I worked at the Orlando theme parks and there's no shortage of people blowing $10,000 on one week long vacation packages...for a fiberglass and plastic castle and Chinese made magic wands. I think a four to six month woods adventure is much more appealing.
@@tenminutetokyo2643 Just because they spent that much doesn't mean they have excess money to waste. A lot of families who come are just middle class who put aside spare change and save up for a few years just to go on that trip.
The thousand dollars per month has been around for many years. Your fifteen hundred a month is probably more accurate for planning purposes now. Prices on everything are climbing so people should use your numbers. My son is considering a thru hike. Last year I told him to plan on $10,000 for the hike and to buy equipment. Good Luck, Rick
I agree - $10k is a very realistic figure, especially when you include a couple thousand on the initial gear purchase, gear swaps throughout trip, traveling to and from Amicolala and Baxter, any leisure activities (zero days to go white water paddling, on a train ride, driving to the beach, visit DC, tour NYC, etc), and a emergency reserve for things like an urgent care visit.
I didn’t watch her hike the entire time but it seemed like she was stopping at hostels every other night. There are certainly less expensive ways to go about it.
@@spikeeus Of course you could sleep in the woods every night and eat three square meals of Ramen, but that may not be the most enjoyable hike for a lot of people. The reality is things have got expensive in recent years compared to days of old and the trail's structure has fundamentally changed... A freeze-dried meal can be $8-12 now. I remember when they were $4 and I'm not even that old. If you're in town, why not pickup a pizza or McDonald's for that price instead of sitting in a hostel or hotel making a meal? And what of camping every night? The movement toward many legal requirements of camping in designated camping areas the last couple decades has created less incentive to sleep on trail. Every year the campsites get more over packed with new users, they get louder, and the solitude of nature many seek is growing absent. Hostels are rarely free these days, motels are dying, and modern hotels can easily go for >$100/night.
@@cup_and_cone I cringe at the price of motel and hotel now. The days of a $30 - $40 room at Motel 6 are gone. I was most curious about the cost of hotels but a bit surprised that it wasn't higher. BTW if a hostel has a stove I am making my own food. Healthier and cheaper. I like to cook so it's no problem. Left-overs the first night back on trail is better than Ramen or Rice Sides.
I kind of agree with Hawk who's hiked it six times now. (He's almost done with #6) He said about $10,000 will give you a nice cushion and the ability to stay in town and eat in restaurants whenever you really want to. Call it platinum blazing if you want, but that's what I would do.
Many of Hawk's hotel rooms are paid for by his "support team". A lot of the meals, too. So if you are going by $1000 a month (what he may spend on his own) you have to take that into consideration. No lobster meals at a fancy restaurant in southwestern Mass. His figure is probably his earlier thru hikes; pre 2019 when the HST started showing up in full force.
10K seems a bit preposterous to me, unless you're starting with ZERO gear and have to buy everything. Taylor seemed to splurge quite a bit on her through hike (she bought a $120 stove for crying out loud) and she was sub $6K.
Thanks Taylor! It takes a lot to put yourself out there everyday on RUclips and we have all appreciated you sharing your adventure. It is above and beyond to share your expenses but it is helpful to see what your "Taylor made" thru hike costs were now that you have inspired everyone to get out and hike more.
Over anything else, besides a zest for life and personal goals one enjoys to look back on, living a fulfilling life. This woman prepares for it. That is the true quality on becoming a success.
Way to go - always good to help the trail communities with income :). I did not think you were excessive while I was watching each day - just treating yourself to something really special.
This is a fantastic breakdown! I loved seeing the actual numbers you spend. I feel like my personal numbers will be higher because I will need more rest days.
Thank you so much for taking the time to produce videos of your thru hike. I watched them every day, even when I hiked across Iowa to raise money for Alzheimer’s. Good luck in future endeavors.
You crushed it. I love that you knew what you needed, you were willing to spend the money, and it improve your hike because of that. I threw hugged in 2017 and I wish I spent more nights in hotels when it was cold and snowing out. Lol. Keep up the great content!
Thank you for this. You spent what you wanted and could afford. I knew it would be high because of the hotels but really, I don't think that it's extreme. Minus the replacement gear cost and a lot fewer hotel stays a budget of roughly $1000 per month should allow for a fairly comfortable hike.
thank you for being so honest about all this. Such useful information, I think you did great with what you spent. What an awesome acomplishment and to vlog it all is just amazing. Thanks again.
Thanks, Taylor. Very helpful. I will assume shoe replacements are included in gear. I seem to recall that you had a foot issue at some point. I really enjoyed following you on the trail. It went really fast. Cheers.
There are people out on the trail who do it for a lot, lot less. So people who are frugal or who don't have that much expendable cash shouldn't rule out a thru hike. Remember, you don't have to buy expensive trail food from outfitters and outdoor sections in Walmart to eat on the trail, you don't have to stay in hotels, motels and hostels the whole way, you don't have to buy new gear during your hike if you plan well beforehand, you don't have to eat at pricey eateries along trail, you don't even have to buy 600 dollar tents and 400 dollar backpacks before you leave. Just do some research before you go and it's easy to put together a frugal hike if you don't have the money.
