mapping it out

The Appalachian trail is roughly 2175 miles long from end to end. It crosses 14 states, with it's southern point just north of Atlanta, GA and it's northern point on top of Mt. Khatadin in Maine. I can't recall the first time I heard of the trail, I just know it's always been on my mind.
For me, getting back to nature isn't a choice. It's a necessity. If I didn't have trails and forests to walk through, I don't know what I'd do. Probably plant a forest. There's something revitalizing about it all. It brings me back to the reality of it all. The reality that this world wasn't made perfectly for us humans. In fact, when you get outside of all the man-made ness of things, you begin to realize how physically ill suited we really are. It brings things back in to perspective. Something that can be lacking when you live in such an artificial environment like New York.

Anyway, that's part of the reason for this trip. Because I always love a good nature hike. There's plenty of other reasons too, but let's leave it at that for now. So, over the last few weeks I've begun to plot out my trip. Making sure I know just where I'll be headed over the 50 days in June, July, and August. Google Earth has been a tremendous help in getting a general image in my head of distances and terrain.



This is a snapshot of the roughly 550 mile section I'll be walking. The red line is the AT. The bottom pushpin marker is the end of my previous one week hike at the southern point, and the start of my long hike. The top pushpin is my planned endpoint in southern Virginia. From there I'll hop on a flight back to good ol' NYC and my buddy E's wedding. By the way, feel free to click on any of the images in the blog to see them larger.



And here's one more Google Earth photo. This time showing the weekly stops I'm planning where I'll pick up packages of supplies at nearby towns and maybe a shower at a motel! You can clearly see the light blue state border lines in this one. In the end, I'll have traveled through five states. Starting in Georgia, then crisscrossing the border between North Carolina and Tennessee, And finally up in to Virginia's.

Of course, all of this is fairly open to adjustments on the trail. There are always unexpected things that pop up and change the course of things. So, If I don't hit these exactly, things will still be okay. I may just need to have a package sent to a spot a little earlier, or later. The plan is to have a general layout to follow, and as I go, I'll call M at home with any changes in the plan.