This blog will chronicle one of my hiking adventures of 2012: hiking all 500 miles of trail in the Shenandoah National Park (which I affectionately call the SNAP 500). Why? I love hiking, I live near the Shenandoahs, and I like a specific challenge. This challenge will keep me trail-fit, give me a greater appreciation of the Shenandoah National Park, give me an opportunity to do some photography, and just give me an excuse to get to the Park once a week. I intend to do most of the hikes as dayhikes and finish by hiking the 105 miles of the Appalachian Trail in the Park after I've hiked all the side trails. I have already hiked many of these trails ... some (like Old Rag) many times. Unless the weather doesn't cooperate, I hope to go on my first hike on Jan. 1, 2012.
My first challenge is a logistical one. With all the maps and the PATC Shenandoah Guide in hand, I hope to map out a series of circuit hikes that can be done in one trip. I plan to hike 12-15 miles per day (sometimes more, sometimes less). I'll go on snowshoes if necessary.