Really interesting. I thru hiked in 1991 at a total cost of a little under $2K -- different times & different expenses obviously, but I just got back from a 3-week VT Long Trail thru and I was speculating over the course of that trip about what I thought an AT thru hike would cost me now. About $6K was what I came up with. And your figure of $2.66 a mile prompted me to do a little back of the envelope math, and that's within about 5% of what my LT expenses were this summer. Good work! One thing I noticed you didn't include was transportation to and from -- that obviously is highly variable depending on where you're coming from and the mode of transport you elect, but it's something people should factor in too. The other big wildcard is whether you have expenses associated with for instance rent, or a mortgage, taxes, insurance, and utilities that still need to be paid whether or not you're living and working at home over that duration. That stuff is an argument for a faster hike, to some extent.
Have to laugh, LOL! Who's business is it, but your's, how much you spent, or where your money comes from, lol? I enjoyed, vicariously, your hike. I've hiked sections, obviously, some of the same you did, and enjoyed it. Never felt competitive, never took on a trail moniker, lol ( personal choice) ... point is, it's personal. Nobodies business, but mine, or in this case, your's! I'm an old guy, the implication is, I've learned a lot about life in that time. Maybe, maybe not, lol. In any case, don't worry about what other people think or say - that's their hangup. I know why you feel the need to explain it all, it's part of your experience, which is different than mine. Relax, enjoy life. It " goes" quickly. Sign me , "love your clips, don't care how much you spent, lol!"😂
I guessed $6500 on your Instagram post. I was close. As has already been stated, it's not the money you spent but the memories and experiences you will take from it. Thank you for sharing your information.
Cha Ching! 😲 Well back in the day I once spent $900 on an AT thru hike. A box of Mac & cheese cost .25 cents...and it was uphill the whole way...and it rained every single day...and I had to fight grizzlies 😉 nonetheless I’ve enjoyed watching your hike and can’t wait to see what adventures are in the future ❤️
When I was a kid the morning school bus stopped up the hill from my house, but in the afternoon it stopped down the hill from it. I literally had to walk uphill both ways to and from school. and fight grizzlies.
I'm surprised pizza didn't get it's own category 😁😉 I'm so glad you shared your hike. Since I'm from Cali,, I've hiked some PCT/Sierra miles but didn't know too much about the AT. Now I live in PA & feel like I've been bitten by the AT bug. Congrats to you and Cody on the hike & best wishes to you and Chet for your upcoming wedding! 🌲🌲🐻🌲🌲
Thanks, Taylor. I hiked from Amicalola Falls State Park to Hot Springs in a month and spent roughly $1500.00. That's a little over 1/10th of the distance, and about what most people would spend if they didn't stay in motels and hostels more than 7 times in a month and didn't need five star accommodations.
That's not a bad number at all. You killed it. I wonder how many zeroes you had and how many nights you spent off trail and how many nights on trail in a tent vs. shelter? I'll look around your other videos, because I'm sure you answered that already. As you said, everyone hikes their own hike. One thing I learned from you was it's pretty easy to plan a night in a hostel, hotel, warm bed and still get after it the next day without taking a zero. That's a great lesson that I could see myself incorporating if I ever got to doing a thru hike.
$2.50 a mile that's really bad gas mileage. 😆 $5800 for a six month trip is cheap. Most of us spend 3k for a one week vacation each year so in comparison you got more bang for your buck
I just discovered your channel. My daughter and I hiked in 2019. We took our time and enjoyed ourselves. I like your vlog style. Peaches 🍑 and Woodstock
Thank you for this info, it’s so helpful! Can you plz share how you: went to the bathroom in your tent, the best way to climb the boulders, and rock scrambling? Thank you!! You’re a rock ⭐️
Thank you for the info Taylor, I really enjoyed your videos everyday, I think I need to plan for15k for my tru hike because I had to fly from Uruguay plus buy all the equipment there, I will definitely planning to do it while I still have the energy lol
Interesting numbers. There are also a "hidden" cost for many people and that's loss of your normal income. It will depend on your normal salary of course, but to me that was by far the largest "expense".
Thanks for sharing. You traveled with Cody, was he able to keep up when you stayed in town? Did he stay in town when you stayed in town or did stay on the trail and camp when you went to town?
Until you get out there and do it, i wouldn't judge. I could think to myself that i could spend less. You were off trail A LOT with toms of help from mom and friends but i didn't do it and i might want to spend time off the trail a lot too!
Thanks for sharing! You covered so many miles per day so going for hotel/hostel every 3 or 4 days is much cheaper than it would be for some of us slower movers. Hyok. I supported you through your store this week when we visited Squam lake. Very nice!!
Hey Taylor, thanks for this! Very helpful in planning out my 2025 hike. I noticed from watching a lot of your vlogs that sometimes you were gifted a nights stay either by a fan or your parents etc. Or they did a few shuttles for you too. If you had to estimate how much you saved from that side of things how much do you think it would be? (or are these numbers inclusive of that?) No judgement or anything, it's just I'm coming from abroad so won't have any family or friends to support me along the way. So looking for a more realistic all-in number because honestly 2k for lodging sounds pretty cheap to me haha
For me 1. Screw restaurants because ill have my usual food and a little extra and game meat previously harvested into jerky. 2. I already have gear as i hike a lot. (ADK in winter) 3. Lodging is my car or a tent somewhere. Ive immediately cut down a ton of cost. Just my 2 cents. Ive never really spent more than my tank of gas to go adventuring as i also work outside so my gear is already suited for harsh conditions. (I understand others dont work outside so they need gear) For me keep it cheap and enjoyable. Going to the woods shouldn't cost much money.
