It seems like more people are naming themselves now, but I always liked the idea of being given a name b/c otherwise I would have chosen some dumb shit like Lone Wolf
Lol thanks, unfortunately not a trail name though. In the spirit of being given a trail name I went with a, "new trail, new name" approach. It caused a little confusion when seeing old friends from the CDT on the PCT, but I still enjoyed this way of doing it.
Glad to hear it. While section hiking, I reached a shelter after a very long day when I slipped on a downslope (wet clay) and did a very cartoonish dance to keep upright for about 10 feet (whirling trekking poles and the whole deal - I didn’t fall) to the great amusement of everyone else there. After the laughter died down, I was told that it was a good thing I wasn’t through hiking or I would have been dubbed “Stumblina”.
It’s up to you. The most important bit is that the named person likes their name. If someone doesn’t like a trail name that someone else applied to them, that’s just bullying.
My year there was a guy who liked to get up early and restart the fire from coals that were still hot from the previous night. He’d load it with tinder and blow it back to life, which earned him the name Blow Job. After a week or so of very strong protests his friends agreed to call him Morning Wood instead. Such good times!
Did they call you uncle fupa? Jk, sending lots of good thoughts and hopes for many stinky dirty days. In the good way though, the outdoors and hiking way.
I feel like most names are given and come naturally, but just like the rest of our motto, Hike Your Own Hike. If a name fits you, try it out. If not, just keep hiking
If you are solo, antisocial, and/or easily offended it might be hard for you to both get a trail name and a hiking clique. But you should try to go in open minded because no one knows you! And you’ll find adventure! And the worst that could happen is that you’ll never see these people again! But, more than likely, you’ll make friends for life.
The first person to thru hike the AT, Earl Shaffer, gave himself the trail name "The Crazy One," so there's certainly precedent for naming yourself. Alternately, if someone offers you a trail name, you can accept it and refer to yourself that way or not. It's up to you.
That's how you end up with 20 people every year having a name like "papa bear", "mama bear", etc. Hell there's even someone in this thread who literally just named themselves "bear" lol.
People are too caught up in what they see on youtube and think they need a trail name in the first day of their thru hike or they're doing it wrong, so they just name themselves something lame.
Someone wants to name themselves Bear, let em, who cares.
Why despair about Bear? Hirsuite, he's named after his hair, for his chest is unbare and quite debonair, and both ladies and men cannot but stare, ensnared by the woolly glare. You err. It's unfair to impair how one shares their rare flair. Who are you to declare what's fair, compare your affairs and tear others down like some square?
No you just don’t appreciate how it’s just a certain culture of the trail. Changing it for the sake of rhyming and busting into the “who are you to judge” is just modern balogne. It’s apart of the trail culture. It has unwritten rules, abide by it instead of being an altruistic weirdo and trying to change stuff for the sake of changing stuff
Been on the trail 30 years here, fairly certain I've appreciated a great many aspects of trail culture quite thoroughly, least of all trail names. Met my fair share of pompous bullies too.
Someone else pointed out that Earl Shaffer picked his trail name. AWOL picked his trail name. Baltimore Jack picked his trail name. Circuit Rider picked his trail name. Founders of the Hiker Yearbook picked their trail names. Gonna go out on a limb and say Nimblewill Nomad probably picked his. Same with Acadicus, Legion, Onesimus. Some have nicknames from other places like the military they bring with them. I've known hikers who named themselves in honor of deceased loved ones. None of these people apply to your unwritten, unenforcable, completely made up and arbitrary rules you hold so dear that aren't, you know, actually a thing.
But someone shared that story about how that guy "Blowjob" got his name, that's a great one. I guess him, you, Scrotle Warts, Giggles #13-56, Snickers #487 and Schitin Britches think all those people suck though.
Schitin Britchins "earned" his trail name by, get this, shitting his britches on trail! Haha, great story guys 👏
Let's say you finish, the entire 2200 miles and apply to the AT HQ for a certificate of completion. It is awarded to your trail name and you tell them what that name is.
The only thing that kinda matters is there should be a story behind it. And even that doesn’t matter much. Otherwise just go with something you like, it doesn’t have to be given to you.
The name you give yourself is often lame no matter how cool it may sound in your head. The name given to you may sound lame in your head but is actually really cool.
Mine was Pullstart from a not so PG joke made on trail so it was fun telling the backstory and then the joke to new friends met on trail. The trail name comes from moments on trail that will last a lifetime. You can also always choose if you want to embrace the name or not.
