Hey Everyone, been snooping the site for a while and finally think this is the year im going to start getting on the trail. Im just starting my planning, and am planning on section hiking, starting at Mt. Katahdin in early June. My plan is to spend about 14 days working north, and I should be able to make it far enough into Canada to make future section hikes a little more feasible. Anyway, I dont really know what kind of info im looking for....has anyone had experience on the IAT?
_Brodie_International Appalachian Trial, Heading north in early June
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#1
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#2
You might check out lil' buddha's TJ about the ECT. Canada starts in Aug. 2010. He writes quite well. Even though his Journal is from '10, you might find some good information. Cheers, :tongue
_Lady Di_
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#3
Lil Buddha has a great journal. Gave me the idea to hike the ECT in 2012. Read ECT or IAT journals to start, send me an email if you need more help.
_Sterling Coleman_
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#5
The trail through many of the Canadian NPs is beautiful, but you will require a Park Pass and a Backcountry Permit (about $70 each) as well as reservations for the campsites.
_Ginny_
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#6
$140 for permission to walk the land - how unAmerican of them! Seems to me the IAT could benefit from an international treaty that eliminates egregious profiteering at the expense of the pedestrian class.
_hoch_
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#7
And why should American pedestrians be given special treatment not due to Canadian citizens or other visitors? Just as the NPs in the US now require entry fees and backcountry reservations, so do the Canadian parks. In both cases, it is usually cheaper to buy a pass that's good for a year. If you are going to be in the parks less than a week, it might be cheaper to buy daily passes, but otherwise it is cheaper to buy the annual pass. Daily cost is $9.80 per day for the Park entry fee or $67.70 per year. Camping is $9.80 per day or $68.70 for an annual pass. In the U.S. the NP annual pass costs $80 (unless you are senior, disabled or military) plus whatever fee the park charges for backcountry use. (i.e. Glacier charges $5/night).
_Ginny_
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#8
Many US NPs offer greatly reduced or free entry for those walking in via a trail or at least an NST or equivalent, and limit any fees to backcountry camping permits. Does Canada do that for the IAT? I don't know but let's at least try to compare apples to apples here.
_hoch_
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#9
If you read the journals mentioned above, you will find out that perhaps the best way to thru-hike the Quebec portion of the IAT (the expensive portion) is with the Quebec Hiking Passport, which cost me over $300.00 USD. That is insane, and one reason why most ECT thru-hikers complain about the IAT.
If you aren’t roadwalking, you’re paying a lot of money to see the same types of things you see on the AT for free (I didn’t pay any US NP fees in 2012).
_Sterling Coleman_
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#10
Nimblewillnomad.com has good blogs & he hiked all the way Key West to the end of IAT in one flipflop year. Also of course his book 12 million steps? which if you are lucky might be able to find used. A cheaper option might be the NEt (new england trail) that parallels the At thru Connecticut & Massachusetts & connects with several other trails like New Hampshire's version of the Long Trail that crosses the AT & another small one in Quebec.
_inchworm plumber_