best LT guide....

[colorado_rob]

I'm sure this has been discussed, but I cannot find it... are there strong opinions on here as to which is the best LT guide? I see the "Long Trail Guide" and the "End to Enders Guide" both in the Green Mtn. club online store... I sure liked the format of AWOL for the AT, is there similar format guide for the LT?

I'm getting more and more excited about attempting the LT this September.
Any thoughts appreciated!

[Slo-go'en]

Either one. The LTG is more comprehensive while the E2E guide just gives the most important info. Get both.

[Decibel]

Not that I know of. I used both on my hike. Very good but different types of information in both. It's worth bring both IMHO.

[fastfoxengineering]

The full guide book is nice if you like the details about the sections of the trail. For a thru hike, the map and end to enders guide is what I carried and recommend. E2E Guide has all the info on towns you need and the map is good for planning your next day and tracking miles on the trail.

E2E guide and map are essential imo. The full guide book is not. It has alot of fluff that is not essential for planning purposes.

[MuddyWaters]

The map is essential.

The end to enders guide is pretty worthless really.

[LoneStranger]

It really depends on how you intend to do your hike. The E2E guide is full of valuable info for shuttles and places to stay. If you've planned everything in advance you may not need it all, but for figuring things out on the fly I've heard many folks find it a big help. Personally I skipped it in favor of just the map and the LTG.

The LT Guide is one of my favorite backpacking books and I take it along as tent reading material for long winter nights. The folksy Vermontese trail descriptions provide the information you need, but in a way that doesn't seem just technical. I've read it cover to cover at least six times now and it definitely is coming along on trail with me.

The map is wonderfully designed to provide the info you need at an easy glance. I especially like the elevation profile across the top.

Now for the important questions: You going NOBO or SOBO and do you have a start date picked out yet? Looking like I'll be starting on Sep 11th but I'm still debating direction. Had planned to go North but starting to think I might prefer to avoid the crowd down on the AT by going the other way. Maybe see you out there in any event

[colorado_rob]

Thanks for all the info folks! I'm going to get both books, then decide which to take on the trail. I'm also going to get the Guthook app.

LoneStranger: I'll be starting around mid-week in the 1st or second week of September, going SOBO. Flying mid-week is usually cheaper coming from Denver, I found a $160 one-way direct Denver to Montreal on Tuesday, 9/13. I think going SOBO is a no-brainer, looks like more difficult logistics getting to northern terminus, plus I have a Boston pal that will pick me up at MA border, and would hate to ask for them to drive me way up there, I also like the idea of "hiking with autumn", heading south as the weather cools in the 2.5-3 weeks of the hike. Dirt-cheap direct flight back from Boston, direct, $130.

Again, thanks all for the info! Seriously looking forward to this "gem" of a hike (see other thread....)

[Jeff]

Keep in mind the Long Trail E2E guide is produced every other year (last revised early 2015), so stay flexible.

We are lucky that AT Guides get updated annually.

[drifter]

Great timing as I was just about to post asking the same question as colorado_rob! I too am planning to thru this September although have not picked dates or direction yet. Perhaps will see you there, looking forward to it.

[LoneStranger]

Thanks for all the info folks! I'm going to get both books, then decide which to take on the trail. I'm also going to get the Guthook app.

LoneStranger: I'll be starting around mid-week in the 1st or second week of September, going SOBO. Flying mid-week is usually cheaper coming from Denver, I found a $160 one-way direct Denver to Montreal on Tuesday, 9/13. I think going SOBO is a no-brainer, looks like more difficult logistics getting to northern terminus, plus I have a Boston pal that will pick me up at MA border, and would hate to ask for them to drive me way up there, I also like the idea of "hiking with autumn", heading south as the weather cools in the 2.5-3 weeks of the hike. Dirt-cheap direct flight back from Boston, direct, $130.

Again, thanks all for the info! Seriously looking forward to this "gem" of a hike (see other thread....)

I'm lucky that my wife is willing to act as shuttle driver so if I drive over she'll take the car home and come back to pick me up on the other end. With that in mind I'm also thinking it would be easier for her to pick me up off the Mass Pike as opposed to VT 105. Sounds like you will be coming up behind me if I go that way so I'll try to remember to hang my SMV sign

[mudsocks]

I purchased the waterproof map and LTG. I used the LTG for planning which towns I wanted to visit and which sites of interest along the trail to visit (including some side trails). I only took the map and some notes with me. The waterproof map is all you really need.

[Mags]

Fall in New England. Truly one of the best times and places to be outdoors.

Don't know if you have any side trips planned, but the Long Trail Brewing company is not far from the AT/LT at the Maine Junction...and seems an appropriate post-trail place for a celebration libation once you are finished...

http://longtrail.com/home

[Slo-go'en]

Keep in mind the Long Trail E2E guide is produced every other year (last revised early 2015), so stay flexible.

We are lucky that AT Guides get updated annually.

