This post is part of a series called Hiking by the Numbers. During our hike on the AT, I kept track of all kinds of statistics like calorie consumption, number of wild animals, nights spent in the tent and more. I'm a nerd like that. To read all of the posts in the category, click here.

Last summer Serial, Rooney and I hiked about 1400 miles in about 4 months. Most of this was on the Appalachian Trail and a little bit at the very end was on the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP). You can read more about that here.

In my non-trail life, I'm a bit of a numbers nerd. I like to track things and find patterns. I do this for my job, but I also do it in my regular life too. The things I track range from the food I eat, to the money I spend and everything in between. I like spreadsheets and data. (I hope you are hearing that in some kind of nerdy voice... like a female Urkel).

On the trail, I carried a kindle and used a spreadsheet app to mark everything down at the end of the day. Now that I'm home, I'm starting to go through it all again and I thought I'd share it with you. These are just my numbers... they don't include Serial's numbers. There is no way that boy would use a spreadsheet every day on the trail. These only include the days on the AT, not the days on the GAP trail.

A Turtle

Rooney barking at the turtle

In 1319 miles, 8 states and 117 days....

I ate:

19 pizzas

51 ice creams

40 egg and cheese biscuits

23 candy bars

I purchased or had shipped to me:

3 pairs of shoes (I changed shoes at mile 425 and again at mile 1017.3)

8 pairs of socks

4 pairs of insoles

18 AAA batteries (for my headlamp)

3 fuel canisters

4 batteries for Rooney's collar (it lights up at night)

4 bottles of hand sanitizer

2 razors

My shoes after 425 miles

Red eft!

I saw:

3 rainbows

25 deer (One snuck up on me and snorted loudly. I screamed. It ran.)

15 snakes (3 rattlesnakes, the rest were harmless)

11 red efts (cutest little buggers out there)

1 blue eft

32 tiny frogs (the size of a half dollar)

2 bird nests with eggs inside

5 grouse

2 turtles

1 owl

1 bear

1 lizard

2 bee hives

2 eagles

1 snail

And... I fell down 10 times. Twice it really hurt. The rest were pure comedy.

Deer in the Shenandoahs

Snake!

Bird Nest

Snail

See, don't you want to start writing everything down now? No? It's just me? *sigh* I still have more numbers for ya so stay tuned. I'll talk about our mileage and pace, the number of nights in the tent vs nights in a hotel, the number of showers I took, the number of days with sunshine vs rain.... gah! So many numbers!

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

My first week of going dairy-free and vegan is complete! It's going really well so far and I plan to keep this up for at least another week, but most likely for a full month. Once this strict trial period is complete, I'm going to review everything I've learned and see if this is something I'd like to continue.

If I had to decide right now, I honestly think I would continue this for a long time. I don't think I would call myself a vegan because I know I wouldn't be 100% perfect all of the time, but I'd aim to be dairy-free 95% of the time (I've already been meat-free for 25+ years). I might give myself one day a month to have a little bit of cheese or something. Who knows. But these are the things I'd like to use this trial period to figure out.

I've received a couple of messages asking for basic meal ideas so I thought I would show you a sample day for me right now

Breakfast - I usually have oatmeal with apples & PB or a smoothie. This has actually been a hard meal adjustment for me because I loved having greek yogurt for breakfast. I still miss it. Plus oatmeal reminds me of the trail... not in a good way. BUT, I have to admit. I feel better with the oatmeal or smoothie, plus I feel full for longer.

The oatmeal is 1/2 cup oats cooked on the stovetop with 1 cup of water. Once it's at the consistency I like, I stir in chopped apple and peanut butter than add a tsp of agave to sweeten it up.

Lunch - I try to get at least one serving of veggies in at lunch. My favorite meal has been 1 or 2 vegan burgers (I like the Trader Joe's frozen kind) on a big bowl of greens with a tiny bit of balsamic vinegar. I just cook the frozen burgers in a skillet and then add them to the salad. Easy!

My other go-to lunch is carrots and hummus with a side salad or soup. I like the Amy's brand of soup and I look for hummus with the least amount of ingredients at the store.

