Route: Appalachian Trail (AT)

Going for overall FKT (with assistance) on the AT leaving at first light, 5:56am from Springer Mountain on Wednesday, May 30th, 2018. Challenging overall FKT as well as fastest assisted and fastest assisted northbound. Using a Garmin Inreach with tracking updates every 10 minutes. View map at RoadID.com/WheresHarvey. Glad to have company for anyone interested in running. Thanks!

Hi there! Going for the self-supported record of the AT, starting at first light on June 16th. I'll be going Northbound (back to my beautiful home state, Maine)! I'll be following the guidelines and procedures set before me by Stringbean and Anish. Anyone is welcome to follow along with my journey on my IG @miss.clare.in.the.wild, and while I would love all the support in your heart, please do not offer any assistance during my attempt, so I can follow along with proper self-supported decorum. Cheers! Clare "Star" Olson Olympia, Washington

Admin note:  Clare stopped after about 9 days. Instagram:  "After a couple hours It stopped raining. I had hoped I’d stop being miserable after it stopped raining, but that wasn’t the case. I felt so lonely. I wanted someone else there to share everything with, good and bad. The miles ticked by easily and I found i cared less and less. My brain went in loops and my heart pouted in the corner. “I promise we’ll never have to hike again after we reach Kahtahdin,” I whispered to myself."

From Eric Strumpf:

Greetings! I am formally announcing my intent to challenge the self-supported FKT for the Appalachian Trail. My hike will begin at Mt. Katahdin in Maine on June 27th and I will continue southbound (SOBO) until I reach Springer Mountain in Georgia. The record is currently held by Joe “Stringbean” McConaughy (@thestring.bean) who finished the 2,191 miles in 45d 12h 15m last August. He did a phenomenal job and leaves a daunting legacy. I am dedicating this hike to Marine Sergeant Jacob “Jake” Pope who lost his left leg to an IED while serving in Afghanistan. He will move into his adapted home built by Homes for Our Troops next week. I am also hoping to raise awareness and funding for this great organization. If you feel so moved, please contribute at: https://www.myhfotusa.org/ATChallenge.

You can follow my journey using the following link and PW: https://share.garmin.com/EricStrumpf / ATFKT2018

I will provide occasional updates via Instagram but will focus primarily on moving down the trail. There is a rich history of hard-charging endurance athletes and AT ambassadors who have advanced this challenge to what it is today. It is with great respect and humility that I make this attempt. Best wishes to all!

Admin note:  Eric's InReach stopped sending signals in the morning of July 1.  It appears that his attempt is over.

Hi all, I'm now about one week before starting my speed record attempt on the A.T. and as it's getting really busy with last-hand preparations I'm announcing it officially here now. 

I'm Karel Sabbe from Belgium and I'm a 28 year old hiker / ultrarunner. I learned a lot about running a long-distance hiking trail by setting the F.K.T. on the Pacific Crest Trail in 2016, which is why I take on this new challenge and why I believe there's a possibility that I'll make it. I also have long-distance hiking experience from hiking New Zealands Te Araroa Trail, the Pyrenean High Route, the Sierra High Route, Corsica's GR-20, .. I also ran the Marathon des Sables in 2016 during which I learned a lot about running in heat and how to hydrate in those conditions.

My friend and brother-in-law Joren Biebuyck will be there to support me all the way again (he's a physiotherapist which is very helpful during this record attempt) and he also has a lot of crewing experience from being there the entire PCT which is way more remote and harder to access for crews. 

In addition I'm having some friends coming over to run sections with me (of 1-3 weeks), and my wife Emma will be there during the entire month of August. 

I'm going for the overall record set by Joe McConaughy last year, and I've been in touch with him a lot discussing my record attempt. He'll probably join us for a weekend as well which would be awesome. Jennifer Pharr Davis, Scott and Karl have all been really helpful as well with advice - that is one of the nice things about this FKT community.

