15 Year Old Girl Becomes Youngest Person to Solo Thru-Hike the Appalachian Trail

15 Year Old Girl Becomes Youngest Person to Solo Thru-Hike the Appalachian Trail

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

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Reaching her goal to be the youngest person to solo thru-hike the Appalachian Trail, 15-year old Neva ‘Chipmunk’ Warren completed her 2,200 mile trek on October 23, 2013.

On April 1, 2013 in Springer Mountain, GA, Neva took her first steps towards completing her goal to be the youngest person to ever solo thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. On average, Neva covered 12 – 13 miles per day, taking her just under 7 months to reach her goal. For her safety, Neva’s parents tracked her daily via a Spot GPS and she carried a cell phone for emergencies. Every day she would carry a backpack with enough supplies for 2-3 days in the wilderness but would often meet her parents at night and sleep in the family camper dubbed the ‘Chipmobile’.

When asked about her accomplishment, Neva said, "The whole time I was hiking, I kept in mind a favorite quote by Babe Ruth: 'Don't let the fear of striking out, hold you back.” Neva followed that up with “I'm tired but I'm glad I didn't strike out."

Quite the adventuresome girl, Neva has a personal goal to perform 12 Herculean tasks in her lifetime. This Appalachian Trail hike is the second of the 12, while her first was celebrating her 13th birthday in the summer of 2011 while riding 3,842 miles, visiting 28 race tracks in the Eastern U.S.

Asked about the one piece of gear she depended on to get her through the entire 2,200 miles of the Appalachian Trail and Neva will quickly respond that it was her Vasque Breeze 2.0 GTX boots. The Breeze 2.0s, which kept Neva’s feet dry and comfortable for 7 months, are perfectly tuned to the realities of today’s hiking trends where lighter loads and a faster pace rule the trail.

You can read about Neva’s journey at www.ridethenation.org.


Jeff
Hiking in the Smokies

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Is the quest to become the youngest becoming dangerous?

Is the quest to become the youngest becoming dangerous?

Saturday, June 12, 2010

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By now most people are already aware of the successful summit of Mt. Everest by 13-year-old Jordan Romero last month.

As you would expect, Jordan's age has become the subject of quite a bit of controversy: Is the quest to become the youngest - in a host of outdoor endeavors - becoming just too dangerous?

One doesn't need to look too far in recent headlines for an example of how younger people are flirting with disaster. Take 16-year-old Abby Sunderland who was rescued this morning by the crew of a French fishing ship in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

Sunderland was trying to become the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe solo. Her brother, Zac, held the record for a little more than a month last year before it was broken by Mike Perham. Perham's record lasted until last month before 16-year-old Australian Jessica Watson completed her own around-the-world voyage.

Now, according to a report on Alan Arnette's climbing blog, the search is on for someone to break Jordan's Everest record.

According to the article, Sherpa Pemba Dorje is already searching for a young climber who can break Jordan's record, stating that he thinks that all Everest records should be held by Nepali climbers.

This is Dorje's rationale:

“Nepal is a small country and we do not get much good publicity. I want to take an 11- or 12-year-old to the summit because I think all the Everest records should be held by Nepalese people.”

One can only conclude that the quest to become the youngest will end up in disaster one day. The controversy surrounding Jordan's age right now will be nothing when compared to the media storm that will ensue after that first death.


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, and more.

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