Blazing is a funny concept. It all starts with the signature white blazes of the Appalachian Trail. Although the term White Blazing is different than simply following the path.
White Blazing is a purist term. A white blazer will make every effort to hike past every official blaze. Is there a cool side detour? It doesn’t matter, you’re hiking past the official white blazes. Where the Trail crosses the Kennebec River in Maine, a ferry service isn’t just recommended, it’s required. Why? Because the Appalachian Trail Conservancy painted a blaze on the bottom of the boat. That means that the official route, according to the White Blazers, must utilize the ferry.
Blue Blazing, on the other hand, is not strict to the trail. A Blue Blazer will take those side detours to see the interesting waterfall, or better view. They’re also out there to enjoy the trail, but they enjoy it in a different way. Some call this type of hike, “stopping to smell the roses.”
Aqua Blazing is when a hiker uses a boat to skip sections of the AT. This is typically done on the Shenandoah River in Virginia. Visit Shenandoah River Adventures for more information.
Yellow Blazing is using a vehicle to skip sections. Maybe I’m biased, but I don’t consider this a thru-hike. It’s a great way to see many different parts of the Trail, but the whole purpose of Thru-Hiking is to hike the entire trail. Some who Yellow Blazes and says they’re thru-hiked is insulting the true thru-hikers.
Platinum Blazing is when a hiker stays in the most luxurious hotels and eats at the fanciest restaurants. This is a well funded thru-hike.
Pink Blazing is when a male hiker will change his plans to follow a female hiker out of romantic interest.
Banana Blazing is like Pink Blazing, but reverse.
Green Blazing is hiking while high on weed. There is a large population of marijuana smokers on the Trail.
Brown Blazing is one of the more comical blazing strategies. There are two places you can poop on the Appalachian Trail. You can use a pre-built privy or you can dig a cat hole and squat. Privies are almost always preferred for ease of use, but sometimes there’s no privy for miles. A Brown Blazer will plan their hike so they always arrive at a privy when needed. It’s also referred to as Privy Hopping. From personal experience, thru-hikers will develop an “eye” for porta potties and public restrooms. If the Trail goes through a public park, there’s bound to be a toilet nearby.
Amber Blazing is making sure all the local varieties of beer have been tested. When approaching a road crossing, an Amber Blazer will check to see if there’s a convenience store nearby, and if so make a detour.
Camo Blazing is a phrase I haven’t heard before, but it’s when a hiker will exclusively stealth camp.
Retro-Blazing is another term I’ve never heard. It’s when hiking a portion of trail that at one time or another USE to be the AT. In other words, when the official Trail is rerouted, a Retro-Blazer will hike the old portion rather than the new portion. A notable example is where the Trail used to cross the Palisades Parkway in New York. The Trail used to cross the parkway at street level, and hikers would play real life Frogger. Unfortunately a hiker passed away in 2021 after being struck by a vehicle while crossing. Following the incident, the ATC rerouted the trail several miles to a bridge – a much safer crossing. There are some hikers that feel the official route should still be crossing at street level, so these hikers would Retro-Blaze and continue to play real life Frogger.