Kelly Floro

lthough my gear setup worked overall pretty well this summer on the Great Divide Trail, I also managed several facepalm-inducing gear fails, all of which I paid for in money, time, and pointless suffering on the trail. From forgetting (or convincing myself I could do without) certain basic necessities to choosing items that were not durable enough for the rigors of a notoriously rugged trail, I made far too many mistakes in my packing list this year. ...

I often tell people the key to thru-hiking success is to want your thru-hike more than anything — your desire to keep going must be strong enough to carry you through even the hardest days, when the immediate misery of cold rain, hunger, loneliness, etc. makes quitting seem like a genius idea.

hich part of your thru-hike will be the hardest? Will it be the halfway point, when the honeymoon phase is wearing off? The end, when your energy stores are likely to be running low? In reality, many hikers find that it’s none of those: their hardest time on trail is week one. It makes sense if you think about it. Week one is when your romantic notions of thru-hiking run up against the harsh reality of long, ...

T he thru-hiker who died on the PCT Thursday in what officials described as a “medical emergency” has been publicly identified as 43-year-old Ian Maclurg of San Diego. Maclurg was a blogger and Trail Correspondent for The Trek who was tackling the PCT as part of a long-term plan to complete the Triple Crown.

inding enough time off work to thru-hike a long trail is an early hurdle that derails many would-be thru-hikers’ dreams. While some leave their jobs, wait for retirement, or take advantage of a career gap to hit the trail, everyone wants the holy grail: to get enough time off to thru-hike, without quitting. Tabitha DeShane-Kirby aims to do exactly that, and even plans to take it a step further by requesting a paid sabbatical and sponsorship for her 2028 Appalachian Trail thru-hike. ...

T he war in Iran and subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz have had ripple effects across the globe. Although it pales in comparison to the cost in human lives and broader economic disruptions, hikers who already have 2026 trips on the books are probably wondering: could the conflict impact backpacking plans this year?

A popular Appalachian Trail thru-hiker hostel in southern Virginia says its sign was vandalized last week — for the second time. Huckleberry's Hostel is located in Catawba, Virginia, near the iconic Dragon's Tooth.

uthorities are investigating after a group of hikers discovered human remains in Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest near the town of Mount Tabor late last month. The hikers contacted police on April 25 after discovering what appeared to be human foot bones inside a partially buried pair of hiking boots in a boggy area of the national forest. Troopers responded at the scene and did not initially find any additional remains, but on May 4th, a more extensive search aided by North Country Search Dogs and US Forest Service personnel turned up additional human remains nearby. ...

F rom Springer Mountain in Georgia to Damascus, Virginia, the Appalachian Trail winds through more than 470 miles of the South: grassy balds, rhododendron tunnels, rugged peaks, verdant valleys, salamanders, misty mountains, Cherokee heritage, Civil War history, and small towns worth slowing down for. With that much trail to love, how do you choose where to start?

T he US Forest Service is spraying growing amounts of the herbicide glyphosate in California national forests, according to a report published in the May/June edition of Mother Jones.