Looking at a 2024 thru hike. It's going to be my retirement trip. Sure, I could go to Bora Bora for a week for what it will cost me for my lifetime adventure. But I'll be pushing 60 and if not then, when? I'm not getting any younger. As they say, "don't die wondering". I certainly won't be pushing 30 mile days like you but I take your inspiration.
Thanks for doing this Taylor! I was trying to compare it to Chica & Sunsets who did a weekly update on expenses during their hike. It really sounds remarkably close considering they weren't splitting much in the way of costs and they took longer. Do you have a clue how much you spent beforehand on gear or has that been spaced out too much to be doable? One other question is about shoes...did you buy them ahead of time and ship them or just replace as needed on trail? Would you do it the same way again?
Awesome job! So glad you splurged at Shaw's, well deserved. You said you treated it like a vacation which, anyone who's thru hiked knows, it is not a vacation. You ALWAYS had a smile on your face even though you were wet and miserable a lot of the time. Thank you for posting.
Not bad. If you compare to other life expenses. This (your whole trip) isn’t much more than a family of 4 or 5 would spend on a 1 week vacation OR for two people to spend a week in Disney OR 2 people on a nice cruise. You got several months for your money, money well spent. You should look at what your “normal” monthly expenses you have off the trail and subtract those off of it. That’s what the “Extra” cost really was.
True! But none of my monthly normal expenses stopped while on trail. I kept paying my mortgage, car payment and subscription services. So instead of saving money, it probably doubled haha
@@TaylortheNahamshaHiker I think this is the hardest part about planning a long hike like this. You have to save both you expenses for the trip and most regular living expenses. I’ve got kids so I’m living vicariously through y’all until they graduate.
Thanks for all the information! I was wondering how much cash did you have to carry, so you could pay individuals that did not accept credit cards......such as for shuttles, hostels, etc. Did this happen often?
Thank you for the great videos! You have inspired me want to backpack the A.T one day. I live in NH and want to start off slow, I have never done a overnight before but I do have some hiking experience. So I was wondering if you had any recommendations? Thanks again!!
When my now 33 year old son was 9 years old I took the month of July and part of August off; we drove around 4 of the Great Lakes camping in my unmodified Ford van on cot beds and eating on a Coleman stove. We used showers at state parks and stayed at federal, state and county campgrounds. We had 6 nights of hotel stays and almost no restaurant stops but we did do take out. The 45 days we were on the road cost $3,800 in 1997 including gas, which was a lot of it. To quote Johnny Mac, below: "You (we) enjoyed yourself (ourselves) , that’s all that matters!" Considering the amout of time you (and me in 1997) were away it was cheap. You had a great time and we all watched. It was a wonderful hike, maybe not once in a lifetime as you said though LOL.
I made money. I picked up all the gold nuggets other hikers tripped over. I live maybe 2.5 miles from the main trail, maybe 1.5 from one of the side trails. It's a hard life. But, we manage.
$600 at Shaws? It must have made their day, week or month! I'm stopping there for two nights mid-Sept, camping on the lawn, weather permitting, two dinners and two breakfasts, hoping to come in around $100. Wish me luck!
It will depend a lot of your hiking style (stay in hotels/go to town every X miles) but also heavily depend on your hiking pace. i.e. how many months you spend on trail. My thru hike cost me 3500$ including internaitonal flights and gear change.
Exactly this. When I thru-hiked in '15, I spent less than $2,500 because I only did town stops every 5-7 days and didn't take a zero from Lincoln, NH until Harpers Ferry. And I never felt like I was missing out on anything, I just preferred being on trail. I never give anybody advice on how much they are going to spend because it just depends on so much that I don't know
We live in a cabin right below Tinker Cliffs on 25 acres. We’re considering VRBOing it and shuttling the Virginia Tripple Crown so hikers can slack pack. And also offer a zero day activity shuttling kayaks down the James River. I’m thinking this would be a 3 night stay. What would you pay for that? I’m assuming most hikers have two to fours hikers in their group which would split it. Cabin would come with a vehicle to take to Walmart and Daleville Kroger.
Taylor Thank you for the information. I spoke to another thru-hiker who is on trail now and said he budgets about 10k for the hike. I was out about 3-4 weeks and spent a little over 1800. Its all good, and what ever your comfortable with. thx Da Breeze
I was surprised at first by the cost. However, I would like to take a 10 day motorcycle tour in Europe some day, and that's about $1,000 per day when all said and done. So $6,000 for a 5 month adventure isn't really that bad.
I spent about $800 a month my first big unexpected expense was boots right off the bat I was on blood mountain and some AssHat kid stole my boots and I had to hike to the gear shop at Neil's gap Wearing 3 pairs of wool socks Lined with mylar bags from my mountain house meals I had eaten the days before. I spent hours looking it the trees for my boots at the shop. I spent a tone of time making contacts for free places to shower and get rides to resupply.
