Gulf Hagas—“the Grand Canyon of Maine”—and the scenic Henderson Brook Trail are among the highlights along a new, 8.9-mile, lodge-to-lodge hiking route connecting two wilderness lodges operated for the public by the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC). AMC’s Maine Wilderness Lodges are popular destinations for lodge-to-lodge cross-country skiing in winter, and new...
Learn MoreOn Saturday, May 5th, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) will host an event to celebrate the arrival of the spring hiking season at the ATC’s Visitor Center in Harpers Ferry, WV. Admission is free and all are welcome to attend. The beginning of May marks the arrival of northbound thru-hikers in HarpersFerry, the psychological half-way point...
Learn MoreThis is the U.S. Naval Academy’s idea of spring break: a 70-mile march along the craggy spine of the Blue Ridge Mountains, in a sesquicentennial tribute to Confederate Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson and his torturous Shenandoah Valley Campaign. Fourteen midshipmen forsook Cancun and Panama City last month for a five-day slog along the Appalachian Trail, eating...
Learn MoreThe Girl Scouts of America turns 100 today and scouts from Georgia to Maine have made big plans to celebrate. Girl Scouts and dignitaries announced the Great Girl Scout Hike on the Appalachian Trail (AT). It began today at the southernmost point of the AT in Georgia and over the next seven months scouts from 23 councils, with the support of local volunteer trail clubs,...
Learn MoreThe vernal equinox marks the first day of spring. In 2012, the equinox occurs on March 20, right in the middle of the N0rthB0und Thru Hiker kickoff season at Springer Mountain, the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. The second annual Spring on Springer Dahlonega Trail Fest will celebrate Dahlonega’s designation as an AT Trail Community by the Appalachian...
Learn MoreWinter can be a deceptively great time to take a hike in Shenandoah, Great Smoky Mountains, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and many other national parks. Why? Along with fewer folks out on the trails, winter in the Southern Appalachians brings the year’s clearest distant views. The lack of leaf cover often reveals things you otherwise might not see during the summer hiking...
Learn MoreBackpacking the entire 2,180-mile Appalachian Trail might seem like a far-fetched goal for some, but Ward “Chip” Leonard has been there and done that many times over. The 52-year-old backpacker, who has lived in Concord for more than nine years, is known by hikers around the country as the first person to ever backpack the Appalachian Trail 10 times. Leonard,...
Learn MoreHikers on the Appalachian Trail may never tell campfire stories about the renovation of all 15 backcountry shelters in the Smokies, but they benefit from some amazing partnerships after a hard day’s trek. Joint efforts of labor and funding from Friends of the Smokies, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, and the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club improved cooking and sleeping...
Learn MoreThere are roughly 850 miles of hiking trails in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There’s also a lot of history beneath those trails we walk along today. How were they established? Who blazed them, and why? Some of the earliest trails in what would become the national park were simple game trails, created by migrating bison, elk, and other large animals. Many of...
Learn MoreHe doesn’t eat oats from a feedbag. He doesn’t run on four legs. And he’s never been to the Kentucky Derby. But Kevin DeGraw, 32, of Vancouver recently qualified for a “Triple Crown.” DeGraw, or Freebie as he is known on the trail, spent the past four months hiking the Continental Divide Trail, which runs from Canada to Mexico through the Rocky Mountains. This...
Learn MoreWhen you hear Triple Crown most often horse racing comes to mind but in the case of Stephanie White, 1990 graduate of Medomak Valley High School in Maine, it means hiking the top three trails in the United States. A school trip with biology teacher Pam Ramsey to Mt. Katahdin when White was a sophomore in high school spurred her hiking adventures. Ramsey was telling the...
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As Washington policymakers await action by the Congressional Super Committee, the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) released a new report titled “Made in America: Investing in National Parks for Our Heritage and Our Economy,” which details how national parks and visitors could be impacted if the Super Committee fails and mandatory...
Learn MoreIs 2012 your year to hike the Appalachian National Scenic Trail? It’s not about the gear; it’s about wanting to do it. You have to be all in. If you’re trying to figure out if you have the right stuff to walk 2,181 miles from Georgia to Maine, listen to Andrew Downs who finished the A.T. in 2002, a year after graduating from college. He now works as the...
Learn MoreA few years ago, the University of Tennessee and the U.S. Forest Service surveyed public opinion about recreational uses of the Cherokee National Forest. Their research found the most popular recreational uses of the forest are driving for pleasure, viewing and photographing wildlife, fish or scenery, picnicking, day hiking and visiting primitive areas. Strong support was...
Learn MoreAugie Buchheit travels light. In fact, he carries everything he needs to survive in his 22-pound backpack. As a “ridgerunner” employed by the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club, he is in charge of hiking 112 miles of trail through Shenandoah National Park from May to September. While the park’s traditional rangers serve as law enforcement or nature “interpreters,”...
Learn MoreThe Triple Crown. Few outside of serious hikers have ever heard of it. Fewer still have ever done it. The Triple Crown consists of the three major long-distance hiking trails in the United States: the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail, the 3,100-mile Continental Divide Trail and the 2,600-mile Pacific Crest Trail. Thirty-one-year-old Sage Mirrim Clegg-Haman didn’t start...
Learn MoreThere are plenty of stories about people who display extraordinary endurance as “thru-hikers,” those who cover the entire 2,181-mile Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine in a northbound marathon of consecutive months, spring through fall. In August, for instance, a 28-year-old woman finished in 46 days, the fastest-ever thru-hiker. But let’s not...
Learn MoreWATERBURY (AP) – The last section of the Long Trail damaged by the remnants of Hurricane Irene has reopened. Officials say three miles of the trail in Shrewsbury remained closed for a month while the rest of the Long Trail had reopened weeks earlier. The Green Mountain Club said that it had proposed a detour of the damaged section of the Long Trail and Appalachian...
Learn MoreFrom the Blue Ridge Mountains to dense piedmont forests to the tranquil coastal waters of the Chesapeake Bay, Virginia is the ideal place for people looking to step away from the stress of everyday life and relax and reconnect with loved ones and nature this fall. Virginia’s topography welcomes all types of outdoor recreation – from camping to hiking to water...
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You don’t have to climb to 6000 feet to get spectacular views of the Smoky Mountains. In fact, Mt. Cammerer has some of the best views in the national park, yet doesn’t even reach 5000 feet. You can see Snowbird Mountain and the Pigeon River Gorge to the east, and Mt. Sterling south, and the full expanse of the national park to the west. Mt. Cammerer was...
Learn MoreThe calendar says fall is here and even though we’ll still get some pretty warm days, there is a hint of cooler weather in the air. That means that hiking the Appalachian Trail and the dozens of other trails Georgia has to offer is on the horizon. Today, we will offer resources that can be used to locate hiking areas that suit your fancy. The southern end of the...
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I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, publisher of Meanderthals, and a passionate hiker. I live in western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my doorstep, so the content will focus on these areas, but let me know what you would like to see on the site. 
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