Long-distance trails in the United States
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The following is a list of long-distance trails in the United States:
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Please expand this article. More information might be found in a section of the talk page. (June 2011) |
| Name | Length | Region | Endpoint 1 | Endpoint 2 | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allegheny Trail | 330 mi (530 km) | West Virginia | Appalachian Trail | Mason-Dixon line | mostly in West Virginia through the Appalachians and Allegheny Mountains |
| American Discovery Trail | 6,800 mi (10,900 km) | Coast-to-coast | Delmarva Peninsula on the Atlantic Ocean | northern California coast on the Pacific Ocean | |
| Appalachian Trail | 2,178 mi (3,505 km) | length of Appalachian Mountains | Georgia | Maine | passes through North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire |
| Arizona Trail | 790 mi (1,270 km) | Arizona mountains and canyons | Mexico | Utah | |
| Backbone Trail | 68 mi (109 km) | Santa Monica Mountains NW of Los Angeles, California | Point Mugu State Park | Will Rogers State Historic Park | traverses Santa Monica Mountains, limited overnight capacity |
| Bartram Trail | 153 mi (246 km) | southeast mountains | Chattooga River | Cheoah Bald | connects to the Appalachian and Foothills Trails; traverses Georgia and North Carolina |
| Bay Area Ridge Trail | 500 mi (800 km) | San Francisco Bay Area | circles San Francisco Bay; under development | ||
| Benton MacKaye Trail | 300 mi (480 km) | southeast mountains | Springer Mountain in Georgia | Davenport Gap in Tennessee | connects from the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail; traverses Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina |
| Bigfoot Trail | 400 mi (640 km) | northwest California | Klamath Mountains of northwest California | Redwood National Park | traverses Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness; under development |
| Bay Circuit Trail | 200 mi (320 km) | Massachusetts | Newbury | Kingston | under construction; will circumnavigate Massachusetts Bay |
| Bonneville Shoreline Trail | 90 mi (140 km) | Utah | circles ancient Lake Bonneville | ||
| Buckeye Trail | 1,444 mi (2,324 km) | Ohio | Lake Erie at Headlands Beach State Park | Eden Park in Cincinnati | circles Ohio; many scenic locations, such as the Hocking Hills region and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park; passes through many small historical towns |
| Chief Ladiga Trail | 33 mi (53 km) | Alabama | Georgia state line | Weaver | Alabama's longest rails-to-trails project, at the state line it turns into Georgia's Silver Comet Trail |
| Chilkoot Trail | 33 mi (53 km) | Yukon | Dyea, Alaska | Bennett, British Columbia | international historical trail; late 1890s major access route between the coast and Yukon goldfields |
| C&O Canal Trail | 184.5 mi (296.9 km) | Maryland | Cumberland | Washington, DC | trail is the old towpath for the abandoned Chesapeake and Ohio Canal along the Potomac River |
| Cohos Trail | 162 mi (261 km) | northeastern New Hampshire | Notchland, near Crawford Notch State Park | Canadian border at the southern edge of Quebec | |
| Colorado Trail | 483 mi (777 km) | central Colorado | Waterton Canyon southwest of Denver | Durango | completed in 1987; highest point 13,334 ft (4,064 m); most above 10,000 ft (3,000 m); often dips below the alpine timberline |
| Continental Divide Trail | 3,100 mi (5,000 km) | Rocky Mountains | Mexico | Canada | along highest ridge; 70% complete as of 2007; crosses Triple Divide Peak |
| Cranberry Lake 50 | 50 mi (80 km) | New York | circles the shores of Cranberry Lake in the northwestern region of the Adirondack Park | ||
| Cumberland Trail | 175 mi (282 km) | Tennessee | trail along the Cumberland Plateau | ||
| East Coast Greenway | 3,000 mi (4,800 km) | eastern U.S. | Calais, Maine | Key West, Florida | 25% complete as of 2011 |
| Eastern Continental Trail | 5,400 mi (8,700 km) | eastern U.S. | Key West, Florida | Belle Isle, Newfoundland | mountain route to Labrador, Canada |
| Finger Lakes Trail | 557.7 mi (897.5 km) | New York | Catskills | Western New York | |
| Florida Trail | 1,400 mi (2,300 km) | Florida | Gulf Islands National Seashore | Big Cypress National Preserve | |
