Need some Georgia info

[TreeMunkie]

Hiking the Appalachian Trail has always been on my wife's bucket list. Unfortunately, she developed an auto-immune disease about 6 years ago that impacts her lungs and therefore her fitness. Before becoming ill she was an endurance athlete that would knock out a 100 mile bike ride on a Sunday morning before I even got out of bed. It's been tough on her to lose what she worked so hard to achieve and it has really sapped her motivation to do athletic things because she has to struggle to do what used to be easy. After a lot of trying I think I have her willing to hike the AT, albeit at a much slower pace and for shorter durations. We'll pick and choose sections as we go.

We are looking at starting at the southern end in Georgia this upcoming spring and trying to determine the best time. Our two biggest concerns are 1) ticks and 2) weather in that order. We are from Michigan so cool temps are better than high temps. My only camping in Georgia was at SaddlePalooza a few years ago and it was pretty chilly. On the other and there were no bugs. I've learned about Permethrin from reading on this site so we have that. Any other suggestions for ticks/bugs? When does it start to warm up? Nighttime lows in the 40s-50s is fine with us as long as it is not too hot during the day. Obviously weather patterns can change but what dates does it normally get in that 40-60 daily temp range?

Thanks in advance for any insight you can share,
Jamie

 

[NimbleTimbo]

I have hiked some of the AT but never thru-hiked, maybe eventually...
From my travels, I would think early to mid-April would be warm enough but I'm sure the guys from Georgia can tell you better. I wouldn't worry so much about ticks except for when you are off the trail getting water, setting up shelter, doing your biz. Permethrin works amazing but I only use it where ticks are bad. The trail itself is pretty clear, not like brush-busting or anything.
These sights would probably help:

Thru-Hiking the Appalachian Trail: Everything You Need to Know

In this ultimate guide to America's favorite footpath, find our picks for prime hiking and camping, and a complete plan to hiking the Appalachian trail.

www.backpacker.com

Northbound Thru-Hiking | Appalachian Trail Conservancy

Thu-hiking the Appalachian Trail is the adventure of a lifetime. But trekking the 2,190+ miles of the A.T. is no easy feat — make sure you're prepared!

appalachiantrail.org

Sorry to hear about your wife's illness. I'm an endurance athlete (triathlete) and it would kill me to lose the ability to exercise like that. I'm sure it'll cause some depression and grief. This could be a good way for you to help her get more active again and sounds like a great experience. Good luck!

 

[shwacker]

Early or mid April is nice. Me and some buddies did NC at that time, Roan mountain.

The weather turned, got snowed on, wore socks for gloves. Ended up being pretty brutal, but an awesome experience! So just be prepared for anything. But if the weather is “typical”, that should be a nice hike.

Good luck, enjoy


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Fl Canopy Stalker]

Hiking the Appalachian Trail has always been on my wife's bucket list. Unfortunately, she developed an auto-immune disease about 6 years ago that impacts her lungs and therefore her fitness. Before becoming ill she was an endurance athlete that would knock out a 100 mile bike ride on a Sunday morning before I even got out of bed. It's been tough on her to lose what she worked so hard to achieve and it has really sapped her motivation to do athletic things because she has to struggle to do what used to be easy. After a lot of trying I think I have her willing to hike the AT, albeit at a much slower pace and for shorter durations. We'll pick and choose sections as we go.

We are looking at starting at the southern end in Georgia this upcoming spring and trying to determine the best time. Our two biggest concerns are 1) ticks and 2) weather in that order. We are from Michigan so cool temps are better than high temps. My only camping in Georgia was at SaddlePalooza a few years ago and it was pretty chilly. On the other and there were no bugs. I've learned about Permethrin from reading on this site so we have that. Any other suggestions for ticks/bugs? When does it start to warm up? Nighttime lows in the 40s-50s is fine with us as long as it is not too hot during the day. Obviously weather patterns can change but what dates does it normally get in that 40-60 daily temp range?

Thanks in advance for any insight you can share,
Jamie

In kind of the same spirit as what was said by shwacker, late April to early May, but if you’re starting in Ga, maybe even mid May, so the temps stay mild (it’s colder there than you’d think). Have you considered maybe just trying the short track up Stone Mountain Ga first to see how she handles the elevation and temps while hiking? It’s mostly a paved trail that is mildly steep and the rescue can drive a truck up if she ends not being able to make it, they can give her a ride back down. It might be a good “test”. Then if she is fine with that, you could start at Springer Mountain. Personally I love Blairsville

 

[TreeMunkie]

In kind of the same spirit as what was said by shwacker, late April to early May, but if you’re starting in Ga, maybe even mid May, so the temps stay mild (it’s colder there than you’d think). Have you considered maybe just trying the short track up Stone Mountain Ga first to see how she handles the elevation and temps while hiking? It’s mostly a paved trail that is mildly steep and the rescue can drive a truck up if she ends not being able to make it, they can give her a ride back down. It might be a good “test”. Then if she is fine with that, you could start at Springer Mountain. Personally I love Blairsville

Thanks for the ideas. We might try to do some local hikes with packs before we go. Our initial thoughts were April but wanted some local knowledge.
So far elevation has not bothered her too much. We did some hiking in CO last year with one climb up to 9500ft. It's just slower going than it used to be. Of course, she used to have to stop to wait for me to catch up. We climbed Mt. Bierstadt (a 14er) 2 years ago. Took us all day and we were the last ones off the mountain, but she did it. She's tough. If she gets her mind set there is no stopping her. The unknowns are how carrying a pack will impact her and how multiple days of output will go. I'm training so I'll hopefully be able to carry most of the weight but she will still have 20-30 lbs to carry.

 

[Hardly_Hangin]

TLDR, im a local, it can be cold, can be warm, but will be wet.

So ive lived about 30 minutes from amicalola falls my entire life( and actually missed an opportunity at an awesome buck this year close to Springer mnt, but thats a story for another day). I havent hooked the AT, but im a big turkey hunter so i spend a lot of my spring in the woods basically hiking and sitting.

If you start in March, the nights could be as low as 30s and the days could be a high as 80. March is a weird month, big daily swings and fairly inconsistent. The big temp swings make the nights feel colder than they are. Could have snow, flash floods, frost, wind, all or none of above.

April is when the woods start to green up somewhat, id say nights in 40- mid 50s, day could be 60s to mid 80s.

May starts to feel like summer. Your days could be high 80s kissing 90, or a pleasant may could be in the 70s.

We also have blackberry winter, which is a weird 1-2 week cold spell after it has already warned up. Feels much cooler than it is because it's already been warm.

Or springs are generally pretty wet too, definitely would have a rain suit.

Premetherine will solve the ticks, the bigger annoyance once it starts earning up is misquotos and no-seeums, but those are usually the worst in July August September.

Id also throw into consideration starting somewhere else, mainly to avoid people. Everyone starts in March at amicalola, and I've heard it gets crowded. Id research the"easiest" section, and start there to let her get acclimated. Then you can bounce back here once the herd has moved up.