The Appalachian Trail

The AT In North Carolina
Along the eastern United States runs a trail inching along from Georgia to Maine; this trail is known as the Appalachian Trail. It stretches for an amazing 2,184.2 miles from Springer Mtn., GA all the way to Katahdin, Maine. There are three types of hikers that attempt this life changing walkabout: the section hiker takes the trail and divides it up in sections to hike at separate times; the flip-flop hiker does sections of the trail in different places to avoid weather and crowds; the thru-hiker tries to tackle the entire trail in one go. Typically it takes a thru-hiker an average of about 4 to 6 months to complete the trail and that is going 18 to 20 miles a day. Each year there are “thousands of hikers attempting
Entering the Nantahala National Forest at Bly Gap, hikers are greeted with “4,000 foot gaps and 5,000 foot peaks”. According to the A.T. hikers association “Nantahala is Cherokee for ‘land of the noon day sun’” and the Nantahala Hiking Club-NHC- “maintains the 58.8 miles between Bly Gap and the Nantahala River”. The 95-mile stretch ends at Fontana Dam on the southern edge of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Dam was started in “1940’s and by the time of its completion at 480 feet” it was and is the tallest dam in the eastern United States, and at one point was the fourth largest in the world. “Some hikers have speculated that there are more ascents and descents per mile, than on any other stretch of the AT” . This section of the trail’s views has been “ described as among the best in the southern Appalachians”. Along this section of the trail there are 15 plus shelters and campsites varying in age from 1959 all the way to the most recent being 2012. This section of the trail also offers hikers a chance to experience Mooney Gap. “ This gap has been identified as among the wettest places in the eastern U.S., with an estimated annual precipitation of 93.5