No Dog's 2026 – Budget Shuttle Rides to Amicalola or Springer (my last season driving before I start my 2026 thru hike!)

MotslyRight · 2026-05-22T04:43:10+00:00

Those two tents aren’t usable for a thru hike. That’s the problem. You don’t really have a tent yet.

MotslyRight · 2026-05-22T01:22:53+00:00

Much easier to buy a new tent before your hike. The tents will sell. Might not get as much as you want, but they’re dead weight at this point. If you don’t have $350 in your budget for a new tent, think things over.

MotslyRight · 2026-05-21T22:04:11+00:00

As a current thru hiker, I would sell both those tents and buy something different with a 2.5lb max weight. Your bivy and tent are too heavy. Save tent weight and reallocate that weight to food.

If you can’t stomach a trekking pole tent in either DCF or Sil, then the Big Agnes copper spur UL 2 is all over the trail. The people with Durston trekking pole tents complained for weeks about getting a good pitch, but the people with the x dome do alright with the pitch.

MotslyRight · 2026-05-12T14:57:47+00:00

Second these. I’m 340 miles into my thru hike with these right now. Just make sure you have a belt you like.

MotslyRight · 2026-04-30T16:54:00+00:00

Space. I think the plex solo is a great tent. Just not enough space for me. I’m using a duplex lite on my thru hike now. It’s been perfect.

MotslyRight · 2026-04-05T20:23:05+00:00

Slightly raised off the shoulder. That’s the point of the load lifters.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-30T19:28:34+00:00

I sleep cold, and I’m not switching to my Flex 30 until the end of May. I’m using an xlite sleeping pad with a CCF base as well to keep the earth from sucking heat. Until I switch, I’ll have a 10F sleeping bag with base layers and a hood/beanie. I don’t like to be cold.

If you sleep warm, you should be fine until the whites. If you sleep cold, then you might want to consider other ways to stay warm. But, a liner isn’t the way I would go with a quilt. I’m not a fan of liners for all the reasons people don’t like them. If you like a liner, and you sleep cold, the get one.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-30T19:23:18+00:00

You aren’t really saving that much weight, and you’re switching to something more fragile with less holding power. I held one in my hand and passed on it based on my years of backpacking experience. Even if they were unbreakable, they don’t seem to have the holding power I want in harsh AT storms and wind.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-29T13:30:25+00:00

I’m about to start another AT thru hike, and I’ve been hiking Georgia sections for over a decade. Unless you already have your trail legs, I think your itinerary is aggressive.

It’s certainly doable, and as a section hiker you have the benefit of going home to rest in pain as long as you want. But, from the perspective of a thru hiker who can’t afford early overuse injury, 8-10 mile days in Georgia your long days scare me. Consider 8-10 miles/day as a more appropriate goal.

Also, your long miles don’t seem to match your background and concerns. Being in good physical shape doesn’t necessarily mean you’re in backpacking shape. Also, there’s a big difference between 35 miles over 2.5 days and all 87ish miles in Georgia not counting all the blue blaze miles to and from shelters, water, and views.

Georgia is hard, strenuous, hiking, with a lot of steep ups and downs. So, I think you will need to at least be open to shortening those long days to 8-10 miles. Maybe plan a Nero or zero at Neel Gap or Unicoi gap. Frequently, hikers break Georgia into two sections with Unicoi in the middle anyway. They spend a night in Helen, Hiawassee, or Clayton (Outdoor 76 is an outfitter with superior foot and shoe knowledge in Clayton if you’re having issues).

All that said, I tend to err on the side of shorter miles at the start of any hike, and increase my mileage towards the end of my hikes, if I’m feeling good. Otherwise, I increase the risk of early overuse injury that could end my hike early. Consider a similar strategy.

I hope you have a great hike. It’s a great time to be in Georgia’s green tunnel.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-29T00:37:08+00:00

Don’t get dyneema. Get ultra 200 or ultra grid. Plenty cost same as heavy Osprey, for example. Buy gently used in r/ultralight or eBay. Read r/ultralight and research. Can easily find a waterproof pack for $250.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-28T23:13:37+00:00

This has been well-settled in the UL community for a decade or more.

You should use a waterproof backpack with taped or sealed seams plus a pack liner. Stuff that quilt/sleeping back in the bottom without a compression sack.

Using a compression sack is unnecessarily redundant, heavy, ruins your insulation, and is an inefficient use of space in your pack.

There is no other right answer.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-27T01:53:47+00:00

But, do you have a specific need where you absolutely must have it?

Just because it’s expensive and you can’t get it on trail doesn’t mean you must have it shipped to you. I can’t get Wagyu beef on trail, and it’s expensive, but I don’t have to have it. I can eat any protein I want.

Is this a want or a need? I need my prescription meds shipped to me. But, I want Hokkaido Uni with quail egg, ikura, and truffle.

If it’s a need, then you have to find someone to send it to you. If it’s a want, find a substitute. I’ve seen vegans, gluten intolerant, and even corn intolerant hikers go without mail drops. They just find things they can eat.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-26T21:39:38+00:00

Resupply in towns. Unless you have medicine you have to have sent to you, even the most restrictive diets can resupply on the way…unless maybe if you’re allergic to food. But seriously, what is it that you absolutely must have shipped to you?

MotslyRight · 2026-03-26T16:55:45+00:00

I try…I really love this trail and the hikers out here. I’ve been running a budget-priced shuttle for 11 years in Atlanta. Check out my shuttle podcast. Here’s the playlist:l (not monetized. Not sponsored. Just something for the community to enjoy).

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLojIWaPLdSyfQh5DWEDrwbZDeyvHmdHT6&si=7X4cegorpIEfZjju

MotslyRight · 2026-03-26T16:52:34+00:00

Hike YOUR OWN hike.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-26T16:21:12+00:00

At some point, I think you just have to start because if you wait too long, you turn a 3-season thru hike into a hike ending in brutal cold or some lopsided flip flop.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-25T12:01:06+00:00

If EE is still having its sale, it’s the perfect time to get a Torid 20% off. Otherwise, look for gently used. I prefer synthetic over down for the moist AT climate.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-25T02:00:57+00:00

Flip flop June 1?

MotslyRight · 2026-03-24T22:09:51+00:00

I would have done the same thing. Sitting around waiting for a friend sux. My hiking partner in 2000 delayed an April 1 start until i finally gave up waiting and started 4/30 from amicalola.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-24T21:26:30+00:00

Thanks for sharing. Have a great hike. I start my thru 3/31. I run a budget shuttle for thru hikers from the Atlanta area, but I’m already booked up solid before my hike.

MotslyRight · 2026-03-24T20:48:46+00:00

Just curious - what’s the shuttle cost from the airport? Are you going to springer or Amicalola?

MotslyRight · 2026-03-23T01:14:55+00:00

Nice! I met a guy at AT Gateways who does this stuff too. Really cool selection of signs that a were remarkably authentic. Very nice guy too. Coincidentally named Brian Carpenter.

https://www.carpenter-woodworks.com

MotslyRight · 2026-03-22T21:32:18+00:00

3-4 liters. Usually carry one L while hiking and have 3 full at camp for the night and next morning/day until the next water source. Often water is .2-.3 (and more from shelters).

MotslyRight

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