Like my PCT run I will also verify this record as a Guinness World Record attempt, because it is nice to go for an official world record and to have a neutral and professional instance analyze all my data and claims. After my PCT run they asked very detailed questions like "Why were you running at 40mph on day 29 in the evening?" (I forgot to switch off my Strava and was in the car to go to a pizza place near the trail). 

I will start on Springer Mountain, on the 18th of July and will be going northbound. It will be very hot but Joe has proven that it is possible to do it at this time of year. Other times of the year have other hazards so I'm feeling OK with what is coming and will try to adapt and overcome as things come up to us (heat waves, storms, etc.)

Like during my PCT run I will use a tracker that updates my location every 4 minutes. In addition I will track everything on Strava and will upload to Strava when cell service allows. The live-tracking website will be www.ATspeedrecord.com . We'll try to include Joe's GPS data on this site so you can see Joe moving on the map as well so people can have an idea of how I'm doing compared to the current record. We'll try to add Scott's data as well but he hasn't been able to extract it yet from his DeLorme device/website. 

Updates will come on the Facebook page Karel Sabbe Ultrarunning. 

The reason of the attempt is pretty simple: I love running and I love adventures. It's a unique opportunity to be able to run a trail like this with a crew, and I feel privileged to be able to do it. I don't know the Appalachian Trail which is a weakness but also a strength as I'm very curious to what's coming and to the scenery that I'll run through. I think the A.T. is a unique trail and I look forward to hike/run it. I also have the possibility of being record holder of both A.T. and P.C.T. at the same time which would be a first (David Horton and Joe McConaughy have held both records but not a the same time I think). 

Hoping for a safe and unforgettable experience! 

Wish me luck,

Karel

Hi I (Kristian Morgan) crewed/paced/muled for Karel Sabbe over a 15 day period during his successful attempt. I would like to say I have learned so much from Karel and his amazing strength as a runner. Karel ran the uphills where other runners would have walked and he stayed positive throughout the entire time I was present on the AT. Thank you Karel for the great company. If anyone would like to become a run coaching client of mine or ask any questions just check out my website here. www.kristianultra.com

When did nobo and sobo become different records?

I suggested a route addition of the NY section of the AT but it has not been added yet, so I'm announcing my intention to set the FKT here (also an only known time).  

I, Justin Schott, will attempt to set an FKT for the NY section of the Appalachian Trail (89.8 miles according to the AT Distance Calculator) from Wednesday, 6/7/19 – Thursday, 6/8/19.  I will be heading southbound and using Gaia GPS to track my progress.  The attempt will be unsupported; I'm aiming for 21-24 hours. Zack Price previously attempted this route supported on 7/1/17 but dropped at mile 45; he had also set FKTs for the NJ and CT sections of the AT. 

I’ll be starting in early to mid-afternoon on Wednesday – I’m flying in from Detroit in the morning and taking public transit and Lyft to the Wing Road NY-CT state line from White Plains, and taking transit home afterward from the Stateline parking lot in NJ.  I'm tying the adventure in with a weekend visit to friends - wish me luck!

Greetings FKT community. We, John L. Senter and Denton L. Akers Jr, are formally announcing a fastest known time attempt northbound on the Appalachian Trail. This attempt will be done as a team and self supported. Our campaign will begin from the southern terminus at Springer Mountain in the predawn hours on Sunday June 9th. Progress will be tracked with a Garmin Inreach Explorer every 10 minutes and can be found at                  https://us0-share.inreach.garmin.com/T5KKA
This adventure will be conducted with great reverence to the Appalachian Trail and especially those that have attempted a FKT there. The accomplishments and contributions from Heather Anderson, Scott Jurek, Joe McConaughy, Karl Meltzer, Jennifer Pharr-Davis, and Karel Sabbe provide tremendous inspiration. Many thanks to everyone who contributes their time to the FKT website and Buzz's podcast. I've learned about so many new routes that I didn't know exist and can't wait to explore them. This site is an awesome resource to remind us all to get back to nature and experience everything that comes along with it.
Keep on keeping on.
John L. (Cactus Jack) Senter and
Denton L. (Whiskey Tango) Akers Jr

