PIEDMONT, Ala.—An Alabama booster group wants to extend the Appalachian Trail to begin in Alabama, instead of the Georgia starting point it has now.
Some people are proposing to link the 130-mile Alabama Pinhoti trail, which runs from central Alabama to the Georgia state line, to the mighty Appalachian Trail -- the 2,175-mile path that runs from Georgia to Maine.
Dave Startzell, president of the Appalachian Trail Conservance, said the Pinhoti could theoretically become an expansion of the Appalachian, but it would first require an amendment to federal law and approval from two Cabinet secretaries.
Alabama boosters are undeterred. The Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce is trying to build buzz among hikers, and some proponents are talking about giving cash incentives to Appalachian Trail hikers who start their hikes in Alabama.
