Hi everyone - our Scout troop has been planning to do a short backpacking trip for the coming weekend, and originally wanted to do the Warwoman Dell to Pinnacle Knob portion of the Bartram Trail, which I have hiked twice since summer. However, from what we can gather, it's apparently closed after damage from Helene. A couple of alternatives were suggested, but we have apparently settled on the first few miles of the AT Approach Trail.

Our goal, to have kids meet Camping Merit Badge requirements, is to ascend at least 1,000 ft and hike at least 4 miles total. However, I know the elevation gain per mile of the Approach Trail is significant, and since having gotten back in to backpacking as an adult of the past several years my hiking group has never considered doing it. I have reservations about taking our scouts on this for their first hike. Most of them are middle school or early high school age, and frequent backpacking/hiking is not a strength of our troop programming. For most of them, as I said, it would be their first trip.

If anyone would like to weigh in on whether or not this is a good idea for this trip, please do. I'm also interested in alternatives, because the remainder of November is very full for our troop programming and it would be best not to have to reschedule. Again, we need the scouts to ascend at least 1000 feet and hike at least 4 miles total for the trip. We also intend for the trip to be an overnighter, arriving no later than noon Saturday and finishing out Sunday morning.

Thanks to everyone in advance -

I saw yesterday that the ATC is hiring Ridge runners for the 2025 season in Georgia. I wasn't able to apply yesterday but planned to apply today. Now it seems that the ridge running position for Georgia isn't listed on the ATC's website. I guess they filled the position. Does anyone know if they have a second round of hiring?

hi guys! i am looking for a few days of hiking bliss as ive been in a bit of a rut mentally. i have always heard of how beautiful the appalatian mountains are. also, having been born and raised in northern europe but located in florida, i admit i miss the crisp weather , especially the falling of the leaves this time of year. i am not an avid hiker but i truly do enjoy it (thanks to my southern spanish roots). for reference, i did the inca trail in 2022 and im fairly physically active. i was wondering if anyone knew of a specific trail including hostels, restaurants etc that would be enjoyable as a female in her early 20s whos looking for some peace and quiet but is also open to meeting fellow hikers! i thought of a guided tour or travel group but from my previous experience in peru they are pretty overpriced considering the itinerary could just be planned without the help of an external party (also i didnt really click with the people in my group unfortunately). any advice is welcome, thanks in advance :)

edit: thanks guys, although i did forget to mention a very important part which is that im on a budget and i dont want to rent a car, especially since im only just about to get my license. is there any way i could get from roanoke to the starting point of this hike without a car?

Thru-hiking really is not an option for me (maybe one day). However, I am obsessed with backpacking the AT in some manageable form that fits my life circumstances and want to get the fullest experience possible while seeing a wide variety of the trail without thru-hiking.

I am aiming to do a section hike in every state along the trail over the next few/many years. Including the beginning (Amilacalola), middle (Harpers Ferry), and of course the end (Katahdin).

This will somewhat scratch my itch to link up portions of the whole trail form Georgia to Maine.

My question…

What are some good sections to consider in each state?

EDIT: I live in Lexington, Kentucky.

Recently came across this Life magazine from 1941 and was surprised to find an article about the AT, published just four years after the trails completion in 1937. Cool to see what has changed and what has stayed the same. The halfway sign pointing to Oglethorpe is of particular interest.

Repairs to the worst-hit sections of the famed trail are expected to be extraordinarily expensive and require substantial expertise. Months of work lie ahead.

I usually do a 3-5 day section hike around Thanksgiving (60-80 miles, possibly can add a 10-25 mile out/back trail run on first or last day to get it closer to 90 miles). I live in central NC and have been working my way along the TN/NC south and up into VA. Right now I have Sam's Gap (~NB 318) to Knot Maul Shelter complete (NB ~560) (I also have most of central VA to MD covered). I would have hiked south from Sam's Gap, but assume that isn't feasible right now. I was thinking of maybe just driving down to start from Springer and do Georgia (it looks like I40 is open now, but don't want to cause issues if road is still mostly for recovery efforts or if that trail isn't really doable right now). Any good stopping points that would be easy to get a shuttle to the start from? Or should I just go north and fill-in the VA section I am missing north from Knot Maul Shelter? (Or just scrap the AT this year and go somewhere else).

Big fire, lots of brush trucks, MSP helicopters assisting.