Veggie Burger and Salad

Dinner - I try to get the most meal variety with our dinners. Breakfast and Lunch are less exciting to me so I just try to be healthy and calorie conscious, but Dinner is something we eat together at home and I look forward to it so I try to change it up as often as I can. We certainly repeat meals, but instead of having 2-3 options like Breakfast and Lunch, I have 8-10 choices.

Snacks - I aim to keep these at 100-200 calories and sometimes we pair them with dinner. Other times we just snack throughout the day. It just depends on how active we've been that day. If I run or lift weights, I snack more. Apples and PB are a quick snack that I grab frequently. I also keep Raw Revolution bars in the car in case we get hungry when we're running around during the day.

Desserts - my favorite. I don't budget specific calories for these, I just see how I'm doing at the end of the day and if I have room for it, I have a little bit of dessert. I usually make something raw or healthy to have on hand in the house, but in a pinch I just have a bit of chocolate coconut milk ice cream. It's dairy-free, but tastes delicious and creamy.

Anyone else in a trail vegan period or trying to go dairy-free? I'd love to hear how it's going and exchange recipe ideas. I'm really encouraged by how well this first week has gone. I haven't felt a huge change or anything yet, but my cravings for cheese are gone which I didn't think was possible. I'm excited to see what happens in the next few weeks!

This post is part of a series called Hiking by the Numbers. During our hike on the AT, I kept track of all kinds of statistics like calorie consumption, number of wild animals, nights spent in the tent and more. To read all of the posts in the category, click here.

The other night I was out with a few hiker friends from this past year and the topic turned to food. And as it does with any former thru-hikers, we quickly started lamenting about the days when we used to be able to eat anything we wanted and still lose weight. We weren't whining about getting older and having a slower metabolism (although I could), we were whining about not being on the trail anymore.

You see, when you are hiking 12-20 miles a day for months at a time, you tend to burn more calories than you consume. And you tend to be able to eat anything that you want, even the crappy processed food, without gaining any weight. I'd say it's a miracle, but it's not. You're just working out for 8-10 hours a day which is insane by any normal person's definition, but completely normal on the trail.

Being the every curious little nerd that I am, I wanted to track my calorie consumption on the trail. I've actually been tracking my calories for years now so it wasn't much of a pain to track them on the trail. I use a phone app called Lose It and it's really easy to log your food and exercise.

www.loseit.com

Below are the average calories for the days on the trail (i.e. the days we were not staying in a town). We averaged 12-16 miles of hiking a day. Some days were less and some days were more, but in general we were hiking for 8-10 hours a day. I'm a vegetarian female so these numbers may be a little lower than a male hiker, but you get an idea of how your calorie intake will change as time goes by.

It seems like during my initial days I ate a good amount while my body got over the shock of climbing mountains every day. In month two my hiker hunger hadn't fully kicked in yet, so I took in a little bit less food, probably because my body was used to hiking and no longer freaking out. Then month 3 happened. Month 3 is when my views on food shifted and I was always hungry. Even after I finished a meal, I was hungry again 20 minutes later. That, my friends, is hiker hunger.

Pre-TrailConsumed (Food): 1600Burned (Exercise): 400

Weeks 1-3Consumed (Food): 2227Burned (Exercise): 3201

Month 2Consumed (Food): 1966Burned (Exercise): 3374

Months 3+Consumed (Food): 3067Burned (Exercise): 3954

Below are the average numbers for when were in town. As you can see, I ate like a linebacker. Zero shame. I still remember the first time that I finished my entire 16" pizza before Serial finished his. That was...special.

We typically spent one day in town before heading back to the woods so even with my non-stop cupcake and pizza party in town, I still ended each week in a deficit of about 2,000 calories. See why we still yearn for those good ole days?

Weeks 1-3Consumed (Food): 3754Burned (Exercise): 954

Months 2+Consumed (Food): 5051Burned (Exercise): 1201

I also thought you might be interested in what I was eating. I'm a creature of habit and don't mind eating the same thing every day so it's pretty easy for me to lay out what I ate on the trail. The first few weeks were different than the rest of the time (mostly because I learned that sugar and junk made me feel terrible so I switched to nuts, dried fruit and healthier bars), but aside from that I was pretty consistent.

