Any suggestions for AT sections to hike in march, april without the pack?
gruel
Best section in march/april
system
#2
no pack?..do you mean you wanna go out for a day hike?..hmmmmmm…even the south at that time of year can be tricky weather-wise…(though i would recommmend northeast tennessee which seems to have EVERYTHING as far as beauty, great hostels, etc)…but please don’t underestimate the dangers of hypothermia…i’ll admit to bein’ a big chicken as far as traveling “packless”, but i think it’s probably just wise in early spring to at least have a fanny pack with rain gear, water, a snack, and matches(i think i’d personally like to have my little 12 inch square of foam, too to squat on if i got caught in a lightening storm)…we’ve hiked the AT twice, though, and we’ve seen lots of “slack-packers” (or “freedom hikers” as miss janet likes to call them) hiking without packs…we never did it, so you’d probably have to ask one of those brave souls…
maw-ee
system
#4
The ‘pack’ will mostly be south of Virginia - so if you want to be on the AT at that time of year, pick anyplace between Damascus and Del. Water Gap. You’ll probably have cold weather, with possible snow/ice - but that’s true for anywhere on the AT, even Georgia - but aside from weekends you’ll likely have the trail to yourself. If you want to be out for several weeks - start at Harpers Ferry and hike either north or south from there. North is lower in elevation, but south gets you into the Shenandoahs at a time when few are hiking the trail.
Ginny
system
#5
I’ve completed two sections in the late March / early April timeframe: NY southbound from the RPH Shelter to Bear Mountain and Harpers Ferry to the Mason-Dixon line.
The good points are that they shelters are pretty much empty and there is plenty of water in the streams and springs. The downside is that many places don’t turn on their water taps until April 1st or later. I had to do a bit of searching at Graymoor to find a working water tap since the ones at the ballfield pavillion were still shut off for the winter. Same thing for the tap on the pump house at Dennytown Road. In MD, the soda machines and rest rooms in the State Parks were out of service :bawling and the bath house at the Dahlgren campground was still closed for the winter.
So your reward for hiking ahead of the pack is solitude at the expense of some trailside conveniences. Well worth it in my book.
Stalking Tortoise
system
#6
oh mercy,gruel!..did you laugh as hard as i am right now when you read my advice on hiking without the PACK?!!..oh my, my…
well…paw-ee and i have had two early (mid february) starts on the AT and,let’s see…by late march and the first of april we were heading into the mt. rogers/ grayson highlands section…this past year we had more solitude than in '03 and we were crossing the highlands on march 23rd…it was very cold, very beautiful and very quiet…(you can check out our pics and descriptions on this site under “2006…maw-ee and paw-ee” if your interested in more details)…whew!..i think i’ve regained my composure now…(the pack!..ahhh…that was a good one!ha ha!)
maw-ee