I am planning a long section hike (approx. 800 mi.) starting in June at Springer, well actually the approach trail since I think it would be silly to go all the way to GA and skip the few extra miles. My wife and I sectioned from Bear Mountain, NY to Franconia Notch in the summer of 2013 in about 30 days and did the section from the Delaware Water Gap to Bear Mt. in about a 7 days in 2012. I'm a teacher so I have the whole summer this year to hike( approx. 65 days this year. Anyway, I have a few questions about hiking from Ga to central Virginia in the summer. What can I expect as far as temperatures, bugs and what can I expect for water availability? I'm trying to plan my gear and I don't want to skimp on warm clothes if I need them, but I don't want to carry an unnecessary items like a puffy jacket and heavier sleeping bag if I don't need them. I also want to know if I need to load up on DEET and will I need to be carrying lots of extra water between sources. Any input on these issues or things you think might help would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance from a first-time poster (long time silent troller) to WB.