Once I figured out the system that worked best for me I stopped being excited about food on the trail. It was just fuel for the hiking and I definitely enjoyed eating, but it wasn't a gorge fest like it was in town. I was all about how to get the highest number of healthy calories for the least amount of weight. When I got to town though, that was a free for all.

I hope this was helpful, or at the very least interesting. People are often curious what it's like to eat on the trail and my non-hiker friends are always fascinated by the sheer amount of food that I could eat at once. And to wrap this all up with a giggle... I give you a snapshot of what's like when you do get your hands on some town food. Chris Farley gets it.

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

Tempeh is one of those foods that is bland on its own (in my humble opinion), but is fabulous for adding texture to a dish and it can take on just about any flavor. One of my challenges since starting this vegan trial period is finding satisfying and filling dinners without the use of dairy. I'm the kind of girl that will toss cheese on just about anything so I've had to get creative with my recipes.

When I made this breaded tempeh I was trying to get a crispy outside with a chewy inside that had a saltiness to it. My old method of breading usually made use of egg whites, flax meal, parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs, but this time I went with coconut milk, almond meal and breadcrumbs. It held together really well and had a hearty texture to it.

We have been trying to eat more greens lately so we added our tempeh to a salad, but they were good enough to eat on their own. I think they would also be really tasty in a wrap with some grilled veggies or even on a pizza with vegan cheese. However you decide to try them, I hope you enjoy the recipe!

Set up two bowls, one with the non-dairy milk and the other with a blend of the almond meal, breadcrumbs & seasoning.

One piece at a time, dip the tempeh in the non-dairy milk and then in the breading. Set aside and repeat with each piece, until they are all breaded.

Pour 1 tbsp oil in your skillet and use medium heat to crisp the breaded tempeh pieces. Each side required about 90-120 seconds to fully crisp, but it will depend on your heat strength so watch it closely. If you want it extra crispy, you can use more oil, but I was watching the calories so I kept it to 1 tbsp. (I was able to fit about half in the skillet at a time so I did this step twice.)

Once both sides are browned, remove from the skillet and serve. They taste best when they are still warm so you should make this right before you are planning to eat it.

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook,Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

Indian spices are a vegan/vegetarian girl's best friend. They are so flavorful, colorful and good for you. Yesterday, I told you that I was starting a trial run of living dairy-free and vegan, so it seemed like the perfect time to call on one of our favorite Indian dishes, the Punjabi Chhole.

This recipe relies on a package of seasoning that I've seen at most grocery stores and nearly every health food store. It's sort of the quick and easy version of the true recipe. If you're interested in making the traditional recipe from scratch, this recipe from seven spice does the trick. But if you're like me and want to shortcut the seasoning part of the process, this is the recipe for you. I also added a few additional ingredients that I had in the kitchen, so this strays from the traditional dish in that way too.

In your skillet on low heat, saute the 2 cups of spinach, the garlic and 1 tbsp coconut oil until the spinach is tender. It will shrink down considerably.

Add the tomatoes, 1 tbs coconut oil and 1/4 of the seasoning packer then continue to saute for a few minutes.

Add in the chickpeas and continue to saute for 5-6 minutes.

Add in the rice noodles, the rest of the coconut oil and another 1/4 of the seasoning packet then continue to saute for another 2-3 minutes.

Taste test to see if you like the seasoning. If desired, add more a little at a time until it reaches your desired flavor. I used about 3/4 of the seasoning packet.

That's it! The whole meal took about 25 minutes to pull together and it was really delicious. Each serving was about 375 calories, according to the recipe builder on my Lose It app. Not bad for a filling, nutritious dinner!

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

It's been a few weeks since I talked about my health goals for this year (i.e. my plan to stop eating everything and anything just because it's the holidays) and I've done a pretty good job of sticking to them. I haven't been super strict, but I've kept to the plan and started running again, listening to Jillian Michaels and counting my calories with the Lose It app. The thing is, I expected to be feeling healthier by now. Not transformed or anything, but heading in the right direction.

It's just not happening yet. I don't feel stronger and my energy level isn't increasing. I don't feel the things I usually feel when I stick to my plan. So... maybe it's time for a new plan.

