Back in 1978 we didn't have to worry about crowds on Springer Mt. when my wife and I started our attempt at thru-hiking. Today, from all that I have read and I've done a lot of reading lately, the AT can be quite crowded on April 1. For those of you who are familiar with the trail now, what would be the worst time to start and the best time to begin. Third question being....what do you think would be the average number of days you could get some good hiking in if you started March 1, considering weather, blow-downs, etc. How was March this year for instance?