New York Times Reports About NCT

The New York Times ran a great article about the North Country Trail on April 24. Reporter Stephen Regenold traveled to Wisconsin last summer, sampled the NCT, and wrote a story about his experiences.

The article includes photos of Brownstone Falls at Copper Falls State Park, and a section of wooded pathway (no specific location identified).

Regenold had interviewed Andrew Skurka who thru-hiked the NCT in 2004 as part of his Sea-to-Sea route hike, and decided to find out more about the trail for himself. He says of the NCT, "Laced through more than 100 state parks and state forests, 10 national forests and areas managed by the National Park Service, the trail brings millions of day hikers each year into some of the finest natural places that New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota have to offer."

Last summer, he encountered Peter and Lynne Nason in the Brule River State Forest in Wisconsin. They were out for a work day on their section of trail, clippers and bug spray in hand. Regenold was impressed with the Nason's enthusiasm and friendliness, offering tips on the best sections to hike.

He continued through the Chequamegon National Forest. "For the next day we would see not another soul on the trail, hiking the winding track, following blue blazes marked on trees, and brushing branches out of the way for mile upon quiet mile. Frogs burped and gurgled in tiny ponds. Wind brushed in treetops, a swishing like water of leaf against leaf."

See Northern Exposure: Hiking the North Country Trail, in The New York Times