There will be boots and boats on all 1,175 miles of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail on September 9, 2017, from Clingmans Dome atop the Smokies to Jockeys Ridge on the coast. What a great way to celebrate the day 40 years ago when Howard Lee, N.C. Secretary of Natural Resources at the time, first proposed the idea of a statewide trail.
As time neared filling all 300 legs of the trail, Friends of the MST noticed that the total of hikers and paddlers was nearing 1,000. Another couple hundred hikers and they could have a hiker for every mile of trail as well. So they created a secondary goal of enlisting at least 1,175 hikers for MST in a Day. If you know someone who would like to hike but hasn’t signed up, give ’em a nudge to sign up at MSTinaDay.org.
Where parking permits, they have added more slots to certain Segments. In Segment 10 through the heavily populated Triangle, for instance, they’ve added 65 openings on 12 legs. If there was a leg you wanted to hike but it was full, check again: it may have an opening.
On September 7, Friends will send a guide to each hiker (hopefully at least 1,175 of you) who has signed up going over pertinent safety and logistical issues. In the meantime, you can get most of your questions answered via the MST in a Day FAQ.
As you prepare for September 9, it is recommended that you download the Trail Guide for your Segment. To find your leg(s) of the trail in the guide, check the beginning and ending mileage markers on the Meetup site where you signed up, or on your Segment page at mstinaday.org. All significant twists and turns will be noted on that page. There will be more detailed instructions on how to use the guide later in the week.
And yes, they are keeping an eye on the weather. They will be in touch with you if it looks like it might affect your day on the trail.
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