My name is Kristian Morgan, I am officially announcing my attempt to go for the supported north bound FKT on the Appalachian Trail. Live Tracking can found as a link on my website www.kristianultra.com or directly here www.kristianmorganat.legendstracking.com. I spent 15 days as pacer and crew with Karel Sabbe during his successful FKT last year. Karel thank you for the inspiration you inspired in me and for setting the standard so high. Preparation has gone well and I am very excited to be so close to the start of this FKT attempt. I will start July 1st at 4am. Thank you to all those who have been helping me in preparation for this attempt, I do not see this as my attempt but OUR attempt.

Greetings fellow hikers and runners. I’m posting today to announce my intention to start an attempt at the speed record for the AT.

My name is Henry Wakley from McCoy, VA. I will be    hiking/running the trail self supported Southbound and am aiming to start on the 23rd or 24th of July. I am finalizing some logistics and am already up in Maine not far from Katahdin. 

I will be tracking my attempt with an InReach device that I have given to the administrators of the website and a few other family and friends. Through my InReach I can also message my father and he will update these messages to Twitter. I will try to put out updates as often as batteries and time permits via the account @followforrest. 

I’m very thankful to have this opportunity and can’t wait to get started. 

Hello, my name is Liz Anjos. On July 7th, beginning from the southern terminus on Springer Mountain, I’m attempting a supported FKT on the Appalachian Trail. Hiking the AT has been a dream in the making for a long time, and I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to now realize that dream. My thru-hike will be supported by educator and hiker Warren Doyle, who set an endurance record on the trail in 1973 and has set an informal record for hiking the entire trail the most times (18). I will also be supported along the way by my family in Virginia and Pennsylvania, as well as friends I have met through the amazing hiking and trail running communities in the Eastern US.

The women’s record stands at 46 days, 11 hours, and 20 minutes by Jennifer Pharr Davis supported by Brew Davis, and the overall record stands at 41 days, 7 hours, and 39 minutes by Karel Sabbe supported by Joren Biebuyck. Their achievements, and those of Heather Anderson and Joe McConaughy (self-supported record holders), Scott Jurek, Karl Meltzer, Andrew Thompson, Pete Palmer, David Horton, and the list goes on, are not only feats of extraordinary athleticism, but a testament to the power of the mind, planning, strategy, the ability to roll with the punches, and above all… relentless forward motion.

I would like to address that this thru-hike is happening in the midst of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. My crew and I are taking every measure to minimize the risk of contracting or spreading Covid-19 by getting tested, wearing masks as required indoors or when keeping a distance of 6ft isn’t possible, minimizing resupplies and arranging contactless delivery when possible, and providing our own shelters and avoiding places where hikers congregate. The entire trail from Georgia to Maine is open for use, though some restrictions for out-of-state visitors remain in the northern-most states; this may mean leaving the trail to get tested before entering certain states, contacting state health departments regarding this particular circumstance and following their guidance, and/or making some difficult decisions if the situation gets worse over the next month. My crew and I will post trail updates from my blog and I won’t be posting on social media during the hike, as to not take up space or glorify traveling and thru-hiking at this time. My live tracking info has been shared privately with the site runners at Fastest Known Time. While this is a personal journey at its core, I want to be transparent about my progress in the record attempt.

Trail updates and more info can be found at mercuryontheat.com.

Lastly... my trail name Mercury is inspired by the Roman deity, the wing- and fleet-footed messenger of the gods. In embarking on and sharing about this journey, I would like to deliver my own message of perseverance and hope.

My name is  Ella Bredthauer and I am going for the self-supported, female fkt northbound on the Appalachian Trail. 

This will be my third time thruhiking the AT, once solo in my early 20’s, again my my spouse in my early 40’s, and now full circle on my own again.  My trail name is the Orange Pig, and hopefully this time around, pigs can fly ;)

I am primarily using mail drops for resupply to limit my time in towns and in contact with others.  You can follow my attempt on Instagram @ellabredthauer.  I am keeping my tracking private for safety reasons.  

