Ho and Hum: "Geezer Hikers"

They may be self-described "Geezer Hikers" but brothers Ho and Hum showed fortitude and determination when they section hiked on the Long Trail this past August. They are pictured here at the Long Trail parking lot in Johnson all set to commence their 5-day hike southbound to Jonesville. Next they hiked northbound from App Gap to Duxbury Road, and then topped off their adventures with an 11.6 mile Lincoln Gap to App Gap day hike. You can listen to Ho and Hum describe how they decided to do these hikes, what went into their preparation, and what their hikes were like. They even throw in the lessons they learned about the Long Trail, equipment, camping, ... and each other. Thanks, guys, for sharing! Enjoy and listen at longtrailpodcast.com .

Update: Ho and Hum's trip report (with photos) is now available online at Long Trail Hiking .
Update December 2010: Ho and Hum continued their LT adventures in 2010.  Read about their brotherly hikes online, including Bennington to Mad Tom Notch and Lincoln Gap to Lincoln Peak at http://www.longtrailhiking.info/webboard/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=502 .

Gaps in Long Trail Trivia

The Long Trail passes through many "gaps", eleven in all including Lincoln Gap at the base of Mount Abraham (sign pictured). And several "passes" too. Can you name these? How about the names of the five peaks over 4000' that host the trail? The four lookout towers? Bone up on your Long Trail knowledge by learning the answers to these questions and much more by checking out our new "Long Trail Oddities and Trivia" page at http://www.longtrailpodcast.com/oddtriv.shtml . You'll even soak up some trivia that's bound to stick with you during your hikes along the 272 miles of white blazes. Enjoy your mental journey!

Planning a Summer Thru Hike (updated 2010)

Flashback: It's early on the morning of July 21, 2003, and Rough and Tumble (that's us) have hiked up the Pine Cobble and Appalachian Trails from Williamstown, Massachusetts. We're standing at the Long Trail Southern Terminus sign on the Vermont-Massachusetts border, ready to start our thru hike. All the planning is complete, drop boxes distributed, gear selected and practiced with, and conditioning hikes finished. With great anticipation and a touch of trepidation, we're about to take our first steps on the Long Trail on our way to the Canadian border.
You can take advantage of some of our experiences before starting your own end-to-end by listening to our podcast "Planning a Summer Thru Hike of the Long Trail" at longtrailpodcast.com . Don't forget your camera ... and have a great hike!

Self-prepared Trail Meals

There they are - the finished products. Tumble's prepared trail meals are stacked up and ready to go into our re-supply boxes and backpacks prior to our Long Trail end-to-end hike. She made enough meals for our planned 38 days on the trail, put them in ziplock bags, and labeled them with instructions and their individual weights.

Listen to her podcast "Preparing Your Own Trail Meals - for vegans and non-vegans" and you'll learn how she did it, including tips on your trail kitchen, what foods to carry, cooking, and determining your serving size. She made it look easy and so can you.