Hi Taylor, Always enjoy your videos. I’m a senior aged hiker leaving from GA in March. I am curious with regards to finances on the trail how it worked for carrying cash, how much? Before I did any research, I thought I could get away with just a credit card but after doing some research, it looks like cash is needed at a fair amount of the hostels, for shuttles, coins for laundry. How much cash did you usually have on hand and did you find it convenient to get cash in the towns? Thanks again for all your very informative videos!!! How are the wedding plans coming along? Pat
Found you through Kyle Hates Hiking. New Sub. Just one question, not watched your thru-hike yet (will be soon)if you weren't vlogging how many days would you have taken a zero? Would it be a weekly thing or would you just listen to your body and do it that way?
Do not apologize for how much you spent on trail. I think you had a really good mindset the whole time of treating it like a vacation. I do have one question for my own budgeting purposes. What is the average cost you payed for a shuttle on the trail?
Does anyone know what the longest uninterrupted section between any 2 intersecting roads with parking lots are and how long that distance is between them? Is it 3 miles, 10 miles, 20 miles? And what is the remotest section between the Maryland WV line and the southern end of the 100 mile wilderness?
Very cool. Thanks for sharing it. A non-backpacker doing it for the first time would include their initial gear costs and maybe travel to and from the trail. Bus or plane fares. Taylor, would an extra battery bank have made it possible to not use as much lodging then? I would hate to be out there and *needing* to have an outlet so bad that I had to stay in town.
Question: Besides your gift shop income would you be willing to do a simple category breakdown of income? Example of possible categories: Donations/gifts, youtube payments for views, youtube payments for ads being in your videos, any payments for gear reviews, payments for viewer ad purchases, Other, I am not sure what income categories to list. Nothing detail just some ideas. If you know of ideas other hikers offset their costs and will share that would be Great!
Always hike your own hike, personally I wouldn't spend more like 500 a month, if that. I'm not going on trail to hang out in towns. If you're starting fresh with no gear etc, it's going to hurt your wallet lol.
Thank you for sharing this, Nahamsha. I got off trail at Sufi Lodge in May. I hurt my knee & I ran out of money! It’s pretty crazy how quickly things add up on trail and in town. ~ Fresh Start
Can't put a price tag on that experience. Thanks for taking us along on your adventure. I will be hitting the trail next year for my thru hike appreciate all the information.
I worked at the Orlando theme parks and there's no shortage of people blowing $10,000 on one week long vacation packages...for a fiberglass and plastic castle and Chinese made magic wands. I think a four to six month woods adventure is much more appealing.
That’s nuts! They should be using that $ to help the homeless.
@@tenminutetokyo2643 Thank you. Agreed!
That's shocking.
@@tenminutetokyo2643 Just because they spent that much doesn't mean they have excess money to waste. A lot of families who come are just middle class who put aside spare change and save up for a few years just to go on that trip.
Well said Cup & Cone…well said indeed
The thousand dollars per month has been around for many years. Your fifteen hundred a month is probably more accurate for planning purposes now. Prices on everything are climbing so people should use your numbers. My son is considering a thru hike. Last year I told him to plan on $10,000 for the hike and to buy equipment. Good Luck, Rick
I agree - $10k is a very realistic figure, especially when you include a couple thousand on the initial gear purchase, gear swaps throughout trip, traveling to and from Amicolala and Baxter, any leisure activities (zero days to go white water paddling, on a train ride, driving to the beach, visit DC, tour NYC, etc), and a emergency reserve for things like an urgent care visit.
I didn’t watch her hike the entire time but it seemed like she was stopping at hostels every other night. There are certainly less expensive ways to go about it.
@@spikeeus Of course you could sleep in the woods every night and eat three square meals of Ramen, but that may not be the most enjoyable hike for a lot of people. The reality is things have got expensive in recent years compared to days of old and the trail's structure has fundamentally changed... A freeze-dried meal can be $8-12 now. I remember when they were $4 and I'm not even that old. If you're in town, why not pickup a pizza or McDonald's for that price instead of sitting in a hostel or hotel making a meal? And what of camping every night? The movement toward many legal requirements of camping in designated camping areas the last couple decades has created less incentive to sleep on trail. Every year the campsites get more over packed with new users, they get louder, and the solitude of nature many seek is growing absent. Hostels are rarely free these days, motels are dying, and modern hotels can easily go for >$100/night.
@@cup_and_cone I cringe at the price of motel and hotel now. The days of a $30 - $40 room at Motel 6 are gone. I was most curious about the cost of hotels but a bit surprised that it wasn't higher. BTW if a hostel has a stove I am making my own food. Healthier and cheaper. I like to cook so it's no problem. Left-overs the first night back on trail is better than Ramen or Rice Sides.
@@cup_and_cone What is the cost of a hostel along the trail, please?
I kind of agree with Hawk who's hiked it six times now. (He's almost done with #6) He said about $10,000 will give you a nice cushion and the ability to stay in town and eat in restaurants whenever you really want to. Call it platinum blazing if you want, but that's what I would do.
Agreed. Having that extra cushion equals a successful thru hike.
I always thought of $10k as a target as well.
