Appalachian Trail w only 6 days free time.

Congrats to LSU Tigerhead. I'm jealous. Not many have the flex time to do it like you did For the rest of us here's how with a few days off you can get at least a little Trail time in.

Fly direct Nola to Washington DC. Cab to Union Station. Catch Amtrak to Harpers Ferry West Va. The trail runs literally right through the station. A block away is Harpers Ferry Outfitters. Tell them you'll only be out for 5 nights and they sell you whatever you need without loading you down with stuff just to make a sale - good guys. Walk up the street to the Hilltop House Hotel. You'll pass the App Trail Conservatory, go in and chat with them they are full of useful and useless info. The hotel is a very cool place sort of stuck out of time. Eat there spend the night. Get up leave your bags with them and then set out south along the Shenandoah River. It is gorgeous and you pass stone walls on the heights overlooking town that the Union and Confederate forces erected as battlements during the Civil War when this town changed hands 5 times. Continue south along the river after two days or so you will come to the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club headquarters where they have outdoor showers. They will let you sleep on their porch and feed you a nice meal. I was there on the 4th of July and they shot off fireworks! Head back north the next morning arrive back at Harpers Ferry couple of days later. Stop right before you get back to town to visit the cemetery on the hill overlooking town. It was truly magical and perhaps the most peaceful place on earth with wind sweeping through flowing waves of grass. Catch the train back to DC and then cab back to Reagan and fly home. Can be done in 5-6 days. I looked into this quite a bit and this is the only way from Nola to have decent trail experience in a short period of time. I was 44 yrs old at the time and parts of the trail were very tough in this section but it was doable if in average physical shape. Hard enough to make you feel like you accomplished something but not impossible, not walk in the park by any means. You will pass many other hikers heading north and each will stop and chat for 5-10 minutes and tell you a fascinating tale. You also will go couple of hours without seeing another soul and be convinced you took a wrong turn and then be thrilled when some guy and his dog walk up and say hi. Too many cool stories in 5-6 days to relate here but really a top 3-4 experience in my life.