Appalachian Trail

Map of the Appalachian Trail.
Detailed map of the Appalachian Trail.
Mount Katahdin in Maine, the northern terminus of the trail.
Crossing the Potomac River at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, the "psychological midpoint", but not the geographical midpoint, of the trail.
Springer Mountain in Georgia, the southern terminus of the trail.

The Appalachian National Scenic Trail, often called the Appalachian Trail or the A.T., is a hiking trail on the Appalachian Mountains in the eastern United States.

The Trail runs from Georgia to Maine and is around 2,200 miles (3,500 km) long. The exact length changes over time as parts are changed.[a] It passes through 14 different states.

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy says the Trail is the longest hiking-only trail in the world.[1][2] More than two million people hike part of the trail at least once each year.[3]

History

The idea of an Appalachian Trail was first suggested in 1921. It took over ten years of work to build the Trail, and it was completed in 1937.

Today, thirty-one trail clubs and many partners help keep the Trail usable.[4] The National Park Service, United States Forest Service, and the nonprofit Appalachian Trail Conservancy manage it.[5][6]

Location

The Appalachian Trail starts at Springer Mountain in Georgia and ends at Mount Katahdin in Maine.[7] Along the way, it passes through 12 other states: North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire.

Hiking

The Appalachian Trail is an extremely popular hiking trail. More than 2,000,000 people set foot on it at least once each year.[3]

The Trail has many enthusiastic fans. There are many books, documentaries, websites, and fan organizations about the hike.

Thru-hikers

Thru-hikers attempt to hike the whole trail in one season. The number of thru-hikes per year has increased steadily. In 2017, 715 north-bound and 133 south-bound thru-hikes were reported.[3] Others were likely unreported.

Some people hike from one end to the other, then turn around and thru-hike the trail the other way. This is known as a "yo-yo".[8]

Notes

  1. ↑ The exact length of the Appalachian Trail is not known because work on the trail changes its length every year. This work makes an exact length difficult to measure. (See Appalachian Trail Conservancy)

References

  1. ↑ "Appalachian Trail Conservancy". Archived from the original on July 1, 2016. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  2. ↑ "The Great Trail". TC Trail. Archived from the original on October 14, 2018. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Appalachian Trail Conservancy - 2000 Milers". Archived from the original on July 30, 2016. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  4. ↑ Alger, Nate (November 27, 2016). "The Absolute 10 Best Day Hikes in the United States". Live Outdoorsy. Archived from the original on February 11, 2017. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
  5. ↑ (January 1985), "A Fork in the Trail". Audubon. 87 (1):140–141
  6. ↑ Applebome, Peter (May 31, 2010), "A Jolt of Energy for a Much Trod-Upon Trail". The New York Times. p. 14.
  7. ↑ Gailey, Chris (2006). "Appalachian Trail FAQs" Archived May 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Outdoors.org (accessed September 14, 2006)
  8. ↑ "Ultralight Maine Hiker "Yo-Yos" the AT | Appalachian Mountain Club – Maine Chapter". Archived from the original on June 19, 2018. Retrieved June 18, 2018.

Other websites

Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Appalachian Trail.

Official sites