Mine, so far, is The Susquehannock Trail System (STS) in Potter County, north central PA.

It's an 82 mile, orange-blazed loop through some of the most beautiful mountains in Pennsylvania. The volunteer group maintaining the trail sells a map kit & trail guide book that is well worth the $10. You'll get the best campsites marked on the 3 topo maps and lots of mile by mile trail history and geology in the guide book.

At some STS vistas you can see no sign of human habitation in any direction. Just miles and miles of Penn's Woods (the English translation for Pennsylvania).

Begin traditionally at 12:00 at Denton Hill State Park ranger station. Leave your car at the parking lot. There is a 1/4 mile trail to the loop. Most people hike counter clockwise.

At about 5:30 on the loop there is a small town where you can send your last 3 day's food c/o general delivery to the postoffice, to lighten your load. Just like on the AT, PCT, etc.

I like this trail better than most sections of the AT. I love hiking it alone since it's not crowded like the AT. Plus you can camp just about anywhere you like. Plenty of small streams for water.

And it's a trail SYSTEM, made up by connecting sections of other trails. So you can do side trips on another trail, say The Black Forest Trail, to lengthen your trip. Or, you can bushwhack and cut across the loop to shorten it - if your map and compass/GPS skills are up to it.

If you like native trout fishing you can stop on a large creek at about the 8:00 part of the loop - if you've got your rod and license. It's a famous trout stream in PA.

OK, now what's your favorite trail?

The Susquehannock is an awesome trail. I plan on hiking it in its entirety this summer. I do much of my hiking in McKean, Potter and Tioga counties in northern PA. It is truly a beautiful place where I rarely see people. I especially love the West Rim Trail in Tioga County. I am not sure if it is my favorite, but if you are ever back in PA it is certainly worth the trip. It winds through the "Grand Canyon of PA," and the views are fantastic. While the trail is only thirty miles, it is close to others so there is a lot of different options in the area. PA is often not mentioned among the great hiking states, but is truly fantastic. The North Country ,Quehanna, Black Forest, Donut Hole, Mid-State, and Loyalsock trails are also great choices.

Another fantastic trail is the Grafton Notch Loop Trail in western Maine. Technically only half of it is open because of a dispute with a land owner, but I hiked it all last summer. There are some very nice climbs over a variety of Maine peaks. Moose are in the area, and I had the chance to see a large male. In addition it is close to the Presidentials of New Hampshire which provide countless other opportunities. Excellent locales for putting in some beautiful miles.

While I really don't have a "favorite" trail, these are some special ones.

Edited by gungadin on 01/26/2007 19:41:35 MST.

The next one... .

Schotland, anywhere, any stalkers path is great. Many excelent ridge walks.

Eins

Mine, in Japan, so far, is the walk from Shin-Hotaka to Oritate along the ridges of Sugoroku, Mitsumata, and Kurobegoro in the North Japan Alps, a five-day walk. I also like the Shirane-sanzan walk in the South Japan Alps, and the three-day walk along the Asahi Range in Yamagata. Hopefully this year I will find out a few more great walks.

Killarney Provincial Park
Ontario, Canada

-La Cloche Silhouette trail-

http://www.ontarioparks.com/english/kill.html
http://www.friendsofkillarneypark.ca/


Doug


.

Grand Canyon South Rim Bright Angel Trail

It's never the same during the passing of a day, or change of seasons. The colors of the various layers seem to change depending upon your direction and time. The views are so different going down vs. up some people have wondered if they were on a different trail than what they came down.

It's a challenge as you're guaranteed a significant temperature and climate change from the top to the bottom.

It is, never a dull moment.

The Wonderland Trail around Mt. Rainier. The Spray Park section may be the best, but so many sections are so beautiful it is hard to say. The trail runs about 93 miles around the mountain, with a cumulative elevation gain (and loss!) of over 20,000 feet.

One caveat on the Susquehannock Trail. If you don't do the entire loop car shuttles (or hitch hiking) is a necessity but not always easy due to the way roads meet the trail.
Study the trail & road maps to check for emergency "bail-out" points.

KEEP POSTING GUYS> I'm taking note of these trail suggestions.

Edited by Danepacker on 02/06/2007 17:16:01 MST.