Great choice on the quilt. I have a 20 deg EE Enigma and 40 deg Revelation. Been using for 7 years now on my AT section hikes. I went with the wide pad same as yours and definitely don’t regret it. Take real good care of those inflatables. I hope you have the patch kit with you.

"Don't watch my KZfaq if you're looking for advice...." HA! I love it. Good luck. You're going to do great.

Thank you. I love hearing from somebody who does not think they’re an expert and does not have a lot of experience. It makes me feel like this is actually a possibility.

Audrey on the At

W❤️W! That’s Lovely! Cheers for more awesome and incredible adventures!🥂❤️✨

Your humor has me hooked. I'll be following.

Over compensate for night time warmth. Hiking warmth is typically not a problem as you can regulate with layers as you hike. But, being cold at night means your next day's hike will suffer. Also, go over to Zenbivy and get a sheet for your pad. Their sheets are part of a system that has a built in down hoodie that holds your pillow in place better than the elastic strap provided with your pillow. Several temp options available. But, sleeping on a sheet is so much nicer than sleeping on the raw surface of the air pad. At least check out what they have. I have no affiliation but once I found their system, I found it to absolutely be the best! Good luck.

Congratulations on your journey! You'll be fine provided you 1. Start slow and 2. Don't take yourself seriously! Enjoy yourself!😁😁

Have the same tent but bought the BA footprint that matches the tent. With that footprint u can set up the rain fly first and then setup the tent from inside much like a European tent. When the precipitation is pouring down u can keep your inner tent dry during setup and tear down for a few more ounces of weight. It works. Use that method on the Colorado trail when the afternoon or evening thunderstorms came pouring down.

No one is born an expert, you are taking the steps and putting your mind to it is the biggest step. I'm going to follow you on your endeavor! "Where your fear is, there is your task", Carl Jung

I love that your mom keeps bugging you about using your tent. She wants you to succeed!

I have a Big Agnes Fly Creek also! ☺️ HV UL 1 with the footprint which allows the fly to be set up first, then the inner is clipped in from inside. It's a little tricky and worth practicing because it could be useful when you have to set up in rain. I haven't used mine on trail yet either but have set it up at home and it seems great. I've used front entry tents before and it's never been a problem. I like that it doesn't need a big space and is light for a freestanding nylon tent. I've heard that the Fly Creek may not be the best in windy conditions, but if you guy it out well, it should be ok. Looking forward to following your adventure!

You really inspired me with the quote “A Goal without a Plan is only a Dream.”, in your other video. Love it!

You will do great out there, we humans are capable of a lot more than we realize ourselves. Will it be hard?, it absolutely will be. Facing big challenges in life are what create the best memories. Get to know your equipment and all will be well. Good luck on your endeavors

I'm glad you're practicing setting everything up, the more the better until it becomes second nature and you can do it exhausted, in the dark and in the rain. Your team won, congrats! It was a great game. God Bless.

I was born in NH, but from 4yo to 19yo I lived in MO, and was there a few times throughout my 20s for a year or two each time. I lived in lots of places, but none had the high humidity MO did. Even VA Beach and Norfolk (lived in both places for a total of 13 years) were no where near as bad as MO. You'll be fine. 🙂

Hi Audrey! I came across your channel while looking for an AT thru hike to watch… I generally find 1 or 2 people to watch each year because I’m obsessed with the AT. I’m very much looking forward to watching your journey. If I may offer you some words of comfort that may (or may not) help you with any concerns you may have regarding never spending a night on the trail… Simply know that you are not the first, and you certainly will not be the last, to embark on this great adventure with very little experience. Many, many have come before you, and many will come after you. You are NOT alone in your particular experience group. Regardless of your experience level, your success on this adventure of a lifetime is 100% up to you. One foot in front of the other, take the good with the bad, never out of the fight. I can’t wait to follow along and see you wrap your arms around that sign atop Mt Katadhin!!! Godspeed to you, and have fun!!

A shakedown in the back yard is a great starting point to test out new gear!