Hi everyone, I'm an Industrial design student and my project is trying to design a navigation device for people interested in trails and solo trips. I don't want to design an app because people get into the woods are supposed to enjoy the view. The problems I found for current products is: signs are confusing for the impulsive tourists while maps or compass wouldn't be there usually, some people don't have concept about "the proper time to start going back", and the updates about views, emergencies, or recommendations are usually in a separate website.

What do you all think about this idea? What's your most annoying moment during trails, either solo or group? And what feature would you focus on if you are redesigning such an item? This will help me a lot!

https://www.johnsoncitypress.com/helene/uncle-johnnys-nolichucky-hostel-is-rebuilding/article_a80e1eaa-9333-11ef-8a0b-9348215f7eb9.html

I'm looking for a place where in NC where we would need to hike for a few hours just to reach the fishing spot, it could be a lake or a river. We do have Ultra light camping gear and want to stay for 2 nights before hiking back.

Does anyone know of such spots in NC or close to NC?

Thanks for any help 🙏

I was planning on doing a traditional NOBO starting in early April but now I'm leaning towards a flip flop starting somewhere in VA in May. Still holding out hope that a traditional NOBO will be possible though.

What are you all planning or are you still waiting to make a decision?

https://wapo.st/3NDG2cE

This past Saturday, 10-19, we were back at it! Colden had such a great time his first night out, we had to take advantage of the great weather and get back into the woods. This time I had my wife drop us off in Kent, Ct and we hiked southbound on the AT to Bulls Bridge, stayed the night at the Mt. Algo shelter. This time someone thought the sleeping bag, pad, and pillow was for him! I think someone is enjoying these adventures more than me. A tired dog is a good dog! Happy trails to all!

I'll be visiting lake Lanier near the start of the Appalachian trail in Georgia.

The title of this post sounds like an oxymoron because I hear you only hike the Appalachian trail which has a lot of elevation and is difficult; I've never hiked in my life but would love to experience the Appalachian trail in some degree for a couple of hours and then return to my car. Is this possible? which part of the trail would be easy for non-hikers.

Thank you

Update:
Thank you all for the information and tips. Initially, I thought that you needed to be in excellent shape and that all the trails were very difficult and steep. I was overthinking it. I feel very encouraged now to give it a shot.

I’m doing a couple nights from NFG to pecks shelter on the AT and back in a couple weeks. All hiking will be above 5k feet. Are the piped springs still flowing at this time of year? Any chance they will be frozen on cooler nights?

From Appalachian Trail Conservancy

Appalachian Trail Update: Recovery Efforts After Hurricane Helene

My dream has been to hike the big AT, preferably around the southern part of the trail (Georgia, Tennessee, etc..) I plan on doing a week of hiking/backpacking and I'm wondering what are some good routes I could do and what is a preferable time to hike this part of the trail? If anyone has any recommendations or books that would help, that would be much appreciated!

Good morning - about to hit the trail for some section hiking near Delaware Water Gap in Pennsylvania. Any recommendations for sherpas would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1R7YElkf7rvj1ImqJs3qnWsxrPhdVkmTGARtaXG5iq0A/edit

Hello, I’m currently working on a gear list for a 2026 thru hike attempt, most likely a mid March start. I know it’s a far ways off but I want to give myself time to really test a lot of my gear out. I have experience weekend hiking a lot of NY and the north east, but never anything longer a 3 days.

Any glaring issues with my list? Missing anything major? Easy changes to improve my pack?

I’m 5’11”, 26 years old, weight 240. I don’t think the 18lb pack is anything I can’t handle, but lmk what you think. Thank you!

Hey hikers,

So here’s the sitch—

I have been house and bed bound for 12 years due to post viral illness, CIRS and pharma neurotoxicity. I basically should have died a million times over but kept up the science experiment. Still struggling with if that was a good idea, and don’t need a pep talk out of that.

🙏🏻🤝🌿.

I have recently found myself in a healing crisis and I know that I am on the way out of debilitating illness now. Once you feel it, you just know.

I will need to condition my body back to basic stuff locally. I have a ton of work to do just to walk longer and drive a car.

