Thru-hike “finisher”/”completer” programs

And a proposed program for the Santa Fe to Taos Thru-Hike

If a trail has a dedicated page for any of the attributes listed below, that page is linked.

1. The Appalachian Trail

	YES	NO	NOTES
Has a completer/finisher page	✔
Has an online roster of people who finished	✔		1000s of finisher entries.
Has a survey / form for people who want to report finishing	✔		You also register to do the thru-hike
Has a publicly-accessible report about thru-hikers		✔
Gives out a certificate	✔
Offers a physical award to completers	✔		An AT patch and 2,000- miler rocker patch.
Has completer-only merchandise available for sale at its store		✔
Has a page of photos and stories page of completers’ experiences on trail		✔
Has an advice page for thru-hikers	✔		A resource library. So many guidebooks.

2. The Pacific Crest Trail

	YES	NO	NOTES
Has a completer/finisher page	✔
Has an online roster of people who finished	✔		10,127 entries.
Has a survey / form for people who want to report finishing	✔
Has a publicly-accessible report about thru-hikers		✔
Gives out a certificate	✔
Offers a physical award to completers	✔		A medal. Also a PCT hangtag for people doing the trail.
Has completer-only merchandise available for sale at its store		✔
Has a page of photos and stories page of completers’ experiences on trail	✔
Has an advice page for thru-hikers	✔		A resource library, guidebooks.

3. The Continental Divide Trail

	YES	NO	NOTES
Has a completer/finisher page	✔
Has an online roster of people who finished	✔		Over 1,300 entries.
Has a survey / form for people who want to report finishing	✔		You also register to begin the hike. People who register get hangtags.
Has a publicly-accessible report about thru-hikers		✔
Gives out a certificate	✔
Offers a physical award to completers	✔		Letter of recognition, completion certificate, a CDNST Patch, and a ‘3000 Miler’ rocker
Has completer-only merchandise available for sale at its store		✔
Has a page of photos and stories page of completers’ experiences on the trail		✔
Has an advice page for thru-hikers	✔		No printed guide…

4. The Colorado Trail

	YES	NO	NOTES
Has a completer/finisher page	✔
Has an online roster of people who finished	✔		5,516 entries
Has a survey / form for people who want to report finishing	✔
Has a publicly-accessible report about thru-hikers		✔
Gives out a certificate	✔
Offers a physical award to completers		✔
Has completer-only merchandise available for sale at its store	✔
Has a page of photos and stories page of completers’ experiences on the trail	✔
Has an advice page for thru-hikers	✔		Many pages. And many guidebooks and maps.

5. Arizona Scenic Trail

	YES	NO	NOTES
Has a completer/finisher page	✔
Has an online roster of people who finished	✔		Over 1,600 entries
Has a survey / form for people who want to report finishing	✔
Has a publicly-accessible report about thru-hikers	✔		Based on the survey questions
Gives out a certificate	✔		It’s a sticker
Offers a physical award to completers	✔		Copper belt buckle
Has completer-only merchandise available for sale at its store		✔
Has a page of photos and stories page of completers’ experiences on the trail		✔	No, but links to finishers’ personal trail journals in the finishers’ roster
Has an advice page for thru-hikers	✔		It’s a gear page. Also a guide book and maps.

6. Pacific Northwest Trail

	YES	NO	NOTES
Has a completer/finisher page	✔
Has an online roster of people who finished	✔		~250 entries
Has a survey / form for people who want to report finishing	✔		A “registration page”
Has a publicly-accessible report about thru-hikers		✔
Gives out a certificate		✔
Offers a physical award to completers	✔		A badge
Has completer-only merchandise available for sale at its store		✔
Has a page of photos and stories page of completers’ experiences on the trail		✔
Has an advice page for thru-hikers	✔		And many guidebooks.