On today’s episode of Backpacker Radio, presented by The Trek, presented by LMNT, we once again offer our top tips for the next class of Appalachian Trail hikers.
Chaunce and I teamed up with Trek community leader Jess Stone to bring you 9 tips for hiking the AT in 2026. Because this isn’t the first time we’ve covered this topic, Chaunce and I are coming up with new tips for this one (with an asterisk), and today’s tips cover tips to ensure you don’t lose your valuable media (which are more common than you might think), tips on trail names, the importance of training, how to maximize adventure, how to be intentional about getting what you want. want from this experience and much more.
We finish the show with the best tents used on the Appalachian Trail in 2025, the two weeks Trek Chaunce should undertake at the end of March, the triple crown of things that bother us (v2), and why food delivery services may be pure evil.
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Panel with Jess Stone
Timestamps and questions
00:10:40 – Reminders: Apply as a vlog or blog for Trek, subscribe to The Trek Youtubeand listen to our episodes ad-free on Patreon!
00:16:45 – Introducing today’s panel
00:18:45 – Summarizing previous advice
00:23:20 – Jess’s Tip #1: Find a meaningful way to document your hike and commit to it
00:26:20 – Chaunce Tip #1: Regularly upload your photos and videos to the cloud
00:29:45 – Zach’s Tip #1: Don’t start with a route name
00:34:10 – Jess’s Tip #2: Train. Just train.
00:39:43 – Chaunce Tip #2: Don’t marry your start date
00:44:10 – Zach’s Tip #2: Kick Your Phone Addiction
00:47:14 – Jess Tip #3: Embrace the new and the strange
00:50:55 – Chaunce Tip #3: Listen to Audiobooks as a Group
00:58:40 – Zach’s Tip #3: Prepare yourself mentally
01:11:10 – Stay Salty Question: What is your best take on the world of backpacking or the outdoors in general?
Segments
Propaganda Clues: Best Tents and Shelters on the Appalachian Trail: 2025 AT Thru-Hiker Survey by Katie Jackson
QOTD: What gentle hikes can Chaunce do in late March?
Triple Crown of things that catch you
mail bag
5 star review
Check out our sound technician. @mi_chico_pauly/ and your coffee.
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