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View Full Version : Who has hiked the Benton Mackaye Trail?



Tha Wookie
01-16-2006, 12:55
Dick Evans, of the Benton Mackaye Trail Association, gave an interesting talk at the SoRuck about the newly completed 290 mile BMT. His talk left many of us chomping at the bit to start a thru-hike ASAP.

One of the most particularly interesting things he mentioned was his estimate that in between 200 and 300 hikers (250 was his number) have ALREADY thru-hiked the BMT. I'm not sure where he got his numbers from, but as a trail monitor specialist I know these numbers are difficult to gather in such a short amount of time.

So I want to know: Have YOU thru-hiked the BMT? If not, have you hiked any of it? Or, do you plan to or not?

MOWGLI
01-16-2006, 13:13
I have hiked the first 93 miles of the trail - in April '03. I plan to hike the Smokys section this spring.

Footslogger
01-16-2006, 13:17
I've only done the section that loops off the AT just north of 3 Forks. Used to take a Boy Scout troop up in that area a lot and that allowed us to hike 3 Forks to Springer and back without it being a total out-and-back route.

Not much traffic on the Benton MacKaye back then though and that section was generally pretty overgrown.

'Slogger

generoll
01-16-2006, 13:23
Hammock Hangar hiked the original portion which ended at the Ocoee river. She completed that hike this Spring just before they opened the remainder. I don't know of anyone that has done the complete trail since they extended it.

Dances with Mice
01-16-2006, 13:37
... have you hiked any of it? Just the bit between Springer & the Duncan Ridge intersection at Rhodes Mtn.

Nean
01-16-2006, 13:40
I'll double check but I believe Cornbread down @ neel gap has done most if not all of it.

general
01-16-2006, 13:46
I'll double check but I believe Cornbread down @ neel gap has done most if not all of it.

bread bailed somewhere on the fodderstack trail. get him to tell you the story. evidently that section is a bitch to navigate. no signs or blazes in wilderness areas with 9 trails intersecting the fodderstack. seems like it would be beneficial to do that secton south of 20 mile ranger station before the leaves set in.

Sly
01-16-2006, 14:03
Not much traffic on the Benton MacKaye back then though and that section was generally pretty overgrown.

As Dick explained the BMT is a primative trail. It's intention is not for a thoroughfare trail and/or your everyday hiker, but those wishing for more of a challenge. A little bushwacking and route finding is good for you.

Personally, I like the idea.

Footslogger
01-16-2006, 14:12
As Dick explained the BMT is a primative trail. It's intention is not for a thoroughfare trail and/or your everyday hiker, but those wishing for more of a challenge. A little bushwacking and route finding is good for you.

Personally, I like the idea.
===================================
No whining intended Sly. Just thought I'd mention that so's it wouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who hiked that section. For the record ...I kinda like bushwhacking myself. Get a lot of it out in this neck of the woods.

'Slogger

halibut15
01-16-2006, 14:22
I've hiked several sections in GA (around Springer, the Toccoa River area, Cherry Log section), did a trail run on the section descending to the Ocoee, and have hiked the short Ike Branch/Slickrock Creek Trail sections in NC, and the trail is simply amazing. It traverses some of the most rugged and beautiful areas of the Southern Apps., and I might even venture to say they rival or better some sections of the AT that I have completed. Part of the allure of the trail, though, is that it isn't as cut and dry as the AT, and that map skills and route finding are essential at some parts. That said, however, the trail isn't impossible to find if you read up on the areas it passes through and become familiar with the terrain. It's definitely a hidden treasure.

Sly
01-16-2006, 14:24
I know Slogger. I didn't think you were whinning! ;)

I just wanted others to know the trail may not be for everyone and beyond their comfort level. Besides Springer Mountain, there's only two shelters, one constructed on private land which the trail passes, and the other in the Smokies.

According to Dick, there's also some some waist deep fords without a ferryman in sight. ;) ;)

Footslogger
01-16-2006, 14:25
[quote=halibut15]the short Ike Branch/Slickrock Creek Trail sections in NC, and the trail is simply amazing.
=====================================
Come to think of it I did that section too. Used to get up in the Kilmer Wilderness/Slick Rock area a lot and wandered north one weekend toward the river (Little Tennessee ??). That is a spectacular place to hike and explore.

