Appalachian Trail ◆ Georgia to Maine
The Appalachian Trail, 2,194 miles of green tunnel.
Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin, Maine. The 'green tunnel' — older, more popular, and more deeply Eastern than the PCT. About 1,000 thru-hikers finish each year.
Field guide ◆ Appalachian Trail
Plan the trip.
The Appalachian Trail runs 2,194 miles from Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin, Maine, traversing 14 states. It's the oldest of the long American trails (completed 1937), the most-used, and is sometimes called 'the Green Tunnel' because most of it is in deciduous Eastern forest. About 3,000 attempt a thru-hike each year; about 1,000 finish.
Best section trips: the Smokies traverse (70 miles, North Carolina-Tennessee), the Roan Highlands grassy balds (15 miles, peak in June for rhododendron bloom), Shenandoah's Skyline Drive corridor (105 miles, easy access), the Whites in New Hampshire (the steepest, hardest 100-mile section on the entire trail), and the 100 Mile Wilderness in Maine (last stretch before Katahdin).
Free thru-hiker registration with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. Shelters every 8 miles or so along the entire trail. Northbound (NOBO) thru-hikers start late February through early April; southbound (SOBO) start mid-June.
On the map ◆
Where you're going.
Pack the kit ◆ For Appalachian Trail
What to bring.
Trip-tested picks for this destination — gear that's earned its place across multiple visits.
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