Karl Meltzer just completed the 2,190 mile Appalachian Trail in record time, 45 days, 22 hours, 38 minutes, beating Scott Jurek's 2015 record by 9 hours 30 minutes! Congratulations to Karl and his team! Check out some of the notes and stats from his 45 days on the trail, click here!
Hanging with Karl before the crowd arrived at Bear Mountain, New York, awaiting Scott Jurek to arrive during his 2015 AT record breaking attempt!
Notable Appalachian Records
2015 - Heather Anderson, unsupported - 54 days, 7 hours, 48 minutes (Maine to Georgia).
2011 - Jennifer Phar Davis 46 days, supported, 11 hours, 20 minutes (Maine to Georgia).
2005 - Andrew Thompson, supported, 47 days, 12 hours, 31 minutes (Maine to Georgia).
1999 - Pete Palmer 48 days, 20 hours, 11 minutes (Maine to Georgia).
1991 - David Horton 52 days, 9 hours, 42 minutes (Maine to Georgia).
2013 - Matt Kirk fasted unsupported thru hike style 58 days, 9 hours, 38 min. (Maine to Georgia).
1993 - Jenny Jardine & her Husband, 87 days.
1955, 60 & 63 - Emma "Grandma" Gatewood, she was 67, 69 & 75 years old on her final hike of the AT that she completed in sections.
If you were to attempt the AT, where would you start your adventure from - South (Springer Mountain, GA) or North (Mount Katahdin, ME)?
Recommended
Many from our group took part in the Shawnagunk Ridge Trail races, as well as the Pisgah Trail Race, the Free to Run 50, the Rocky Point 50 MTB race and an epic FKT in NH! Check it out!
Ben is I’m always interested in challenging new routes, and has been especially interested in new FKT routes in CT & MA that are accessible for months longer than trails up north so he found himself the South Taconic Trail along with the AT that gave him a challenging route of 27 miles with about 8,000 feet of gain and some amazing views!
Plan C was to head north to ride the Camel’s Hump by the Bamforth Ridge, where the trailhead was about 2k feet lower. It was raining hard as I drove north, and I was starting to accept that I might be out for a 7 hour ride with no run.
This was plan D, and what a fine plan it turned out to be. The forecast for Sunday did look quite bad, with rain and high winds (50-70mph), and the possibility of thunderstorms...
This one scared me, literally and figuratively. Where do I start? I had hiked many of the trails, which includes several of the hardest trails in the Northeast, and the idea of linking them up into a massive loop seemed like the ultimate White Mountain test piece. It is that and then some.