Attempt Notification

I will attempt an Appalachian Trail north-bound FKT later this month (June 2021). Weather forecast will trigger specific date.

Cached supplies in advance--default is self-supported style; may adjust.

Live tracking using Somewear: device: https://somewear.co/public/tracking/5eb076be-b063-425e-af77-2985d367ac96

Will also track on Garmin.

My name is Kristian Morgan. The crew and I will be going for our second attempt for the FKT on the Appalachian trail in early July 2021, the exact start date will depend on weather. Our attempt will be supported and Northbound.

The crew consist of...

Crew Chief/driver: "Gunsection"

Crew/driver: "Iceman"

Crew: "Campfire" aka "Girl on Fire"

Crew/pacer: "Black Beard"

During the 2018 Appalachian trail FKT I paced Karel Sabbe from day 12 to day 26 of the attempt (15 days total). In this time I became inspired that one day I would attempt my own supported FKT on the AT.

2019 on the 1st of July I set out from Springer Mountain for my own supported FKT attempt only to get a handful of days into it until one of the crew had to leave the trail, leaving only two of us and therefore ending our attempt. 

In 2020 we were not able to travel to the USA due to the covid pandemic. We stayed in the UK and went about setting a new supported FKT on Britain's longest national trail, the 630 mile South-West coast path (SWCP). The SWCP for us was a stepping stone towards our future AT attempt and gave us much needed experience.

I will share our FKT attempt via the links below...

INSTAGRAM

STRAVA

LIVE TRACKING

At this point I have done all the planning, training (physical and mental) and all I can do now is trust that I am ready. The crew trust me and I trust the crew.

Hello,

My name is Corey Nunlist and my friend Kyler and I are attempting a supported northbound FKT on the Appalachian Trail starting tomorrow morning.  I'm carrying an inreach for live tracking purposes, and a Garmin watch for backup and to see what time it is and stuff. I've shared the inreach link with a number of people, and will post my progress publicly, but on a delay, at mycnat.com.  This website is a work in progress.

Peace, love, and summer adventures,

Corey

I will make another attempt at an Appalachian Trail north-bound FKT, starting Wednesday, July 14th at ~6:00 p.m.

Cached supplies in advance--default is self-supported style; may adjust.

Live tracking using Somewear: device: https://somewear.co/public/tracking/5eb076be-b063-425e-af77-2985d367ac96

Will also track on Garmin.

- Gerrit / Conan

Kristian Morgan with the support of Gun Section and Iceman will aim to set a new FKT heading NoBo on the Appalachian trail starting 4am June 1st 2022. Live Tracking can be found here… www.kristianultra.com/appalachian-trail

John Hardin will be going for the SOBO and overall record starting June 20th. Support crew consist of Jack Sayles (Poncho Blanco) as crew chief, and several other friends and family. We have a donation page up with several updates otherwise you can review tracking on the FKT site. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTesYR2jWYg

https://www.facebook.com/groups/johnhardin2022fktappalachiantrail

Starting in the coming days, I will be attempting to go under the self-supported record on the AT (Heather Anderson’s record of 54 days, 7 hours, 48 minutes). I will be going Northbound and will follow the self-supported rules as outlined by the FKT website and the precedent set by those who have gone before me. I will share my Inreach tracker link with FKT and with a group of family and friends for tracking purposes, but ask that no one uses that to locate me or to provide any outside support. I will be posting updates on my Instagram account, but they may be delayed or scrambled to try to confuse people. I’d prefer that people simply do not try to find me as I’ve got enough to worry about without needing to confuse others.

Hi all, 

My name is Trent Binford-Walsh and I’m going to be hiking the AT self-supported going southbound on Aug 15th, starting later in the afternoon. I will be going after Joe “Stringbean” Mcconaughy’s overall self-supported FKT. I just finished a season studying owls, so may continue my semi-nocturnal schedule to beat the heat. 