| Foothills Trail | 76 mi (122 km) | Appalachian foothills | Northwestern South Carolina | Georgia | |
| George S. Mickelson Trail | 108.8 mi (175.1 km) | South Dakota | within the Black Hills | ||
| Grand Enchantment Trail | 730 mi (1,170 km) | southwest desert | Phoenix, Arizona | Albuquerque, New Mexico | east-west mostly wilderness trail |
| Great Allegheny Passage | 150 mi (240 km) | northeast | A rail trail in Maryland and Pennsylvania. | ||
| Great Eastern Trail | 1,600 mi (2,600 km) approx. | eastern U.S. | New York | Alabama | in development with portions open |
| Great Western Trail | 4,455 mi (7,170 km) | western Rockies | Canada | Mexico | passes through Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming |
| Great Western Loop | 6,800 mi (10,900 km) | Western United States | Grand Canyon | Grand Canyon | loop of the American west combining the Pacific Crest Trail, Pacific Northwest Trail, Continental Divide Trail and other trails.[1] |
| Hayduke Trail | 800 mi (1,300 km) | route in Utah and Arizona, linking Zion, Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, and Arches National Parks | |||
| High Line Canal | 58 mi (93 km) | trail along the High Line Canal waterway from Waterton Canyon through metropolitan Denver, Colorado | |||
| Highlands Trail | 162.7 mi (261.8 km) | New York + New Jersey | Storm King Mountain | Delaware Water Gap | [1] |
| High Sierra Trail | 61.5 mi (99.0 km) | California | Crescent Meadow in Sequoia National Park | Mount Whitney | |
| Horse Shoe Trail | 140 mi (230 km) | southeastern Pennsylvania | Valley Forge | Appalachian Trail near Harrisburg | |
| Ice Age Trail | 1,200 mi (1,900 km) approx. | Wisconsin | incomplete; follows terminal moraine of the last ice age | ||
| Idaho Centennial Trail | 900 mi (1,400 km) approx | Idaho | north-south | ||
| Iditarod Trail | 1,025 mi (1,650 km) | Alaskan wilderness | Seward | Nome | famous dog sledding race; route alternates each year |
| International Appalachian Trail | 1,900 mi (3,100 km) approx. | northeastern North America | Mount Katahdin, Maine | Newfoundland | from the northern terminus of Appalachian Trail; proposals pending to extend to Europe and North Africa |
| John Muir Trail | 211 mi (340 km) | California Sierra Nevadas | Yosemite Valley | Mount Whitney | |
| Katy Trail | 240 mi (390 km) | Missouri | crosses the state | ||
| Knobstone Trail | 58 mi (93 km) | southern Indiana | |||
| Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail | 70 mi (110 km) | southwestern Pennsylvania | trail in the Laurel Highlands area | ||
| Lone Star Hiking Trail | 120 mi (190 km) | Texas | Sam Houston National Forest north of Houston | ||
| Long Path | 347.4 mi (559.1 km) | New York + New Jersey | George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, New Jersey | Altamont, New York (Albany) | |
| Long Trail | 272 mi (438 km) | Vermont | Massachusetts | Canada | |
| Maah Daah Hey Trail | 96 mi (154 km) | North Dakota | Theodore Roosevelt National Park | the longest continuous single track mountain biking trail in America | |
| Mason-Dixon Trail | 190 mi (310 km) | Pennsylvania | Appalachian Trail at Whiskey Springs, Pennsylvania | Brandywine Creek at Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania | |
| Mattabesett Trail | 57 mi (92 km) | south-central Connecticut | |||
| Metacomet-Monadnock Trail | 114 mi (183 km) | New Hampshire | Metacomet Trail on the Massachusetts-Connecticut state line | Mount Monadnock | |
| Michigan Shore-to-Shore Trail | 220 mi (350 km) | Michigan | Lake Michigan | Lake Huron | |
| Midstate Trail (Massachusetts) | 92 mi (148 km) | Massachusetts | Worcester County, central Massachusetts | ||
| Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway | 50 mi (80 km) | southwest New Hampshire | Mount Monadnock | Mount Sunapee | |
| Mountains-to-Sea Trail | 1,000 mi (1,600 km) approx. | North Carolina | Clingman's Dome, Great Smoky Mountains | Jockey's Ridge, Outer Banks | about 530 miles (850 km) complete as of 2011; follows the Appalachian Trail for 3.4 miles (5.5 km) |
| Natchez Trace Trail | 440 mi (710 km) | southeastern U.S. | Tennessee | Mississippi | disjoint trail; 62 mi (100 km) complete; not planned to be connected |
| North Country Trail | 4,600 mi (7,400 km) | northern United States | New York | North Dakota | |
| Northville-Placid Trail | 125 mi (201 km) | New York | Northville | Lake Placid | north-south valley trail through the Adirondack State Preserve |
| OC&E Woods Line State Trail | 105 mi (169 km) | Oregon | Klamath Falls | Thompson Reservoir | a rail trail and Oregon State Park |
| Old Croton Trail | 26.2 mi (42.2 km) | New York | follows Old Croton Aqueduct | ||
| Oregon Coast Trail | 362 mi (583 km) | Oregon | north Oregon coast at South Jetty | Brookings | entire Pacific coast of Oregon |
| Ouachita National Recreation Trail | 223 mi (359 km) | Oklahoma and Arkansas | longest trail in Ouachita National Forest | ||
| Ozark Highlands Trail | 180 mi (290 km) | Arkansas | through the Ozark National Forest | ||
| Ozark Trail | 350 mi (560 km) approx. | Missouri | |||
| Pacific Crest Trail | 2,654 mi (4,271 km) | west coast | Mexico | Canada | traverses Sierra Nevada and the Cascade Range paralleling the Pacific Ocean in California, Oregon and Washington |
| Pacific Northwest Trail | 1,200 mi (1,900 km) | Pacific Northwest | Glacier National Park (U.S.) | Cape Alava, Olympic National Park, Washington | Pending legislation for addition to the National Trails System |
| Palmetto Trail | 425 mi (684 km) | South Carolina | Charleston | southern Appalachians | 225 mi (362 km) contiguous miles complete |
| Pennsylvania Mid State Trail | 327 mi (526 km) | Pennsylvania | Maryland | New York | traverses width of state |
| Pinhoti Trail | 335 mi (539 km) | Alabama and Georgia | Benton MacKaye Trail | Flagg Mountain near Weogulfa, Alabama | Connects the Appalachian Trail to the southernmost mountain of the Appalachian Mountain chain that is over 1,000 ft (300 m) in elevation. |
| Potomac Heritage Trail | 830 mi (1,340 km) | mid-northeastern U.S. | incomplete; within Potomac River basin | ||
| River to River Trail | 126 mi (203 km) | Southern Illinois | Ohio River | Mississippi River | Stretches through Shawnee National Forest. It forms part of the Southern Section of the American Discovery Trail. |
| Robert Frost Trail | 47 mi (76 km) | Massachusetts | Connecticut River Valley | ||
| Sheltowee Trace Trail | 282 mi (454 km) | Kentucky | Daniel Boone National Forest | ||
| Sierra High Route | 195 mi (314 km) | California | within Kings Canyon National Park, Inyo National Forest, and Yosemite National Park | ||
| Silver Comet Trail | 61.5 mi (99.0 km) | western Georgia | a rails-to-trails project, at the state line it turns into Alabama's Chief Ladiga Trail | ||
| Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail | 29.5 mi (47.5 km) | California | coastal mountains | Pacific Ocean | |
| Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway | 75 mi (121 km) | west central New Hampshire | loop trail encircling the Kearsarge-Lake Sunapee region [2] | ||
| Superior Hiking Trail | 275 mi (443 km) | Minnesota | follows north shore of Lake Superior | ||
| Susquehannock Trail System | 85 mi (137 km) | north central Pennsylvania | trail loop in the Susquehannock State Forest | ||
| Tahoe Rim Trail | 165 mi (266 km) | California + Nevada | loop trail surrounding Lake Tahoe | ||
| Tahoe-Yosemite Trail | 180 mi (290 km) | California | Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite | Lake Tahoe | |
| Theodore Solomons Trail | 271 mi (436 km) | California | parallel alternate to the John Muir Trail, laying lower and further west | ||
| Tuscarora Trail | 252 mi (406 km) | Appalachians | parallels Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia | ||
| Timberline Trail | 40.7 mi (65.5 km) | Oregon | loops around Mount Hood, almost completely in wilderness | ||
| North Umpqua Trail | 79 mi (127 km) | southern Oregon | follows the Umpqua River; 11 segments mostly in undeveloped forest | ||
| Virginia Creeper Trail | 35 mi (56 km) | Virginia | near the Appalachian Trail; multi use trail | ||
| Wonderland Trail | 93 mi (150 km) | Washington | loop around Mount Rainier in Washington |
[edit] See also
- National Millennium Trail project - 16 long-distance trails selected in 2000 as visionary trails that reflect defining aspects America's history and culture
- Trail, Long-distance trail
- List of long-distance trails
- State wildlife trails (United States)
- Walking, Hiking, Backpacking
[edit] References
- ^ "Great Western Loop". Andrew Skurka. http://www.andrewskurka.com/GWL/aboutGWL/index.php. Retrieved 2011-07-13.
