Would appreciate any and all advice. I am 41 and in relative good shape, but it's been 20 years since my last bp trip. I'm taking a couple of healthy but inexperienced teenage boys on a 3.5 day hike on the AT May 20-23. I'm thinking about Clingmans Dome to Fontana Dam because the students wanted a real wilderness experience, the distance is about what I was thinking (34 miles), and according to the google terrain maps the section seems to be mostly ridge and more down than up southbound.
Our plan at this time is to depart CD mid-afternoon and hike 3 miles to Double Springs Gap. 7 miles the next day to Derrick Knob. 12 miles the next to Mollies Ridge. And 11 miles the last day to FD.
Any and all thoughts are appreciated, but I have a few questions on my mind tonight:
1. Should we leave our car at FD, or CD?
2. Am I being too cautious on the first two day, or too aggressive on the last two?
3. Will this section be crowded May 20-23?
4. If you were driving from Mississippi and wanted these students to have the best 3.5 days of their lives, is there a different section you'd recommend?