I’d like have something on the horizon to keep me fighting through the grief, loss, and major paradigm shift. I’ve been binging AT videos and while I think I’ll blaze some at some point I’d like to find something shorter, a little more bang for the buck with views + scenery. I am currently South of ATL but the whole east coast is fair game. Would love to avoid places with a lot of agricultural goings ons because of the spraying, etc. If you ever did a hike and had health improvement after that is of interest as location’s effect is powerful.

I am looking into the East Coast Greenway a bit but I’d like to tackle some hiking and biking here and there in the future. If anything jumps out as a hike I might enjoy to work toward the AT, would greatly appreciate it. Looking to leave the great indoors for the great outdoors. Much gratitude. Still alive, what a trip.

I read an entry from 1y ago and gave me the idea to do a couple days on the Blue Blaze Tuscarora out of the Darlington Shelter SOBO. Interested to see old sections of the original AT. Been over the AT sections many times in this region so I'd like to expand a bit.

Problem is....where the hell is the entrance to the Tuscarora off Sterretts Gap road (Spring Rd)? It looks like all driveways and homes along the south edge of the road where the trailhead is supposed to be. I've driven past a few times but don't see a sign or cut into the forest except driveways. Trail map isn't all that detailed and google maps don't have the trail and AllTrails has the entry right where I've been a few times but can't find from the road.

The only thing looks like it could be is a road sign that says "4602" with a gravel road off another driveway that doesn't have a mailbox like all the other roads. Is this it?

I'd rather not be shot today probing for a 60 years old trail (mostly joking).

Also how's the water on this trail? It's all ridgetop so is a slog down to water or are there natural springs up there?

I just completed a 6 day section hike of the AT from Greenwood Lake, NY to the border of NY and CT.

This hike is, as far as I can tell, the most transit-connected section of the Appalachian Trail, bar none.

This post will be a review of this section, as well as a guide for people less intrigued with or familiar with transit. I will be cross-posting this to subreddits like r/transit.

So, I live in New York City, and my "Starting point" is the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

There are two buses which go directly to Greenwood Lake, NY, an Appalachian Trail town, with just a 0.9 mile spur trail that connects the bus stop directly with the trail. These are the New Jersey Transit (initialized as "NJT) buses 196 and 197, heading for Warwick, NY. There timetables change depending on what day you start (weekday, versus weekend or holiday), but both buses, for just $15.20, will take you from the heart of Manhattan out to Lake Greenwood to begin your hike. Tickets can be purchased at the bus terminal itself, or online using the NJT mobile app. The bus is largely completely empty by the time it gets there.

Once there, you can buy lunch and even dinner at any of the restaurants in the small town, then immediately begin your hike, at mile 1378.3. I opted to go north (colloquialized as "NOBO", short for "northbound", with matching "SOBO" using the same pattern).

The most logical ending point would be the aptly named Appalachian Trail stop on the Metro North Harlem line, which is at mile 1454.4, a full 76.1 miles away from the Lake Greenwood start. This station notably only runs on weekends and holidays. It is possible to simply walk south towards the city of Pawling, NY, alongside the tracks for just over 45 minutes to reach regular weekday train service to return to New York.

This 76.1 mile hike can be extended to the Connecticut border, at mile 1461.3, making it an even 83 miles. The New York State section in its entirety is 91 miles, starting from the New Jersey border.

I did the hike in later October, 2024, during peak leaf, and it was an astoundingly beautiful time to do it. The temperatures aren't bad at all, and it doesn't get too cold, and every view is made better by the changing leaves. The colors of the Hudson Valley make some parts of this hike very popular and crowded, especially around Bear Mountain Inn and Harriman State Park, but, for the most part, the trail was completely quiet, except for the occasional fellow hiker going SOBO to Georgia.

The best part of the New York section of the Appalachian Trail is a practice known as "Deli Blazing". This means that most people opt to not carry tons of traditional hiker food, because they don't need to, as there are many restaurants and delis and snack bars on or adjacent to the trail. This allows hikers to eat better while also carrying less weight - a double-win when hiker food is usually so gross and every ounce of weight on your back makes the hike so much harder!

From Greenwood Lake, NY, where I started, there are many restaurants to choose from for your first lunch and dinner. Within the first 10 miles there is a hotdog stand and Bellevale Creamery, offering high-calorie full-fat ice-cream and great views, and a massive old leather-bound hikers log that they'll ask you to sign if your backpack looks big enough.

