Revolutionizing Resupplies

Chris "Maverick" Sharpe overlooking the Appalachian Trail from McAfee Knob

Why I started this

I thru-hiked in 2026. I was shocked by how rare mail dropping was.

My name's Chris "Maverick" Sharpe. Most people on trail were just winging it. I realized the problem wasn't a lack of effort. Most people do not have someone to help them at home. "Bounce Boxing" (mailing ahead in bulk to yourself) ends up with missing boxes roughly half the time. So most people shop in town.

Showing up in town without one means hoping there's a Dollar General, paying to get to a Walmart, if there is one, and paying a shuttle you hope to have found to get you there and back. And a real mail-drop network only works if someone back home can pack and ship a box for you — every single week, without fail. Very few people have that level of support. I couldn't believe this was not already professionally done by a company.

So I built it.

25–50%

typical markup outfitters add to individual resupply items.

~50%

of bounce boxes never make it to the hiker they were mailed to.

~5%

of hikers actually pull off a real DIY mail-drop system from back home.

The problem

Show up without a box, and this is what's waiting for you.

Trail-town outfitters carry what fits on one shelf — usually a wall of $12 Mountain House pouches and not much else — priced 25–50% above what the same food costs at Walmart or Amazon. No variety, no planning, just whatever's left.

A typical trail-town outfitter shelf — mostly Mountain House pouches, little variety

Neels Gap, GAFranklin, NCDamascus, VAHarpers Ferry, WVDelaware Water Gap, PAHanover, NHMonson, ME

A wall of packed KCK Mail Drops Made Easy boxes, ready to ship

The vision

A real mail-drop network, run like a business.

Every box is packed to order and shipped straight to your next stop — no favors, no waiting on someone else's schedule. We're the person back home you wish you had, doing it every single week, without fail.

Order by the ounce, not by the package. Need 3oz of protein powder for tomorrow's oatmeal? That's what ships — portioned into a boil-ready dehydrator bag, not a pound you didn't need to carry.

The best part

50/50

Half of our profit goes back to the trail.

We split profit 50/50 with organizations doing the real work of keeping these trails open, maintained, and welcoming — instead of keeping it all for ourselves.

The People Are The Trail

TODO: add a one-line description of this org's mission.

Warrior Expeditions

Helps combat veterans transition home by sponsoring long-distance thru-hikes and other outdoor expeditions.

Backpack Buddies

TODO: add a one-line description of this org's mission.

The numbers

What it actually costs you — and what it actually takes to eat.

Cost

A full 5-day resupply box, priced two ways — real Walmart/Amazon cost (what you actually pay us, no markup) plus average shipping, versus what a trail-town outfitter charges for the same items.
Outfitters' "convenient" round-number pricing looks harmless per item, but scaled across your whole hike it adds up to a substantial cost increase.
And this doesn't even factor in the extra savings from ordering by the ounce instead of buying whatever package size happens to be on the shelf.

$2,001.48

Cost savings for average thru-hiker duration of 6 months

Example box: The Thru-Hiker — $246.88 total (including shipping)

Item	Qty	Outfitter	KCK	Difference
Breakfast
Quaker Instant Oatmeal — Maple & Brown Sugar	15	$15.00 ($1.00 ea)	$2.25 ($0.15 ea)	$12.75
Justin's Nut Butter Squeeze — Classic Peanut Butter	10	$10.00 ($1.00 ea)	$8.90 ($0.89 ea)	$1.10
Pop-Tarts — Frosted Strawberry	10	$10.00 ($1.00 ea)	$3.10 ($0.31 ea)	$6.90
Folgers Classic Roast Instant Coffee	5	$5.00 ($1.00 ea)	$2.10 ($0.42 ea)	$2.90
Lunch
Mission Flour Tortillas — Burrito Size	10	$10.00 ($1.00 ea)	$4.40 ($0.44 ea)	$5.60
Bridgford Pepperoni Stick — Original	10	$10.00 ($1.00 ea)	$5.50 ($0.55 ea)	$4.50
Dinner
Mountain House (Freeze-Dried) — Lasagna with Meat Sauce	4	$51.96 ($12.99 ea)	$39.16 ($9.79 ea)	$12.80
Mountain House (Freeze-Dried) — Beef Stroganoff with Noodles	4	$51.96 ($12.99 ea)	$39.16 ($9.79 ea)	$12.80
Peak Refuel (Freeze-Dried) — Chicken Alfredo Pasta	3	$50.97 ($16.99 ea)	$41.85 ($13.95 ea)	$9.12
Peak Refuel (Freeze-Dried) — Beef Pasta Marinara	3	$50.97 ($16.99 ea)	$44.85 ($14.95 ea)	$6.12
Maruchan Ramen Noodle Soup — Beef	4	$6.00 ($1.50 ea)	$1.28 ($0.32 ea)	$4.72
Maruchan Ramen Noodle Soup — Chicken	4	$6.00 ($1.50 ea)	$1.28 ($0.32 ea)	$4.72
Kraft Mac & Cheese — Original	4	$6.00 ($1.50 ea)	$4.00 ($1.00 ea)	$2.00
Dessert
Snickers Full Size Chocolate Candy Bar	5	$10.00 ($2.00 ea)	$6.55 ($1.31 ea)	$3.45
Ancillary
Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier — Lemon Lime	15	$30.00 ($2.00 ea)	$22.50 ($1.50 ea)	$7.50
Subtotal		$323.86	$226.88	$96.98
Average Shipping Cost	1	$0.00	$20.00	-$20.00
Total		$323.86	$246.88	$76.98

Outfitter prices are estimates from personal experience, not exact quotes.

Whey protein removed from box comparison because it is not carried in outfitters.

Calories

Hiker hunger is real — appetite dips the first week, then climbs hard through weeks 3–5 and stays elevated. Boxes sized for week one starve you by week four.
Budgeting for less food than you'll actually need doesn't save you money — it just means buying the gap at outfitter prices later.
And being underfed can jeopardize whether you finish at all. "Hey, why'd you get off trail?" "I lost too much weight" has to be the lamest exit story in thru-hiking.
Not sure what that means for you specifically? Use our calorie builder — tell it your week, weight, and budget, and it'll put together a box sized to your actual needs.

Ready to hike lighter?

Build a resupply box in minutes — priced by the ounce, shipped to your next town.

Shop Resupply Store Use Our Calorie Calculator

Featured Resupplies

Shop all →

🐜

Small But Mighty

5-day box sized for a smaller hiker or a lighter appetite.

Days: 5
~Calories/day: 3,086
Weight: 144.91 oz

$135.8212 items

🥾

Wannabe Thru-Hiker

5-day box sized for an average hiker's daily appetite.

Days: 5
~Calories/day: 4,528
Weight: 196.67 oz

$184.5714 items

🔥

The Thru-Hiker

5-day box sized for a big hiker in full hiker-hunger mode.

Days: 5
~Calories/day: 5,562
Weight: 232.06 oz

$235.1816 items

✨

My Order

My 5-day resupply order from the trail.

Days: 5
~Calories/day: 4,227
Weight: 208.45 oz

$93.0113 items