theone
03-31-2007, 21:34
Greetings,
We plan to backpack a section of the AT in early June. I've read guidebooks etc. but thought a more interactive exchange might help us decide on a good section of the trail for beginners. We are in our mid to late forties in good health for our age. We have taken multi-day self-supported canoe and bicycle trips carrying all food, shelter etc. We have taken a basic-backpacking class - put on by our local park district. We will have taken one overnight backpacking trip with the park district guides and one two-night trip without them (in rolling areas of Ohio) - prior to a trip on the AT.
We are planning about a 5-day trip on some section of the A.T. We are thinking about covering 6-10 miles a day. We are looking for suggestions on sections that would match our experience level. We would like some up and down, some nice views, some decent trail surface (not an extreme amount of technical footwork required). Decent access to water sources would be a plus. Driving distance from our home is not really a factor. We're thinking that some section between Pennsylvania and North-Carolina/Tennessee would be best. We'd like to avoid extreme northern areas in early summer. We had our first experience with black flies last summer bicycle camping on Michigan's U.P. and are not ready for that again - just yet.
I realize this may have already been discussed here ad-infinitum. If so - would you please direct us to already existing resources that might help us decide on a trail section.
Thanks for putting up with some newbies.
Steve & Linda
Ohio, USA
We plan to backpack a section of the AT in early June. I've read guidebooks etc. but thought a more interactive exchange might help us decide on a good section of the trail for beginners. We are in our mid to late forties in good health for our age. We have taken multi-day self-supported canoe and bicycle trips carrying all food, shelter etc. We have taken a basic-backpacking class - put on by our local park district. We will have taken one overnight backpacking trip with the park district guides and one two-night trip without them (in rolling areas of Ohio) - prior to a trip on the AT.
We are planning about a 5-day trip on some section of the A.T. We are thinking about covering 6-10 miles a day. We are looking for suggestions on sections that would match our experience level. We would like some up and down, some nice views, some decent trail surface (not an extreme amount of technical footwork required). Decent access to water sources would be a plus. Driving distance from our home is not really a factor. We're thinking that some section between Pennsylvania and North-Carolina/Tennessee would be best. We'd like to avoid extreme northern areas in early summer. We had our first experience with black flies last summer bicycle camping on Michigan's U.P. and are not ready for that again - just yet.
I realize this may have already been discussed here ad-infinitum. If so - would you please direct us to already existing resources that might help us decide on a trail section.
Thanks for putting up with some newbies.
Steve & Linda
Ohio, USA