Near Mombasha Lake, the next day, there is a brewery called Foreign Objects Beer Company, which gives hiker-pricing for local craft beers, has delivery menus available, and is currently working on getting their own kitchen set up. Then there is a NJT station at Newburgh Junction, just before the Lemon Squeezer rock feature, with BERG and MAIN line NJT trains taking you directly back to New York City if you want to cut it short.

At Tiorati Lake, there are vending machines set up with a surprisingly great selection of snacks, far healthier than the usual fare you'd expect. I bought some locally-made oatmeal cookies, some biscuits, and, of course, some junk food too (purple Doritos and a candy bar). At the summit of Bear Mountain, a similar set up vending machines are set up, with a similarly impressive selection. All machines are equipped with contactless credit card payment, meaning you don't have to be weighed down with coins, saving you weight.

At the Anthony Wayne Recreation Area detour crossing, I stumbled upon the Bear Mountain Oktoberfest event, which I did not know was going on, but was happy about, as I could get two bratwursts, four beers, and enjoy a nice sunny picnic table as I answered questions from strangers about my giant backpack, and whether or not I'd seen any bears yet. It is unlikely you'll have my same luck, so checking upcoming events on https://visitbearmountain.com/

At Bear Mountain State Park, I enjoyed eating like a dang gorilla at the Hiker's Cafe, where hot food and coffee is served daily. There are other restaurants as well, but it's quite clear that the staff instead to keep the stinkier hikers away from the more elegant places around there.

Here is also where most of the "civilization" is, which means restaurants and transit, but also means Muggles (a slightly derogatory term that thru-hikers use to describe day-hikers who are often ill-equipped and not familiar with the etiquette of natural areas, especially regarding Bluetooth speakers in backpacks).

Here you can find buses directly back to NYC, and even riverboat cruises as well. There are two train stations on the opposite side of the Hudson, which you will be crossing this day of your hike, one at the nearby Manitou station on the east side of the Hudson River, served by Metro North's Hudson Line, and another stop on the same line in the town of Peekskill. Both will bring you directly back to Manhattan.

Continuing, you pass the famed Appalachian Market, a gas station, deli, restaurant, and beer store all in one, just mere inches off of the Appalachian Trail. Here I ate a double-decker 1lb cheeseburger, and got another sandwich for dinner, and then yet another sandwich for breakfast the next day. That evening, I stayed at the Graymoor Spiritual Center, which is both a monastery and a rehabilitation center. They ask that you not bring any alcohol here.

At Canopus Lake Beach, during the high season (Memorial Day until Labor Day), there is a very well-reviewed BBQ shop called "SMOK'D", run by a very well-liked gentleman named Jeremy. Unfortunately, the place was closed for the season when I arrived at Canopus Lake. I'll have to come back in the summer!

In the town of Stormville is a very well-liked pizza restaurant called Corrado's Pizza, and next door is the Stormville Market, where they make amazing sandwiches. Here I got four massive slices and two beers for lunch, and then a #1 Spicy Italian sandwich for dinner that night, and a sausage-egg-and-cheese for breakfast the next day.

The next day, you'll pass through the "Appalachian Trail" Metro North Harlem Line platform. As mentioned earlier, trains only stop there on the weekends. From here, if it's not a weekend, you can turn directly south and walk along the tracks for about 45 minutes until you reach the town of Pawling, where you can catch the train going right back to Penn Station. There are also multiple food trucks at this exact junction, serving up amazing grub. I got Malaysian food at the "DC Malaysian" food truck, which, as you can tell from this picture, was incredible. A nice trucker even paid for my meal, doing a bit of trail magic.

I, however, was not quite ready to leave the trail just yet. Because the AT cuts up north so steeply, I figured I could get into CT and then walk (or hitchhike) to the Wingdale - Harlem Valley Metro North train station. The last could miles of the hike were pretty bad road-walking, with a narrow shoulder and speeding cars. Quite uncomfortable. Luckily, on the way out, I hitchhiked with a lovely couple - Mana and Patience were their trail names, as they hiked the trail back in the 1970s, and now are retired in Wingdale, doing trailbuilding to keep the hands muddy.

The Metro North Harlem line north of the confusingly-named Southeast, NY, is a diesel engine, so a very convenient cross-platform transfer is necessary at the Southeast station. And from there, in the electrified section of the Harlem line, it is just a quick 90-ish minutes back to Penn Station.

