Field Trip | Hiking the Appalachian Trail

Mother Nature's given us a bit of a reprieve from the triple digit scorching temperatures today, but I still thought it would be nice to elevate our field trip today, taking us higher into the clouds and out of the lowland temperatures.

And on to an invigorating hike on the Appalachian Trail.

The Appalachian Trail, or A.T., is a 2,175-mile long hiking and camping path that stretches through 14 states, starting at Springer Mountain in Georgia and ending at Mount Katahdin in Maine. It covers the Smokey Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains, and in between, in the Black Mountains, you'll find the highest elevation on the east coast, Mt. Mitchell, in a little town called Burnsville.

According to Georgia Trails dot com, "The rugged, often rocky terrain reaches a height of more than 4400 feet and never dips below 2500 feet." The A.T. concept grew out of the conservation movement in America, launched from Teddy Roosevelt's "Bully Pulpit," in the early 1900s.

My first taste of the A.T. was on my sixth wedding anniversary, when my husband and I vacationed at Amicolola Falls in Georgia, at the Len Foote Hike Inn. The Inn is located just eight miles south of the start of the A.T. Plus, our good friend, Greg, had read A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson, which further tweaked our interest.

Given enough vacation time, I'd love to hike the A.T., even if I have to do it over the course of one state a year.

• Have you ever hiked on the A.T.?
• Have you ever hiked the whole thing?
• What's your favorite hiking spot?