Many of Hawk's hotel rooms are paid for by his "support team". A lot of the meals, too. So if you are going by $1000 a month (what he may spend on his own) you have to take that into consideration. No lobster meals at a fancy restaurant in southwestern Mass. His figure is probably his earlier thru hikes; pre 2019 when the HST started showing up in full force.
10K seems a bit preposterous to me, unless you're starting with ZERO gear and have to buy everything. Taylor seemed to splurge quite a bit on her through hike (she bought a $120 stove for crying out loud) and she was sub $6K.
Followed the hawk!!did he settal in maine or NH!!withhis hiker buddy?
Thanks Taylor for all you did while blogging and putting everything together!!! Thoroughly enjoyed your journey!!!
Thanks Taylor! It takes a lot to put yourself out there everyday on RUclips and we have all appreciated you sharing your adventure. It is above and beyond to share your expenses but it is helpful to see what your "Taylor made" thru hike costs were now that you have inspired everyone to get out and hike more.
Over anything else, besides a zest for life and personal goals one enjoys to look back on, living a fulfilling life. This woman prepares for it. That is the true quality on becoming a success.
Way to go - always good to help the trail communities with income :). I did not think you were excessive while I was watching each day - just treating yourself to something really special.
This is a fantastic breakdown! I loved seeing the actual numbers you spend. I feel like my personal numbers will be higher because I will need more rest days.
Thank you so much for taking the time to produce videos of your thru hike. I watched them every day, even when I hiked across Iowa to raise money for Alzheimer’s. Good luck in future endeavors.
You crushed it. I love that you knew what you needed, you were willing to spend the money, and it improve your hike because of that. I threw hugged in 2017 and I wish I spent more nights in hotels when it was cold and snowing out. Lol. Keep up the great content!
Good video. Takes a head for business to break it down like that. Thanks.
Great job! I watched from the beginning. 👍
Thank you for this. You spent what you wanted and could afford. I knew it would be high because of the hotels but really, I don't think that it's extreme. Minus the replacement gear cost and a lot fewer hotel stays a budget of roughly $1000 per month should allow for a fairly comfortable hike.
thank you for being so honest about all this. Such useful information, I think you did great with what you spent. What an awesome acomplishment and to vlog it all is just amazing. Thanks again.
Thanks, Taylor. Very helpful. I will assume shoe replacements are included in gear. I seem to recall that you had a foot issue at some point. I really enjoyed following you on the trail. It went really fast. Cheers.
There are people out on the trail who do it for a lot, lot less. So people who are frugal or who don't have that much expendable cash shouldn't rule out a thru hike. Remember, you don't have to buy expensive trail food from outfitters and outdoor sections in Walmart to eat on the trail, you don't have to stay in hotels, motels and hostels the whole way, you don't have to buy new gear during your hike if you plan well beforehand, you don't have to eat at pricey eateries along trail, you don't even have to buy 600 dollar tents and 400 dollar backpacks before you leave. Just do some research before you go and it's easy to put together a frugal hike if you don't have the money.
You are spot on. When I was young and poor I had great adventures and now that I’m 70 I’d probably spend every bit of that 10 grand.
Yup, like I said. There are so many different types of hikers out there. I just talk about my own experience
Thank you for the transparency! And thank you for sharing your journey. I enjoyed every moment. ❤️😊
Really interesting. I thru hiked in 1991 at a total cost of a little under $2K -- different times & different expenses obviously, but I just got back from a 3-week VT Long Trail thru and I was speculating over the course of that trip about what I thought an AT thru hike would cost me now. About $6K was what I came up with. And your figure of $2.66 a mile prompted me to do a little back of the envelope math, and that's within about 5% of what my LT expenses were this summer. Good work! One thing I noticed you didn't include was transportation to and from -- that obviously is highly variable depending on where you're coming from and the mode of transport you elect, but it's something people should factor in too. The other big wildcard is whether you have expenses associated with for instance rent, or a mortgage, taxes, insurance, and utilities that still need to be paid whether or not you're living and working at home over that duration. That stuff is an argument for a faster hike, to some extent.
Have to laugh, LOL! Who's business is it, but your's, how much you spent, or where your money comes from, lol?
I enjoyed, vicariously, your hike. I've hiked sections, obviously, some of the same you did, and enjoyed it. Never felt competitive, never took on a trail moniker, lol ( personal choice) ... point is, it's personal. Nobodies business, but mine, or in this case, your's!
I'm an old guy, the implication is, I've learned a lot about life in that time. Maybe, maybe not, lol. In any case, don't worry about what other people think or say - that's their hangup.
I know why you feel the need to explain it all, it's part of your experience, which is different than mine.
Relax, enjoy life. It " goes" quickly.
Sign me , "love your clips, don't care how much you spent, lol!"😂
I figure that average is 1000 on the low side and 1500 on the high side.
It’s your money spent it. I be on the high side. You rock
Excellent information. Thanks. And again, congratulations on completing your thru hike !
Thank u for sharing this breakdown on costs for us. You kept very good notes for sure.
I guessed $6500 on your Instagram post. I was close. As has already been stated, it's not the money you spent but the memories and experiences you will take from it. Thank you for sharing your information.
How much did her mom spend to help her ?
