Backpacking By Train

[oldbear]

Justin
From Penn Station in NYC you have many ways to connect to trails
From Penn proper
Amtrak's Vermonter will take you to
Brattleboro where you can hitchhike and easy and scenic 60 miles across Rt 9 and pick up the AT at Bennington VT
White River Junction where you can pick up the AT just before you get to Hanover NH
Waterbury VT where you can take a cab to the Long Trail crossing
From Penn you can also take New Jersey Transit to pick up the AT at Port Jervis NY
Just up the block from Penn is the largest bus terminal in America ; the Port Authority Bus Terminal where you can connect to buses that go everywhere
including Martz Transit that will get you out to the Delaware Water Gap in about 90 minutes
and you can also take bus from the PABT to Bear Mountain
About a 1.5 miles from Penn is Grand Central Station where the commuter rail road Metro North runs out of
Metro North is good for AT stops that are in NY State and east of the Hudson or along the NY/CT state line >see joshuasdad's map
The stopped labeled Appalachian Trail is only used on weekends and in season : use the Pawling stop at all other times
and then there is Amtrak to Boston where you can take a Concord Coach Lines bus to interesting places like Franconia and Pinkham Notch

[Memphis Tim]

I took the Amtrak Crescent from 30th St. Station in Philly to Gainesville, GA to start my '08 thru.

[T.S.Kobzol]

Yep


Almost getting misty remembering childhood trips. We would pack on Thursday, go to school Friday, from school I would just go home,drop the school pack,put on my backpacking attire and head to the team stop. Take the team to the train station where all the likeminded souls congregated. Most of the time we decided right there where we we're going and with which group. Bought the train ticket roundtrip. Got on the train and headed out. Usually Fridays had us hike in the dark until we reached the.shelter or the camp spot. Spent two nights and returned on the train back home, smelling with campfire, pine needles and dirt. The Good life.

It's a European thing.

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[chiefiepoo]

Isle Royale NP in Lake Superior requires 3 forms of for public transportation to get there, if you are not driving. Train to Milwaukee, bus from Milwaukee to Houghton MI, U S Park service ferry from Houghton to Isle Royale. I fly to Chicago Midway airport from Tampa then start the train ride there. The bus leaves from Milwaukee at 10:15 pm and you ride all night to arrive at the ferry dock about 30 min before sailing.. Great back packing at Isle Royale and no bears to be concerned with.

[brooklynkayak]

Is a bus not an option?
I do most of my hiking by train and/or bus.
The combination works much better than train alone. I own a car, but the bus/train way allows me more flexibility.

You can get to a lot of trails via bus. In some cases you may have to walk, hitchhike or taxi a few miles.

[CarlZ993]

I spent a week in the Weminuche Wilderness in southern CO last year, a steam locomotive picked us up in the middle of no where, it was the only way for us to get out without walking a lot more than planned. It was a neat ride back to Silverton, which was also a neat little town. I don't know if you can catch a train to Silverton but it would be a great trip if you can, beautiful country, most remote section of the lower 48 according to Backpacker Magazine.

A great way to get to the trail head. It feels weird to see the narrow gauge steam train pulling away as you're standing next to the track. Then, it's just you and your packing heading into the mountains.

[Marta]

There are three Amtrak stops at Glacier NP--East Glacier, Essex, and West Glacier. They're all on the Empire Builder, which comes through once a day in each direction.

GNP has over 700 miles of trail in it. The trail network is accessible from any of the entrances. I ran into one guy this summer who had taken the train here and gotten "same day" permits for a 10-day figure 8 hike through the park. Campsites in the Park are limited and highly sought after during the peak season, so you'd need to be flexible about the route.

I'd recommend planning the trip for August or the first half of September. In June a lot of the Park is still snowed in. In July you can hardly breathe for the mosquitoes.

[cliffdiver]

On reddit.com, the sub reddit 'backpacking' is concerned with all manners of travel with backpack, including trains, hitchhiking, couchsurfing, etc. I'm guessing the OP thinks this would be similar?

[Kingbee]

I'll be taking Amtrak with a bus connection to Conway, NH. Then it's a short ride into the Whites.

[Cookerhiker]

I'll be taking Amtrak with a bus connection to Conway, NH. Then it's a short ride into the Whites.

Going to the Whites, I believe there's a direct bus connection from Boston to Pinkham Notch.

[Justinla45]

This advice is so very helpful yall are absolutely awesome. I will start planning for several spring and summer trips.

[Justinla45]

Just out of curiosity does anyone know of any winter trips to take? I have quite a bit of free time this until march.

[Spirit Walker]

Florida Trail.

[Feral Bill]

Just out of curiosity does anyone know of any winter trips to take? I have quite a bit of free time this until march.

Are you looking for winter conditions? Try The New York area and south. Train/bus accessible and conditions are likely to be tolerable. Pawling to Greenwood Lake, perhaps.