'Slogger

Hikerhead
01-16-2006, 14:36
I' hiked the original 93 miles last year and will hike the middle section this year.

halibut15
01-16-2006, 14:39
Not that bears that much of anything to be worried about, does anyone know if they're still closing trails up around the Big Frog Wilderness where the BMK runs down to the Ocoee? I'd heard a while back that they were periodically having to close some trails in the area due to very excessive bear activity. Hmm...:-?

Tha Wookie
01-16-2006, 14:51
Not that bears that much of anything to be worried about, does anyone know if they're still closing trails up around the Big Frog Wilderness where the BMK runs down to the Ocoee? I'd heard a while back that they were periodically having to close some trails in the area due to very excessive bear activity. Hmm...:-?

Not sure about that, but I did see two bears the last time I was near the BMT, while I was fording Jacks River. If he wanted us, we were too slow in the creek to get away. But bear attacks are very rare in the Southeast, and this one followed suit: checked us out, and scrammed (just like what we did to him!).

RockyTrail
01-16-2006, 14:55
That swinging bridge in Section 2 is something else! I'm amazed that ATC got it built with the assistance of the gov't; in today's climate I doubt they would ever allow it (but then, what do I know?).

It's a neat feature, not exactly "natural", but where else can you stumble upon a 250 foot bridge in the middle of nowhere? :sun

MisterSweetie
01-16-2006, 15:29
BMTA Link.

http://www.bmta.org/

I'm close enough to this trail that I feel dirty for not having hiked some of it.

Almost There
01-16-2006, 16:05
Hiked the section near Springer and went up a little where it leaves the ATand the Duncan Ridge starts, but nothing extensive...yet!

PROFILE
01-16-2006, 21:57
I would say we "thru-hiked" the BMT, Kinda of. We did it be fore the new sectioned opened . Was his # for the old and new or just the new?

Josh

Ratbert
01-16-2006, 21:58
I'd heard a while back that they were periodically having to close some trails in the area due to very excessive bear activity.

Several years ago I had a DNR ranger tell me that the state was using the Cohutta Wilderness for what he termed, "A reform school for bears." Seems that whenever there was a problem bear in North Georgia, it was trucked over to the Cohutta (and therefore Big Frog) and dumped. I'm not sure if this is / was true, but if so it would be grouping together a large number of bears that had lost their fear of people and would most likely equate hikers with food.

Does anybody know if the state authorities actually use this area for this practice?

halibut15
01-16-2006, 22:00
Josh,
Your idea of thru-hikers being counted from before the new section until now sounds right to have the numbers he gave. That new section hasn't been opened very long, and it seems like it'd be a stretch to have that many thru-hike such a relatively little-used trail that soon.

Baerman
01-17-2006, 08:48
My son and I have done Springer up to Wilscot Gap, and plan to do more this spring in between Scout events.

Tha Wookie
01-17-2006, 09:59
Josh,
Your idea of thru-hikers being counted from before the new section until now sounds right to have the numbers he gave. That new section hasn't been opened very long, and it seems like it'd be a stretch to have that many thru-hike such a relatively little-used trail that soon.

I thought at first that's what he meant, but when I asked his response sounded to me that he was saying 250 hiked the trail this year. I could have misunderstood, as it sounds like an extraordinarily high figure to me, but that's how I heard it.

Going into the presentation, Lone Wolf, me and some others walked up to it, and we were talking about if anyone had done it yet. I guessed 2 (cornbread and someone esle I heard about) and someone else said 4.

If 250 people did it, they sure have been quiet about it.:-?

halibut15
01-17-2006, 10:04
Interesting. I hear ya, Wookie, that's strange for there to supposedly be so many thrus that no one has heard of. I only know of one, and I forget his name. I've just seen his pics and journal. Oh well, the mystery continues...

namelesslass
01-19-2006, 22:12
Have hiked several sections just dayhiking: the sections from Bushy Head Gap up to Hwy. 64 to the Ocoee Center in TN, the section in the Rich Mtn. area, some near Skeenah Gap and some loops with the AT near Springer. One of my favorite BMT hikes (so far): the north half of Section 11 from TN (West Fork Trail) south to Big Frog Mountain.

I just love the Benton MacKaye...