It probably would have been that much if it weren't for the TM and the few paid rooms she recieved.
@@lightwalker4558 TM?
@@fredtucker9236 Trail Magic
You had fun and that’s all that counts. It not a do or die. It’s enjoy the journey.
Cha Ching! 😲 Well back in the day I once spent $900 on an AT thru hike. A box of Mac & cheese cost .25 cents...and it was uphill the whole way...and it rained every single day...and I had to fight grizzlies 😉 nonetheless I’ve enjoyed watching your hike and can’t wait to see what adventures are in the future ❤️
It probably snowed each day as well after it finished raining :)
@@hdbinnc8583 not to mention having to dodge that dam meteor that wiped out all the dinosaurs
When I was a kid the morning school bus stopped up the hill from my house, but in the afternoon it stopped down the hill from it. I literally had to walk uphill both ways to and from school. and fight grizzlies.
@@tvtoms 😂
I'm surprised pizza didn't get it's own category 😁😉 I'm so glad you shared your hike.
Since I'm from Cali,, I've hiked some PCT/Sierra miles but didn't know too much about the AT. Now I live in PA & feel like I've been bitten by the AT bug.
Congrats to you and Cody on the hike & best wishes to you and Chet for your upcoming wedding!
🌲🌲🐻🌲🌲
Thanks, Taylor. I hiked from Amicalola Falls State Park to Hot Springs in a month and spent roughly $1500.00. That's a little over 1/10th of the distance, and about what most people would spend if they didn't stay in motels and hostels more than 7 times in a month and didn't need five star accommodations.
I'm sure the experience was priceless and it is important to store up memories for later in life.
That's not a bad number at all. You killed it. I wonder how many zeroes you had and how many nights you spent off trail and how many nights on trail in a tent vs. shelter? I'll look around your other videos, because I'm sure you answered that already. As you said, everyone hikes their own hike. One thing I learned from you was it's pretty easy to plan a night in a hostel, hotel, warm bed and still get after it the next day without taking a zero. That's a great lesson that I could see myself incorporating if I ever got to doing a thru hike.
$2.50 a mile that's really bad gas mileage. 😆 $5800 for a six month trip is cheap. Most of us spend 3k for a one week vacation each year so in comparison you got more bang for your buck
I just discovered your channel. My daughter and I hiked in 2019. We took our time and enjoyed ourselves. I like your vlog style.
Peaches 🍑 and Woodstock
Great breakdown of costs, this will help me budget for my upcoming hike!
Excellent Excellent video ... very helpful. Nice going Taylor !!!!!!
Thank you for this info, it’s so helpful!
Can you plz share how you: went to the bathroom in your tent, the best way to climb the boulders, and rock scrambling?
Thank you!! You’re a rock ⭐️
Adventure of a lifetime, a vacation to beat all vacations and memories to last a lifetime. You can't put a value on all of that!
Thanks for the great well organized and produced video. Thanks for the efforts through out the hike.
Thank you for the info Taylor, I really enjoyed your videos everyday, I think I need to plan for15k for my tru hike because I had to fly from Uruguay plus buy all the equipment there, I will definitely planning to do it while I still have the energy lol
You're brave, traveling to hike in a different country. Bravo and wishing you a fantastic trip.
Interesting numbers. There are also a "hidden" cost for many people and that's loss of your normal income. It will depend on your normal salary of course, but to me that was by far the largest "expense".
Thanks for sharing. You traveled with Cody, was he able to keep up when you stayed in town? Did he stay in town when you stayed in town or did stay on the trail and camp when you went to town?
He was usually down to stay in town whenever I did
Thank you, this is what I been looking for.
Until you get out there and do it, i wouldn't judge. I could think to myself that i could spend less. You were off trail A LOT with toms of help from mom and friends but i didn't do it and i might want to spend time off the trail a lot too!
Thank you for sharing this breakdown, it helps.
Thanks for sharing! You covered so many miles per day so going for hotel/hostel every 3 or 4 days is much cheaper than it would be for some of us slower movers. Hyok. I supported you through your store this week when we visited Squam lake. Very nice!!
Hey Taylor, thanks for this! Very helpful in planning out my 2025 hike.
I noticed from watching a lot of your vlogs that sometimes you were gifted a nights stay either by a fan or your parents etc. Or they did a few shuttles for you too.
If you had to estimate how much you saved from that side of things how much do you think it would be? (or are these numbers inclusive of that?)
No judgement or anything, it's just I'm coming from abroad so won't have any family or friends to support me along the way. So looking for a more realistic all-in number because honestly 2k for lodging sounds pretty cheap to me haha
For me
1. Screw restaurants because ill have my usual food and a little extra and game meat previously harvested into jerky.
2. I already have gear as i hike a lot. (ADK in winter)
3. Lodging is my car or a tent somewhere. Ive immediately cut down a ton of cost. Just my 2 cents. Ive never really spent more than my tank of gas to go adventuring as i also work outside so my gear is already suited for harsh conditions. (I understand others dont work outside so they need gear) For me keep it cheap and enjoyable. Going to the woods shouldn't cost much money.
