A Mad Desire

[Knives]

I`m sure many people started this way, (with possibly the same book) but after recently reading "A walk in the woods" by Bill Bryson, I have decided that I`d like to spend a little time near trees rather than computers.
The farthest I walk at the moment is from my door to the car, and from the car to the office, but I have this crazy desire to walk the 101 miles of Shenandoah Park next spring. I live in the UK, so I`m not very familiar with the workings of the AT. In fact I`m not very familiar with anything concerning this really.
So I guess basically I`m asking for help, advice, suggestions etc.
Over to the experts.

[PerdiX]

just long walks around your neighborhood will pay off come day 1 on the trail.
Also: Don`t toss your coffee filters.

[Clemdog]

Your idea is very good except for one minor problem....the AT runs right next to the main road, Skyline Drive, for much of this distance. You will walk, sleep, and eat with the sound of cars and motorcycles nearby. If you want to hike primarily AT, a better area might be in the White Mountains in NH. I would recommend hiking the park on a different scheme......hitting the nicer hikes in the park such as Old Rag Mountain and White Oak Canyon. Also, spring is not a bad time of the year. March and April are very good. Of course, Fall is the best. And winter is usually quite doable.

[Knives]

Yes, I realise that Skyline Drive runs nearby the trail, but I thought it would be a good place to find my feet so to speak. I was thinking I`d like to try the White Mountians later when I have a little more experience. I get the impression that Shenandoah is a little `milder` that the NH stretch, so I`d like to stick with it.
Thanks for the reply anyway.

[Aldorae]

AT. Very scenic and worth doing, but I agree that you may wish to get a little more experience first.
Happy trails, Gary (net.yogi.bear)

[Clemdog]

Not trying to discourage visiting the Shenandoah Park area. The suggestion is to have several excellent destinations within the park and to plan hikes between these destinations ie Old Rag Mt, White Oak Canyon, etc. You would find a number of trails to choose from....including sections of the AT. If you stayed on the AT exclusively, you will spend a lot of time listening to Harley Davidson motorcycles and miss these other excellent destinations within the Park. Here is a site with some good pictures of destinations around the park, most of which are not on the AT http://marina.fortunecity.com/highwater/419/va.html