Question: who was the first woman to hike the appalachian trail
Answer: Emma Rowena Gatewood , better known as Grandma Gatewood ( October 25 , 1887 -- June 4 , 1973 ) , was an extreme hiker and ultra-light hiking pioneer who was the first woman to hike the 2,168 - mile ( 3,489 km ) Appalachian Trail from Mount Oglethorpe in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine solo , and in one season .