View Full Version : A.T. Hiking: South vs North
I am a section hiker that will have completed the trail to the half way point this Spring. I enjoy coming down once or twice a year, hiking the trail meeting people and am not someone who craves a badge awarded due to completion of a specific distance. I do plan to continue on the trail as long as the old legs will carry me for a whole variety of reasons I don't need to set out for you folks on WB.
I have really enjoyed the Southern part of the trail, the hostels I've stayed in, the shuttlers I've met, the Outfitters and towns I have visited, the terrain that I have travelled through. I have become acquainted with another fellow who has come down to the trail once and is eager to continue hiking. I am considering, instead of plowing on North, just showing him what I've covered from Virginia South. Is the attitude towards hikers different in the NOrth than in the South?
I know this is, in the end, just my preference and I should just hike my own hike but: I am wondering if I would miss something really significant and would kick myself down the road. I'm not 25 with the appearance of endless years stretching ahead of me, but a 65 year old looking at maximizing the hiking years ahead. Any thoughts?.....Bumpa
Lone Wolf
12-23-2008, 18:01
go to maine and start going south
Bumpa, I'm a Northerner that was born here in the West but raised in New England... I'd walked over a 1,000 miles of the AT in GA, NC/TN, VA, WV, NY, CT, MA, VT, NH and ME by the time I was sixteen years old, including a 2.5 mos walk starting as Springer Mtn in 1977... FWIW, I far and away prefer the actual TRAIL in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. However, the people South Of The Mason Dixon are friendlier IME.
I suppose it depends what you're looking for... I personally can't stand the heat and humidity of the Southern South but the people are generally wonderful...
I suppose it depends what you're looking for... I personally can't stand the heat and humidity of the Southern South but the people are generally wonderful...
Meant to say "Southern Trail"... guess sitting here on a snowy and cold Montana day sipping wine isn't doing much for my typing skills (grin)...
Blue Jay
12-23-2008, 20:39
I am wondering if I would miss something really significant and would kick myself down the road. I'm not 25 with the appearance of endless years stretching ahead of me, but a 65 year old looking at maximizing the hiking years ahead. Any thoughts?.....Bumpa
Yes you would miss something really significant and really wonderful.
Do Maine and NH while you are still young. Then when you get old you can do all the easy stuff.
Blissful
12-23-2008, 21:24
New England has some really tough sections but the most scenic of the trail. There are ways to do it that wouldn't be as taxing (such as going hut to hut through the Whites, that kind of thing). But even pieces of it are better than none at all.
Frick Frack
12-23-2008, 22:01
Keep going! The whole trail is most excellent! My wife and I just finished sobo in Nov and were amazed at the number of people intrested & willing to help us. Each state had its own distinct personality and none were dissappointing. NH & ME were absolutely breathtaking as well as VA, NC & TN. While I preferred the hikers VA and further south I preferred the non-hikers VA and further north. I can not amagine hiking the trail w/o experiencing it in its entireity.
Meant to say "Southern Trail"... guess sitting here on a snowy and cold Montana day sipping wine isn't doing much for my typing skills (grin)...
Spent 13 years in Southern Saskatchewan...know what you're talking about:sun...Bumpa
garlic08
12-24-2008, 10:29
Another vote for the whole trail, also for hiking the Mahoosucs and Whites before you get old. I like Frick Frack's statement about each state having its own personality.
Personally, I would not have wanted to miss the food around NJ, NY--great Italian food, the Bellvale Creamery, bagels out of this world, etc. I was able to stop in a diner or a deli every day for about ten days in a row, a very memorable time for me. A unique feature of the AT, I think, at least in the US.
TrippinBTM
12-24-2008, 13:53
go to maine and start going south
Ew. That means he finishes in PA... kindof anti-climactic. But to each his own.
Do Maine and NH while you are still young. Then when you get old you can do all the easy stuff
On second thought, Lone Wolf has a point, with this in mind. KG here gives good advice. You don't want to miss out on ME and NH, for sure.
And the rest of the trail is good. NY and NJ were surprisingly beautiful (surprising to me, anyways). PA was my least favorite, but it wasn't bad, and definitely had it's moments of awesome. There are no truly "bad" parts on the trail, really. Just some better than others. People were pretty nice everywhere, though you do lose some of that southern hospitality in New England especially.
leeki pole
12-24-2008, 14:13
To me the only bad trail is the one you never walked.