Route
The trail begins in northeast New York and proceeds to the western end of the state. It cuts across the northwest corner of Pennsylvania, then loosely follows the southern and western borders of Ohio. It continues from southeast Michigan through the western Lower Peninsula, crosses the Straits of Mackinac, and takes a northern route the length of the Upper Peninsula. After crossing northern Wisconsin, one leg follows the Lake Superior shore to the northeast corner of Minnesota before turning west, where it meets the other leg in central northern Minnesota. The trail enters southeast North Dakota, and continues to its other terminus in the center of the state.
The NCT connects more than 160 public land units, including parks, forests, scenic attractions, wildlife refuges, game areas, and historic sites. The list includes:
- Ten National Forest areas (Finger Lakes in New York, Allegheny in Pennsylvania, Wayne in Ohio, Manistee, Hiawatha, and Ottawa in Michigan, Chequamegon in Wisconsin, Superior and Chippewa in Minnesota and Sheyenne National Grassland in North Dakota)
- Four areas of the National Park Service (Michigan's Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Wisconsin's St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, New York's Fort Stanwix National Monument, and Ohio's Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park)
Other federal facilities along the NCT include:
- Two National Wildlife Refuges (Minnesota's Tamarac and North Dakota's Audubon)
- Two Bureau of Reclamation projects (North Dakota's Garrison Diversion Unit's New Rockford and McCluskey Canals) and,
- Six Army Corps of Engineers impoundments (Baldhill Dam at Lake Ashtabula, North Dakota, Tom Jenkins Dam and Burr Oak Lake, William H. Harsha Lake, Ohio, Tionesta Lake, the Kinzua Dam, and Allegheny Reservoir, Pennsylvania)
The NCT also threads its way through 57 state parks and state historic areas, 47 state forests, 22 state game areas, seven state water conservation districts and at least ten county forests and parks. Several hundred miles of trail eventually will also cross private land thanks to owners who have granted easements across their property.
The center point of the trail is located near the NCTA headquarters in Lowell, Michigan.
Though the eastern terminus of the North Country Trail is only a few miles from Vermont's Long Trail and the Appalachian Trail, there is not yet a connecting trail to either of those trail systems. Efforts are under way to connect to the Appalachian Trail.
Read more about this topic: North Country Trail
Famous quotes containing the word route:
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