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SavageLlama
08-13-2004, 09:40
Good read w/ some great quotes..


2,100 miles, one step at a time
By Kimberly Daly
The Tennessean (http://javascript<b></b>:NewWindow(%20'FIISrcDetails','?from=article&ids=tnns');void(0);)
August 8, 2004

Get in touch with nature with a walk in the woods on the Appalachian Trail


Why would someone choose to walk more than 2,100 miles, much of it uphill, through rain, snow and heat, encountering exhaustion, myriad aches and pains, and very possibly wild animals, along the way? For hikers on the beloved Appalachian Trail, the lure is easy to understand.

Writer Bill Bryson, in his best-selling book A Walk in the Woods, lets the rest of us in on the appeal of hiking the Appalachian Trail. His own reasons for setting off on this epic trek included improving his health, learning to survive in the wilderness, and most importantly, getting reacquainted with the natural world.

"There are three things: to walk, to see, and to see what you see."
- Benton MacKaye

In fact, this last reason was the impetus for the creation of the Appalachian Trail , or AT, as devotees call it. The AT is not, as many suppose, an ancient traveling or trading route. It was in fact conceived of and realized only in the 20th century, thanks to a visionary federal civil servant named Benton MacKaye. In his 1921 manifesto An Appalachian Trail: A Project in Regional Planning, MacKaye proposed the creation of a walking trail that would stretch across the ridge tops of the entire Appalachian Mountain chain.

MacKaye wasn't only interested in hiking for hiking's sake, however; MacKaye saw the development of the AT as a remedy to the increasing industrialization and urbanization of America. He felt that progress and modernity were stripping people of their roots in the natural world, which was leading to depressed spirits and jangled nerves. For all his idealism, he also was a practical man. He chose the Appalachians because of their proximity to a large percentage of the population.

"We need the big sweep of hills or sea as a tonic for jaded nerves."
- Clarence Stein

Completed in 1937, the AT originally stretched from Mount Mitchell in North Carolina to Mount Washington in New Hampshire. It has been expanded over the years to its current termini, from Springer Mountain in north Georgia to Mount Katahdin, "the greatest mountain," in Maine. It is more than 2,000 miles long and it traces through 14 states. There are more than 350 peaks that soar higher than 5,000 feet on the AT, the tallest being Clingman's Dome near Gatlinburg, Tenn., at 6,625 feet.

"The hardest part was coming to terms with the constant dispiriting discovery that there is always more hill."
- Bill Bryson, A Walk in the Woods

There are two main types of serious hikers on the AT: thru-hikers and section hikers. Thru-hikers, also known as end-to-enders or 2,000 milers, are those ambitious souls who hike the entire trail in one season. Section hikers are more ordinary mortals, tackling the trail in segments, perhaps spending one or two weeks a year covering the next section of the AT. Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce, a 62-year-old AT guru who is planning his eighth thru-hike for next year, knows of one section hiker who took 38 years to complete all segments of the trail.

There also are those who have no intention of ever walking its whole length, but who simply want to enjoy the bits and pieces of the AT that are convenient to them. While approximately 200 people become official 2,000 milers each year, it is estimated that more than four million people use some part of the AT each year.

Whether we wish to cover 2,100 miles or 10, experiencing a bit of the Appalachian Trail magic is a very accessible goal for most Tennesseans.

Thru-hikers must make extensive preparations before setting out on their adventure. Most start at Springer Mountain in Georgia, accompanying spring northward. Members of the Georgia chapter of the Appalachian Trail Conference suggest starting no earlier than April 15 because of the possibility of severe weather before then.

It takes most thru-hikers five to six months to reach trail's end in central Maine, which means racing against winter's winds and snow to reach Mount Katahdin by mid-September. It is estimated that the entire trail takes an average person about five million steps to complete.

There are primitive shelters and lean-tos along the way, operating on a first-come, first-served basis. Many hikers camp in tents or directly under the stars, while others veer off into the nearest small town for a hot shower, a proper bed and a brush with civilization before heading back into the woods. There also are potable streams and springs along the trail, but bringing one's own water always is recommended.

