Great Eastern Trail

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Great Eastern Trail
Length ~1600 mi; 2575 km
Trailheads Florida Trail
North Country Trail
Use Hiking
Trail Difficulty Moderate to Strenuous
Season Year-round

The Great Eastern Trail project began as an attempt to create a second long hiking route through the Appalachians west of the Appalachian Trail in the eastern United States. Several other names were suggested and used earlier, including the Western Appalachian Alternative.

More recently, it was redefined as a potential connector in the National Trails System (United States), linking the Florida National Scenic Trail in the south to the North Country National Scenic Trail in New York.

In between, it would connect with and overlap two other National Scenic Trails: the Appalachian Trail and Potomac Heritage.

The project has enjoyed support from the American Hiking Society and the Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program (http://www.nps.gov/ncrc/programs/rtca/) of the US National Park Service but recently became an independent entity. The Great Eastern Trail Association was incorporated in Virginia on August 10, 2007 by signatories from the nine states through which the trail passes.

[edit] External links