Looking at a 2024 thru hike. It's going to be my retirement trip. Sure, I could go to Bora Bora for a week for what it will cost me for my lifetime adventure. But I'll be pushing 60 and if not then, when? I'm not getting any younger. As they say, "don't die wondering". I certainly won't be pushing 30 mile days like you but I take your inspiration.
Thanks for doing this Taylor! I was trying to compare it to Chica & Sunsets who did a weekly update on expenses during their hike. It really sounds remarkably close considering they weren't splitting much in the way of costs and they took longer. Do you have a clue how much you spent beforehand on gear or has that been spaced out too much to be doable?
One other question is about shoes...did you buy them ahead of time and ship them or just replace as needed on trail? Would you do it the same way again?
I love your heart, your courage and your drive to do what you want to do. I want to do the Appalachian one day.
Awesome job! So glad you splurged at Shaw's, well deserved. You said you treated it like a vacation which, anyone who's thru hiked knows, it is not a vacation. You ALWAYS had a smile on your face even though you were wet and miserable a lot of the time. Thank you for posting.
Not bad. If you compare to other life expenses. This (your whole trip) isn’t much more than a family of 4 or 5 would spend on a 1 week vacation OR for two people to spend a week in Disney OR 2 people on a nice cruise. You got several months for your money, money well spent.
You should look at what your “normal” monthly expenses you have off the trail and subtract those off of it. That’s what the “Extra” cost really was.
ie, so if you in normal life spend $1000/month your real trail costs are less than $500/ month
True! But none of my monthly normal expenses stopped while on trail. I kept paying my mortgage, car payment and subscription services. So instead of saving money, it probably doubled haha
@@TaylortheNahamshaHiker I think this is the hardest part about planning a long hike like this. You have to save both you expenses for the trip and most regular living expenses.
I’ve got kids so I’m living vicariously through y’all until they graduate.
Thanks for all the information! I was wondering how much cash did you have to carry, so you could pay individuals that did not accept credit cards......such as for shuttles, hostels, etc. Did this happen often?
Only used about 300 cash the whole time, mostly for shuttles
There was only one hostel that didn't accept cards, but I paid with venmo or PayPal!
Great question. 👍
Really organized presentation. Thank you so much for sharing looking forward to future presentations !!
Thank you for the great videos! You have inspired me want to backpack the A.T one day. I live in NH and want to start off slow, I have never done a overnight before but I do have some hiking experience. So I was wondering if you had any recommendations? Thanks again!!
I recommend the monadnock Sunapee Greenway trail!
A big caveat to how much you spent per month is that you were hiking considerably faster than "average". Your expenses are more condensed, obviously.
When my now 33 year old son was 9 years old I took the month of July and part of August off; we drove around 4 of the Great Lakes camping in my unmodified Ford van on cot beds and eating on a Coleman stove. We used showers at state parks and stayed at federal, state and county campgrounds. We had 6 nights of hotel stays and almost no restaurant stops but we did do take out. The 45 days we were on the road cost $3,800 in 1997 including gas, which was a lot of it. To quote Johnny Mac, below: "You (we) enjoyed yourself (ourselves) , that’s all that matters!" Considering the amout of time you (and me in 1997) were away it was cheap. You had a great time and we all watched. It was a wonderful hike, maybe not once in a lifetime as you said though LOL.
I made money. I picked up all the gold nuggets other hikers tripped over. I live maybe 2.5 miles from the main trail, maybe 1.5 from one of the side trails. It's a hard life. But, we manage.
$600 at Shaws? It must have made their day, week or month!
I'm stopping there for two nights mid-Sept, camping on the lawn, weather permitting, two dinners and two breakfasts, hoping to come in around $100. Wish me luck!
Haha it's high because of my new backpack, private room, food drop and 5 days of food at their resupply. You'll come in much cheaper!
It will depend a lot of your hiking style (stay in hotels/go to town every X miles) but also heavily depend on your hiking pace. i.e. how many months you spend on trail. My thru hike cost me 3500$ including internaitonal flights and gear change.
Exactly this. When I thru-hiked in '15, I spent less than $2,500 because I only did town stops every 5-7 days and didn't take a zero from Lincoln, NH until Harpers Ferry. And I never felt like I was missing out on anything, I just preferred being on trail. I never give anybody advice on how much they are going to spend because it just depends on so much that I don't know
Did that include your original gear set-up?
@@onekom7562 I specifically wrote gear change. So not including original gear. The original gear was on the order of 1000$.
That’s awesome! You did what you wanted and that wasn’t a bad total at all. I’ve spent more then that with 1 vet bill.
Thank you for Sharing the information and congratulations on finishing the trail.
Helpful video; thank you Taylor.
I like the per mile break down. That would be interesting to compare to those who take longer to do the hike
You did great. I am very impressed.
Money well spent! 👏 A bargain for the experience and joy it brought you. And us watching.
We live in a cabin right below Tinker Cliffs on 25 acres. We’re considering VRBOing it and shuttling the Virginia Tripple Crown so hikers can slack pack. And also offer a zero day activity shuttling kayaks down the James River. I’m thinking this would be a 3 night stay. What would you pay for that? I’m assuming most hikers have two to fours hikers in their group which would split it. Cabin would come with a vehicle to take to Walmart and Daleville Kroger.
Great video! What backpack did you pick up?
