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Earl Schaffer was the first person credited with hiking the Appalachian Trail. He finished the feat in 1948, and the book that he wrote based on his experience, Walking with Spring, has been a classic ever since.
These days, several hundred people a year finish the A.T., some thru-hiking it in one season, and others doing it in segments over two or more years.
The majority of the thru-hikers start in the spring time at the South end of the trail on Springer Mountain in northern Georgia. Then they travel north. Good advice is to not start before April 15 because of the possibility of running into bad weather further up the trail.
In the fall the triumphant hikers end up on the summit of Mount Katahdin in Maine. A minority do the trail in the opposite direction. The majority of hikers take from 5 to 7 months to finish the trail.
The Appalachian Scenic Trail, first conceived in 1921 in the mind of Benton MacKay, a forester, stretches for 2,179 miles through these 14 states: Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Much of the hiking takes place in the beautiful Appalachian Mountains and the Smokey Mountain National Park.
Hiking the trail requires no fees, but such costs as equipment, occasional lodging and transportation can run up to several thousand dollars.
Here are some links where you’ll find more information on hiking the AT: Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Lessons from the Trail, and Ramblings of a Veteran.
So, whatever happened to Earl Shaffer? Well, he lived to the age of 84, passing away in 2002 – but not before hiking the Appalachian Trail two more times. He did the AT going south to become the first person to do it both ways. Then he hiked it one more time, just 4 years before his death, to claim the standing distinction of being the oldest hiker to hike the AT.
by Richard Davidian, Ph.D.
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Richard, I am experiencing blog overload. I enjoy your posts, but I don’t have time to read multiple posts per day. What do you think about setting up another blog, with your more advanced posts, and maybe more of your personal thoughts? Your current blog is useful, and I am sure generates affiliate income, but I would like to see more of your original thought.
Ralph,
I appreciate your concern and your (online) friendship. I’ll give good consideration to your suggestion. I think it has merit.
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