Alison
(First time poster)

Tha Wookie
01-20-2006, 00:41
Have hiked several sections just dayhiking: the sections from Bushy Head Gap up to Hwy. 64 to the Ocoee Center in TN, the section in the Rich Mtn. area, some near Skeenah Gap and some loops with the AT near Springer. One of my favorite BMT hikes (so far): the north half of Section 11 from TN (West Fork Trail) south to Big Frog Mountain.

I just love the Benton MacKaye...

Alison
(First time poster)

Excellent places on the BMT! Also, excellent first post:D !

Tipi Walter
02-15-2006, 15:01
I see that the MacKaye forum is open so I thought I would add my impressions and adventures. I have spent the last 5 years backpacking and camping on different parts of it, mostly south of the Smokies from Hiway 129 into the Slickrock Wilderness and up the Stiffknee Trail to merge with the Fodderstack Trail to Beech Gap and Whiggs Meadow. Past here the trail goes south across the Tellico River and along the State Line Trail to Unicoi Gap and points south to the Ocoee River and the Cohutta Wilderness.

The trail was officially opened in July of 2005 at Mud Gap on the Cherohala Skyway and it was at this gathering that I met Sgt Rock for the first time. I have many trip reports along this trail(54 and counting!)and especially want to recommend the blue blazed trails running off the main B Mac though of course they are not and probably never will be painted in blue blaze. Years could be spent living on and exploring the many other trails associated with this trail. I will have more to add about this fine trail.

Hikerhead
02-23-2006, 19:27
I see that the MacKaye forum is open so I thought I would add my impressions and adventures. I have spent the last 5 years backpacking and camping on different parts of it, mostly south of the Smokies from Hiway 129 into the Slickrock Wilderness and up the Stiffknee Trail to merge with the Fodderstack Trail to Beech Gap and Whiggs Meadow. Past here the trail goes south across the Tellico River and along the State Line Trail to Unicoi Gap and points south to the Ocoee River and the Cohutta Wilderness.

The trail was officially opened in July of 2005 at Mud Gap on the Cherohala Skyway and it was at this gathering that I met Sgt Rock for the first time. I have many trip reports along this trail(54 and counting!)and especially want to recommend the blue blazed trails running off the main B Mac though of course they are not and probably never will be painted in blue blaze. Years could be spent living on and exploring the many other trails associated with this trail. I will have more to add about this fine trail.

I was there also but arrived late and missed all of the opening speeches. We did however get in on the little walk up to Wigg Meadow and watched as Little Bear led us in singing America the Beautiful. That Little Bear has an outstanding singing voice. ;) Oh, and I also got to meet the Sarg and his fine kids...that youngest one is going to be a comedian when he grows up.

Ramble~On
02-25-2006, 05:48
I've hiked a lot of the trail at one point or another.
The route has incorporated several existing trails and what is better is that the BMT has now linked together several wilderness areas in several different states that previously were not linked. That opens up countless miles of side trails in some very big wilderness areas and other point of interest areas...Cohutta, Citico, Slickrock, Joyce Kilmer to name a few.
In time I'd imagine that there will be books written about the BMT and some of the more popular or impressive side loop options.
I'll make no secret of the fact that I live in Western North Carolina and am 100% against all of the proposed new road construction in my part of this state and the surrounding areas in other states....
Just when the trails are starting to come together a few idiots have to start up their bulldozers and splinter one of the larger sections of "woods" left on the east coast...but that is off subject..
I hope to hike the entire BMT this year.....and hope to get involved as a maintainer.

MOWGLI
02-25-2006, 08:20
We did however get in on the little walk up to Wigg Meadow and watched as Little Bear led us in singing America the Beautiful. That Little Bear has an outstanding singing voice. ;)

While I do a (very) few things well, singing ain't one of 'em. If you looked real carefully, you would have noticed that I was doing the Brittney Spears thing and lip syncing. I guess I fooled you with the fog and all. ;)

By the way, I have some photos from the meadow. Maybe I should post them.

Hammock Hanger
02-25-2006, 10:14
I' hiked the original 93 miles last year and will hike the middle section this year.

I'm with him... (looking forward to our spring hike.):sun

Hikerhead
02-26-2006, 16:40
I'm with him... (looking forward to our spring hike.):sun

Me too....I'll be sporting a new pack this year (again). I'm counting the days before I get to hike with you and DebW again. This is going to be a fun section.

I'm going to wait till about the 3rd week in march and become a member of the BMT and order the Nat Geo Map. Sometime in March the Nat'l Geo map will have the BMT marked in yellow.

