It is customary in the world of Appalachian Trail thru-hiking to pick a trail name, and in 1994 after reading Wingfoot's Thru-Hiker's Handbook - I came to realize that it was better to choose a trail name rather than have someone pick one for me. So after completing Earl Shaffer's Walking With Spring, I decided to take the trail name "BirdShooter" which was the brand name of the hiking boots that carried Earl Shaffer 2000+ miles up the East Coast and in to history as the first hiker … [Read more...]
Did Earl Shaffer Take A Shortcut On The First Documented Appalachian Trail Thru-Hike?
August 1, 2011 By 1 Comment
Bears On The Appalachain Trail (At Blood Mountain)
April 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment
The Appalachian Trail made the news across the media channels in Atlanta last week when the U.S. Forest Service closed a section of the trail from Jarrard Gap to Neels Gap near Dahlonega, GA. Persistent bear activity caused the trail closure in a section of trail that is heavily used by both day hikers and overnight backpackers around Blood Mountain. My first thought was of the 2011 thru-hikers that had just started out and who were now making their way from Georgia … [Read more...]
Springer Fever
March 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment
I always get nostalgic this time of year for a hike to Springer Mountain on the Appalachian Trail (or on the A.T. as it is more affectionately called). It was 17 years ago this April that I left Amicalola Falls State Park near Dahlonega, Georgia and began a 2000+ mile thru-hike on the Appalachian Trail. Since then, the A.T. has had countless hours of volunteer work to maintain, upgrade, and re-route the footpath which has added nearly 30 miles to the route since 1994 (the year of my … [Read more...]
