Two weeks on the AT – Where and when?

What time of the year do you plan on going? If you want to avoid crowds, you're going to want to avoid the AT thru hikers who leave between January – March April (probably peak March). There probably are going to be a lot of people from June – August since it's summer. I would probably go September or later since I think fall is beautiful, even if you it gets cold and you may have to deal with snow.

You can consider hiking from Fontana Dam to Davenport Gap which is essentially hiking across Great Smokey Mountain National Park. It's 70 miles, but you can either turn around and go back or loop down to the Benton MacKaye Trail.

You could also probably hike from the southern terminus from Springer Mountain all the way to Fontana Dam but it would probably be a bit tricky getting back to civilization to get home.

My schedule is flexible so hoping to both pick best time of year and best stretch. Your suggestion of the Smokies in the fall sounds pretty tempting. While two weeks is my goal, a great one week trip is also worth consideration.

The Smokey's are nice but I'd vote for the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Either end of the AT there is easily accessible and it's a beautiful hike. The trail is well maintained and the Waysides (the restaurants and stores) along Skyline drive make resupply easier. Spring or fall would both be great times to go. You'd encounter some thru hikers there in the spring but their numbers are significantly reduced by then. Also, they are, for the most part, interesting folks from all over the world.

How committed are you to just hiking the AT? The Iron Mountain Trail is a re-route of the AT near Damascus. If you hike the AT from Damascus up to Grayson Highlands (very nice place) then back on the Iron Mountain Trail you can make a 60+ mile loop. Then you would resupply in Damascus and do another loop on the Iron Mountain and AT going south from Damascus into Tennessee. Together these two loops should be enough to keep you busy for two weeks and you won't have to worry about getting back to your car.

They dont call the AT "the green tunnel" for nothing.

Scenic beauty is infrequent on most of the trail, because you are in the woods. Its dirt and rocks and trees and steep climbs, followed by the same, only downhill. If you get one or two views a day its about normal.

Erwin to Troutville would be about 150 -175 miles depending on exactly where start/end, and include Roans balds and Grayson Highlands. These are the best of the AT south of New hampshire. Roan is spectacular around mid June when the rhododendron is blooming. Id reccomend hitting this area in June, behind the bubble of thruhikers.

You can google for pics of both areas.

After that, if you want scenery, the White mountains in N Hampshire or Maine is it.The whites will be crowded in summer.

GSMNP is a good hike, but a bit of pain and few views on the AT. The NC AT from GA to the smokies is as good with less hassle.

Do Shenandoah national park in spring before leafout for views. Otherwise dont bother.

All in all you want to be either ahead, or behind the thruhiker bubble. Or fall when leaves turn if thats your thing. There are crowds of leaf peepers in fall in some areas

"I do not want anything north of Massachusetts. My goal is scenic beauty, decent weather, and no crowds."

You will find most of that North of Massachessetts. There is nobody up here. There are some beautiful views once you get out of the crowded Whites. You do not want to be in the White Mountains in the fall, on the weekends. Trust me on this. The Kancamacus Highway turns into a parking lot, although there is quite a bit of hiking in the Whites that are not along the AT. Western Maine is pretty much all peak to peak with some really nice views. I don't think there is a section of the AT in Maine where you summit and don't have a beautiful view. You can get two or three summits a day, but they are going to be some tough climbs.