Things you should realize for the those starting in march AND APRIL DON’T count on using a shelter. Count on it being COLD WINDY AND OR RAINY.IT WILL BE VERY CROWDED AND HARD TO FIND A CAMPSITE AT TIMES BECAUSE OF THE CROWDS OF PEOPLE DOING THE SAME THING. AND MOST OF ALL DON,T PUSH YOURSELF SO MUCH TO MAKE THE BIG MILES. AND DO TAKE CARE OF YOUR FEET HURTING FEET OR BLISTERS CAN BE REALLY BAD
FROG
No Pain, No Rain, No Maine!
It’s no vacation, it’s a job and if it were easy everbody would do it.
Old Goat
My experience staring in early April was quite different.
Every night I was at a shelter - it was usually my self and about 4 others. Plenty of space.
It wasn’t until I left Damascus RIGHT after Trail Days that the crowds became a bit of an issue. Wasn’t too bad though.
I believe in the “No Pain, No Rain, No Maine” mentality. Being out there isn’t always fun - but that is all part of the experience.
As my friend Bones once wrote:
“The hardest things in life are to climb a wall leaning toward you, kiss a woman leaning away from you, and to hike The Appalachian Trail.” 
Low Impact
I left Springer on Earth Day (April 22) in 2005 and found the amount of people just right…and kept away from the Traildaze and feeds that clog up the trail alittle. As a Nobo purist you tend to keep your own hike in tact as opposed to slacking in different directions with a group. After a thousand miles, the crowd thinned as we caught groups ahead. A tent or tarp is a liberating experience in cases of weekend crowds.
fishngame
One hiker desribed his hike: " My job is to get up everyday and hike 14 miles" He passed me, but I caught up to him taking a zero day in Damascus. If you cannot find a place to camp alone along the AT, you just are not looking hard enough.
rambler