Briefly stated, I started hiking the AT at Harper's Ferry, WV heading Southbound.  When I reached Springer Mtn.in Gerogia, I took a bus back up to Harper's Ferry and hiked the 2nd half of the Trail Northbound to Mount Katahdin in Maine.

I got the idea for starting off at the middle of the the Trail from the ATC website.  What appealed to me most was the idea of avoiding the crowds of Northbound thru-hikers who would be starting off at Springer at that time of year.  But I also liked the idea of breaking in my out-of-shape body on the relatively easy terrain of the middle section of the Trail.  And there was always the chance that any late-season snowstorms would be easier for me to deal with in the lower elevations of Virginia than they would be in the Smokies.

"Thru-hiking" refers to walking the entirety of the AT in one continuous effort.  Completing a thru-hike in two consecutive sections, as I did, is generaly known as a "flip-flop", though the term covers many other variations.  Although in one version the hiker would "flip" up to the Northern Terminus and hike back to the middle, I chose to return to Harper's Ferry again and head North because I live in Maine and I wanted to finish on Katahdin.

What made the Southbound leg convenient for me is the fact that an old friend of mine from high school, Rick Dement, was living in Atlanta, GA.  He offered to pick me up from Springer, allowed me to rest and clean up at his home, and helped me get on a bus back to Harper's Ferry.

The map graphic shown here was prepared by my friend, Phil Poirier.  During the course of my hike he kept it updated so that the members of our hiking club, MOAC, could follow my progress.