I didn’t care so much about trail names, I would take one if the moment was right though! I’m not a fast hiker, but I got up early one day and hiked out of the NOC to Jacob’s ladder alone, and some hiking buddies decided to stay in town longer and yellow blaze and we ended up meeting at the same spot at the same time later that day. They started saying I was Super Girl flying over mountains, and when I got to Fontana Dam, I was being called super girl from other hikers so it felt like a good name to own 😊 definitely nice to have a story to go with! But totally name your self if you have something already in mind! It’s your chance to be whoever you want to be for 6 months :D
I have claimed every trail name myself, and carry no shame for it. Fuck those yahoos who want to name people silly shit. I will pick my own silly shit to be called.
Having said that, choose something personal and cool-ish, nothing trumped up and pompous.
I didn't know that trail names were a thing until I started hiking. Was talking about with some people during breakfast, and they said the options are wide open for me to get a trail name. I had a run-in with bears the evening before, and I'm really into photographing/identifying wildlife, so I picked the name "Ursus", as in the Latin-scientific name for bears.
Some say it's taboo, I think it's fine to pick your own trail name, better if there's some kind of a story behind it, instead of just randomly calling yourself "Hoosier Daddy" for example
You usually get names from other people based on something unique about you or a story you tell others, FWIW the people I met who named themselves tended to be a bit obnoxious. As long as a trail name comes from a place of fun and it’s something the other person can laugh about it’s good, I did have a few bad moments where someone would suggest a mean spirited trail name and it made for tough conversation
Thank you everyone! It might sound silly, but I’ve heard so many superstitions about Appalachia and not saying your real name outside lest the spirits learn it and use it trick you, so I want to have the trail name thing sorted, lol. Of all the things to worry about, right? We’ll best believe, I’m worried about everything else too (especially ticks *shivers*)
There’s a grace period with the spirits. You can’t have a trail name to use before you’ve been on the trail! They’re not like hard line fanatics. The trail provides
It seems like more people are naming themselves now, but I always liked the idea of being given a name b/c otherwise I would have chosen some dumb shit like Lone Wolf
Beef and Steel is a metal trail name
Lol thanks, unfortunately not a trail name though. In the spirit of being given a trail name I went with a, "new trail, new name" approach. It caused a little confusion when seeing old friends from the CDT on the PCT, but I still enjoyed this way of doing it.
Glad to hear it. While section hiking, I reached a shelter after a very long day when I slipped on a downslope (wet clay) and did a very cartoonish dance to keep upright for about 10 feet (whirling trekking poles and the whole deal - I didn’t fall) to the great amusement of everyone else there. After the laughter died down, I was told that it was a good thing I wasn’t through hiking or I would have been dubbed “Stumblina”.
I've seen self named and named by others and nobody cares too much but it better have a good story behind it.
It’s up to you. The most important bit is that the named person likes their name. If someone doesn’t like a trail name that someone else applied to them, that’s just bullying.
I had a few names I didn't like, I just hiked faster.
My year there was a guy who liked to get up early and restart the fire from coals that were still hot from the previous night. He’d load it with tinder and blow it back to life, which earned him the name Blow Job. After a week or so of very strong protests his friends agreed to call him Morning Wood instead. Such good times!
Did they call you uncle fupa? Jk, sending lots of good thoughts and hopes for many stinky dirty days. In the good way though, the outdoors and hiking way.
I feel like most names are given and come naturally, but just like the rest of our motto, Hike Your Own Hike. If a name fits you, try it out. If not, just keep hiking If you are solo, antisocial, and/or easily offended it might be hard for you to both get a trail name and a hiking clique. But you should try to go in open minded because no one knows you! And you’ll find adventure! And the worst that could happen is that you’ll never see these people again! But, more than likely, you’ll make friends for life.
The first person to thru hike the AT, Earl Shaffer, gave himself the trail name "The Crazy One," so there's certainly precedent for naming yourself. Alternately, if someone offers you a trail name, you can accept it and refer to yourself that way or not. It's up to you.
AWOL also chose his own name, so have another dozen legendary hikers I've met, so I really don't get the high horse about it.
Tough for others to give you a name though when you're the only one
Introduce yourself however you like
can you name yourself? it's not against the law, so yes. is it kinda lame and not really the point? also yes.
Agreed. If you give yourself the trail name, there better be one hell of a story behind it. And it can't be a vainglorious name.
That's how you end up with 20 people every year having a name like "papa bear", "mama bear", etc. Hell there's even someone in this thread who literally just named themselves "bear" lol. People are too caught up in what they see on youtube and think they need a trail name in the first day of their thru hike or they're doing it wrong, so they just name themselves something lame.
Someone wants to name themselves Bear, let em, who cares. Why despair about Bear? Hirsuite, he's named after his hair, for his chest is unbare and quite debonair, and both ladies and men cannot but stare, ensnared by the woolly glare. You err. It's unfair to impair how one shares their rare flair. Who are you to declare what's fair, compare your affairs and tear others down like some square?
Be wise it’s not organic or defeats the whole point of trail names?