The trail is largely maintained by an army of devoted volunteers, and each state through which the trail passes has a chapter of the Appalachian Trail Club that provides information to hikers. The venerable Appalachian Trail Conference, through its many detailed guides and other publications, offers a large measure of "the fellowship of the trail" for which the AT is known. Wingfoot Bruce founded and maintains the Center for Appalachian Trail Studies, which also provides hikers with invaluable first-hand knowledge.

"The Appalachian Trail beckons not merely north and south, but upward to the body, mind, and soul of man."
- Harold Allen

The AT has inspired naturalists, writers, adventurers and plain ordinary folks who seek both a physical and mental challenge. It takes hikers right through the locales of our country's early history, as well as through eight national forests and six national parks. No matter the distance covered, the AT offers something that is even rarer today than it was in Benton MacKaye's time: a chance to confront fear, physical limitations and Mother Nature, as well as a chance to discover the depth of one's self-reliance and fortitude.

"Wingfoot" Bruce has talked to more than 50,000 people over the years who have wanted to hike the AT, and he says there is a common thread running among them.

"They sense it will be a time of living in relative freedom from the clutter of everyday life," he said. "It's a spiritual quest for sure. Where else can you walk across the country without asking anyone's permission?"

Benton MacKaye had lofty ideals for reconnecting urbanized Americans with the natural world that had been their forebears' realm. Thanks to his vision, hikers of the AT today can make the same connection.

"We had learned that the Appalachian Trail parallels life. It has peaks and valleys, joys and sorrows, exhilarating times and ordinary times, sunshine and rain, laughter and tears, healing and pain, and, as in life, the trail has a beginning and an end."
- Madelaine Cornelius, Katahdin With Love

By the numbers

2,174 = length, in miles, of the Appalachian Trail.

14 = number of states through which hikers pass on the AT: Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

6,625 = the height, in feet, of the tallest peak on the AT, Clingman's Dome in Tennessee.

200 = approximate number of hikers who become official 2,000-milers each year.

5,000,000 = estimated number of steps it takes an average person to complete the entire Appalachian Trail.

To learn more
● Appalachian Trail Conference central office: open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, 1-304-535-6331; www.appalachiantrail.org (http://www.appalachiantrail.org)
● Center for Appalachian Trail Studies: open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday, 1-770-679-0633; www.trailplace.com (http://www.trailplace.com)
● National Park Service: www.nps.gov/appa (http://www.nps.gov/appa)

Read about the AT
● A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson
● As Far as the Eye Can See, by David Brill
● Backpaker Magazine's Guide to the Appalachian Trail, by Jim Chase
● Katahdin With Love, by Madelaline Cornelius
● The Thru-Hikers Handbook, by Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce

jlb2012
08-13-2004, 10:25
looks like someone needs to tell The Tennessean about WhiteBlaze.net

we demand equal time (GRIN)

Groucho
08-13-2004, 23:19
"6,625 = the height, in feet, of the tallest peak on the AT, Clingman's Dome in Tennessee."

6643'

Mountain Dew
08-14-2004, 01:03
Thanks for the article .....nice reading even if it does refer to wingfoot.

Lilred
08-14-2004, 09:56
Read about the AT
● A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson
● As Far as the Eye Can See, by David Brill
● Backpaker Magazine's Guide to the Appalachian Trail, by Jim Chase
● Katahdin With Love, by Madelaline Cornelius
● The Thru-Hikers Handbook, by Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce


They Left off "Walking on the Happy Side of Misery" by J.R. "Model T" Tate.

Great book, very entertaining and informative. A must read.

SGT Rock
08-14-2004, 10:45
They Left off "Walking on the Happy Side of Misery" by J.R. "Model T" Tate.

Great book, very entertaining and informative. A must read.

Definately a better book on thru-hiking than "A Walk in the Woods".

Kerosene
08-14-2004, 14:39
Definately a better book on thru-hiking than "A Walk in the Woods".I heartily concur.

eyahiker
08-15-2004, 06:16
..................Yup. :)