I've been a vegetarian for as long as I can remember. I've consumed meat in my life, but I can't remember what it's like. I just remember that I stopped liking it at some point. I've dabbled in veganism a few times in the past, but I always stopped because, well, cheese is delicious.

Lately I've been thinking about going dairy-free (and therefore vegan) again, and it's been nagging at me. I just can't shake the feeling that it's the dairy causing my plan to stall. I'm not going to dwell on it, but there's an argument to be made that we don't need dairy in our diet. Humans are the only mammal to drink another mammal's milk and the only ones to continue drinking milk past adolescence. Why?

veganfoodpyramid.com

I don't have the answers, but I'm curious enough to do a trial period without dairy and see if I gain any insight. So that's what I'm going to do. I'll start with a week or two and see how I feel. I won't miss eggs, but I will definitely miss cheese. I know there are vegan cheese substitutes, but I'm not crazy about those. They are processed and don't taste that great. I'd rather make my own substitutes from nuts and nutritional yeast. I also don't want the lack of dairy to lead to an increase in soy. I do consume soy, but I try to keep it minimal.

I don't have any more details than that right now. I'm going to cut out the dairy and see how I feel. Simple as that. Anyone else new to veganism? How is it going? Any veteran vegans out there with tips for substituting cheese? I'd love to hear them.

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

If you missed Part 1 of Hiking with a Dog, you can click here to read it. We covered diet, paws, ticks and gear. This time we wanted to talk about a few things to consider before hiking with your dog.Before we get to that though, we wanted to give an update on Rooney. In Part 1, we talked about the dangers of ticks and we mentioned that our pup contracted a tick-borne illness on the AT. Several people sent us messages asking how Rooney was doing today and we wanted to say thank you for the concern! We’re happy to report that he’s doing great and is fully recovered. We got off the trail when his injuries first occurred and took him straight to a vet. He had a cast for a few days (to protect his swollen paw) and a month of medication. Bottom line, we took time off the trail and made him our priority. Today, he is back to his normal, healthy, happy self.

Quick disclaimer before we continue with this post - we are not veterinarians nor are we experts on dogs. But we do have a good deal of experience on the AT. We were living in Damascus, VA when we first brought Rooney home so he grew up on the AT and between hiking with Serial and trail running with Minutes, Rooney logged a consistent 40-50 miles a week. When it came time for our 1400-mile section hike, Rooney was ready and we knew what to expect.

Our goal with this post is to help you look at the pros and cons of bringing a dog on a long distance hike and to help you determine if it’s the right move for you.

Is your dog ready for a long distance hike? This is a touchy subject for some because the truthful answer is “probably not.” It takes a lot of work to thru-hike. Most people don’t make it to Katahdin and even fewer dogs do. It IS possible though, if you have the right dog and you have the right preparation and mindset going in. If you can answer yes to these questions, then you’re on the right track.

Is your dog the right breed to be active for 8-12 hours a day? There isn’t a list of breeds we can give you. Just be realistic and honest about your dog’s capabilities.

Is your dog acclimated to the trail? Will your dog be comfortable and respectful around wildlife, hikers, other dogs, shelters and other people’s gear?

Have you built up your dog’s hiking endurance? His/her paws, joints and endurance need to be gradually built up and conditioned to the trail. You know how the trail whips people into shape in the first few weeks? That’s not how it works for dogs. You should get your dog into shape the year or two before the trail. Don’t let the trail be a shock to your pet’s system.

Are you prepared for your dog’s personality to (possibly) change a little? If your dog has been raised in a home, living on the trail may change him/her. One change we saw in Rooney is that now he is overly protective of food. We can’t feed him around other dogs at all now. He had hiker hunger on the trail, just like we did, and he lost the comfort of regularly feeling full. He became very possessive of his food and even now he will snap at another dog if they get too close to it. We are still working on changing this behavior, even though we have been off the trail for months.

Are you willing to put your dog’s needs before your own? Sitting at home by your computer, this is an easy one to say “yes” to. But you need to picture these situations and really, honestly ask yourself if you will resent your dog or ignore your dog’s needs.

You’ve been in the woods for 4 days and you are hungry and dirty. You finally get to town and there are zero hostels or hotels that are pet-friendly. Your hiker crew is ordering pizza and getting ready to shower, watch TV and sleep in beds. You and your dog are grabbing food and heading back to the woods to sleep on the ground. Are you okay with it?

