Thru-Hiking a Long Trail This Year? Backpack These Trails First

In our travel column, assistant editor Emma Veidt answers your hiking questions with the help of a rotating cast of experts.

Dear Backpacker,

I’m stepping out on my first long-distance thru-hike this year, and I’m not sure what to expect. What are some trails where I can give my gear and skills a trial run before I set off on my trip? — Looking For Long Walks

Dear Looking,

We’re now in the early stages of thru-hiking season, which means thousands of eager long-distance hikers will join you in dialing in their gear, squeezing in their last few training hikes, and getting excited for the months ahead. Although there are dozens of long trails in the country that people thru-hike, many focus on the Triple Crown: the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and Appalachian Trail. 

According to The Trek’s 2022 AT hiker survey, more than 10 percent of thru-hikers had started their hike without ever going on a backpacking trip—some hadn’t even gone car camping. Although that strategy does work for some, it’s better to work out some of the more complicated parts of backpacking before you’re deep in the backcountry. Luckily, there are lots of easy backpacking shakedown trips available in close proximity to the most popular starting spots of the Triple Crown trails.

The Best Pacific Crest Trail Shakedown Hike: Noble Canyon Trail

Just 30 miles from the PCT’s southern terminus in Campo, California is one of the area’s best warm-ups, the Noble Canyon Trail. A hike here is a preview of what you’ll experience in Southern California: Starting in the desert with scrub and cacti lining the trail, you climb through riparian wetlands into high forests full of pines. Want a peek of the adventure to come? The top of Noble Canyon overlooks the PCT; you can see miles of trail on a clear day.

There are a number of water features and creek crossings on this hike as long as the region received enough snow or rain that year. Even in rainy years, the water crossings are easy enough that beginners could forge through. Noble Creek isn’t always flowing, but it often is through late spring, making it a great place for backpackers to find and filter water. (There’s also a water spigot at Penny Pines about halfway through the hike.) Backpackers need to remember bug spray—biting flies are known to swarm the trail as the weather heats up. 

You have two starting point options, from the canyon floor or from the rim of the canyon. Climbing up and out of the canyon isn’t short and steep; it’s long and gradual, which will prepare you well for the big peaks of the PCT to come. 

Note for backpackers: This is one of the most popular mountain biking trails in the area. Keep your ears open and eyes peeled for bikers, who usually ride from the top of the canyon to the bottom. 

The Best Continental Divide Trail Shakedown Hike: Mineral Creek Trail

Getting to Crazy Cook Monument, the southern terminus of the CDT, takes a bit of work and planning. The spot is in the middle of an arid, remote desert on the border between New Mexico and Mexico. Nine out of every 10 CDT thru-hikers get to the monument using shuttle services out of Lordsburg, New Mexico, according to a 2023 survey conducted by Halfway Anywhere. That’s because Crazy Cook is 75 miles of highway driving and 20 miles on a dirt road from Lordsburg. During peak thru-hiking season, the Continental Divide Trail Coalition and Crazy Cook Shuttle operate the two services available for thru-hikers. 

That being said, many CDT hikers do their final preparations and shakedowns on trails near Lordsburg. Just an hour drive away, Gila National Forest has skyscraping canyon walls and enough reliable water sources to swim and drink from that long, heavy water carries are rarely an issue. One of the most popular alternate CDT routes passes through this forest, and thru-hikers who take it often call it one of the most rewarding sections of trail in the whole state.

Before setting out from Crazy Cook, backpackers should spend a night or two exploring the Mineral Creek Trail. Here, you can see the rusty remains of the historic mining town of Cooney, Cooney’s Tomb, and several mining operations along the trail. When hiking this trail in the springtime, get ready to practice creek crossings. There are plenty of natural features to keep you interested as you go, including: wildflowers, waterfalls, soaring canyon walls, and natural stone arches.

The Best Appalachian Trail Shakedown Hike: A Section of The Benton MacKaye Trail

Nine out of 10 AT hikers start from Springer Mountain in Georgia, which isn’t immediately accessible off the road: There’s an 8-mile approach to the top of Springer, so many thru-hikers consider Amicalola Falls their unofficial southern terminus. But we don’t recommend waiting until the approach trail to take your fully-loaded (let’s be real: probably overloaded) backpack for its inaugural spin. 

The mountains of northern Georgia have a well-maintained, well-connected network of trails that offer hundreds of miles you can backpack. Want to rub elbows with other thru-hikers? The 280-mile-long Benton MacKaye Trail shares a starting terminus with the AT—the two trails actually interweave four times in the first 7 miles of the BMT—so you can chat with both BMT and AT hikers while sampling the same terrain you’ll soon be hiking. 

Don’t want to start on Springer Mountain? The first 90 miles of BMT are in Georgia with over a dozen access points, which means you can easily do anything from a quick overnight to a weeklong trip before even leaving the state. 

About 15 miles into the BMT, you’ll cross a 260 foot footbridge—the longest suspension bridge in the state—over the Toccoa River. Between miles 23.5 and 34.4 of the BMT, you’ll reach Skeenah Gap and Wilscot Gap, a section that is renowned for its difficulty. How hard is it? Skeenah Gap’s name comes from the Cherokee word asgina which means ghost, devil, or demon. Hiking both of these sections in a day means trekking 11 miles while gaining over 4,000 feet—which passes as a relatively difficult training hike for the AT.

The BMT doesn’t require any permit unless you plan on backcountry camping in Great Smoky Mountains, which contains 93 miles of the trail.