The
Appalachian Trail is a 2,174 mile footpath which travels along the ridge crests
and across the major valleys of the Appalachian Mountains from Springer
Mountain in northern Georgia to Katahdin in Maine. The trail traverses Georgia,
North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and
Maine.
Forester Benton
MacKaye envisioned the A.T. as a national scenic trail and it was developed by
volunteers and opened as a continuous trail in 1937. The National Trails System
Act of 1968 designated the A.T. as the first National Scenic Trail in the U.S.
The trail travels over land that is 99% owned by the Federal or State
governments or by rights of way.
Day hikers,
short-term hikers, section-hikers and thru-hikers use the Appalachian Trail.
Thru hikers generally begin their journey in Georgia where they can enjoy the
warmer spring weather in the South and end their hike in Maine during the later
months of the summer or fall season. Hikers of the trail enjoy the unspoiled
beauty of the natural environment as well as the cultural aspects of the trail
towns and villages where they stop to restock their supplies and take an
occasional rest accompanied by modern conveniences along the way.
The Appalachian Trail
can be accessed just 1 mile West of Wesser, N.C. Many visitors to the Nantahala
Gorge enjoy short day hikes on one of the most famous sections of the trail
located in Swain County. |