You get to town and there’s a hostel that charges $10 for a bunk, but doesn’t allow pets. The hotel charges $50/night plus a $25 pet fee. Your only choices are to fork over the money or head back to the woods. Are you okay with it?

You’re in town and found a pet-friendly, affordable place to stay (huzzah!) and your friends are heading out to the restaurant for pizza and beer. The place you’re staying doesn’t allow you to leave your pet alone in a room so you have to skip out on the restaurant. Are you okay with it?

Your dog gets hurt. Your only choices are to have someone come get your dog and watch him/her while you finish the trail or to end your hike. Are you okay with it? (read this one twice and really consider it)

Pet policies on the trail. There are two places that you are not allowed to take your dog on the AT and will require extra planning: The Smoky Mountains and Baxter State Park. When you get to the Smokies, you are looking at 5-7 days of hiking that your dog will have to skip, unless you have a service dog. If your dog is not a service dog, you will need to plan for this section and there are two main options: skipping this section or boarding your dog. The Smokies are epic so we don’t recommend skipping it, but that’s your choice. We boarded our dog through the Smokies and it was a good break for him and also a good break for us. Taking care of a dog on the trail is hard work. It was really nice to have a week off to just hike together and not be managing Rooney’s needs. The place we boarded him met us in Fontana and picked Rooney up. Rooney stayed at their hostel at the end of the Smokies and we hiked to him. When we exited the Smokies, Rooney was waiting for us and was rested. He was really happy to see us and start hiking again. If you want to know the specifics of how much it cost or which hostel we used, send us an email at jill {at} atraillife {dot com}.

Baxter State Park is the second time you will need to make arrangements for your pooch. Since it’s the end or the beginning of the trail for most hikers, it might work best to ask someone to pick you up/drop you off and stay an extra day to watch your dog. There are boarding services there, but we can’t vouch for them personally. When Serial thru-hiked, we didn’t have Rooney and our section hike ended in NY so we haven’t dealt with a dog in Baxter.

Trail Etiquette. It’s always better to be extra respectful of others on the trail, especially in the beginning. Once you get to know the hikers around you and have a hiking crew that you see everyday, you can relax a bit but that takes time and will depend on the hikers in your group. Use common sense and these basic tips that we learned to make it a pleasant experience for everyone.

Be respectful of others. You don’t know if the hikers around you have allergies or a fear of dogs so keep your pup leashed and ask permission before letting your dog approach someone.

Speak up for your dog. If someone else has a dog at the shelter and you don’t want your dog to play with him/her, politely say so. If someone is feeding your dog food scraps, politely explain that you’d prefer not to start that habit. If you are respecting other’s feelings about dogs, they should respect your dog too and it’s your job to make sure that happens.

Leash your dog. Every time we went to a shelter or were near a group of people, we had Rooney on a leash. The only exception was when we were camping away from a shelter, with people we knew well. When we were hiking, we would let him off the leash when we were alone, but we never crossed a road or came in contact with another hiker without putting him on a leash. Even if you think your dog has perfect response to voice commands, you can’t predict how they will react in every situation. And more importantly you can’t predict how other people (or their dogs) will react to your pup. Use your leash.

Keep your dog out of other people’s stuff. No exceptions. Do not let your dog eat someone’s food or step on his/her gear. It will not lead to anything good.

Be prepared to sleep in your tent. The only time we ever stayed in a shelter was in the Smokies, when Rooney was boarded. We did see other dogs in shelters occasionally, but not often and it usually wasn't encouraged by other hikers. Rooney came to know the tent as his home and it was a place of comfort for him so we were content to stay in it every night. We even used it indoors once.

Questions from Readers. Thank you to Tracy for submitting the wonderful questions!

What did you have in your first aid kit that was dog specific? Rooney’s first aid kit included a tick key, tweezers, acidophilus supplements, paw wax and his monthly tick treatment. His full gear list can be found here.

