Celebrating the Appalachian Trail

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Today’s slideshow Doodle celebrates the Appalachian Trail — click the Doodle to explore the 2,190-mile footpath that spans across 14 U.S. states! The Appalachian trail is the longest hiking-only footpath in the world, and has served sightseeing hikers for nearly 100 years. It traverses through dense forests, across rushing rivers, and over mountain summits along the east coast. On this day in 1968 The National Trails System Act established the Appalachian Trail as one of the country’s first National Scenic Trails.

Benton MacKaye, a forester, conservationist, and lifelong outdoorsman, first proposed the idea in 1921. His original plan, titled An Appalachian Trail: A Project in Regional Planning, outlined a stretch of several self-sustaining agricultural camps along the way. Many like-minded people started joining his cause, and the community eventually became known as the Appalachian Trail Conference.

In 1937, thanks to combined efforts of many trailblazers, the Appalachian Trail became fully connected from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. Ten years later, a hiker named Earl Shaffer reported the first thru-hike from end-to-end and ignited a wave of interest. Over fourteen thousand people have completed the trek since.

President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Trails System Act in 1968, which declared the Appalachian Trail as one of the first national scenic trails and recognized it as federal land. Finally, in 2014, the last major stretch of land was acquired, turning initial dreams for the trail into reality.

Nowadays, in a collaborative effort to conserve its natural glory, the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, and many volunteers maintain and manage the historic footpath. Thousands of pathfinders visit the route each year with the intention of completing the four- to six-month long thru-hike.

Happy trails!

Fumiko Enchi's 118th Birthday

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• Today’s Doodle celebrates the 118th birthday of Fumiko Enchi, a Japanese feminist and writer who rose to literary fame during the post-World War II era. She wrote several plays and novels about the unfair domestic lifestyles that women were expected to lead. The characters she created were direct reflections of her own experiences, and evolved as her career and life progressed.

  Enchi was born on this day in 1905 in Tokyo. From an early age, she was exposed to the art of storytelling — her grandmother introduced her to kabuki theater. At 21 years old, Enchi published her first play titled A Birthplace, which was well received by the public.

  Unfortunately, the writer grew ill and lost her home during World War II, causing her to temporarily retreat from the literary world. Enchi eventually found her way back to the pen and focused more on fiction, writing tales that explored the gender discrimination, lack of equality, and wrongful treatment of women caused by Japan’s patriarchal society. In 1953, she won the Women’s Literature Prize for her story Starving Days.

  Throughout the rest of her career, Enchi published novels that featured strong, introspective female protagonists. She was particularly fond of works written by women during the Heian era and adopted similar topics: maternity, familial duty, lust, aging, and more. Enchi’s expressive voice gave these themes a modern twist and cemented her status as a leading Japanese writer.

  Some of her most celebrated works include The Waiting Years (1957), Masks (1958), and A Tale of False Fortunes (1965). Enchi won several awards including the Bunka Kunsho (or Order of Culture), the highest honor a Japanese citizen can receive, in 1985. She was also elected to the Japan Art Academy, the nation’s premier institution for recognizing accomplished artists.

  Happy birthday, Fumiko Enchi!