Connecticut Section Hike

[LionDog]

Hey all,

Me and a buddy are looking to hike the entire section of Connecticut AT. 52 miles yes! We want to do from North to South (MA/CT to CT/NY).
We are trying to do this without our cars. Anyone familiar or have done this entire section able to help us find train transport close to the MA/CT start of the trail and train back to nyc when we finish up. I believe metro north runs along, just not sure what would get us close enough to the trail heads.

Thank You,
Jason

[tiptoe]

Peter Pan bus from nyc to sheffield or great barrington, both in massachusetts.

Metro North train from Pawling back to nyc.

[Cosmo]

Local Shuttle: Kai Haaland, 860-329-5514 (posted on kiosks in South Berkshire County.

Cosmo

[gsingjane]

Hi and welcome to Connecticut!

You probably have already come to understand this, but there is no good public transportation anywhere near the AT in Connecticut. Certainly there is no train service at all.

For getting on the trail in Massachusetts, you'll be taking a bus, most likely the Peter Pan bus, to one of the Berkshire County trail towns. Allow a day for travel from MYC.

There are a couple of Metro North stops that could work for you in New York State (Pawling, the weekend AT stop, Garrison) but know that depending on your pace you'll be hiking some distance into NY state before you'll get off. Alternatively, you could find a shuttle service to take you to the nearest train station in NY.

IMO hiking in MA and NY is still a very nice thing. But if you have your heart set on doing CT and only CT, probably your best bet is to bring your cars, sorry to say.

It's really too bad, some time ago there was a bus service that picked up in CT at many of the northwest corner towns along the Housatonic, but that hasn't run for years.

Jane in CT

[perrito]

I'd go Peter Pan to Sheffield, MA to start,
then an Uber ride or cab from Hoyt Road to the MetroNorth Pawling station to get back to NYC.
You also have the option to end at the AT train station in NY if you finish up on a weekend.
Happy trails.

[LionDog]

Thank you all for the advise.

[gsingjane]

Lion, one other quick note... we are in a fairly severe drought here. Some of the water sources are still available (there is a lot of pretty current info on this board) but I'd definitely water up wherever, whenever there is a chance. Have fun! The weather is supposed to be beautiful!

Jane

[Hummy585]

I'm availabe to assist with shuttle and trail support for your target area. PM for further...

[jwilkinson6303]

I'm availabe to assist with shuttle and trail support for your target area. PM for further...

+1 for the Hummy shuttle...he shuttled my buddy and I when we did the CT section over Memorial day. Great guy.

& good luck to you for your hike! I might suggest NOBO instead of SOBO, if you can. When my buddy was planning, I posed the question on this board - the best answer I got was 'go NOBO - the other direction is anticlimatic.' Which is spot-on advice -- topping Bear Mtn (nobo) with its 360 views is a memorable finish; stumbling out of the woods at Hoyt Rd (sobo) would just be, well, anticlimatic...just my 2 cents

HH
james

[tiptoe]

+2 for the Hummy shuttle.