When you started hiking could you describe a typical day (did you tire before your dog or did he tire before you)? We tired before him, without fail. Rooney has crazy energy. If we had a low mileage day (anything less than 15 miles), he would do sprints at camp that night to burn off his extra energy. He is really happy when he’s out in the woods so we never felt like he was too tired to continue, but he did sleep soundly every night. And when we had zero or nero days at a hotel, he zonked out the whole time. He climbed up on the bed and promptly passed out, waking only to stuff his face with food. (Hmmm…sounds a lot like us actually). But when he woke up the next morning, he was amazingly perky and always ready to go again.

Did you find yourself taking more breaks than others because of him? Not really. When we took a break in the beginning, Rooney was still running around and playing. Once we settled in, maybe a month in or so, he would take a quick nap at lunch, but it didn’t last very long and he was always ready to go when we were, and usually before us.

We hope this was helpful for those planning their hike. It wasn’t our intention to discourage you from bringing your dog, we just wanted to be realistic about how hard it is to hike 8-10 hours every day and how much extra work it is to have your dog with you. We love our dog a ton and have been living and hiking on the AT with him for 2000+ miles and 3 years, but even we’ve had days when we wished he wasn’t there. It’s just the reality of it.

We never once felt that Rooney was being pushed past his limits physically, but we regularly felt that we were putting his needs over ours. And that can take a toll on a hiker. So pause a moment and really think it through. If you don’t want to bring your dog, don’t feel guilty. And if you still want to bring your dog on the trail, that’s awesome. We’ll do everything we can to help you prepare!

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

The topic we’re asked about most frequently (aside from “why in the world would you hike for that long?”) is hiking with a dog. It fascinates people and they are always curious how our dog, Rooney, handles living in the woods. So we thought we’d take a minute to sum up what we’ve learned and how we make hiking with our dog a positive experience. Real quick, we’ll give you some background on Rooney, to put everything in context. He’s a 3 year old Weimaraner, which is a very high-energy bird hunting dog with a natural prey drive (i.e. his instinct is to chase wildlife). He’s incredibly athletic and strong. He weighs anywhere from 70-80 pounds, depending on his level of exercise and his diet. On the trail, he was a solid block of muscle weighing in at 75 lbs. He’s friendly, cute and likes to be around people. Another quick disclaimer: we are not veterinarians or experts on dogs. We are just sharing what works for our dog and us. We encourage you to do your own research and talk to your vet about your dog’s situation. Each dog is unique.

Diet. We started our hike with dehydrated dog food (they sell it online) and bought enough for the first month, then shipped it ahead on the trail in mail drops. We wanted to see how it went for a bit and then reevaluate our options. We had used this food before on weekend hikes and it worked perfectly, but we weren’t sure if it would work for months on the trail. And sure enough, it didn’t.

There weren’t enough calories in the dehydrated food and Rooney dropped about 5 pounds in the first week. He was always hungry for more food and never seemed satisfied after a meal. It was clear right away that we needed to adjust. We switched to dry bags of food and supplemented it with olive oil for extra calories. This did the trick and he put the weight back on quickly. When we walked out of town we typically had a 6-7 lb bag of food and a big bottle of olive oil, for 3-4 days on the trail. In town, we fed him a TON of food. Pretty much anything we could afford to get our hands on. Raw meat, sweet potatoes, eggs… anything that was safe for him to eat.

And again, to put it in perspective, his diet before the trail included raw foods. We would not have introduced him to a brand new diet on the trail. A typical day for Rooney pre-trail was 2 raw meals (chicken, sweet potato, kale) and 1 dry meal (regular dry dog food) so the trail was just an increased amount of things he was already familiar with. We also carried acidophilus supplements, to prevent/reduce infections in his floppy ears.

Paws. One of the concerns for dogs that are walking all day is that their paws may crack or wear down. Thankfully, this wasn’t an issue for Rooney, but we do have a few suggestions for keeping paws healthy. Many train their dog to hike in boots. We started out carrying boots, but it was pretty clear that Rooney wasn’t having it. Plus we felt it was a little risky to mess with his agile footing on such tough terrain. His paws are massive and strong which is one of the reasons he hikes so well. So instead we did some research on other options and found a paw wax product called Mushers Secret. We started using it in Damascus and it gave his paws extra conditioning and protection from the elements. But the best thing we did was work up to our hike. Rooney grew up on the AT and was used to the terrain so his paws were conditioned over time.

