America’s National Trails System celebrated 50 years in 2018. It consists of 11 National Scenic Trails, 19 National Historic Trails, and almost 1,300 National Recreation Trails. The Pacific Crest Trail and the Appalachian Trail were our nation’s first National Scenic Trails. I’ve been fortunate to hike some of the PCT but have yet to explore the AT. Check out this comprehensive map of all the trails here.
Our National Scenic and Historic Trails total more than 55,000 miles and link 70 wildlife refuges, 80 National Parks, 90 Bureau of Land Management areas, 90 National Forests, 123 Wilderness Areas, and 100 major metropolitan areas. More than 230 million people live within 60 miles of a National Trail. [Source: pcta.org]