Ways to Experience the Appalachian Trail Besides Hiking Part 2 - Appalachian Trail Conservancy

While the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) is most known for its spectacular number of options for hiking, ranging from single-day hikes to months-long thru-hikes, there are many other ways to enjoy time in nature on the A.T. This is Part 2 of our blog series about other ways to experience the Appalachian Trail besides hiking. Read Part 1 here.

Jaime Barks - Mountains

“I spent my entire adulthood daydreaming about the Trail and I finally got the courage to do my first section hike. Having the privilege to walk for miles and miles in nature is such a gift. You get a chance to see and experience something so few people get the opportunity to,” she says. “I hope that my paintings can capture not only the landscape but also the emotion of being on the Trail. For me, backpacking is filled with joy, pain, beauty, perseverance, and a healthy dose of self-reflection.”
–Jaime Barks (Acrylic on Wood Panels, “Sunset in the Smokies.”)
Discover more of Jaime’s artwork on Instagram or jaimebarks.com.

Jenna Silverstein - Hikers

“I was pretty unprepared for my first hike and I couldn’t believe how challenging it was. But, like most hikers, I immediately became obsessed with hiking and enjoyed being immersed in nature. I began recording our hikes in my NH48 Passport and adding drawings of our experiences: the new, the exciting, and sometimes the exhausting moments on the Trail. These experiences serve as the inspiration behind my work. I love being able to depict the various parts of a hike, keeping a memory of each unique adventure."
– Jenna Silverstein (Ink/Sketch, "Planning the route from Lonesome Lake Hut to the Fishin’ Jimmy Trail.")
View more of Jenna’s drawings at honeybhouse.com or on Instagram.

Paul Hanusch - Franconia Ridge

“The Trail is my muse because it “checks all my boxes”; it’s full of history, landmarks, stone walls, abandoned ruins, active farms, small towns and villages, tall mountain peaks, deep woods, babbling brooks, still pools, raging rivers, magnificent lakes, and the stories of the hikers. It’s an unlimited font of creative inspiration for artists of any medium."
– Paul Hanusch (Oil on canvas painting, Franconia Ridge.)
Discover more of Paul’s work on Instagram.

Jenny Siegfried - Forest

“I was a total city girl, and yet there I was, hiking along the A.T. in Great Smoky Mountains National Park as a new member of the ATC’s Rock Top Trail Crew,” she says. “Looking out on the mountain peaks at sunrise and gazing at the Milky Way every night was deeply transformative; I was growing into myself more fully with every deep breath of mountain air.”
– Jenny Siegfried (Watercolors/Ink, "A.T. through the Smokies.")
Discover more of Jenny’s artwork on Instagram or jennysiegfried.com.

Creating Art

Making art can provide a nice change of pace from hiking. Plus, creating art is a great way to document your time on the Trail.

Remember to use the hashtag #ATInspired on your social media posts or fill out our Media Submission Form for a chance to have your A.T.-inspired art featured on the ATC’s platforms.

View Gallery

Todd Gladfelther wearing a green sweatshirt and brown pants, standing next to his carving of bears climbing up a post.

Todd Gladfelter - Wildlife

“It’s rare to catch a long glimpse of wildlife, but seeing trees, stumps, bark textures or the layers of different rocks – all are possibilities that can get worked into a carving."
– Todd Gladfelter (Chainsaw, Wildlife carvings at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Kempton, PA.)
To learn more about Todd and his work, visit toddgladfelter.com/.

Colorful painting of vegetation, mountains, and sunset

Jaime Barks - Mountains

Pen sketch of two people sitting on the ground with a note reading "Lots of bugs at the summit - ran down because we ran out of water!!"

Jenna Silverstein - Hikers

Painting of a grassy-covered brown mountain with blue mountains in the distance and pink and yellow sky with puffy white clous.

Paul Hanusch - Franconia Ridge

Long spiral-bound watercolor sketchbook of painted green vegetation on a table, with paintbrush, palette, and paints above it.

Jenny Siegfried - Forest

For More on Appalachian Trail Art

Read about the ATC’s Artist in Residence program and our inaugural Artist in Residence, Mallory Weston.
Read this blog to view dozens of pieces of art (including a symphony, a wood sculpture, and several paintings) inspired by the A.T., and reflections from each artist.
Read Issy Wilson’s essay about artwork she has made inspired by the A.T.
Read Kim O’Connell’s essay about beauty and the A.T.

