1 Week on the trail - recommendations for an Australian

[Ghost Who Walks]

Hi there,

I am currently 'investigating' the possibility of doing a thru-hike next year. Part of that investigation is to travel to the US this year and spend a week on the trail. I will have a week or so up my sleeve and I touch down in New York at the beginning of September.

Would appreciate any views on a stretch to do in that time frame, happy to travel further south via rail/bus etc.

Thank you all.

[Cookerhiker]

Hi there,

I am currently 'investigating' the possibility of doing a thru-hike next year. Part of that investigation is to travel to the US this year and spend a week on the trail. I will have a week or so up my sleeve and I touch down in New York at the beginning of September.

Would appreciate any views on a stretch to do in that time frame, happy to travel further south via rail/bus etc.

Thank you all.

First of all, I hope you survived the flooding. I was in Australia 3 years ago and got up to Townsville.

September is a wonderful time to hike New Hampshire and Maine which have short hiking seasons because of their location and weather. In September, you have no bugs and still warm days although nights can get cold.

New Hampshire's White Mountains and the southern/western portion of Maine are by most everyone's reckoning the hardest sections of the AT. And Maine is a little harder to get to for someone flying into NY. So I suggest taking a train from NY to Boston, getting a bus to Hanover, NH, and start hiking north. See how far you can get. It's 70 miles to Franconia Notch, 98 miles to Crawford Notch.

If you'd like to experience less rugged hiking, I believe you can get a bus from NY to Williamstown or North Adams, MA and start hiking north through Vermont.

Hope you have a good time!

[Jersey Tim]

Vermont is pretty in the fall, and September is prime Long Trail season because of that and the weather, so here's another recommendation for heading north from North Adams. If you'd rather start further south (and on easy terrain), you can take a bus straight across New Jersey and begin at the Delaware Water Gap.

[fiddlehead]

so many options.
Bear mountain is easy to get to from NYCity.
Harriman state park is not far away and nice hiking.
The better stuff (although harder physically) is further north in NH and Maine like others have said but, are your legs going to be ready for that?
How hard do you want this to be?

[Ghost Who Walks]

Thank you all for the advice. Looks like the northern part is the way to go at that time of year.

And yes, I have read the White Mountains and that area are the more challenging parts so maybe I will give that a go as well. I am 'in training' just trying to get my legs ready. I know this will only be a week or two but hopefully a thru-hike next year.

Cookerhiker... thank you for your concern. No problems with flooding in Townsville this time around. It did cause quite a bit of damage around the state capital about 1400km (what's that in miles ) further south. We did have a huge scare with Cyclone Yasi early this month. It crossed the coast north of us as a category 5 system. As big as they come. We escaped here with just minor structural damage but lots of trees down. With the devastation in Christchurch I think this region has seen its fair share of natural disasters this year.

[LIhikers]

I'm going to recommend taking the bus from New York City to Delaware Water Gap, Pennsylvania. Then hike north to the Bear Mountain Inn in New York State. That's a little over 100 miles and you won't use much of your week in travel. In fact, you can find the info on the buses at http://www.nynjtc.org/content/you-dont-need-car
Where ever you wind up I hope you have a great hike!

[Kaptain Kangaroo]

Any where from Delaware Water Gap North would be easy to get to & worth the trip, but New England was my favourite. So I would try to get on the trail somewhere that allowed me to hike Connecticut & Mass. Or start at North Adams, MA & hike north through Vermont.
Any part of the trail will give you a good idea of what hiking is like in the US. It can be quite different to hiking here in Australia.

I'm always happy to help out fellow Aussies thinking about a thru-hike. Send me PM if you have any questions.

Cheers,

Kaptain

[peakbagger]

I would agree with the comment about hiking near NYC to get more trail miles and less travel miles. The stretch from DWG north to wherever you end up is a great stretch, its more remote than you would think but does have frequent access to roads. One thing to keep in mind is that the trail bed is quite rocky in spots, they tend to be stationary unlike some of the infamous PA rocks, but they are something to factor in for mileage. Another thing to consider is doing the trail in the fall when the leaves are changing, lots o f nice hardwoods along this stretch.

[Bearleg]

i would recommend starting at the Delaware Water Gap, go south to Harpers Ferry, visit the ATC, take the Amtrack to Wash D.C., then Back to NYC. like many have said before, there is no bad choice, but since you mentioned the possibility of a thru hike, the ATC has many resouces that can help you plan.

[Feral Bill]

Does the entire trip have to be on the AT? If not, conside a week roaming Harriman State Park, including that section of the AT. There is public transportation to several places, nice scenery (including night views of NYC), plenty of water, and, in September, good weather.

[Portie]

September is also beautiful in Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Dulles Intl Airport, west of DC, is about a 35 minute drive to a trailhead, and you might be able to find a local hiker who can give you a lift from the airport to the trail.

[yellowsirocco]

Do the first ~100 miles of the LT (which is shared with the AT). There is a bus from NYC to Williamstown Mass (North Adams) with no transfers. I say hike from there to Rutland. It is all pretty chill hiking but there are some good mountains as well. Nice ponds too. This takes about a week, maybe a day or two more. You get to finish right at an irish pub as well and then take the train back to NY.

[HikerMom58]

I vote for doing a section in one of the New England states for sure. The Fall is beautiful... perfect timing.