3 day trip with my kids

[Al]

I have been planning a 3 day hiking trip on the AT in New Jersey some time in March with my kids.  I am not sure of the conditions of the AT in New Jersey during this month.  I am planning on starting at the Route 80 bridge and either going up and back or going to another road and getting picked up.  How is the AT during the month of March or is April better?  What are the night temps?  We might do 20 miles in the 3 days since this is our first outing over night.  I do not want to push them to hard or they may not like it.

[Daniela Wagstaff]

I can tell you what my experience was doing day hikes on the AT up Mount Minsi on the PA side the past 2 years in March.

3/19/10:  http://njhiking.ning.com/profiles/blogs/mount-minsi-delware-water-gap

3/17/11:  http://gonehikin.blogspot.com/2011/03/mt-minsi-delaware-water-gap-n...

I remember for both trips it was very cold in the morning when I started (about 8 am) but it warmed up to where I was hiking in a short sleeved shirt within a few hours.  I don't remember it being icy early in the morning, just really cold.  Both years I had taken off work to take advantage of the first really nice day after a long, long winter so they were exceptionally nice days for March.  We had much more snow the past two winters but I only found small patches at the higher elevations on the days I hiked.