Collier attributes her falls to fast hiking and trying to look at all the gorgeous scenery around her. Her mother, however, said she used to fall a lot in soccer, too. Both Collier and Katie said what they like best about the trail is the quiet. What Collier misses most is music, while Katie has a more basic complaint. I just like seats.
People leave notes and food.
They offer to put hikers up. One woman at New Found Gap in the Smokies had driven from Asheville, N.C., to lay out a whole spread of eggs, muffins, bagels and other treats for any hikers who happened by. Food, weather and gear are the big topics on the trail, the hikers said. It's sometimes hard to consume the recommended 6,000 calories a day on the trail. For one thing, you have to carry enough to eat to get you between stops in towns.