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Effort underway to help cover hikers footprints on Appalachian Trail
Army Rangers, trail users partner to improve facilities at lower AT
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Soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 5th Ranger Training Battalion boost volunteer efforts by hand carrying heavy lumber along the Appalachian Trail on Feb. 17 for new sustainable tent pads on Hawk Mountain. - photo by Roy Stallings
For decades, hikers from across the country have flocked to North Georgia for the beginning of a bucket-list adventure. Laden with backpacks, camping and hiking gear, nearly 200 average hikers a day start the Appalachian Trail, trekking through the Hawk Mountain shelter. But the heavy traffic in the area left its footprint, leaving signs of damaging sprawl across the Hawk Mountain area.