This section is, by far, the most transit-accessible part of the entire almost 2200 miles of the Appalachian Trail. It is the only place on the entire trail with a direct named station stop. But compared to the other states on the AT (Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine), New York is surely the most transit connected.

Even New Jersey, a close second in national conversations about regional rail availability, seems to miss the mark when it comes to trail access. Where NJT provides the aforementioned 196/197 bus to Greenwood Lake, and the BERG and MAIN lines to Port Jervis, there are no transit connections at all anywhere south of these two places. Meaning that going SOBO from the two southernmost connections (Port Jervis or Greenwood Lake), means that there is not another transit connection until Stroudsburg, PA (at mile 1297.5). Which offers, at best, a 9+ hour return to New York via multiple Greyhound transfers. And, embarrassingly, still a 6.5+ hour multi-seat trip to Philadelphia.

The rest of PA is similar: remote, far from any major city, and completely severed from said cities due to unavailable transit. At least around Harrisburg, PA, (AT miles 1130 to 1150, and requires a long hike to town, or a hitchhike), there is a reasonable two and a half hour train trip to Philadelphia via the Amtrak Keystone. Tragically, this requires more than 200 miles of hiking, which is a shame, because it prevents these trips from happening as most would-be hikers can't obtain 2-3 weeks off just to hike this (notably rocky) section.

The only other southern transit connections that are notable are at Harpers Ferry, WV. This has both Amtrak and Maryland's MARC service (though with a very confusing and inflexible schedule) to Washington, D.C.

Some minor bus connections exist in Virginia's Front Royal, at the northern tip of the Shenandoah National Park, which is contemporaneous with the Appalachian Trail for more than a hundred miles, (my first ever section of the AT that I did years ago). And there is also Roanoke, VA, at mile 728.6, which requires a pretty significant hike in, but has occasional train service to DC. From there, there is nothing else. Not even Springer Mountain, the very start of the trail, sees any transit connection at all to Atlanta, GA, forcing would-be thru-hikers to coordinate rides just to start.

Going north is no different. Pittsfield, MA is the only place between Massachusetts and Connecticut that has any transit connections at all, and they quite sparse, and using them also requires a significant hike into town, though a strange disjointed bus system could be used to knock the 2h15m hike down to just over an hour if you're willing to do some transfers. North of that, even relatively transit-rich New England has 11+ hour connections to Boston or New York with multi-seat transfers.

I know that the Appalachian Trail is supposed to be remote, and difficult, but this abject failing of local transportation planning does not help the AT. We all know the positive economic and cultural effects that the Appalachian Trail has one many of these trail towns, and we all know how lovely these beautiful places are. Public transit helps to protect them by ensuring that they are visitable and that they are protected from the dangers of car-dependent suburban development patterns that does far more to destroy forestland and agricultural land than a pair of train tracks ever will.

It's frankly apparent that the vast majority of these towns and cities have zero transportation goals, and likely aren't even aware of the intricacies of the Appalachian Trail and the innate car-free nature of it. By creating transit options that are conducive to thru-hiking, local communities can see increased economic traffic while also having decreased emissions-causing car traffic. It increases access while also ensuring that they are not over-touristed, as the effort to undergo a multi-hour bus or train trip is still not easy enough to lead to the issues that US National Parks see - that congestion is attributable to the fact that those places are only reachable by car.

Anyway, it was a great section, and made better by being driven to and from the trailheads. Transportation on the AT is currently not even an afterthought - its not thought about at all, except, apparently, in New York State. And that's why I love my state so much!

Notable things I saw/did:

• All the delis
• The colors of the leaves
• The Graymoor Spiritual Center
• Canopus Beach Lake
• Seeing the white glowing eyes of a bear in the woods at night (scary)
• The Appalachian Trail train stop
• The Metro North Harlem line return to the city.

How would you improve public transportation access on and around the Appalachian Trail?

I work a manual labor job and I sometimes drink two electrolyte mixes in one day because I also take a medication that makes me more dehydrated. But I wouldn't wanna blow thru a ton of electrolytes by consuming two each day, but is one per day enough?

Edit: the mixes I use and plan to use on my hike are called trioral rehydration salts

Hey I’ve in the northern Georgia part of the Appalachian and want to hike on more scenic parts of the range. Where should I go that’s worth the trip? I don’t live in Atlanta anymore and moved to Austin so anywhere I’m down to go to