Longest US trail seeks link to Appalachian Trail

WEYBRIDGE, Vt. (AP) -- The longest hiking trail in the United States stops 40 miles short of its most famous cousin, but a group is trying to bridge that gap.

The North Country National Scenic Trail runs 4,600 miles from North Dakota to New York's eastern border. From there, it's about 40 miles across Vermont fields and mountains to the Appalachian Trail, the famous 2,170-mile hiking trail that runs from Georgia to Maine.

Bringing them together now are a push from the organization that runs the North Country Trail; a changed attitude from officials in Vermont, where the connection was blocked decades ago; and a growing movement to connect the nation's longest hiking trails.

"This 40-mile gap is a gap in the system," said Bruce Matthews, executive director of the Michigan-based North Country Trail Association, which is working with the National Park Service, Vermont's Green Mountain Club and others to build the new connecting trail. "There's no logical reason for it."

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