By Llee Sivitz
Enquirer contributor

Can you walk 12 miles in one day? Through mountainous terrain? With a 50-pound pack on your back? Day after day, for six months?

This is the challenge of The Appalachian Trail, a continuous footpath along the East Coast from Georgia to Maine. It spans 14 states, covers 2,167 rugged miles, and takes about 5 million steps to complete.

More than 2,500 hikers attempt to "thru-hike" (complete the trail) each spring and summer, but only about 200 to 300 succeed.

Jeff Alt, a speech therapist in the Mason School District, "thru-hiked" the trail in 1998 and now lectures about his experiences to "thru-hike wannabes." He offers advice on how to gear up for this monumental trek.

Six months out

Start training at least six months in advance. Make walking a part of your day - around town, up and down stairs, wherever you find the opportunity.

No hills in your neighborhood? Use a gym. "Your gym has everything you need," Alt says. "Nothing replaces the mountain itself, but every gym has a treadmill."

He suggests starting off slowly, say 20 minutes on a flat treadmill. Slowly increase your time and incline, eventually putting the treadmill on full incline, and adding three-pound weights to your ankles. Cross-training alternatives such as running, weight lifting or the stair-climber machine can also be useful.

Test your gear

Three months before you embark on your journey, Alt suggests, do a three-day "shake down" hike with an experienced hiker in a location like the Smoky Mountains. Take all your gear with you and try it out to make sure it works. Hike a short distance before you go out for a longer period, so you will not be disappointed if you need to turn back.

As you approach the date of your big trip, strap on a backpack with the expected weight and carry it around all day. "You will look pretty silly, but people will understand," he says.

The one thing that is hard to train for, Alt admits, is downhill terrain, which works different muscles and is hard to simulate in a gym. "If you have a heavy backpack or knee problems, you will need to go slow. I recommend using hiking poles, which disperse the burden of weight to your upper body more, slowing the physics of the downhill."

Establish a pace

Although Alt trained vigorously for his trip and started out at a "decent pace"- averaging 17 miles a day - he says some conditioning can be done on the hike itself. "Ten miles is a good goal on your first day out. After you get beyond the blisters and the grime, start building up to 12 miles. By the time you reach Virginia, if you are going the whole way, you'll probably get your first 20-mile day in," he says.

A lot of women do solo hiking on the trail, he says, and some of Alt's favorite "thru-hike stories" include that of a blind hiker with his dog and an elderly woman hiking with only a duffle bag and a shower curtain.

Whether you are going to thru-hike or just sample a portion of the Appalachian Trail, Alt underlines the importance of proper training. "Breathtaking views are a lot more enjoyable when you are not sweating it out," he says.

"But," he adds, "there's an old saying on the AT, 'No pain, no rain, no Maine.' "

Read about it

Here are some books Jeff Alt recommends on "thru-hiking" the Appalachian Trail:

A Walk For Sunshine (Dreams Shared Publications; $15.95) by Jeff Alt

Thru-Hikers Handbook (Georgia to Maine 2001): #1 Guide for Long-Distance Hikes on the Appalachian Trail (Center for Appalachian Trail Studies; $15.95) by Dan Bruce

Appalachian Trail Data Book - 2003 (Appalachian Trail Conference; $5.95) by Daniel Chazin

The Appalachian Trail Workbook For Planning Thru-Hikes (Appalachian Trail Conference; $6) by Christopher Whalen

Women and Thru-Hiking on the Appalachian Trail (Appalachian Trail Conference; $16.95) by Beverly Hugo

Web sites

www.appalachiantrail.org

www.backpacker.com

www.trailjournals.com

www.awalkforsunshine.com