Tha Wookie
02-27-2006, 15:44
Sometime in March the Nat'l Geo map will have the BMT marked in yellow.\

sweet! good info!

Tipi Walter
02-27-2006, 20:22
I just got back from an eight day backpack of the B Mac and I noticed at the trail register box at Cold Spring Gap a note from a "thru-hiker" who was walking it around the end of January. On my trip I of course encountered sections of deep snow north of Beech Gap and on a side trip up to Bob Stratton Bald I post-holed into 14 inches of the white stuff. It was cold pretty much the whole time but then this section stays at around 3500 to 4000 feet. I came in from the South Fork of the Citico which is a 9 mile connector to the B Mac and puts you up at Cold Springs Gap and an easy swing over to the Unicoi Ridge and the old Fodderstack Trail, now the B Mac. The new connector before the ridge is a great section of trail built by Ken Jones and cohorts from the BMTA. It has several springs and a good sized creek to get water before climbing to the ridge and the northern route to Farr Gap and the Stiffknee descent to Slickrock Creek.

Hikerhead
02-27-2006, 21:52
I just got back from an eight day backpack of the B Mac and I noticed at the trail register box at Cold Spring Gap a note from a "thru-hiker" who was walking it around the end of January. On my trip I of course encountered sections of deep snow north of Beech Gap and on a side trip up to Bob Stratton Bald I post-holed into 14 inches of the white stuff. It was cold pretty much the whole time but then this section stays at around 3500 to 4000 feet. I came in from the South Fork of the Citico which is a 9 mile connector to the B Mac and puts you up at Cold Springs Gap and an easy swing over to the Unicoi Ridge and the old Fodderstack Trail, now the B Mac. The new connector before the ridge is a great section of trail built by Ken Jones and cohorts from the BMTA. It has several springs and a good sized creek to get water before climbing to the ridge and the northern route to Farr Gap and the Stiffknee descent to Slickrock Creek.

How the blazing and signage on this section?

Tipi Walter
02-28-2006, 09:47
Hikerhead: The boys from BMTA put up new trailposts all along the Citico/Slickrock section of the trail since they weren't allowed to paint white diamonds on the trees. The posts have side trails numbered and marked and the B Mac is designated with a diamond and the number 2 beneath it. Why number 2? You got me, is the AT designated number 1? Don't think so.

Anyway, outside of the wilderness(meaning south of Beech Gap)there are white blazes on the trees to Mud Gap and up to Whigg Meadows where the trail ties into a dirt road for a short distance and then veers left into the woods on the old Sycamore Creek trail. I've noticed in these sections going south that there are sometimes areas with no blazes but for the most part the trail is marked.

But as far as the Citico/Slickrock, the trailposts are the only indication of the trail and they can be few and far between, especially at Farr Gap as the trail turns right(going north)down the old Stiffknee Trail as it descends to Slickrock Creek where on my last visit I did not see any sign or post that the B Mac even existed along the Slickrock. This part could be tricky cuz the trail goes downstream here and crosses the creek about .3 mile into a big campsite. Past the site not far the B Mac merges with another local trail called the Ike Branch Trail and turns right up a series of little creeks to climb a mountain, etc. The BMTA boys might have put trailposts down on the Slickrock by now.

Hikerhead
03-06-2006, 23:54
Thanks for info Tipi Walter.

Happy Feet
07-10-2006, 22:50
Hatman and I thru hiked the entire trail last October. Got dropped off at Davenport Gap and headed south. We had hiked the Georgia section several times, and the TN/NC middle section in June. When the trail opened last year we had to do the whole thing. We love the BMT. Even in the Smokies we pretty much had the trail to ourselves.

The trail is SO remote in places, it's hard to keep the trail clear of annual growth. In Wilderness Areas or Wilderness Study Areas, volunteers can only use handtools for maintenance. Even though it is a primitive trail, the BMTA strives to keep it clear, but there are not enough volunteers to actually do that. If anyone wants to come out and volunteer on the BMT, there are monthly worktrips. It's an excellent way to see the trail and help your fellow hikers have a more enjoyable experience! Check the BMTA website for details. www.BMTA.org (http://www.BMTA.org)

I highly recommend a thru hike of the BMT. Just be prepared and take maps. There's plenty of free information on the website.

berninbush
07-15-2006, 19:42
I'm pretty much a novice backpacker, but I just did an overnight hike on the BMT with my brother and two sisters (who are even less experienced than I am). It's a great trail-- beautiful, and the section we did was just the right level of challenge for us. It’s a great place for solitude, too. We met a grand total of three people on our hike, and two of those were within a few hundred yards of the trailhead.