I'm still using the 1990 LT guide given to me when I was the Montclair Glen caretaker. (Has it really been more then a quarter century since then?) They moved a couple of shelters on me (which came as a surprise!) but otherwise it's still good enough. But I will admit, the new guide book is better with the addition of trail profiles. The old book which had maps with 200 foot contour lines always made the trail look a lot easier then it really was!

[colorado_rob]

Fall in New England. Truly one of the best times and places to be outdoors.

Don't know if you have any side trips planned, but the Long Trail Brewing company is not far from the AT/LT at the Maine Junction...and seems an appropriate post-trail place for a celebration libation once you are finished...

http://longtrail.com/home

Funny you mention that Mags... when my wife and I were there (in Stowe, to climb Mansfield) last spring we both remarked at how outstanding VT beers were, and believe it or not, one reason (out of many) why I want to hike the LT is to partake in some of those fine, fine brews. Maine, as well, had some excellent beer. I think we once talked about this on here, in no particular order, the best beer states are CA, CO, OR, WA VT and ME.

[Slo-go'en]

There's a restaurant in Johnson which will give LT hikes a free Switchback draft to start off with. At least they did a couple of years ago.

[Praha4]

get the E2E Guide and the GMC Long Trail map... the "Long Trail Guide" is nice, has tons of great info....if you like carrying extra weight in your pack

[MuddyWaters]

Most people who have hiked the AT some expect that the end-to-enders guide will have data like Awols or something that shows water sources, trail landmarks, campsites, distances , etc
Nope
It doesnt have that kind of info. Thats all on the map, and why you need it.
Its more oriented toward town and resupply and transportation options, which you can also find elsewhere. Like here. Or on websites devoted to hikiing the LT.
Its only 275 miles. You only need to resupply 3 -4 times.
Not saying dont get it at all. But I was dissapointed with what it was after being used to Awol and Erik the Blacks guides.
Glad it was cheap, even if it is a way to support GMC.
Guthooks app is cheap, and useful. I think its only $9 or such, and you can recieve recent beta on water sources, etc posted by other hikers.

[bigcranky]

We got the map, the LT Guide, and the E2E guide. We actually hiked with the map and the E2E guide, supplemented with lots of info that I wrote in the margins.

Map: excellent (and I think there is a new one now?) We did take some time to get used to the scale, as the usual AT Maps are 1:24,000, so a few inches on the map is a couple of hours hiking, while the LT map that same few inches takes all day.

E2E Guide: not the same as, say, the Companion or the AT Guide. Much less information, but still usable. Worth calling ahead to make sure places are still open.

LT Guide: tons of info, more than we needed to hike, we left this at home. Never missed it.

Guthook's App -- wish we had known about this in advance. If you buy the AT maps, you get the LT as well. Works with the GPS on a smartphone, shows the trail and all its features in real time as you hike.

[StubbleJumper]

Thanks for all the info folks! I'm going to get both books, then decide which to take on the trail. I'm also going to get the Guthook app.

LoneStranger: I'll be starting around mid-week in the 1st or second week of September, going SOBO. Flying mid-week is usually cheaper coming from Denver, I found a $160 one-way direct Denver to Montreal on Tuesday, 9/13. I think going SOBO is a no-brainer, looks like more difficult logistics getting to northern terminus, plus I have a Boston pal that will pick me up at MA border, and would hate to ask for them to drive me way up there, I also like the idea of "hiking with autumn", heading south as the weather cools in the 2.5-3 weeks of the hike. Dirt-cheap direct flight back from Boston, direct, $130.

Again, thanks all for the info! Seriously looking forward to this "gem" of a hike (see other thread....)

Getting from Montreal to the northern terminus used to be easy because there was a direct bus from Montreal to Mansonville, Quebec. From Mansonville it was a roadwalk of about 2 miles to the border crossing and then another roadwalk of 2 or 3 miles from the border crossing to Journey's End trailhead. The entire process of walking from Mansonville to the trail generally took only about 90 minutes, including the process of reporting to customs and border protection.

However, over the past couple of years, there has no longer been a direct bus from Montreal to Mansonville. The closest you can get is a bus from Montreal to Eastman, and then hitch from Eastman to Mansonville. Alternatively, it would be possible to get a bus from Montreal to Magog and then apparently there's a regional handicap bus that goes from Magog to Mansonville which will also accept able-bodied people if there's adequate space. See:

Montreal to Eastman/Magog: https://limocar.ca/en/
Magog to Mansonville: http://potton.ca/potton-residents/public-transit


I've never tried to use this two-part bus ride, but it looks like it should work....but it's clearly inferior to the daily direct bus that existed in the past.

[Mags]

and believe it or not, one reason (out of many) why I want to hike the LT is to partake in some of those fine, fine brews. \

Hiking a trail because of the craft beer in the area? That's a very good reason. I've heard far worse reasons...many of them posted on this very website!