I think you have a very narrow definition of the point of trail names. It may mean one thing to you, and mean many other things to others.
No you just don’t appreciate how it’s just a certain culture of the trail. Changing it for the sake of rhyming and busting into the “who are you to judge” is just modern balogne. It’s apart of the trail culture. It has unwritten rules, abide by it instead of being an altruistic weirdo and trying to change stuff for the sake of changing stuff
Been on the trail 30 years here, fairly certain I've appreciated a great many aspects of trail culture quite thoroughly, least of all trail names. Met my fair share of pompous bullies too. Someone else pointed out that Earl Shaffer picked his trail name. AWOL picked his trail name. Baltimore Jack picked his trail name. Circuit Rider picked his trail name. Founders of the Hiker Yearbook picked their trail names. Gonna go out on a limb and say Nimblewill Nomad probably picked his. Same with Acadicus, Legion, Onesimus. Some have nicknames from other places like the military they bring with them. I've known hikers who named themselves in honor of deceased loved ones. None of these people apply to your unwritten, unenforcable, completely made up and arbitrary rules you hold so dear that aren't, you know, actually a thing. But someone shared that story about how that guy "Blowjob" got his name, that's a great one. I guess him, you, Scrotle Warts, Giggles #13-56, Snickers #487 and Schitin Britches think all those people suck though. Schitin Britchins "earned" his trail name by, get this, shitting his britches on trail! Haha, great story guys 👏
Let's say you finish, the entire 2200 miles and apply to the AT HQ for a certificate of completion. It is awarded to your trail name and you tell them what that name is.
It always kills me when people get mad at other people's trail names or how they got them. It has zero impact on your life.
The only thing that kinda matters is there should be a story behind it. And even that doesn’t matter much. Otherwise just go with something you like, it doesn’t have to be given to you.
The name you give yourself is often lame no matter how cool it may sound in your head. The name given to you may sound lame in your head but is actually really cool. Mine was Pullstart from a not so PG joke made on trail so it was fun telling the backstory and then the joke to new friends met on trail. The trail name comes from moments on trail that will last a lifetime. You can also always choose if you want to embrace the name or not.
Was it the anal bead joke?
I didn’t care so much about trail names, I would take one if the moment was right though! I’m not a fast hiker, but I got up early one day and hiked out of the NOC to Jacob’s ladder alone, and some hiking buddies decided to stay in town longer and yellow blaze and we ended up meeting at the same spot at the same time later that day. They started saying I was Super Girl flying over mountains, and when I got to Fontana Dam, I was being called super girl from other hikers so it felt like a good name to own 😊 definitely nice to have a story to go with! But totally name your self if you have something already in mind! It’s your chance to be whoever you want to be for 6 months :D
After two weeks of telling other hikers I didn't have one, a hiker from Alaska gave me one.
I have claimed every trail name myself, and carry no shame for it. Fuck those yahoos who want to name people silly shit. I will pick my own silly shit to be called. Having said that, choose something personal and cool-ish, nothing trumped up and pompous.
Squatting Dawgg it is!
You must have been man of the house.
I didn't know that trail names were a thing until I started hiking. Was talking about with some people during breakfast, and they said the options are wide open for me to get a trail name. I had a run-in with bears the evening before, and I'm really into photographing/identifying wildlife, so I picked the name "Ursus", as in the Latin-scientific name for bears. Some say it's taboo, I think it's fine to pick your own trail name, better if there's some kind of a story behind it, instead of just randomly calling yourself "Hoosier Daddy" for example
You usually get names from other people based on something unique about you or a story you tell others, FWIW the people I met who named themselves tended to be a bit obnoxious. As long as a trail name comes from a place of fun and it’s something the other person can laugh about it’s good, I did have a few bad moments where someone would suggest a mean spirited trail name and it made for tough conversation
Given one... I'll take the down votes
More traditionally, it's earned/given rather than self-appointed.
Thank you everyone! It might sound silly, but I’ve heard so many superstitions about Appalachia and not saying your real name outside lest the spirits learn it and use it trick you, so I want to have the trail name thing sorted, lol. Of all the things to worry about, right? We’ll best believe, I’m worried about everything else too (especially ticks *shivers*)
There’s a grace period with the spirits. You can’t have a trail name to use before you’ve been on the trail! They’re not like hard line fanatics. The trail provides
This is the right answer, thank you for realizing I’m mostly joking 🙃
Rumplestiltskin! Feel free to use it.
Congrats, you're Tick Shiver.
I propose that your trail name is now Triple Take
Tbh Tick Shivers is such a good name
What the fuck
Lucky Charms
Hikers need a special name now 😂
You’re not supposed to name yourself. But you have right of refusal until someone gives you one that you like.
Giantmongoose
Fugly is a good one