To be clear, this is not a harsh criticism or condemnation of trail routing. I love the AT. I love its peaks and gaps, vistas and (some of its) PUDs. This is just a question to get a discussion going. What would you guys think if the trail were routed in a way that wasn't solely focused on getting close to (but not always all the way to) each and every summit? What if the goal instead was diversity and getting the best of each segment? For example, I love the Smokies. It's beautiful there. But what if the trail followed the lake shore for a while before going back up into the mountains? Just for a different perspective and a little change of pace. Obviously, there are other examples of where this could be applied; I just wanted to point out one on my mind and try to spark a little chat.
Happy trails.
Quest