I was having a discussion with a friend about the approach trail to Springer from Amicalola. I maintained that it was pointless to begin a through-hike without including this beginning section, while she submitted that as a blue blaze trail it seemed a bit silly to include it as a requirement for a through hike and one could easily just drive up to the summit, register and begin the hike from there.
So I am interested in how many people here believe that the approach trail is an essential componant of the trail, and what percentage of NOBO (and SOBO hikers for that matter) include the approach trail as an integral part of their hike.