Ticks. The only thing I truly fear on the trail. They are so tiny and yet require so much attention. Last year was a reportedly bad year for ticks because of the mild winter so we found a LOT of ticks on ourselves, but mostly Rooney. We applied a monthly tick treatment and checked him multiple times a day. It wasn’t unusual to find 10-15 ticks in one day. We carried a tick key and tweezers and used a rock or flame to kill each tick after removing it. Even with all of our best efforts, Rooney did end up with a tick-borne illness. We’re not trying to scare or discourage you, but we do want to stress that it’s a real risk and not one to be taken lightly.

Gear. Rooney carried his own pack and gear. On average, it weighed about 5-8 lbs (remember, he weighs ~75 lbs) and fit him snugly, without being over-stuffed, so that it didn’t move around & chafe him while he hiked. He carried his food, bowl, supplements, pack cover and first aid kit. We often carried 2-3 lbs of his food in our own packs – be prepared to help your dog with the extra weight coming out of town. For a complete list of his gear, click here.

That’s it for Part 1. We’ll be back later this week with Part 2 which will cover trail etiquette, dealing with pet policies on the trail (hotels, the Smokies, etc) and tips for determining if your dog is ready for a long distance hike. If you have any other questions that you’d like us to cover, please leave them in the comments.

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

Update: This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Donna! I will email you with the details :-)

One of the pieces of gear that I considered carrying on the trail was the Aquapac Mini Waterproof Camera Case. The AT is a damp environment and I was concerned about damage to my camera and my pictures and this case seemed to be a great way to protect everything.

I ended up using a camera that was water resistant and never used a case so I decided to give it away to a reader. I saw a few hikers carrying these cases on the trail and they loved it. It's lightweight (1.2 oz) and protects your camera from water, dust, dirt and sand. Plus you can operate your camera and take pictures through the case. It would be perfect for backpacking or a trip to the beach. To read more about this product, you can visit the manufacturer website by clicking here.

Image courtesy of Aquapac.net

Here's how the giveaway works.

To enter for a chance to win, follow the directions below on the Rafflecopter widget.

Deadline to enter is Tuesday, January 22 at 12:01am ET.

One winner will be chosen using Rafflecopter, by Wednesday January 23. I will announce the winner on this post as well as contact the winner by email.

NOTE: If you opt for one of the "additional entries" such as following us on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest, that's great! But after you submit your contest entry, be sure to use the links provided to follow us on those sites. If you claim an entry without completing the action (i.e. following us), that entry will be removed before we draw for a winner.

Please know that it's not because we are greedy for followers, we just want to be fair to those who followed the rules and took the time to visit our pages on other sites. Good luck to everyone - we can't wait to draw the winner and announce!!

Giveaway is sponsored by A Trail Life and is not affiliated with Aquapac.

Planning for a long distance hike is quite a process. There's gear lists, saving money, planning mail drops and going on shakedown hikes. It's fun and there are tons of online resources at your disposal.

But what about the people who support your hike? Whether it's your parents, your spouse, your kids, your friends or anyone else in your life, your hike affects them as well. And with a little bit of effort, it can be a really positive and exciting experience for them too.

I've been on both sides of the fence. Last summer I hiked 1,400 miles on the AT. I understand what it's like to plan for a big hike and I know what it's like to balance the communication with friends and family while you're out there.

And the other side of the fence? Oh yea, I know that well too. You see, my man is a serious hiker. He's hiked well over 6,000 miles since 2007. When he has free time, there's really only two places you will find him: at home with me and our pup or in the woods. Both make him happy. I joke that mother nature is his mistress and there's definitely some truth to it.

When I first met him, he had already completed his thru-hike and his first 1,000 mile section hike on the AT so I didn't support him through those, but I have seen him through several other long hikes and countless weekend adventures.

Since I've felt what it's like to be a hiker and what it's like to support a hiker, I thought I'd share a few things I've picked up along the way. Whether you're the hiker or you're trying to make your hike more fun for those supporting you, I hope you find these tips helpful.

If you're a hiker...