I love the adventure of taking on something new; it's not a lack of experience that gets you, it's forgetting common sense. I think you'll do well, and if you've watched Dixie, you had a good trainer. Looking forward to watching your travels. PS- Thanks for the math answer, I'll use it on my next test.

Don't worry about being inexperienced. Once you do the first 100 miles, you will know everything u need to know. A thru hike is just doing 100 miles, 20 more times. To give you an idea how far that AT thru hike is, look at a full moon. The diameter of the moon is 2159 miles. Hiking the AT is equivalent to walking across that full moon.

Two words of advise. Practice your camp setup in the dusk/dark nit just tent but stove/kitchen also. Second have 2 sets of your preferd hiking shoes broke in. The second pair on standby ready to ship when/ if they are needed. Have a fun trip. My first attempt did not go as planned and wasnt able to through hike it. I finished it the next year then 2 years later thru hiked it. Have fun and enjoy making new friends on the trail.

You are very driven and earnest . Best of luck on your odyssey. I look forward to your reports.

Hi Audrey. Found your channel researching for my own hike. I’m so glad the bone broth arrived. I will send more from your list as you get closer to hike day and on trail. May it bless your journey and inspire you to pay it forward 😊

Good luck! Hope to hit the AT in 3 years time. Will follow your hike with great interest. Thoroughly enjoyed watching the Super Bowl with friends here in Perth 🇦🇺. Great win for the Chiefs!

I used the same quilt, pillow, pad and the 3-person version of your tent, because I brought my pup along for the first two months and wanted the extra room! The pad only got one hole in it (in NY) but I was easily able to patch it up. Good luck to you, you got this!!

Hiking the A.T. helped restore my faith in humanity. You are going to have plenty of time in your own head, don't worry you are going to meet some of the best people you will ever meet. You are going to learn a lot about yourself and the kindness of others. Let the magic happen. Best wishes and enjoy the Moment. Listen to your body. Every moment is a teaching or a learning moment. Saint Nick 2018

Hi Audrey. Ur right about Dixie she is an amazing through hiker and adventurer but it’s ur turn now. It’ll be fun to watch ur videos. I’ll also be watching Stella hikes. Take good care

The only experience I had before going out on my AT hike was a one week trip to the Grand Canyon with my college outdoor club. I would say that a little (a few nights) of backpacking can be very helpful but you will still learn a lot and change things as you go on a through hike.

Great video! Best of luck on the trail. Good idea to try everything out. Crow✌️

Good luck Audrey! It appears you know your gear well enough to use. With a tent like that, you don't really need a ground sheet. Getting experience in all types of conditions will give you a greater comfort level but it looks like you know enough to get started. Maybe you don't know if you're a cold or warm sleeper, how often you get up in the night to pee, the best way to setup in the rain, etc. but you'll be a pro within a month, I suspect. Attitude is everything and if you're willing to "go with the flow" and "embrace the suck" then I'm betting you'll have a great AT experience.

You will be as good as Dixie. What will your trail name be? If you don't pick one someone will pick it for you. I have no ideas for you but I will be watching your progress up the trail. You have much potential for many subscribers. Just be yourself and don't hide your emotions from the camera. Ta ta

The day I started the trail in 2015 I had never slept outside in a tent or hammock in my life. I never fully packed my gear(55lbs!) and hiked with it. I LOVE the adventure of not knowing but I knew myself and I knew I could figure it out. SOOO many people that I started with that did like me quit within a week. So, it’s not recommended. I did finish the trail BUT not before I broke my foot with a stress fracture from carrying way too much gear. I had to take 8 weeks off and I lost my trail family in that time. I had hiked for about 800 miles so I had already had time to make a little trail family. The grief from losing them was way worse than my foot. Something I never thought about before in my life being a loner type lol. I still talk to my trail fam very often even after 7-8 years. You seem like you are off in the right foot. You are actually preparing. That’s much more than many do. If you plan on starting in Baxter, I would start early as possible to beat the huge crowds. Things can get a bit crowded and gross if you know what I mean. The hostels will be full, the privy’s will be full, the trail magic will be thinner with less to go around. Just a thought. If you need any help at all just ask. I love to help people prep for the trail.