I don’t participate much in social media but may give TikTok a go for occasional updates @outlawhikes. I will setting my garmin inreach mini to track me every hour. Here is the link. 

http://share.garmin.com/TMC8A

All the best, 

Trent

I'll be attempting the FKT for NOBO self-supported starting around April 1st.

Intend to make a supported northbound attempt, starting on April 15th. I'll post updates and live tracker link to Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gerrit.vano/

Gerrit / Conan

I will be attempting a Appalachian trail FKT attempt starting the 23rd of April, 2023. I will start at Springer Mountain Georgia and finish at Mt.Katahdin, Maine. It will be self supported. Gregory J Thomas Reno, NV.

Announcing my 2024 AT northbound, supported FKT attempt(s). I will attempt a sub-40-day window between mid-April and mid-August 2024. Please reach out to me on Facebook or Instagram (gerrit.vano) if you know someone interested and available for crewing for a window during spring or summer 2024. My hat’s off to Karel and Kristian, but I’m committed to prep and full effort for winning record back for America. As a validation before the full AT attempt, intend to set the unsupported record for the Georgia section (out-and-back).

Hi this is Kristian Morgan, trail name “Captain” or “Down Over” as the thru hikers know me from 2021. During 2018 I paced/mueled and crewed Karel Sabbe for 15 days. He went on to set a supported NoBo FKT on the Appalachian trail. The experience inspired me a great deal. I pursued my own attempts in 2019, 2021 and 2022, Currently I hold the second fastest time in the world, 44d, 4h 54m, set in 2022. I was privileged to be helped by so many generous people including my crew “Gun Section” (Sharon Mullan), “IceMan” (David Martin) and “FishBoy” (Stephan Grierson). This year, 2023 we will be setting out for our 4th attempt. I will have the same crew. We will go Sobo as so if we fall off record pace for the overall FKT (41d 7h 39m) we will aim to set the SoBo record held by Karl “SpeedGoat” Meltzer 45d 22h 38m. I will carry a live tracker (Garmin Inreach Mini 2). Our start date will be around July 3rd 2023 depending on weather.

LIVE TRACKING

STRAVA

INSTAGRAM

FACEBOOK

Attempt on hold until Maine drys ups a bit. The rain fall has rivers raging and trails submerged in waist deep water. We will look at starting the week beginning 10th July 2023. As above follow with links below... 

LIVE TRACKING

STRAVA

INSTAGRAM

FACEBOOK

I will attempt a Sobo self assisted thru hike starting the 18th of September, 2023. Greg Thomas.

I will attempt for the last time starting on the 2nd of February, 2024. It will be a Northbound self assisted hike.

Kyler and I forgot how hard this was and have completely regained, nay surpassed, our prior level of confidence, so we're going to try again this year, this time with a yo-yo attempt (also known as a Bilbo). Though the northbound leg will be in thru-hiker fashion, I'll categorize the whole thing as supported. I suspect, but haven't been able to confirm (though admittedly I haven't tried too hard to confirm it), that even if everything goes perfectly, schedule-wise, my total time will still be slightly slower than Ward Leonard's Bilbo, but much faster than the current posted FKT of 307 days. So I'll track it. I've shared my tracking info with various people, including the good folks at fastestknowntime, but am not posting it publicly. I plan to start north from Springer on March 10th or 11th, finish the northbound leg on Katahdin around mid-June, rest for a few weeks, and start the speed[ier] southbound portion in early/mid-July. Any information I do post will be on mycnat.com, which currently contains information about and reflections on our 2021 experience. If nothing new is posted on the site, you can assume I started in March as planned. I'll at least post an update when I finish the northbound leg, and at some point after starting south again. Or when my plans, you know, change.

My A goal in this endeavor is to finish a yo-yo with zero falls.

My B goal is to set some sort of record.

My C goal is to gain something mentally and/or physically meaningful from the experience.

Goodl luck with your own goals this year, and [do your best to] be excellent to each other,

Corey (Nunlist)