Thruhiker Dictionary

AT: Appalachian Trail

PCT: Pacific Crest Trail

CDT: Continental Divide Trail

Triple Crown: The three biggest long-distance trails in the US: AT, PCT, and CDT

Thru-hikers: People attempting to hike the entire AT within one calendar year.

Section Hikers: People attempting to hike the entire AT in sections over a period of years.

2000 Miler: People who complete the entire AT, either by a thruhike or in sections.

Day Hikers: People hiking for the day. Secretly envied by thruhikers, for they get to enjoy the trail and still have a shower and bed waiting at the end of the day. Many are very kind to thruhikers.

Squishies/Muggles: Tourists that will drive up to a point of interest and walk 50 feet from their car to see the views. Thruhikers are often annoyed by their ignorance.

NOBO: Northbound thruhikers hiking frome GA to ME.

SOBO: Southbounder thruhikers traveling from ME to GA.

Flip-Flop: A thruhike that starts somewhere in the middle of the AT and travels in both directions from the point of origin. For example, someone hiking WV to GA and then WV to ME.

Yo-yo: A thruhiker who, once they reach the end, turns around and goes back to where they began,  thus hiking the entire trail both directions.

Blaze: 2x6 inch rectangle painted on rocks and trees to mark the trail.

Cairn: Piles of rocks that mark the trail where blazes aren't sufficient.

Treeline: The point of elevation (usually above 4000 feet) where trees are not able to grow because of climate or terrain.

Bald: The peak of a mountain that is usually covered with meadows, while trees grow in the surrounding forests.

PUD: Pointless Up and Down- When the trail goes over hills for seemingly no reason when a trail going around the hill would be perfectly acceptable.

Switchback: A method trail maintainers use to prevent erosion on steep hills. Rather than going straight up a hill, the trail will go gradually up along the side of the mountain, turn back, and go gradually up the other direction... over and over again.

Yellow Blazing: Riding in a car past sections of trail in order to skip them... named from the yellow lane lines on the road.

Blue Blazing: Taking a blue-blazed side trail past the AT in order to cut off miles, prevent hiking in exposed terrain in bad weather, or to see something the AT doesn't pass.

Aquablazing: Doing a section of trail on the water, when a river runs parallel to the trail and a boat is available.

Pink Blazing: Following a romantic interest, even if it means changing pace and plans.

Purist: Someone who walks the entire AT without skipping a single mile. No blue blazing or yellow blazing. Some refuse to slackpack.

EFI: Every Freakin' Incher- An extreme purist who must walk every inch of the trail, making sure to get back on the trail exactly where they got off. Stopping at shelters, going off trail to use the bathroom, or seeing a view, they enter the trail at the precise location they exited.

Slack pack: Hiking without a full backpack, usually only carrying food, water, and rain gear, in a smaller borrowed pack. Often done in between towns that are close together, or from hostel to hostel.

LNT: Leave No Trace- guiding principles for humans to interact with the environment without damaging it.

Stealth Camping: Camping at non-designated sites, usually still legal, but it is important to practice LNT so no one would know someone camped there.

Cowboy Camping: Camping under the stars without shelter overhead, only a sleeping bag and pad.

HYOH: Hike Your Own Hike- Term used to encourage hikers to do what they want as far as distance, pace, stopping, and timing.

Trail Name: A nickname long distance hikers use, mostly out of tradition. Can be self-named or given.

Hiker Trash: A term of endearment from hiker to hiker, but an insult from non-hikers.

Trail Family aka Tram: A small group of hikers who decide to hike together. Often 

The Bubble: A large group of thruhikers that pass through an area about the same time. Often hikers will know who is hiking around them, even if people are spread out over a few days. Familiar faces on the trail, even if you don't specifically hike with them.

Trail Magic: Unexpected acts of kindness such as food, a ride, or a place to sleep.

Trail Angel: People who deliver trail magic.

Gabriel: My own personal term for those who deliver the news of trail magic up-trail.

Cooler Magic: My own term for trail magic left alongside the trail in coolers that the trail angels drop off.

Yogi: Trying to inadvertently get something from a day hiker or tourist, such as a ride or food.

Zero: A day of zero hiking, traveling zero miles.

Nearo: Near zero; hiking very few miles.

Weero: A week of zeros, usually in a vortex.

Vortex: A location that sucks you in and makes you stay longer than you originally planned. Usually a really awesome hostel or town.

Hostel: An informal hotel, more like a house. Many have bunks and shared bathrooms, kitchens, and lounge areas.

WFS: Work For Stay- Working a few hours for free room and board at a hostel.

Hiker box: Boxes found at hostels and select locations in towns, places for hikers to leave unwanted items and other hikers to take what they need.

Mail Drop: Boxes hikers arrange to be sent to certain locations on the trail, filled with food or gear.

Care Package: Box of goodies arranged by someone at home and sent to the hiker.

Hiker Hobble: The signature walk of thruhikers in towns or after long breaks; a wide stance gait, bent over posture, and limp. Will make a 20 year old walk like a 90 year old.

Hiker Hunger: An unsatisfiable hunger that sets in after a few weeks on the trail when hikers will eat everything in sight.

AYCE: All You Can Eat- buffets where hikers go crazy and eat a lot, and usually regret it when they go into a food coma.

Bear bagging: Method of hanging food in the trees from a rope to keep away from bears, or worse, mice.

Bear Cables: Pre-strung cables in between trees for hikers to easily hoist their food bags up on a pulley.

Bear Poles: Long poles stuck in the ground with hooks on the top, and hikers must use a thin pole to hoist their food bags to the hooks on top. Usually very difficult but fun to watch others try to hang their food.

Bear Box: The best of the bear-proofing methods. A large metal box with a complicated handle in which to safely store food.

Glissade: Sliding down a steep slope of snow on the butt, typically with an ice axe to help control speed.  

Camel Up: Drinking a lot of water at the source and topping off waterbottles before continuing on.

Norovirus: A virus that causes puking and diarrhea, easily spread from hiker to hiker because of the lack of sanitation on the trial.

Giardia: A cyst found in some untreated water that causes an infection in the lower intestines, and therefore vomiting and diarrhea.

Privy: A primitive toilet found at many shelters along the AT; outhouse.

Vitamin I: Ibuprofen. Taken like candy by many hikers to ease pain and inflammation.

Awol: The guidebook many hikers use on the AT, named after the man who wrote it. Although very useful and correct most of the times, Awol often is the brunt of hikers' anger and receives countless curses for hills being steeper than they appear in the book, or sections being longer than listed.

Guthook: A guide app, that used GPS to make it ridiculously easy to know where you are. Also has lots of info and comments on trail towns and points of interest. Now known as FarOut Guides.

Red Line: The official route of a trail, as shown red on the Guthook/FarOut app. "Following the red line" means a hiker has chosen to stay on the official trail rather than an alternate route.

Blue Line/Pink line/yellow line/ etc.: An alternate route shown on the Guthook/FarOut app, highlighted in a color other than red.

Register/Logbook: Notebooks found in shelters along the trail where hikers can sign in and write a little note about whatever is on their mind.

Ridgerunner: Someone who gets paid to hike.... and enforce rules, check permits, pass along information, and maintain the trail.

F.I.G: "Fill In the Gap" Hiking a skipped/missed section of trail to officially complete a thruhike

HIHO: "Hike In, Hike Out" Getting in and out of a town quickly to avoid town vortexes and keep moving; getting back to the trail after a quick resupply and chores