AT Hiker Meal Ministry

Appalachian Trail Hiker Meal Ministry

Appalachian Trail Hiker Meals

Each year, an estimated 3 million people spend time on the 2,180 mile footpath that is the Appalachian Trail. Approximately 2,000 of those hikers attempt to thru-hike, hiking the entire trail in one season. June and July is when the number of hikers passing through Duncannon is the highest. Each Wednesday we provide a free meal to them.

All hikers and their furry friends are welcome to stop by our church between 5:00 pm and 7:00 pm to enjoy free food and great company! The menu for the evening includes (gluten free is also available):
~ Spaghetti & Meatballs
~ Tossed Salad
~ Garlic Bread
~ Dessert
~ Water

Statistics from the 2026 Hiker Season

Christ Lutheran fed a 81 through hikers between May and July. This does not include the number of community members and volunteers who participated in this ministry.

Hiker breakdown is as follows:

71 hikers going north
1 hiker heading south
2 hikers who said they were “flip-flopping” (doing portions of both)
29 different states were represented ( NV, NY, GA, WA, MA, IN, PA, MT, NH, SC, CO, MD, ME, NC, FL, AL, OR, MI, VA, IL, UT, MS, MN, DE, TN, TX, VT, OH, and the District of Columbia)
8 hikers were from Georgia
6 hikers were from New York
5 hikers were from North Carolina
4 hikers made the trek from foreign land ( Brisbane, Australia; St, Thomas, Virgin Islands; Nigeria and Ireland)

If you want a quick chuckle, check out their trail names using this link.