Precautions I took as a Solo Woman Hiking the AT

This was originally posted on TheTrek, here.

I am a huge proponent that women can, and should, do everything they set their mind to. However, I also believe it is always wise to be aware, and plan for worst case scenarios, to not knowingly put myself in a bad situation. So, here what I want to do is simply provide a straight forward post for other women who plan to thru hike, so that they may read and hopefully get ideas from for themselves as to how they may prepare for a thru-hike. So, here are the steps I have taken to prepare myself to hike the AT as a Solo Female:

• Items I have brought
  • I am using carabiners on the inside of my tent to act as locks. If someone wants to come into my tent at night they will have to cut their way in.
  • I have packed pepper spray and a multi-tool with a knife
  • I have with me a GPS with inReach (to use in case of an SOS)
• Precautions taken
  • I uploaded my Garmin with detailed GPX files to use as a guide for the trail
  • I studied the path I will take in order to know where nearby towns and roads are
  • I have contacted family and friends along the AT so that they always have a rough idea of where I am/should be, and set out an expectation of how often I should message them. I also have preset plans to meet some of them along the way.
  • These friends and family also each have multiple ways of tracking my location
• Plans I have
  • Avoid camping near roads
  • Avoid camping alone with a single stranger (groups OK)
  • Regular check ins with family and friends
  • Avoid hitch hiking alone
  • I have connected with other women hiking the AT using various social media pages (e.g., The Solo Female Traveler Network, Women of the AT, All Women All Trails, AT: Women’s Thru-Hiker Group, Outdoorsy Gals, Bearfoots Appalachian Trail, Right to Hike, AT: Women’s Group)