If you know a spot that’s between stops, you’ll be in a great position to offer assistance. Your best bet is a trailhead that’s further from a town. Simply heading out to the trailhead, chatting with thru-hikers and offering encouragement is plenty. You really don’t need to spend money either. If you really want to be magical, offer up something they can’t get on trail. Whatever you offer, a hungry thru-hiker is going to take with open arms. If you’re thinking about providing trail magic, consider items that thru-hikers are unlikely to have access to regularly on the hiking trail.įor example, thru-hikers likely have plenty of Clif bars, beef jerky, dehydrated meals, and anything that’s easy to pack and eat.įresh fruits and vegetables, anything cold (yep, including beer), or just anything that’s cumbersome and tough to pack is a good choice. There are tons of great trail magic choices, and there’s nothing wrong with tried and true picks like snacks and drinks. Expect trail magic likelihood to increase in the hot zones. The site Where Are the Hikers shows where Appalachian Trail hikers are on a given day. You won’t find one in every lot, but there’s a relatively high success rate with them. Parking lots at popular trailheads on the Appalachian Trail are a safe bet. Often they’re strategically placed to be where you need them most. Over the years, certain sites along the trail have become hotspots for trail magic. While you could find it on any trail, you’re most likely to run into it on the Appalachian Trail, even the Pacific Crest Trail at times. If you’re out on a day hike and have some extra food, feel free to offer it to a thru-hiker passing through. If you just have a free Saturday and want to head out to the trail to pick up trash, that’s great, too.Įven day hikers can be trail angels. They can also operate independently of conservation clubs. Trail angels can take up conservation efforts or trail upkeep through volunteer clubs, such as the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club. Trail angels cover a variety of hiker support and trail conservation avenues. You don’t have to buy snacks and drinks to be a trail angel, though. Often trail angels are former thru-hikers who understand a long-distance hiker’s specific wants and needs on-trail and know what to offer them. Trail angels provide food, water, shelter, and anything else a hiker could want. What are Trail Angels?Ī trail angel is anyone who creates the trail magic for long-distance hikers. Of course, you can show your appreciation, but trail magic is provided without the expectation of anything in return. Most often, it comes in the form of a box of food or drinks, even cold beer, for whoever wants them.īest of all, trail magic is free. Many instances of trail magic are much less deliberate. There are so many ways to give and receive trail magic. Trail magic may even be a place to stay on a rainy night or a ride in to town to pick up supplies. It can be preparing a large hiker feed for lots of hikers, or simply sharing water with a thirsty hiker. It can be structured or simply happenstance. Trail magic is a helping hand to hikers and can be snacks, car rides, a place to stay, even gear, like stove fuel. Trail magic doesn’t fit into one category. Trail magic can also be rides, overnight stays, showers and picking up restaurant tabs – anything to benefit a tired thru-hiker. Trail magic typically consists of snacks or cold drinks provided by “trail angels” near trail segments where thru-hikers may be low on supplies or morale. It’s most common on the Appalachian Trail and Pacific Crest Trail. Trail magic is an act of generosity that takes place along long distance trails. No one knows exactly when trail magic came to be, but by the 1980’s, the term was in use all along the Appalachian Trail.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |