Wanting something to do this summer? Maybe consider taking a short walk or long hike along the popular Appalachian Trail.

The 2,180-mile trail, characterized by its long, flat, rocky ridges, follows about 230 miles of Pennsylvania's mountain ridges east of the Alleghenies to the Susquehanna River in a long section of trail notorious for its boot-destroying and foot-bruising rocks.Locally, the trail incorporates parts of West Penn Township, Lehigh Township, East Penn Township, Lower Towamensing Township, and Palmerton.About 10 miles south of the Susquehanna River, the trail crosses the Great Valley of the Appalachians to the Blue Ridge.Running through 14 East Coast states, the trail is one of the longest continuously marked footpaths in the world.The trail travels crests and valleys of the Appalachian Mountains, ranging from the southern terminus at Springer Mountain, Ga., to the trail's northern terminus at Katahdin, Maine.The trail, completed in 1937, is a unit of the National Park System and is managed under a unique partnership between the public and private sectors including the National Park Service (NPS), the USDA Forest Service (USFS), an array of state agencies, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, and 31 local trail-maintaining clubs.