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If my feet got wet in mesh trail runners as I hiked for a day in snow, that was fine because I came home to a warm fire and new socks and shoes. The Neoshell shoe adds the most major piece of warmth by creating an extra Vapor Barrier around your feet—a double whammy of warmth. Since I usually wear Altras in the mesh version as my normal hiking shoe, I knew that it would fit and work with my foot, so I didn’t run into any of the weird sizing or gait issues associated with changing footwear for snow conditions. With the double protection of the two Vapor Barrier System, my feet were warm enough I could concentrate on navigation and frankly, the beauty of the mountains I got to see totally covered in snow.

I keep an expense journal for all my hikes and discovered that I spent almost $1000 on gear purchased along the trail during my first thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail—in addition to the thousand I spent gearing up to start the trail! Or don’t get a hotel room at all Many hikers like to hit town in the evening, catch a motel room, and spend the night partying, eating, and spending money senselessly. Those 79 cent beans help meet the immediate hiker need for calories while telling the brain not to order a second $20 entrée when you get to the restaurant. To avoid buying too much food for the next leg of the trail, I tend to eat first (or get immediate food of yogurt, beans, bananas, chocolate milk, etc.), and then make a second trip to the grocery store.

As we speak, the long distance hiking community is taking over the Outdoor Winter Retailer Show at the Denver Convention Center. Reconnecting with friends and colleagues is one of the best parts of Outdoor Retailer You have to apply in advance to attend. If you’re trying to find your friends at the end of the day, know that running the OR app and just being in the conference center can really drain your phone battery. Dinner and night time are for working, too If you were hoping to catch up with a friend who lives in the area, know that you likely won’t have much time to do so.

A post shared by Liz Thomas (@lizthomashiking) on The best way to prepare for a big mile hike is to maintain a base fitness level for big mile hikes. For example, to practice for my first Cactus to the Clouds (21 miles with 10500’ gain), my Baby Big Mile Day was Bear Canyon on Mt Baldy (16 miles, 6000’ of gain). For example, I wrote my Rim to Rim to Rim gear list for the Grand Canyon for hiking in April or May, but someone attempting that hike earlier in the year would want to include microspikes to deal with ice and someone heading later in the year would want more water. I took some along on a Baby Big hike to train before Rim to Rim to Rim.