June, 2026

The North Country National Scenic Trail is America’s longest National Scenic Trail. Stretching about 4,800 miles across eight states.  It begins in North Dakota and ends in Vermont, where it connects with the Appalachian National Scenic Trail. Congress designated it a National Scenic Trail in 1980, and in 2023, it became an official unit of the National Park System.

Until this trip….I had never heard of this trail!

The North Country Scenic Trail isn’t known for high mountains. Instead, it showcases the incredible diversity of the northern United States: Prairie grasslands in North Dakota, Minnesota’s lake country and boreal forests, Wisconsin’s Northwoods, Michigan’s Great Lakes shoreline, Ohio’s rolling hills, Pennsylvania’s hardwood forests, New York’s Adirondacks, and Vermont’s Green Mountains.

It doesn’t have the crowds of the Appalachian Trail. It passes through landscapes that feel authentically Midwestern and northern, from Great Lakes shorelines to quiet forests and small rural towns.

Unlike the Appalachian Trail, the North Country Trail is still being refined. Volunteers continue to build new off-road sections and replace stretches that currently follow roads. It’s maintained primarily by local volunteers working with the North Country Trail Association and the National Park Service.

During our 2026 Road Trip, we hiked small portions of this trail in both Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and Tahquamenon Falls State Park.