Hello,
     I'm really excited that this is a thing! I've been a commuter off and on for the last few years and while it's done a lot of good in my life I'm getting so sick of constantly battling taxi cabs and pickup trucks. I find that in order to breathe some life into my relationship with cycling I should get off the roads and back on the trail. I've also been wishing I had the time for a through hike and a bike tour. I think mixing the two should make it a lot more doable, all while getting a brake from cars. I don't currently have a MTB but was already planning a build, so I'm thinking I might gear the build for this sort of travel. I've become fascinated with IGH and was planning on a build with one for winter use, but after reading about issues with long term touring and the Alfine line I'm not sure I could afford to bikepack with an IGH haha (I'm too poor for Rohloff) so I think I'm at a crossroads. Anyway, I look forward to digging through the info here and learning some things!
-T