HI Audey! You will learn a lot in a very short amount of time on trail. From what I have read/seen the AT has a lot of places to take breaks. The PCT is a bit rougher and the CDT even more so. I like your sense of humor! You're in for a big adventure! Keep hydrated and those feet healthy!

Loved your expression at the Beach Closed sign and your dry humor about solving for X. Should be an fun ride to follow you on your hike. Good luck!

You got this; it ain't brain surgery. There's a learning curve, but you will definitely figure it out.

I'm.trail maintainer on the Rollercoaster. Rattlesnakes will leave alone if you leave them alone. Bears.. same thing. I have had many bear encounters in SNP and all the bears have run away so fast it's dufficult to get picture.

Great sharing! Lot of love and respect from a solo mountain hiker friend from the Hindu Kush Mountains Lower Chitral District of Pakistan!

You still have time to practice. You have good gear. People on the trail are very friendly and are willing to help you if you have questions. Good Luck!

awesome,

You’ll be fine. You’re going to get all the experience you need on the trail.

Well you'd be an expert backpacker compared to me....others go thru several pairs of shoes so hope you got a good reliable light comfy pair to use..n yer chiefs did win today..gotta wait another year for my niners...have a great day.

I think you are going to get more experience in no time! I wish you luck, and keep going when the going gets rough

Every year I pick a handful of AT thru-hikers and follow along on KZfaq using my paper AWOL guidebook. This year, I’m adding you to my list. You seem like you’ve done your research even if you don’t have all the practical experience yet. Everyone has to start somewhere, right? Anyway, I want to recommend a couple of things. First, if you haven’t already, you should watch Evan’s Backpacking Videos trilogy on how to vlog a a thru-hike. Second, I want to ask you to let your viewers know where you start and end each day, whether in the video itself or somewhere in the title or description. It helps me immensely while I’m trying to follow along, and it may help you when you want to show certain videos to others when you get back. Finally, please put your day/episode number prominently in your title or thumbnail so it’s easy to watch the videos in the correct order. I wish you the best in your hike and I can’t wait for you to start! Good luck!

You are a delight to watch

You rooted for the right team then. Practice closeby setting up and using your gear. You will find some things that don't quite work as well as you'd like but it will give you time to work out the kinks. Everyone has to start somewhere. The best thing you can bring along is a good attitude and determination so that when the going gets rough...and it will....you will march on and accomplish a great challenge one step at a time. I brought that attitude along when I went backpacking and it always served me well. Advice from one former teacher to another.....You Go, Girl!!!!!

I just found you tody and ended up binge watching all your pre-AT videos. You seem to be very well prepared mentally, especially compared to several others starting this year. I'll be watch your progress as long as you remain on KZfaq. Good Luck on your adventure, stay upbeat, stay healthy and stay safe!

You are the best

I am so on board for your journey. I feel like I would approach this thru-hike the exact same way and now I don’t have to. I can just watch you! Best of luck and rooting hard for you to have an amazing experience.

You’ll do awesome, and you’ll be an inspiration to everyone else with zero experience!

I grew up in Jefferson county. I know mo summers. I worked outside in it all my life. You only have to worry about the bugs. When they are out then you should be covered. You are gonna do great. At least you know how to put up your tent. Some people don't do it till they get out to the trail.

I live in Northern VA. Summers are very warm here but if you hydrate, you should do OK. Basically, count on drinking constantly. I am more a bushcrafter than a thru hiker and have a background in environmental health and safety. I used to be the Site Safety Officer at haz mat remediation sites. I've also been a SI volunteer collecting fossils in the hills of Virginia and West Virginia in the summer. My standard measure is to drink at least a gallon of water per day for average activity, more for physical activity. The heat can really tire you. If you start early, you will adapt to the temperature ranges, just realize it can get hot and sunlight reflects off rocks. Areas in June/July/August with low altitude and bare rocks can be deceptive. Just my $0.02.

