North Country Trail

The North Country National Scenic Trail, generally known as the North Country Trail or simply the NCT, is a footpath stretching over 4,800 miles (7,700 km) from Middlebury in central Vermont to Lake Sakakawea State Park in central North Dakota in the United States; connecting both the Long Trail and the Appalachian Trail with the Lewis and Clark Trail. Passing through the eight states of Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota, it is the longest of the eleven National Scenic Trails authorized by Congress. As of early 2019, 3,129 miles (5,036 km) of the trail is in place.[1]

North Country Trail
The North Country Trail in the Manistee National Forest, Michigan.
Length4,800 mi (7,700 km)
LocationVermont / New York / Pennsylvania / Ohio / Michigan / Wisconsin / Minnesota / North Dakota
DesignationNational Scenic Trail (1980)
TrailheadsLake Sakakawea State Park, North Dakota
Killington, Vermont
UseHiking
DifficultyEasy to strenuous
SightsNorthern hardwood forest; prairie; agricultural fields; low mountains; sand dunes; boreal forest; lake shores; small towns

The NCT is administered by the National Park Service, managed by federal, state, and local agencies, and built and maintained primarily by the volunteers of the North Country Trail Association (NCTA) and its partners. The 28 chapters of the NCTA, its 3,200+ members and each affiliate organization have assumed responsibility for trail construction and maintenance of a specific section of the NCT.

History

The NCT was created on March 5, 1980, by an amendment to the National Trails System Act.[2] When the Trail was established in 1980, portions of it were designed to follow the already existing Finger Lakes (New York), Baker (Pennsylvania), and Buckeye (Ohio) Trails. Their sponsoring organizations became affiliates of the North Country Trail Association and agreed to maintain those portions of their trails to be used by the North Country National Scenic Trail. The Northwestern Ohio Rails-to-Trails Association joined later to help create a link between the Buckeye Trail in Ohio and newly constructed trail in Michigan; the Superior Hiking Trail Association, Border Route Trail Association, and the Kekekabic Trail Club joined when it was proposed that the North Country National Scenic Trail route through Minnesota be changed to include an already-completed section of the Superior Hiking Trail along Lake Superior, and the Kekekabic and Border Route Trails along the Canada–US border in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region. Over the years, legislation was introduced in both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate which would authorize the Arrowhead re-route as well as later an extension to the trail's eastern terminus, connecting it with the Appalachian Trail in Vermont.[3] On March 12, 2019, the North Country Trail reroute and extension was signed into law as part of the omnibus John D. Dingell Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act.[4]

Route
The trail passes by Wren Falls in Iron County, Wisconsin

The trail begins in Vermont and proceeds to the western end of New York state. It cuts across northwestern Pennsylvania, then follows a southwesterly course through the hilly region of southern Ohio until it nears Cincinnati when it runs north through western Ohio to the hills of SE Michigan. It continues from southeast Michigan through the western Lower Peninsula, crosses the Straits of Mackinac, and takes a northern route the length of the Upper Peninsula. After crossing northern Wisconsin, it follows the Lake Superior shore to the northeast corner of Minnesota before turning west through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, and then southwest to the Chippewa National Forest in central northern Minnesota. The trail enters southeast North Dakota, and continues to its other terminus at Lake Sakakawea in the center of the state.

The NCT connects more than 160 public land units, including parks, forests, scenic attractions, wildlife refuges, game areas, and historic sites. The list includes:

Link Trail, near Cazenovia, New York

Other federal facilities along the NCT include:

The NCT also threads its way through 57 state parks and state historic areas, 47 state forests, 22 state game areas, seven state water conservation districts and at least ten county forests and parks. Several hundred miles of trail eventually will also cross private land thanks to owners who have granted easements across their property.

The center point of the trail is located near the NCTA headquarters in Lowell, Michigan.

Though the eastern terminus of the North Country Trail is only a few miles from Vermont's Long Trail and the Appalachian Trail, there is not yet a connecting trail to either of those trail systems. Efforts are under way to connect to the Appalachian Trail.[5]

Major Intersections

Listed from west to east.

Western terminus: Lake Sakakawea State Park, North Dakota

Eastern terminus: Appalachian Trail, Maine Junction, Vermont

Trail progress by state

North Dakota

Minnesota

Ohio
Rotary Park in Wauseon, Ohio, on the Wabash Cannonball Trail, a rail trail portion of the NCT.

New York

Use

Existing and new sections of the NCT are generally limited to foot travel, including hiking, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. Other non-motorized uses, such as bicycling and horseback riding are generally limited to areas specifically designed to withstand such use.

About 10,000 people are involved with the NCT in one way or another, either through membership in the North Country Trail Association or membership in one of eight organizations affiliated with the NCTA: the Finger Lakes Trail Conference, the Buckeye Trail Association, the Superior Hiking Trail Association, the Kekekabic Trail Club, the Northwestern Ohio Rails-to-Trails Association, the Butler Outdoor Club, the Rachel Carson Trails Conservancy and the Friends of the Jordan River National Fish Hatchery.

See also

References
  1. "2018 North Country Trail Progress Report". 2018. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
  2. "Public Law 96-119" (PDF). US Government Publishing Office. March 5, 1980. Retrieved March 4, 2017.
  3. "NCNST Route Adjustment Act Advocacy Update". North Country Trail Association. February 14, 2017. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  4. Murkowski, Lisa (March 12, 2019). "Text - S.47 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act". congress.gov. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  5. Associated Press (June 25, 2012). "Efforts under way to link Appalachian Trail with 4,600-mile trail to ND, nation's longest". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
  6. "Welcome to Wabash Cannonball Trail". Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  7. "National Park Service, North Country Trail". Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  8. "Buckeye Trail Association - Hike Ohio". Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  9. "Explore the Trail - North Country Trail Association". Retrieved October 1, 2020.
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