Route: East Coast Trail North (NL, Canada)

Submitted by Chris Michelau on Sun, 07/19/2020 - 05:53am
Location
Newfoundland and Labrador, CA
Distance
104.46 km
Vertical Gain
4,351 m
Description

The East Coast Trail is a ~330km trail that stretches from Cappahayden to Topsail, following the coast of the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland. It runs through the provincial capital city, St. John's, with the northern section terminating at Quidi Vidi, and the southern section terminating at Fort Amherst (Quidi Vidi and Fort Amherst are approximately 7 km away). As there is no official connecting route through the city between the northern and southern sections, thru-hikers typically pick their own route at this point.

The East Coast Trail North is the newest segment of the East Coast Trail. The East Coast Trail originally stretched 220km from Cappahayden to St John's, until the ECT North was added from Topsail to St. John's (now the original trail, south of St. John's, is referred to as the East Coast Trail South, while the new trail, north of St. John's, is referred to as the East Coast Trail North). The ECT North consists of official trail maps N1-N11, and is 112.3 km according to the East Coast Trail Association (but 104.45 km according to GPX file). This route is a notable challenge to local runners, as it contains some of the least developed trails with most technical, large climbs along the whole ECT. 

The East Coast Trail South (~215km) has its own route page.

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