OMG you are so funny and who know we might meet but doubtful. Starting 5 March with my 3 military buddies. After we get to Franklin, they are hiking back to Springer while I continue my 100 day hike on the Appalachian Trail eh. Am I an expert hiker? Not like Dixie but I have a ton of experience plus various military course like winter survival and mountain evac. So many think a 58 cannot hike it under 100 days, but I am to prove everyone wrong. Happy Trails eh

Good luck on your journey. I hope to launch mine by 2025. I have a respectable amount of backpacking experience going back to the early 1980s, but I have never done a trip long enough to require resupply. I won't overwhelm you with tons of advice, but I will give you two bits of vital advice: 1) Use Vick's vapor rub on your feet. It will not only prevent blisters, but it will inhibit foot fungus, which can end your trip. I ran into a rookie AT flip-flopper in CT in 2019 who had trench foot. No joke, his feet smelled like Florida roadkill in July. I told him that if he was intent on sharing the shelter with the rest of us, he needed to contain the odor. It was horrible. He was a truly stupid guy, spilling food everywhere in bear country, broke his Sawyer bag for lack of flushing his filter and impatience, only to do it again with the spare I gave him. A true trail idiot. So I doubt he could complete even 800 miles, for one reason or another. 2) Don't eat the crap that most hikers eat. Too many carbs from grains will damage your liver. Your diet should consist of leafy greens, nuts, other vegetables, fresh or dried organic fruits, real eggs (which can be preserved by rubbing the shells with oil), un-processed meats, and then limited organic. carbs, in that order of most-to-least. Corn is a grain, btw. Dr. Berg's KZfaq channel is excellent for this knowledge. I found out the hard way that organic oatmeal and other starchy carbs were killing my liver and pancreas. If your stool is sloppy and oily, your liver and pancreas are in crisis from too many carbs. (All you will see in the AT privies is loose stool.) You will get non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. It is a slow, grueling death, if not reversed. Consume absolutely no fruit juices nor processed fruit snacks. Fruit without fiber will also kill your liver. It is junk. You don't have to take my word for it. There have been medical studies of young thru-hikers having the organ health of geriatrics by the time they finish the AT. It will cause permanent health issues. Besides the liver and pancreas issues from starchy carbs, you will get an explosion of candida fungus, which causes foot fungus, toenail fungus, and a white-ish tongue that will give you bad breath, especially if you have taken anti-biotics. Runaway candida also causes colon cancer. If it gets into your bloodstream, say from aggressive nail-trimming, you can die. Once you get toenail fungus, it is nearly impossible to rid yourself of it. It would be wise to do some crash courses on foraging. Edible greens are all over the AT. You just need to know how to identify them so you don't poison yourself. I plan to eat two large boxes of salad mix each day for every time I am resupplying. I also learned mushroom foraging, but that takes years to learn, lest you poison yourself, so I don't recommend you try it for this trip. Finish or not finish, you are going to experience a life-changing journey. It is so exciting. No doubt, it is transformative. I envy you. Happy trails.

We are excited to watch your journey. Loved how you explained your sleep system and hints for using it. You’ll do great!

Beach Closed…🧐😳😂 Good tent and sleep system, I think you’ll do fine and have a great time.

For colder nights, or if you turn over a lot, you'll probably want to use the side clips on the quilt. But they are meant to attach to straps you put around your mattress, not clip to each other. See the Enlightened Equipment video here: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/o66qobWhs7DUqIk.html

I'm very excited to see you progress to being an expert hiker! You can do it!

Audrey: You'll do just fine. It's all about the attitude and you seem to be fine there. However, you will need a trail name. If you don't pick one, a name will be given to you. I've seen some doozies like Patient Zero (brought norovirus into Standing Bear Hostel) and Urgent Cat Hole (oh my). Anyway, have a great hike. 🐧

How fun! Good luck on your adventure! You’ll figure everything out. Dixie had never been backpacking when she decided to do the AT and she made it! 🎉You got this 🤘🏻😎

That’s a nice set-up you have there. Best of luck on the trail!

