I don't know the answer to your question but got an e-mail from a buddy in Knoxville today about a guy named John Thurman from UT who hiked the whole thing between May 20 to August 16 (88 days @ 24.5 miles/day - not bad). Article says he did the 27 miles of the Presidentials in a single day. My kinda guy (I know others hike differently as do I most of the time). Black&blue&winded from reading