Typical Thru Hiker Gear

The Appalachian Trail (AT) is about 2,200 miles long stretching from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mt. Katahdin in Maine.  Every year, around 1,000 intrepid souls hike the whole thing from beginning to end.  Those going from GA to ME are considered NOBOs (Northbound) while those starting in ME are SOBOs (Southbound).  These Thru-Hikers know better than anyone what works and what doesn't on long backpacking trips.  Wouldn't it be great if they could be surveyed to find out which gear the most of them depend on.

Mariposa from The Trek has come to our rescue and is a thru hiker herself.  Every year she pours over the annual ThruHiker survey from TheTrek and compiles the data into a series of informative, interesting, and useful posts.  If you are planning a trip or shopping for gear, please do yourself a favor and check them out.  You may not be planning a multi-state trip, but if you plan to go for more than two nights or plan lots of little trips, you will find her posts worth a read.  While her posts go into lots of awesome details, I wanted to use this space as a summary with links to her posts for the deep dive.

Note that there are a lot of choices in each category which meant that "most popular" may have been something that was barely double digits percentage wise.  In most cases, this tells you more about the general features desired than the actual model selected since 2nd, 3rd, or 4th place were usually very similar items.

Favorite Gear From The 2019 Survey

Backpack
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/top-backpacks-2019-appalachian-trail-thru-hiker-survey/

Thru-hikers packs had an average (mean) capacity of 52 liters, but anything between about 43 and 61 liters was common. Thru-hiker pack capacities ranged from 25 to 80 liters.  The average capacity of section hikers’ packs was 48 liters, and anything from 40 to 60 liters was common. Their packs ranged in capacity from 6.5 liters to 70 liters.  If liter measurements are not meaningful to you, this link may help.

The most popular brand (used by 38%) was Osprey with its Exos model (used by 10%) being the most popular on the trail.  The Exos medium size is 58 liters, weighs 2 lbs. 11 oz, and retails for $220 at REI.

Tent
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/2019-appalachian-trail-thru-hiker-survey-top-tents-shelters/
87% of respondents used a tent, 11% used a hammock, with the reminder using tarps, bivy sacks, or lean tos.  Two person tents were the most common. The most popular brand was Big Agnes in general, but the most popular tent was the Zpacks Duplex (used by 16%) which is a "pole-tent" requiring two trekking poles (not included) for support.  The Duplex weighs 1 lb, 3 oz, and retails for $599 on the Zpacks site.  If trekking poles are not your thing, a freestanding kit is available for $125 (and another 10 oz).

Honorable mention goes to the Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 2 (used by 8%) which is a standard freestanding tent. It weighs just under 2 pounds and retails for $349.95 at REI.

Stove
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/top-stoves-and-filters-the-2019-appalachian-trail-thru-hiker-survey/
MSR was the most popular brand with its Pocket Rocket taking 42% of the vote.  It weighs 2.6 oz (without the fuel) and retails for $44.95 at REI.

Honorable mention goes to Jet Boil which was the stove of choice for 13% of respondents.  The Flash weighs 13.1 oz and sales for $109.95.  On average, hikers went four days between resupply and purchased food in town much more often than using food drops.

Water Filter
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/top-stoves-and-filters-the-2019-appalachian-trail-thru-hiker-survey/
The most popular filter (77%) was the Sawyer Squeeze.  The idea is to put dirty water into the 32 oz bag provided (or a SmartWater water bottle which is also common) and then screw on the filter in place of a cap.  You then invert and squeeze the bag (or bottle) to push water through the filter into your mouth or another bottle.  It does not work by gravity alone without squeezing.  It weighs 3 ounces and cost $36.95.

It was not mentioned in the survey review, but the group I have been hiking with is very fond of the GravityWorks 2.0L Water Filter from Platypus (9.1 oz,  $89.95).  You put the dirty water in a bag and then hang it from a tree.  No pumping or squeezing required. 

Sleeping Bag
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/top-sleeping-bags-pads-2019-appalachian-trail-hiker-survey/
NOBOs had bags with an average rating of 35 degrees while for SOBOs, it was 20 degrees.  75% of the hikers preferred an inflatable pad while most of the rest used a foam pad.  For the bag itself, Enlightened Equipment was the brand of choice and the Revelation being the favorite (12%).  It was 19.18 oz and sells for $280.

Footwear
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/top-footwear-appalachian-trail-2019-thru-hiker-survey/
Trail runners are far and away preferred over traditional boots with ankle support.  Some say that hiking without ankle support builds up your ankle strength over time making them less necessary.
38% selected an Altra shoe and most of those were the Lone Peak.  A pair weighs 1.5 oz and will set you back $120.

On average, thru-hikers went through four pairs.

Summary

Getting all the items would cost just over $1,300 and weigh 6.7 lbs.

Item	Brand	Model	oz	cost
Backpack	Osprey	Exos	43	$ 222.00
Tent	Zpacks	Zpacks Duplex	19	$ 599.00
Stove	MSR	Pocket Rocket	2.6	$ 44.95
Filter	Sawyer	Sawyer Squeeze	3	$ 36.95
Sleeing Bag	Enlightened Equipment	Revelation	19.18	$ 280.00
Footwear	Altra	Lone Peak	21	$ 120.00
		TOTAL	107.78	$ 1,302.90

General Info
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/2019-hiker-survey-general-information/
86% were NOBOs with most of those starting between early March to mid April.  The average pace was about 15 miles a day. Of the 365 in the survey, 70% made it 2000 miles or more.

Distance Traveled	Percent
-500	11 %
501-1000	6.9 %
1001-1500	5.8 %
1501-2000	5.5 %
2000+	70.8 %