It will be interesting to see how much you like thru hiking. When I started hiking, like everyone else, I glorified thru hiking and thought it would be the greatest thing since sliced bread. All the KZfaq Vloggers make it look so wonderful. However, after doing several long section hikes I quickly realized thru hiking was NOT for me. I got tired and bored and missed my friends and family. Hated feeling dirty, stinky and gross. Couldn't wait to take a good shower and sleep in my own bed. I soon figured out why so few hikers actually finish. It's physically and mentally exhausting. Hope it works out for you. Experience is golden. You'll catch on quickly once you start putting miles in each day. Good luck on your hike.

Should be a trip of a lifetime. Stay safe out there.

Kansas City Dad checking in . Sure I’ll subscribe… I’ll agree with Mom, Test it now before you go. It’s kinda like measure twice cut once, Is better than saying a cut it twice and it’s still too short

Great video! You will do great. I did a section hike in VA last year all by myself. I thought I would cry, but after 3 nights I gained so much confidence. I like keeping my pack and trail runners inside my tent, also Big Anges, but Coper Spur HV UL2, because I am afraid mice, spiders or even a snake might get in it. Yup, a bit neurotic. Lol Best of luck!

It's great you're practicing before you go :>)

Heh! Oh, that's okay. I am a very experienced backpacker, you'll figure it out. I can tell you this--you're taking too many cute pills... 😂😊

Looks like this will be a fun follow. Wishing you the best!

Hi Audrey, please provide links to the items you discuss. Great video, I am looking forward to following you on your AT adventure.

Theory and practice are much different. So get out there and do it and you will learn something new every time !!!

Hey, Audrey! Great video! I am starting the AT in about a month too and it has been a plan I have had for about five years as well. Maybe I will see u out there!

Okay, I'm a guy, but I'm going to give you this advice anyway. You may already know it. They make a "tinkle" cup for women. (Homemade Wanderlust has a video about women's hygiene on the trail) If you don't have some kind of a system, get one. The last thing you want to be doing in the middle of the night during a heavy rainstorm is to take a trip to the privvy. Also, see if there is a video of how to set your tent up in the rain. It's going to happen. If you can't do shakedown hikes, use your back yard to practice with your equipment. Learning on the trail is tough, I don't care what anybody says. I hope you make it, but you don't seem to be starting out well. Just being honest. That's my nature. I got it from my Mother. At any rate, get your butt in gear. You don't have a lot of time left. Phil

Forget the rattlesnakes, beware of the copperheads and cottonmouths.

You might consider setting up your tent without staking it first; you can then move your tent location as needed before you stake it down. Sometimes, when you choose a site it looks good but when you lie down you realize that your are on more of an angle than you thought, or there's a root or something, Not a big deal but if it's already staked down then you need to pull the stakes. Seems like that would be easy, and it is, but you can move the tent multiple times to find the optimal spot. Once it's staked down, there is a bit of inertia to changing it.

A++.....gonna be a nice hike.....maybe at some point you can set it up so people could donate to you......I like to reward great videos....careful with that footprint...make sure that the water cannot get between it and the tent bottom.....I used to put the foot print inside my tent.....good luck!

Best of luck to you.

Humidity of MO like humidity

Don't worry about the lack of experience, you'll do fine. My wife, who's from Thailand (which has zero climate/geography similarities to the US), hiked the AT solo in 2018 and didn't even set up her tent, pack her backpack or even ask about hanging her bear bag until the night before she started (I purchased her gear for her). She didn't even read a book or watch a single video about the AT because in her words, she wanted the challenge of learning and discovering as she hiked. And learn she did - she did the whole trail and finished on Katahdin with exactly the same gear as she had when she started. You'll be amazed at what you can do without the noise of the real world distracting you.

