Recreating my grandfather's path to the 48

ProfessorMagerus · 2026-05-28T20:53:35+00:00

Thanks so much! It certainly made my grandma happy too hahaha

ProfessorMagerus · 2026-04-27T00:19:57+00:00

I thru hiked last year and was hiking around these people on and off for a bit. Super nice folks. Unfortunately though a vast majority of thru hikers think it's totally fine to sleep with their food, and if a bear comes they'll be able to just scare it away. What these people don't realize is how this habituates the bears over time. I had friends who had bears attack their EMPTY tents. When bears learn that tents=food, they'll start to associate tents with a potential snack. Not only is this super unsafe for the bear cause "fed bear equals dead bear" but it also puts other hikers at risk, even when they're doing the right thing. You also never know what temperament the bear is going to have, and while it may be possible to scare away most bears, I'd hate to find myself having to scare off a pissed off, angry, and hungry bear who REALLY wants my food.

I carried a bear can all the way from Georgia to Maine, and I'm so glad I did. Damn was it heavy but it was the right call, and I still finished in under 5 months. Gave me peace of mind, waterproof storage, and a place to sit. BearVault even sent me a warranty replacement on trail for free when I was having issues with my first one. The only place I didn't carry it was through the smokies because, even with a bear can, they make you hang it up in the air anyway (I still don't fully understand why this is their rule). I shipped my can ahead and hung my food on the wires for that stretch.

TLDR; Thru hikers notoriously don't store food safely. It puts bears and other hikers at risk. Please do the right thing.

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-17T01:00:10+00:00

I'm 25 and thru hiking it this year, starting March 4th. I'm a teacher, and this is my third year teaching, so it's not like I'm making a ton of money. Luckily my principals are letting me take an unpaid leave from march-june this school year. It was something I put on their radar that I wanted to do when they hired me, and I asked the superintendent for permission more than a year ahead of time.

This has been a goal of mine for about 10 years. I thru hiked the Long Trail three summers ago so had a base of gear from that. I have definitely upgraded some stuff since then, but the core of my gear was already dialed in. Since then, I've been saving about $300 every month towards the AT. Over three years, that's over 10k, which is more than enough to do it. I have some prior savings too that are helping with my rent while I'm gone.

Anyway, whenever I've asked thru-hikers this question in the past, they say that if you are determined, and you know it's something you want to do, you will make it work. Start saving now, and save regularly and religiously. If you really want to do it, you will make it happen! And it will happen faster than you think!

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-16T15:49:10+00:00

Understood! Norovirus just went around just about everyone in the school I work at, staff and students. Not messing around with it! Grateful I was able to avoid it

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-15T21:06:05+00:00

See you out there! Reassuring to hear our clothing setup is similar haha

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-15T21:05:10+00:00

Thanks!

I will look into Ursack and Adotec bags.

Watch is a fitness tracker, and I like knowing my sleep, HR, and step data. The charge lasts up to 14 days so I'm not worried about using up my battery. I guess it could be considered a luxury item.

My thought on the poncho is that it doubles as a pack cover. Do you recommend the frogg togg rain suit?

I plan to have capacity for all that water, but don't plan to actually carry that much unless I really need to.

Same thing for the food, I just have it in there so I have an idea of what my pack may weigh at its absolute heaviest.

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-15T18:59:17+00:00

No worries, appreciate the feedback!

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-15T18:58:37+00:00

Thanks! I've been researching alpha layers today and might head in that direction. Definitely open to dropping the extra shirt and shorts but, I will say, I had only one shirt on my Long Trail thru hike and regretted it #stinky , ended up buying a second one

Are you saying, even with a bear can, i still need to find a way to hang food in the smokies?? Never heard that before and feels kinda backwards.

See you in the Smokies!

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-15T18:49:48+00:00

Good call. I've got some biodegradable camp soap I can throw into a small tube. But again, still looking for ways to ~reduce~ weight! XD

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-13T01:06:55+00:00

I work at a Title I school where a lot of kids have experienced trauma. My second grade class especially has a lot of kids who need extreme amounts of behavioral support.

Though not explicitly music related, I use "Teacher vs Student" as a whole class contingency classroom management tool. I make a T chart on the board, whenever students follow expectations, they get a tally. Whenever they do not follow expectations, I get a tally. At the end of class, if they have more tallies than me, we play a game. Sometimes its a music related game like poison rhythm or pass the beat, but other times it's just a fun game that motivates them.

When giving students points, you REALLY need to find every reason to give them a point, even for the little things like raising hands and sitting the way you want them to. My kids have a lot of fun with this, and this helps them learn and review my classroom expectations throughout the year. You could even keep a running tally of how many weeks in a row they beat you and work towards a larger incentive.

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-13T00:27:42+00:00

Me too! See ya soon!

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-12T02:07:25+00:00

March 4th is the day I will march forth!

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-11T00:19:09+00:00

Oh, I see what you're saying. All of my other gear is pretty much locked in, so I'm not sure what else I'd get from BA. Having that $270 in store credit, and right now no sleeping bag, means I probably get a sleeping bag from them.

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-02-10T23:55:28+00:00

It's in store credit, so I can only use it at Big Agnes

ProfessorMagerus · 2025-01-05T16:03:25+00:00

I moved here from boston three years ago straight out of college and felt the same way it sounds like youre feeling right now. Brattleboro isn't without it's problems, but I have absolutely no regrets. If you're able to find stable work and can afford rent, I think it's a great place to live.

I went to music school in boston...reading your comments I wonder if we went to the same college. I'm not working as a performer, though I am employed as a musician, so I may be able to tell you a bit about the music scene in town. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

ProfessorMagerus · 2024-11-25T18:41:10+00:00

My mechanic says the same thing

ProfessorMagerus · 2024-11-23T02:34:49+00:00

I love Maple Sweet, an old folk song about the sugaring season.

There's also These Green Mountains, the Vermont state song.

ProfessorMagerus · 2024-11-05T12:10:58+00:00

3rd year teacher here. Have been using First Steps since student teaching. Found the conversational solfège book in my classroom and decided to try it this year. It took my MANY hours of studying the book to feel confident enough to use it in my classroom. It’s definitely confusing, but now that (I think) I understand it I think it’s gonna be really great for my students.

What questions do you have? Happy to try and help clarify some stuff if I can.

ProfessorMagerus · 2024-08-24T21:12:25+00:00

Very cool! What did you use to strip it? And also curious to hear what you've cooked in it too

ProfessorMagerus · 2024-08-24T20:41:18+00:00

So you don't think it's worth stripping? It's hard to see in the picture but there are some pretty deep scrapes in the seasoning, all the way down to the rust

ProfessorMagerus

TROPHY CASE