The Most Popular Hiking Trail in Every State, Mapped

Now you know what to avoid

July 28, 2017 9:00 am

Outdoor gear outfitter Cotopaxi just launched an interactive map of the United States that calls out each state’s most popular hiking trail. In California, it’s the Lands End in San Francisco. In Texas, it’s the Barton Creek Greenbelt Trail, which is 14 miles. But that’s hardly the longest: the state-spanning Mountains-to-Sea trail is the most popular in North Carolina, while in Virginia it’s the Appalachian, which (as we all know) is a massive multi-state excursion.

While it’s unclear what methodology Cotopaxi used to generate the results (in some states, a single trail is named, while in others, the listed “trail” is an entire State or National Park), we think the map has at least one important function: telling you which trails to avoid. It’s like Yogi Berra said: “90 percent of hiking is half finding some damn peace and quiet.”

And you won’t that on a trail the masses flock to.

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