A man and a woman standing behind a trail sign.
A man and a woman standing behind a trail sign.

Appalachian Trail Gear List & Strategy 2025

For those with their sights set on section-hiking or thru-hiking the 2,200-mile Appalachian Trail (AT), this 2025 gear list and trail-wide strategy cover everything you need to bring with you and tips on how to hike.

We’ve broken each section of the AT (The South, Virginia, The Mid-Atlantic, and New England) into comfort and ultralight gear lists, plus we have strategies on how to prepare for the Appalachian Trail — when to go, and what to expect — whether you’re doing the entire thing or a section.

Continue to read to learn more about gear needed and strategies for hiking the Appalachian Trail, written by Mike Unger & Liz Thomas & Naomi Hudetz.

Menciones en los medios de comunicación

Why use a plastic bag when you can simply screw on this end cap, specifically designed for Sawyer water filters?

Zoe Gates
Editor at Backpacker

Menciones en los medios de comunicación

In future, I’ll use gravity when I can, and squeeze when I have to.

Richard, aka "LowRange
Senderista

Menciones en los medios de comunicación

For longer hikes, it’s convenient to carry a small backcountry water filter, such as a Sawyer Mini or Micro, which allows you to replenish your water from natural sources like streams or ponds.

Philip Werner
Author and Backpacker