Originally Posted By skcreidc
Hey all, I watched the video earlier and I was struck by all the huts. The poster was always aiming for a hut to spend the night. Are you supposed to sleep in the huts? Or is just an option for the AT. Probably a stupid question but I was just curious. Would be nice to spend some time on the AT some day.

sK


It's optional. However, in the Smoky Mountain you are not allow to camp on the AT. There are no established campsites along the AT except for the shelters. The AT club in the area did carve out a few places along the AT to camp when they're doing trail maintenance. What the park rangers will say if they catch you camping in those area is beyond me. Depends on their mood I guess? When I was at Grayson Highland/Jefferson National forest in Virgina, there were large campsites near a couple shelters in event the shelters were full you could pitch your tent in those areas. I have spent one night in a shelter on the AT in the Smokies and it's pretty cool. One of them have a fenced door to keep the bears out! Another has a tarp rolled up that comes in handy in winter time to keep the wind out when it blows in the wrong direction. And almost all of the ones in the Smokies have a smokestack and fire place to keep you warm on a cold night. cool
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It is one of the blessings of wilderness life that it shows us how few things we need in order to be perfectly happy.-- Horace Kephart