Involve your loved ones in the planning process. I remember when Serial was planning his hike on the Benton MacKaye (BMT) trail, he had a lot of mail drops that he was putting together. He can put together a mail drop with his eyes closed so he didn't need to spend a ton of time planning it, but he did anyway...for me. We went to Costco together and picked out his food, while he explained his purchases. He laid out all of his boxes on the ground and I got to help pack them while he explained his thought process (e.g. how many days went in each box and how he anticipated his hunger growing over time). It was fun and it distracted me from the fact that he was leaving home.

Let them help while you are gone. His BMT hike only lasted a month so he could have shipped all of his mail drops before he left, but instead he left them all unsealed at home for me to ship. It was nice because I felt like I had a role in the hike and I was able to sneak in little notes or homemade snacks right before I mailed them.

Thank them. Make sure they know that you appreciate their support. Simple as that.

If you're supporting a hiker...

Take the time to learn about their hike. You don't have to match their level of obsessiveness, but take a peek at their guidebook or map and get a feel for the path they'll be covering. One of the best things my parents did while we were hiking was buy a map of the AT and hang it on their wall. Each time we called with an update on our location, they moved a little marker up the trail. It was fun for them and it made it exciting for us to call each time we made it to another town. Often my mom had researched a little about the town and would fill me in on what she found. It was awesome and it made me feel supported from a distance.

Be patient with their (lack of) communication. Hikers are generally living in the woods for 3-5 days at a time before coming to a town for 1 day/night. They haven't had much access to their voicemail/texts or the internet so when they turn on their phones they will likely be bombarded with the messages that have built up. Not to mention, they have errands to run before they can relax. They need to do laundry, resupply and shower before they can leave town or sit down to relax. So be patient. Understand that you might get a quick text letting you know they're in town, but not be able to actually talk to them until they have a chance to settle in. It's hard when you miss someone and just want to hear their voice (trust me, I get it), but they need to get their basic tasks taken care of before they chat. Let them do that first and you're more likely to have their full attention and a more meaningful phone call.

Talk to them before you send a package. Yes, this takes a bit of the surprise out of it, but it lessens the chance of your package being an inconvenience for them. Just because you know which town they are heading to next, doesn't mean you know where you should ship a package. Only the hiker knows where they will be stopping and whether or not it will be during business or post office hours. A simple email or text asking the best place to send a package will save your hiker time and stress. The contents will still be a surprise and something they are very much looking forward to. Oh, and always send it priority mail so that they can bounce it if needed. (You can read more about that here.)

Be realistic about visiting them on the trail. This is a tricky one for couples. I get it. But you have to keep in mind that hikers are working towards a very tough goal. Each day that they take off the trail is one more day they are adding to their hike. One more day away from home. And one more day they fall behind the group they are hiking with. If you come for a visit, it's reasonable to expect your hiker to take one full day and one night off the trail. Anything more is a happy bonus and great if they're willing, but try to be understanding of their goals and time constraints. And by all means, please be willing to drop them back off on the trail, wherever they need. If you're willing to hike with them, that's fantastic and encouraged, but unless you're hiking 15-20 miles a day, you're still slowing them down. Harsh, but true.

Meet their hiker friends. Get to know the people they spend their days with. It will make their trail stories so much more enjoyable if you know who they're talking about. It will help you understand their daily atmosphere and will be a good time. If you want bonus points, show up with food and drinks to share with everyone. Trail magic = instant friends.

Don't stress about their safety (too much). The AT is a safe place and hikers look out for each other. Yes, there are the occasional crimes on the trail, but it's certainly not the norm and word spreads fast. People who aren't friendly and safe are weeded out quickly. And the animals? They're afraid of hikers and pretty harmless. Except the ticks. Those suckers are out for blood.

Do you have other tips? Leave them in the comments!

If you like what you read, I would love to hear from you in the comments section! It's fun to get feedback and it helps me create future posts. And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!

Update! Life has become busy in a great way, so we don't have a lot of time for blogging these days. We've left the site up as a reference, and we do check our blog emails whenever we can, but we are no longer actively posting or commenting. Thanks for understanding and have a wonderful day!

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About US

I'm a Chicago girl who loves the outdoors and everything DIY. He's an Appalachian Trail thru-hiker and addicted to nature. Follow us as we share our experiences with home projects, recipes and hiking with our energetic Weimaraner, Rooney.