Backpack Trail Guide

Trails / Vermont / Southern Green Mountains

Appalachian Trail: Maine Junction to Hanover (Killington to the Connecticut River)

Appalachian National Scenic Trail east of the Long Trail, Green Mountain National Forest and private land (Killington, Bridgewater, Pomfret, Hartford, Norwich; US 4 at Sherburne Pass to the Connecticut River at Hanover, New Hampshire)

At Maine Junction, just north of Killington, the Appalachian Trail leaves the Long Trail and turns east for New Hampshire. The ATC describes the roughly 45 miles that follow as lower-elevation trail known for fall foliage and smaller crowds. It is a different kind of Vermont walk: farm pastures, stone walls, small villages, and a long string of short, steep hills between Killington and the Connecticut River.

The hike

Hiking Project says the Long Trail and AT arc from US 4 to Maine Junction at Willard Gap, where they split. SectionHiker, who hiked this section from Hanover west to Sherburne Pass in 2009, finished by gaining about 1,000 feet to Ben’s Balcony and descending the last half mile on the Sherburne Pass Trail. He calls Gifford Woods State Park, which the trail passes, the last forested area in Vermont with old-growth trees.

East of Gifford Woods, the trail crosses the Ottauquechee River flood plain on about 900 feet of boardwalk to Thundering Falls, which the Forest Service calls “said to be the sixth tallest waterfall in Vermont.” The ATC says this stretch, opened in 2007, is one of five AT sections built to accessibility standards. Beyond the river, SectionHiker describes about 1,500 feet of relief over Quimby Mountain, which he says has four peaks over 2,500 feet. He passed Stony Brook Shelter, which he found boggy and poor for pitching a tarp, and later Wintturi Shelter, near a waterfall. His high point was Lakota Lake Lookout, at about 2,600 feet.

Farther east, Virginia Trail Guide’s 2018 report describes long stretches across open fields in full sun, a road walk on Cloudland and Pomfret Roads, and paved town roads into West Hartford, where the library welcomed hikers. Thistle Hill Shelter sits between Pomfret and West Hartford. Happy Hill Shelter is near a summit above Norwich, and Jason Durham, a 2024 thru-hiker, describes the last miles as “easy, flat, then downward” into Norwich and across the Connecticut River on the Ledyard Bridge into Hanover. SectionHiker says about half of his first 9 miles out of Hanover were on pavement and sidewalks.

Both trip reports found it harder than expected. SectionHiker calls the many 250- to 1,250-foot climbs “harder than it looks,” and the Virginia Trail Guide writers called the section “not one of our favorites.”

To the west is Killington Peak. Across the river, the AT continues north from Hanover to Glencliff.

Tips

Camping

The ATC says that between the Connecticut River and US 4, fires are allowed only in fire rings at shelters or at Gifford Woods State Park, and that hikers are encouraged to camp only at designated shelters and campsites because the trail corridor is narrow. On national forest land, its summary is to camp at existing sites or 200 feet from trails and water. Campflare’s listings say the shelters are free, first come, first served, with privies, and limited to two consecutive nights.

Food must be stored in a bear canister or box or hung at least 12 feet up and 6 feet out on the national forest; the ATC strongly recommends a canister everywhere on the AT. GMC limits overnight groups to 10.

Inside Intel: The 2018 Virginia Trail Guide writers dry-camped at Happy Hill when they found no consistent water there, then had water from a small waterfall at Thistle Hill, where about 25 people camped the next night. SectionHiker stopped at Wintturi for lunch and water on his 2009 hike.

Trail facts

The Lowdown

Overflow tent sites on the AT's east end:

Listings describe tent space around the Stony Brook and Happy Hill shelters, and one 2018 report counted about 25 people at Thistle Hill. See the tents reviewers trust.

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Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.