Enjoying Scenic Views

While the A.T. is sometimes described as a “long green tunnel,” there are plenty of spots, sometimes after long treks to summits or ridgetops, where there’s a break in the canopy and a scenic overlook appears. Scenic vistas are great spots for photos, lovely places to paint or draw, prime locations for cloud-watching, and nice areas to take a break.

View Gallery

Humpback Rocks. Brent McGuirt Photography

For More on the A.T.’s Scenic Vistas

Use the ATC’s interactive map and filter by “A.T. Vistas” to search out the Trail’s scenic views.
Learn more about the A.T.s’ involvement with the National Park Service’s Visual Resource Inventory (VRI) by reading his blog by Leanna Joyner on the viewpoint assessments piloted in 2019. This blog by Alyssa Reck serves as a 2021 update on the project.

Join a Trail Crew

Joining a an Appalachian Trail Crew is a great way to add a sense of purpose to your outdoor adventure. Trail Crew sessions are are multi-day experiences to help protect nature through sustainable trail construction and repair. Crews often work on projects like rebuilding bridges, shelters, or privies. Find the Trail Crew that suits you!

Learning History

From Harpers Ferry, WV, famous for John Brown’s Raid, to the Appalachian Trail Museum in Pine Grove Furnace State Park, PA, to countless other sites along the Trail and in A.T. Communities, there are plenty of ways to engage with history when visiting the A.T.!

View Gallery

Benton MacKaye in a black-and-white photograph sitting atop a rocky overlook, looking down at a notebook.

"We build for ourselves, on the frontier, a better, wider place in which to live a better, wider life." – Benton MacKaye. MacKaye was the person who initially proposed the idea of the Appalachian Trail, in his 1921 article “An Appalachian Trail: A Project in Regional Planning.”

For More on A.T. History

View the timeline of A.T. History.
Check out From Dream to Reality: History of the Appalachian Trail, a book chronicling the Trail’s history.
Read an essay by Mills Kelly about what the Trail was like during the Civil Rights era.

On-trail and off, reading is an enjoyable way to learn new information or get lost in a story. Photo by Pam Parker.

Reading

For some, the added pack weight of a physical book is totally worth it. However, if you don’t want the extra weight in your pack, there are still plenty of ways to read on the Trail without a physical book.

Kindles and other eReaders are a great way to bring books on the trail without having to worry about their added weight. They usually hold a long charge, so you won’t have to worry about the battery being drained too quickly, and can refresh them the next time you have access to electricity. Plus, you’re able to download them directly to your device, so out-of-service reading is easily achievable.

Audiobooks are another great light-weight option for on-trail reading. Just like with ebooks, you can usually download them to your device, so you’ll be able to listen even when offline. On-trail and off, reading is an enjoyable way to learn new information or get lost in a story.

For More A.T. Reading

Check out ATC staff picks of favorite nonfiction books about hiking and trails.
Read We Were There, Too, a non-fiction book covering the involvement of women through the A.T. and ATC’s history.
Read From Dream to Reality: History of the Appalachian Trail, another non-fiction book spotlighting the Trail’s history.

Trail Running

Combining the joy of running with the scenic beauty of nature, trail running on the A.T. offers a challenge that is distinct from both hiking and from road running. Check out this blog post for some tips on what to keep in mind before and during a trail running session. No matter how fast you’re running, always make time to follow Leave No Trace principles — that ensures the irreplaceable A.T. experience is protected for everyone.

Trail runner wearing an orange hat, athletic red shirt and yellow shorts, and lightweight running vest looking out at the scenic landscape.

Photo by Kate Rodriguez.

Whether you’re logging what you did in the day, thoughts running through your head, or even just taking note of the different things you’ve seen, writing is a great way to catalog your experiences on the Trail. Photo by Sherri Swift.

Writing

Whether you’re interested in journaling the memories of a thru-hike or writing a historical fiction novel set on the Trail, the A.T. is a great source of inspiration for writers! If you’d like the opportunity to have your writing featured, fill out our Media Submission Form!

For More on A.T. Writing

Read Kim O’Connell’s essay about her experience exploring different A.T. Communities.
Read Michael Garrigan’s essay about his experience as a trail maintainer.
Read this excerpt from Elizabeth McGowan’s book Outpedaling ‘The Big C’: My Healing Cycle Across America about her experience cycling 4,000 miles from coast to coast following her 5-year clean-bill-of-health from melanoma.