See you on trail 3/13👍🏼

Funny story, Dixie Mills, of Homemade Wanderlust, up and decided a few weeks before she started the AT. Her family gave her max of a few weeks before she gave up. I guess its 5 years now. She did the PCT, AT, and CDT. Last month, she finished Kilimanjaro. Dixie is great and a really nice person. I learned about Amazon Wishlists from her, an excellent way to help provision your favorite hiker. Besides insect repellent and food bars, is there anything else you need? I see you have a pillow. Yes, I bought pillows for Dixie to try out on the Benton McKaye trail. And some heated gloves for Kili, did not work out so well. And PLEASE have a titanium cup/pot . . .

Love Dixie she is awesome

Girl you got this !!!!!! It's the most traveled, populated, used trail of trails !!!!! Yes of course it has a physical component but it's your mental being that gets it done !!!! And you have it ,,, both !!! That's NOT just pep talk stuff !!!!! I've watched MANY long trail videos with newbies all full of go and I pick the finishers from go home types. I have yet to make a error !!! On a few I guessed that they would not make 500 & sure enuf 🥺! That's not you 😊👍🏽 Plz don't go out of your way to prove me wrong.

I would do as many muti-day shakedown hikes as you can before you head out. Just get used to everything and you’ll be fine. Practice makes perfect.

Best of luck!!! I’m guessing you have a rough idea of how long you can be on trail if you have to be back by August?

Don't worry about it. Dixie said the same. Listen to Mom! She's right that you have to test everything before going out. Audrey Adventures(AT 2018) just posted a good video about things to not miss on the AT( kzfaq.info/get/bejne/hqmRetOnsJnVhJc.html ). Math jokes are not punny. If there is room, the toe box is a good place for shoes in a bag, water filter, and socks. Learn and practice some survival skills like firebuilding, first aid, and knot tying. You're going to have a great adventure. Being prepared will reduce the problems. Watch Ramdino's Sunday Vlogs for news about the trail. Good Luck, Rick

Oh I forgot to add, Liked and Subscribed! Do you have a GPS/satellite texter? I can't remember the name. I am sure your Mom will feel better if you had one.

New to your channel and was wondering what made you decide to hike the AT? Best of luck on your journey also!

If you don't mind me asking. Since you have no backpacking experience, what made you want to thru hike? I'm always curious about that. Wishing you the best of luck. Happy Trails 🙂

I'm sure you know, but stakes don't always want to cooperate. Plan on not using them unless you have to.

Confidence in you know you can do this

You are going to find out you cando goodluck

Will you be starting soon? I’m looking forward to following along.

Are you Hiking the Thru Hike on the AT? It seems your hiking states that isn’t part of the Appalachian Trail. You’re hiking in Missouri. Usually Thru Hikers starts from Georgia to Maine or Maine to Georgia. THE AT CROSSES 14 STATES and Missouri isn’t one of the states. The states crosses as follows: Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Hmmm.. interesting… Did the Appalachian Trail Conservancy added 15 states?

This is Cambrey

You’re such a bad ass❤

2:58 Hysterically funny! Did you do that??? 😁😆😅🤣😂😂😂😨😰😱💀

Thanks for the video. Can you set up the tent fly first? You will have to set it up when it's raining so if there's an option for that, practice.

Ps, it appears since last fall the US Department of interior has decided that anyone filming and posting on social media that has the potential of being monetized needs a filming permit. When I tried to find information on, this, could not find anything for the A.T. . I only found one for smoky mountain national park, it said for one or two people was $0. I just want you to be protected . (I’m probably old enough to be your dad.) PS . May I also suggest the possibility of getting a buy me a coffee account?

I recommend you consider the footprint for this tent so you have the choice up setting up the fly with footprint first in rainy conditions. The alternative is hope there is room in the shelter you are likely camped near. Aside from being a little heavier than single wall tents, the one negative of a two layer tent is when you have to set it up in the rain and don’t have the footprint. Good luck out there.

With your positive attitude you will be fine.

... of DC ( sorry about that ). Not any difference. Drink lots of water.