Appalachian Trail marker in central Pennsylvania near Hawk Mountain.

Appalachian Trail Then

Just one view below shows what lies along the side of the Appalachian Trail. The trail runs directly through Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, and the town itself. It winds along the canal, crosses the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers below, and comes with a view of Jefferson's Rock, the spot where Thomas Jefferson stood during those heady early USA days.

Whether you are at its northern entrance in Maine at Mount Katahdin, near Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in the Pennsylvania hills, down in the history of Harpers Ferry where Thomas Jefferson has his rock, in the mountains of the Cherokee in North Carolina and Tennessee, or at its southernmost point in Georgia at Springer Mountain, there are natural vistas to marvel at and history around every corner. Take the time to visit a mile this year, or maybe more than a few. You'll be glad to have missed that last mall and witnessed what nature looks like unfettered by a neon sign. They've got cool wood signs here. For some, including us, we think of the trail as having a history much longer than its actual length, and it does, when you consider what happened in these woods for the centuries leading up to today. But as a practical matter, the trail did not come into being until Benton MacKaye, a forester, thought of the trail in the early 1920's with the first portion of the trail opened in New York from Bear Mountain to Arden. The trial was completed to Sugarloaf Mountain in Maine by 1937. It was not until the National Park Service and trail volunteers mapped a route in 1971 that a permanent route was marked.

Photo above: Tourist photograph of Jefferson Rock, high above the town, July 31, 1890. Courtesy Historic Photo Collection, Harpers Ferry National Historic Park. Below: Photo above: Fall scene in the Great Smoky Mountains. Photo courtesy National Park Service.

Appalachian Trail Now

You can get to the trail at over 500 places, including two train depots at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia and Pawlings, New York. If you are one of the few thru-hikers (around 10,000 total over the years) who complete the entire trail, congratulations. For the others who want to visit a section of the trail and the history nearby, congratulations as well. You, too, walked the Appalachain Trail, even at a smaller percentage. Good things come in small packages, too. But it would be pretty neat if you were one of those 10,000, now wouldn't it.

Today all 2,175 miles of the trail are maintained by thirty hiking clubs and partnerships along the east coast, and coordinated by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. The trail weaves through many state parks and national parks, including Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, Harpers Ferry National Historic Park, Shenadoah National Park, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The northernmost trailhead is located in Baxter State Park in Maine near the newly created Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument. The highest point is 6,643 feet. The southernmost trailhead is located at Springer Mountain, Georgia.