We hiked the section north of Beech Gap in the Citico Creek Wilderness area; we went in about four miles, and hiked out the same way the next day. The trail wasn't hard to follow, but I wanted to make a note here for others of some things on the National Forest Service Citico Creek Wilderness/ Joyce-Kilmer map that are no longer accurate.

Going north from Beech Gap, the BMT and Fodderstack trails run along an old jeep road (now closed to motor traffic and pretty overgrown). This part is accurately marked on the NFS map (although the map is old and makes no mention of the BMT). The big change comes when you reach Cold Spring Gap at the end of the jeep road. The map shows a three-way split, with a trail designated “105” to the left, the Cold Spring Trail (149) in the middle, and the Fodderstack Trail (95) to the right. These three trails still exist, but they are now designated differently, and caused me a great deal of confusion when I got there!

For one thing, the 105 trailhead is on the lefthand side of the clearing (several yards from the other two) and a little overgrown, so I didn’t see it at all on our outward trip—I only spotted it on the way back. But it’s still there, designated the same as on the map. The difference is in the middle and right-hand trails. You can see where the old signpost has been painted over and re-marked, so now the middle trail is designated “2 and 95” (in other words, the BMT and the Fodderstack Trail), and the right-hand trail is designated 54 (like the trail to Bob Stratton Bald). This is an important change for equestrians, since they must now follow the BMT/Fodderstack/Cold Spring Trail up the middle instead of the Bob Stratton/former Fodderstack to the right. (A sign is there at the trailhead to confirm this.) Basically the Fodderstack has just been re-routed, which makes sense, but boy was I bewildered when I looked at the map and then looked at the sign ahead of me!

About a mile and a quarter past Cold Spring Gap on the BMT, the trail splits in two again. This time the BMT and Fodderstack go to the right, on a newly-engineered section of trail that doesn’t appear on the NFS map at all. (The trail to the left is the continuation of the Cold Spring Trail, 149, which looked at first glance like you’d need a machete to get through! But it may not be so bad once you’re on it.)

If you want a map for the new BMT section, you can look at http://www.bmta.org/construction/cmap11.htm which seems to be drawn directly on the NFS map, with the new section in purple and the trail posts and water marked. (I just pencilled this in on my NFS map… not hard to do!). We came on a very nice camping place on this section of the trail. It’s to your left just as the trail takes a sharp uphill turn to the right. It’s level, has a small fire ring of flat stones, nice views, and it’s not terribly far from the creek (maybe a few hundred yards up the trail).

The trail itself is not hard to follow, even though parts of it are only inches wide with waist-deep vegetation on either side. (Well, “waist-deep” is a relative term! I’m short.) I didn’t miss having blazes; the two signposts we saw at splits were adequate. Like I said, it’s a great place for solitude. My brother saw a bear at a distance in the woods, and we heard owls hunting at night. I recommend this hike for anyone who wants time alone in the woods! But I hope the NFS comes out with a new map soon.

Skidsteer
07-15-2006, 19:52
Thanks for the update Berninbush.

Tipi Walter
07-16-2006, 13:21
I just got back about 3 weeks ago from a long backpacking trip along the Fodderstack section of the B Mac and I thought of you and the previous directions I gave you which, of course, got changed right before your visit. It is almost too complex to decipher and there is not yet a current map to make sense of the number changes at Cold Spring Gap but you pretty much got it right in your last post. Trail 95 was just rerouted and has become the entire Benton MacKaye trail in this area and the old upward 95 going to the Bald has been renumbered to match the Stratton Bald's number, 54. For B Mackers the trail stays on 95 as the trailposts say(along with "2" on the posts)and it's hard to get lost.

berninbush
07-16-2006, 13:48
Tipi, I was meaning to thank you for the advice... even though the numbers got changed, the route you recommended was great! And like I said, we figured it out.

