Hello all,

I'm just curious to know if there's anyone out there who has ever attempted or completed an early southbound start (late April?)....although the park is closed until May 15, and although I may cross some ethical lines here about respecting entrance rules and such, I'd like to know what you all think . . .. I consider myself to have decent winter sports experience (snowshoes) and I follow Leave-No-Trace.

I included the word "wacky" in this thread's title because that's exactly what you'd have to be in order to tackle the 100 mile wilderness on snowshoes, but I'm left with that option. I really dont want to start in GA, and I dont want to wait for the snow melt, especially given the river crossings and bugs.

I can only imagine, however, that the 100 mile wilderness would be a helluva lot tougher and the knife edge a helluva lot scarier . . ..

Thanks for any thoughts - comments such as "you're out of your mind" are totally welcomed too.