HMG junction 2400!
Taylor
Thank you for the information.
I spoke to another thru-hiker who is on trail now and said he budgets about 10k for the hike.
I was out about 3-4 weeks and spent a little over 1800.
Its all good, and what ever your comfortable with.
thx
Da Breeze
I probably needed at least 10k if I was including at home expenses too. I still paid my mortgage and car payments every month
I was surprised at first by the cost. However, I would like to take a 10 day motorcycle tour in Europe some day, and that's about $1,000 per day when all said and done. So $6,000 for a 5 month adventure isn't really that bad.
I spent about $800 a month my first big unexpected expense was boots right off the bat I was on blood mountain and some AssHat kid stole my boots and I had to hike to the gear shop at Neil's gap Wearing 3 pairs of wool socks Lined with mylar bags from my mountain house meals I had eaten the days before. I spent hours looking it the trees for my boots at the shop. I spent a tone of time making contacts for free places to shower and get rides to resupply.
Hi Taylor,
Always enjoy your videos. I’m a senior aged hiker leaving from GA in March. I am curious with regards to finances on the trail how it worked for carrying cash, how much? Before I did any research, I thought I could get away with just a credit card but after doing some research, it looks like cash is needed at a fair amount of the hostels, for shuttles, coins for laundry. How much cash did you usually have on hand and did you find it convenient to get cash in the towns?
Thanks again for all your very informative videos!!! How are the wedding plans coming along?
Pat
Thanks for this information. So helpful!
Cheers to the Virginia Beer Company IPA there at the beginning of the video!
Gee. I’m thinking Dunkin Donuts and Gushers should have been catagories on their own. LOL. Informative video. Thanks for the information.
And pizza! Lol
Found you through Kyle Hates Hiking. New Sub. Just one question, not watched your thru-hike yet (will be soon)if you weren't vlogging how many days would you have taken a zero? Would it be a weekly thing or would you just listen to your body and do it that way?
I don't think the vlogging had any affect on how many zero days I took! It probably wouldve been the same
Nice breakdown. Just shows that it's still worth doing.
Money well spent Taylor! Thank you for videoing your adventure! I really enjoyed watching you achieve this awesome goal!
Awesome information Taylor. Thank you so much.
You are so welcome!
Do not apologize for how much you spent on trail. I think you had a really good mindset the whole time of treating it like a vacation. I do have one question for my own budgeting purposes. What is the average cost you payed for a shuttle on the trail?
I think the shuttles were about $2 a mile on average. I feel like it usually came to about $40 bucks for a shuttle
I'm just curious? Did you do the half gallon challenge? And what type of ice cream did you choose? Lol ✌️
Does anyone know what the longest uninterrupted section between any 2 intersecting roads with parking lots are and how long that distance is between them? Is it 3 miles, 10 miles, 20 miles?
And what is the remotest section between the Maryland WV line and the southern end of the 100 mile wilderness?
Seems like some good info. Thanks 👍
Very cool. Thanks for sharing it. A non-backpacker doing it for the first time would include their initial gear costs and maybe travel to and from the trail. Bus or plane fares.
Taylor, would an extra battery bank have made it possible to not use as much lodging then? I would hate to be out there and *needing* to have an outlet so bad that I had to stay in town.
Free outlets in every town; library, church, public restroom, grocery store. dollar general, cemetery, park, .....
How many actual nights did you opt for a hotel ?
The memories Cody and you made will last a lifetime and are priceless.
Question: Besides your gift shop income would you be willing to do a simple category breakdown of income? Example of possible categories: Donations/gifts, youtube payments for views, youtube payments for ads being in your videos, any payments for gear reviews, payments for viewer ad purchases, Other, I am not sure what income categories to list. Nothing detail just some ideas. If you know of ideas other hikers offset their costs and will share that would be Great!
Always hike your own hike, personally I wouldn't spend more like 500 a month, if that. I'm not going on trail to hang out in towns. If you're starting fresh with no gear etc, it's going to hurt your wallet lol.
Great information. Thanks 🦋❤
Thank you for the follow up on expenses. Great info, a must have for a thru hike. As usual, loved your presentation.
Thank you for sharing found it to be very helpful
Great video, great info !!!
I'd love to hike the AT, but I could never get 6 months off my job, or save up $7 grand.
Thank you for sharing this, Nahamsha. I got off trail at Sufi Lodge in May. I hurt my knee & I ran out of money! It’s pretty crazy how quickly things add up on trail and in town. ~ Fresh Start
I met a guy on my thru in 2018 who worked from town to town to get enough money to stay on trail and keep heading north,
Thanks for sharing the numbers; it's very helpful.
I have to assume that the cost of motels, meals, etc., that your mother picked up are not included in the totals. Is that correct?
Yup, this is just what I paid
@amcd06 exactly
Thank you for. Showing the cost for your hike.💞💞🏔⛺️🥾
Definitely a bargain for the adventure of a lifetime!
great info thanks!
Thank you for the video so very helpful!
Good video Good job on the AT, on the money 💰
Can't put a price tag on that experience. Thanks for taking us along on your adventure. I will be hitting the trail next year for my thru hike appreciate all the information.
Sure you can, she just did!!!! LOLOLOLOL