I'm pretty certain that the place where we camped wasn't Snow Camp, although I thought it was when we set up. Embarrassing to admit, but I was tired when we got there, and I thought the sharp south bend in the trail was the place where the BMT met up with the former Fodderstack. I failed to notice until the next morning that the trail did not actually continue north past our campsite, and that there was no signpost indicating that the BMT turned north. We would have discovered the mistake sooner if we'd gone through with the plan of continuing to Bob Stratton Bald, of course, but we decided not to, and it was a good thing since it started pouring rain soon after we got our gear inside the tent! Anyway, whatever that site is called, it was a nice camping spot.

I'm curious about a couple of things: how far is Snow Camp from Cherry Log Gap on the NFS map? (According to your directions, it's some distance to the south, but the BMTA map shows the BMT rejoining the old Fodderstack at Cherry Log Gap.) And what are they now calling the section of the old Fodderstack between Snow Camp and the trail to Bob Stratton Bald? Unfortunately, I won't get back over there to hike any time soon since I live too far away, but I was just curious.

Tipi Walter
07-16-2006, 20:04
Tipi, I was meaning to thank you for the advice... even though the numbers got changed, the route you recommended was great! And like I said, we figured it out.



I'm curious about a couple of things: how far is Snow Camp from Cherry Log Gap on the NFS map? (According to your directions, it's some distance to the south, but the BMTA map shows the BMT rejoining the old Fodderstack at Cherry Log Gap.) And what are they now calling the section of the old Fodderstack between Snow Camp and the trail to Bob Stratton Bald? Unfortunately, I won't get back over there to hike any time soon since I live too far away, but I was just curious.

After reading your trip report it took me a minute to figure your camping spot but I'm pretty sure you set up on the left side of the trail in an open site with a small fire ring and near a little creek full of birch trees. Had you continued another half mile up the trail you would've reached Snow Camp and the junction with the original Fodderstack trail as it turns left and north and right and up to Stratton Bald. There is another trailpost here.
Cherry Log Gap is not where the new B Mac connector comes out at but it is close, I would say Snow Camp is just .2 to .3 miles south from the gap where there is yet another trailpost showing the North Fork Citico trail #98 descending to the left.

Snow Camp is a big open camp full of hemlock trees and a very large hardwood tree in the center of the camp that is partially hollow with a large root system exposed along the ground around it.
I'm glad you made the effort and the drive to visit Beech Gap and the trails in this area. By the way, the old Fodderstack from Snow Camp up to the Bald is now designated #54A, I think.

Joannamarie
11-15-2008, 13:44
Hey Wookie (it's Joanna from trail days 2005 "cough cough") I am leaving December 15 and planning on taking a little under a month to hike the entire trail---oooo it's going to be chilly! How many females have thru-hiked the entire completed trail?

docdb
12-16-2008, 08:38
Good luck on your hike, I spent two nights on section 10 this weekend, and the full moon and clear skies were glorious. I could see Copperhill, TN and McCraysville, GA at night. Parked at Dally Gap, and hiked Hemp Top to BMT, then back tracked up the hill from Spanish Oak Gap to the top. Very nice! I noticed the trail sign for Penitentiary Branch is down, and it was up a month ago?
Don

Tha Wookie
12-16-2008, 08:47
Wow- still only 2 thru's? It can't be!

Bearpaw
12-16-2008, 09:31
I hiked the first 93 miles in May 05 before the connectors for the middle section were complete. I intend to finish the rest in May and June this year.

Egads
12-16-2008, 14:05
I am just a few miles from the TN line while sectioning GA.

Hikerhead
12-16-2008, 14:14
I' hiked the original 93 miles last year and will hike the middle section this year.

Update!!!! I've completed it. I did have to roadwalk a 2 mile section starting at the cemetary because of a dog...but I'm guessing it was about the same milage.

So, put a fork in me...I'm done. :banana

Dogwood
12-16-2008, 15:49
I think I remember Billy Goat and Captain America say they thru-hiked it. If I recall correctly, I was told it's similar to the AT in terms of scenery and the ups and downs.

Happy Feet
12-20-2008, 11:02
Hatman and I had hiked the Georgia section several times, then the middle (TN/NC) section once, then a complete southbound thru hike in the fall of 2005, shortly after the grand opening. The only people we saw were a couple groups in the Smokys, then some folks down by Springer when it joined the AT. The rest of the trip was wonderfully and gloriously lonely!

Yes, Billy Goat and Captain America did thru hike it. We delivered their maildrop to them near the TN/GA border, and Mawee and Pawee took them home with them for some incredible magic!