2,000-Milers: Facts and Statistics

2009 HIKer Counts (updated NOV. 09)

2008 Northbound thru-hiker Sojo completes his trek at Katahdin

Northbound   (Georgia to Maine)
Springer Mtn., Ga.

1425
Neels Gap, Ga. (30 miles)

1325
Fontana Dam, N.C. (160 miles)

911
Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (1,000 miles)

708
Katahdin, Maine (2,176 miles)

266

2008 flip-flop hikers Hobbit and Crazy Feet celebrate their completion at ATC Headquarters in Harpers Ferry

Southbound  (Maine to Georgia)
Katahdin, Maine

214
Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (1,160 miles)

107
Springer Mtn., Ga. (2,176 miles)

8*
 
Flip-flop  (What is a Flip-flop?)
Harpers Ferry, W.Va.

77
Completions reported

13*
 
Section  (more than one year)
Harpers Ferry, W. Va.

270
Completions reported

71

* This number includes thru-hikers who started later in 2008 and completed in 2009.

Where do we get these numbers?

It's estimated that 3 to 4 million visitors hike a portion of the Appalachian Trail each year. Most enjoy day hikes and short backpacking trips, but each year a small fraction of those hikers complete the entire Trail. How many? Since 1936, more than 10,000 hike completions have been recorded by ATC. This includes thru-hikes, multiyear section-hikes, and more than 300 hikes by people who have already completed the A.T. one or more times. We call all these hikers “2,000-milers.”

2,000-milers in recent years

2,000-milers 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Total hike completions recorded: 597 604 584 554 515 508 546

For recording purposes, we sort 2,000-miler reports according to direction and type of hike: northbound, southbound, flip-flop, or section-hike. Starting numbers and completions rates for recent years are shown below, as available.

Northbounders 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Springer Mountain, Ga. 1,750 1,535 1,392 1,150 1,125 1,250
Neels Gap, Ga. (30 miles) 1,400 1,305 1,156 1,076 1,005 1,150
Fontana Dam, N.C. (160 miles) 1,028 864 1,124

N/A

 N/A 1,050
Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (1,000 miles) 741 661 682 659 613 667
Katahdin, Maine (2,100+ miles) 411 397 362 349 307 337
Completion rate: 23% 26% 26% 30% 27% 27%

Northbounders hike from Springer Mountain to Katahdin in one continuous journey. They represent more than 65 percent of reported 2,000-milers.

 
Southbounders 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Katahdin, Maine 291 233 217 200 184 241
Kennebec Ferry, Maine (150 miles) 204 163 161 154 141 N/A
Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (1,170 miles) 88 102 95 90 94 122
Springer Mountain, Ga. (2,100+ miles) 63 53 51 33 46 64
Completion rate: 22% 23% 24% 17% 25% 27%

Southbounders hike from Katahdin to Springer Mountain in one continuous journey. They represent about 10 percent of total reported 2,000-milers.

 
Flip-floppers 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Reported finishing 34 32 31 25 32 37

Flip-floppers complete the Trail in one trip, but with an alternate itinerary. They make up about 5 percent of reported 2,000-milers.

 
Section-hikers 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Reported finishing 96 102 110 108 121 94

Section-hikers complete the Trail in more than one trip. They represent about 20 percent of total 2,000-milers.

 

History

2,000-milers by decade
1930s 8
1940s 3
1950s 14
1960s 37
1970s 753
1980s 1,411
1990s 3,280
2000-present 5,162
Total: 10,668
Get year-by-year details

The number of people hiking the entire Trail has risen dramatically over the years. From 1936 to 1969, only 61 completions are recorded. In 1970, the numbers began to rise. Ten people completed the Trail in 1970, including Ed Garvey, whose thru-hike was well-publicized. The trend was further fueled by the release of Garvey's popular book, Appalachian Hiker: Adventure of a Lifetime. The term “2,000-miler” was coined in the late 1970s to help identify this growing group of hikers.

By 1980, the total number of 2,000-milers had increased more than ten-fold. The total had doubled by 1990 and again by 2000. More hike completions were reported for the year 2000 alone than in the first 40 years combined. The 10,000th hike completion was recorded in 2008.

Read about noteworthy 2,000-milers.