Appalachian Trail Section Hike - TN/NC

[desantisc]

Does anyone have any Appalachian Trail section hike experience? My husband and I are thinking about spending 3 or 4 days at the end of September along the TN/NC border. I do not know anyone personally who has hiked any portion of the trail. Not too many "hiker-types" in Clarksvegas! We are definitely open to suggestions!

[erial]

Was just up on Roan Mtn on July 7th. Terrific hiking up and over the balds along the AT. Humping up Hump Mtn always rewards the effort with 360 degree views. Very impressive waterfalls a few miles further north from Roan. Even further north just across the border in Virginia is the Mt Rogers Recreation Area. AT goes thru there as well as other trails which means you could set up a loop trip if you wanted to.

From Vegas you could fly SWA nonstop into Raleigh, but then you'd have a 4 to 5 hour drive to get to the trail. US Air might fly nonstop to Charlotte. Drive time would probably be just two hours or so from there. A third option might be to fly SWA into Nashville and head for the Smokies. I haven't backpacked the Smokies since 1974. You had to stay in a shelter each night. Bear problem supposedly, but the mice inside those shelters outnumbered bears and hikers by about twentyfold. Outside that park you could set up camp whereever along the trail and that's the way I prefer it.

[Bad Karma]

AT is a nice trail and if you've done hiking out west you'll be fine. I really enjoyed reading journals in the shelters whether they are from thru hikers or not. Make sure you have some orange on you that time of year. That area is nice although I prefer the northern end of the AT (of course living next to the PCT I prefer it more but I am bias). Are you shooting for the Smokies? If so you will need reservations for the shelters since you aren't thru hiking.

[erial]

Here's somebody who has been thru the area recently (zoom zoom):

Jennifer Pharr Davis

Pitch™

Jennifer Pharr Davis Breaks Overall Speed Record on the Appalachian Trail

The fastest AT thru-hiker on record finishes the 2,181-mile trail 26 hours and 11 minutes ahead of the previous record


07.31.2011– July 31, 2011—Asheville, NC—Jennifer Pharr Davis is the fastest person ever to thru-hike the famed Appalachian Trail. Davis claimed the overall speed record this afternoon, July 31, 2011 at 3:26 pm Eastern time, setting a new record of 46 days 11 hours and 20 minutes. She arrived at the trail terminus at Springer Mountain, Georgia to a crowd of cheering friends, family and fans. She set out from Mount Katahdin, Main June 15th, hiking and running an average of 45 miles a day every day for more than six weeks. The previous record, set by Andrew Thompson in 2005 was 47 days, 13 hours and 31 minutes.

Davis has had consistent trail support from legendary ultra-runner and former AT and Pacific Crest Trail speed record holder David Horton, as well as veteran AT expert Warren Doyle and Davis’ husband, Brew Davis. Brew Davis has been documenting the hike with blog posts and photos.

“Whenever I’m not on a trail, I am being pulled back to it. Hiking is not only something I enjoy, it’s my passion, my career and my calling,” says Jennifer Pharr Davis. “It’s so fulfilling that I have people I love supporting this next speed challenge. I hope to elevate awareness of the sport and the outdoors, and to get more people involved in sharing a similar passion.”

Davis wrote a memoir, Becoming Odyssa, sharing an intimate look at how thru hiking can help shape a person in many ways. The book, released in the fall of 2010, details how Davis, as an inexperienced hiker fresh out of college, tackled a steep learning curve on the Appalachian Trail, learning about herself and falling in love with the sport along the way. Becoming Odyssa was published in a paperback edition this summer during Davis’ latest record attempt

[Win]

A really good read on the AT is Bill Bryson's "A Walk in the Woods". Very funny!!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/030...SIN=0307279464

Win

[torange]

A really good read on the AT is Bill Bryson's "A Walk in the Woods". Very funny!!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/030...SIN=0307279464

Win

I am a huge Bryson fan, I remember when 'Notes from a Small Island' was in my high school exams, I though all my christmases had come at once. I haven't read this one though. Will definitely track it down!! Thanks for the heads up!

[desantisc]

Thanks for all the tips!