Thru-hiker

Trail hikers who attempt to complete the entire trail in a single season are called "thru-hikers"; those who traverse the trail during a series of separate trips are known as "section-hikers".

Rugged terrain, weather extremes, illness, injury, and the time and effort required make thru-hiking difficult to accomplish.

As of 2017, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy estimated that 3,839 hikers set out from Springer Mountain, northbound, 497 from Mount Katahdin, southbound, and reported 1,186 completions of hiking the entire trail, which includes those by both section and through hikers.^[9]

Sunday, September 06, 2026 09:25PM