asheville woman on Sunday finished the fastest-ever thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail.

Jennifer Pharr Davis, 28, put in 15-18 hour days on the 2,181-mile trail to set an unofficial speed record of 46 days, 11 hours and 20 minutes when she reached the summit of Springer Mountain, Ga.

Traditional hikers carrying full backpacks with food, tents and sleeping bags take 5-7 months to traverse the Maine-to-Georgia footpath.

Pharr Davis employed a support team led by her husband, Brew Davis, which met her at road crossings and provided food, water and a tent. That enabled her to hike sometimes with just a small pack containing water bottles, energy bars and cell phone.

She said she didn't run or jog, averaging three miles an hour through some of the most rugged terrain in the East.

"It wasn't about speed or strength," a groggy Pharr Davis said Monday while recuperating at a friend's cabin in Georgia, "but about endurance and being smart and being tough."

The steep climbs and five million steps beat up her body. "I'm exhausted and I'm aching. It feels like I'm recovering from surgery," she said.

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy, which oversees the footpath, doesn't recognize speed records. They're based on an honor system. Pharr Davis beat her own 2008 female hiker record for the trail by 11 days and eclipsed the male hiker record set in 2005 by one day.

As a child, Pharr Davis spent time on her grandparents' farm in Cabarrus County and has authored two guidebooks. "Best Easy Day Hikes Charlotte" came out in 2010 and "Best Hikes Near Charlotte" comes out in October.

The 6-foot, 140-pound woman began her trek June 15 on Mount Katahdin in Maine with a 56-mile day. "The Appalachian Trail has always been a very special place for me," she said. "I decided I wanted go back and see how quickly I could do it."

She suffered painful shin splints the first week, got hypothermia from wind and sleet in Vermont and came down with diarrhea in New Hampshire.

On her home stretch last weekend, she started at 2:45 a.m. She put in 60 miles on Saturday, and another 36 on Sunday. When she reached Springer Mountain, the 45 family members and friends who greeted her brought on a flood of tears from Pharr Davis.

"It's hard for me to wrap myself around it," she said. "I never thought about the enormity of the 60-mile day. The key for me was taking it one step at a time.”

“Not knocking her achievement but she had an excellent support group of friends and her husband. All she carried besides herself were her trekking poles and a liter of fluids. Her hubby had a hotel room waiting for her at the end of each day but even then she went up to 4 days W/O a shower because of 5a.m starts and 10p.m finishes.

As ped said not my hike but it was no walk in the park...that is a bunch of miles to do everyday.”

“True Sticks. There is a big difference between a supported and an unsupported hike and it would be unfair to compare her time with any backpacker's time.

Still, I'd be surprised if I could do it in twice the time even with that kind of support.”

“There are supported and unsupported categories. Unsupported means different things to different people.

What she accomplished is stunning. She had to have the right combination of genetics, experience, preparation, support, and luck to pull this off. The stars were all aligned.

What gets me is that she had to endure that recent heat wave in the east, just when she was getting to the south.

She attacked the task differently that others before her. She took it slower (~3mph moving average with very little running) but stayed moving for 15-18 hours per day.

Expect some of the big boys to make a run at this next year. Karl (Speedgoat Karl) Meltzer will be the preseason fave. IMO, he could knock several days off the record if his health holds. Shin splints in the Whites thwarted his previous attempt.
last edited: 8/02/11 3:27:21 PM”

“She never could have done one of those days on my knees.

Besides, it don't count without 85 pounds on your back all the way.

I might support it if the entire support team had hike with her all the way.”

“60 miles in one day?

Holy guacamole!”

“Our own resident 32oz has done more than that in one day. But he wasn't on a 47 day trip!

I think her trek was an amazing physical accomplishment.”

“I think it is pretty incredible. I think anyone running that far on flat ground in that amount of time would be remarkable. Think about it. More than 46 marathons in as many days in the mountains.”

“my biggest mileage day (24) would barely qualify as a half day for her”

“Highly impressive and I'm not knocking the effort (in total or the daily max), but it was all a slackpack...”

“I'm amazed. I'd be so hammered after one of her days.”

“That's true techntrek, but she wasn't trying to portray this as anything other than a long series of day hikes. But I understand your point.”

“Let me clarify that - I haven't read anywhere that she claims to have backpacked the whole thing in 47 days.

Some news reports, like the one above, are calling this a thru-hike. In my opinion, this wasn't a thru-hike. This was a long series of days hikes. I think a thru hike is completing the whole trail in one season carrying what you need on your back.”

“Wow. I've never walked 60 miles in one day in my life, let alone day after day.

When your goal is to do a hike as fast as possible, I think a lot of what makes backpacking fun, for me personally, like no real agenda, no stress, take it as it comes, stop and smell the roses, etc., kinda goes out the window.

Still, quite an accomplishment and just to throw another cliche into this response: hike your own hike.”

“In this article, she calls this "speed hiking".

http://www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2011/04/jennifer-pharr-davis-hoping-thru-hike-appalachian-trail-record-time7955

Still an amazing accomplishment!”

“CD - " I think a thru hike is completing the whole trail in one season carrying what you need on your back"

90% of "thru-hikers" that slacked on their trip are crying over that............”

“What is your definition of a thru hike??”

“Passing 99+% of the white blazes in a season. The rest is HYOH

Pack means nothing
Direction means nothing
Order means nothing

It is the uncommon thru-hiker that carries their own pack the whole way. I've read enough journals to figure that out.

My personal plans would be to hike in the northerly direction the whole time, but that is just me.

There are "supported" and "unsupported" unofficial records. Unsupported can mean different things to different people. Supported is pretty much anything goes. It's all good.

One can enjoy and jog in the park and enjoy the speed of Usain Bolt. It's not an either/or thing.”

“For the most part, I agree with you. I have been reading journals as well, for at least a decade, and I am aware that most thru hikers slackpack at least some miles at some point. Nothing wrong with that and I don't think it blows your thru-hike to do so.

Maybe there should be two definitions:

Thru-hike with a pack; and thru-hike with out a pack.”

“Call it whatever you want, she did it in the least amount of time. Period. I give her kudos for that.”

“So do I.”

“"Supported" is akin to a NASCAR style of hiking. Go into the pits, take on fuel and water, new tires, and keep going.

Certainly not a drive in the country, but it ain't suppose to be. It is a challenge an individual decides to do, whether that be for a personal best or a record.

I enjoyed reading her adventure. I have total admiration for what she did. I certainly would not want to do it nor could I.”

“What she did was stunning whatever you call it. I call it thru-hiking because she hiked through the whole AT. It's not backpacking, but it is an awesome achievement.

Biggest bit of butt hauling I ever did on the AT was the 29 miles over Lincoln, Lafayette, Garfield and Zealand from I-93 to Rt 302 in one day. I did that as a day hike.

I agree that most AT thru-hikers seem to slack pack at some point. There were a couple days in southern Maine where I met more slack packing through hikers than I did ones with a full pack.”

“In what little I have read of her blog she never did this to take away from other people that have and will thruhike the AT. It was entirely a personal goal...nothing more nothing less. I don't understand what the argument is.

She decided to do it and she did it. Plain and simple.”

“I don't think anyone is arguing, just noting that she didn't carry a pack. On any day. Many here have said it was a cool achievement.”

“Jennifer Pharr Davis short interview in the rag.
http://www.backpacker.com/destinations/15830”