Dire Bare
Legend
I’d strongly recommend if you want to do that, just take the plunge and play The One Ring. It’s much more suited to the setting than D&D is.
I've heard nothing but good things about "The One Ring", but AiME exists for a reason. Some of us are pleased as punch to marry the chocolate of Middle-Earth with the peanut-butter of D&D. D&D is derived/inspired in many ways by Lord of the Rings, so bringing the two together just feels good to me. Also, some gaming groups are hesitant to step away from D&D to another game system, and games like AiME are "gateways" to trick your players into pushing their comfort zones a bit (and by "trick", I mean with full knowledge and consent of your players).
There's also some good stuff that's very steal-able from AiME for your more "traditional" D&D game. It handles overland travel better, IMHO.