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America's Triple Crown
Hiking on the Appalachian, Pacific Crest
and Continental Divide Trails

By Karen Berger

What's your idea of "walking distance"? You know, as in "House for rent, walking distance to shops (or metro or beach)". A half mile? A mile? Some average, reasonable distance? How about 2,000 miles? Ask a long distance hiker on one of America's three great south-to-north national scenic trails, and you'll learn that if you have enough time, a reasonable distance can be quite far.

Whether your idea of walking distance is a 20-mile weekend or a 2,000-mile odyssey, you'll find what you're looking for on the trails of the "Triple Crown": the Appalachian Trail, great-grand-daddy of them all and easily the best-beloved and most famous hiking trail in the world; the Pacific Crest Trail, favorite haunt of John Muir and Ansel Adams, a hiker's hiking trail of grand vistas and big wildernesses where you can walk 100 miles or more without seeing a road; and the Continental Divide Trail, which may offer the most rugged, remote, long-distance hiking adventure available in the contiguous 48 states.

Map of US with 'triple crown' trails


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[from Outside magazine]