The International Appalachian Trail / Sentier International des Appalaches

04/10/2026

The Maine Chapter of the International Appalachian Trail would like to invite you to out 2026 Annual Meeting on Friday through Sunday, May 15–17, 2026, at Mt. Chase Lodge in Shin Pond, Maine.

All are welcome!

To register and make arrangements for the $25 registration fee, please email [email protected]

The tentative agenda is as follows:

• IAT long distance hiker Will French will be our Friday evening speaker. Will has walked in every country of the IAT.

• Our friends at The National Park Service will be dropping by with updates on the trail and happenings at Katahdin Woods & Waters.

• On Saturday night we'll celebrate Walter Anderson's contributions to the development of the IAT in Maine.

• The Annual Business Meeting will be held Saturday morning, followed by updates from the IAT Interpretation Project team and others.

• Participants can join a hike up Sugarloaf on Saturday afternoon, with a focus on regional geology and the part that this little mountain played in shaping the way we think about Earth history, or join the Fiddlers & Fiddleheads celebration at the Patten Lumberman's Museum, or take the afternoon off!

LODGING: We will provide contact information when you register so you can make arrangements for lodging at Mt. Chase or for camping.

MEALS: Friday and Saturday dinners will be covered by our generous sponsors. Breakfast and lunch are at your own expense, or feel free to bring your own.

Please email [email protected] with questions. We hope to see you there!

When
May 15th, 2026 to May 17th, 2026

Location
Mount Chase Lodge
1517 Shin Pond Road
Mount Chase, ME 04765

03/28/2026

Please save the dates for our Annual Meeting––Friday through Sunday, May 15–17, 2026, at Mt. Chase Lodge in Shin Pond, Maine.

This year's gathering promises a rich and meaningful program:

• IAT long distance hiker Will French will be our Friday evening speaker. Will has walked in every country of the IAT, and he'll tell his story in two parts. We'll host the first installment in Portland in early May. Please stay tuned for those details!

• On Saturday night we'll celebrate Walter Anderson's contributions to the development of the IAT in Maine, culminating in the presentation of the 2026 Thinking Beyond Borders Award.

• The Annual Business Meeting will be held Saturday morning, followed by updates from the National Park Service, the IAT Interpretation Project team and others.

• Participants can join a hike up Sugarloaf on Saturday afternoon, with a focus on regional geology and the part that this little mountain played in shaping the way we think about Earth history, or join the Fiddlers & Fiddleheads celebration at the Patten Lumberman's Museum, or take the afternoon off!

LODGING

Mt. Chase Lodge is offering a 50% discount on rooms for attendees, provided that we bring our own linens or sleeping bag. Details will be provided upon registration.

MEALS

Friday and Saturday dinners will be covered by our generous sponsors. Breakfast and lunch are at your own expense, or feel free to bring your own!

Please save the dates. More details and registration information will follow in early April. Please email [email protected] with questions. We hope to see you there!

03/22/2026

Sponsored Hikes for 2026 with the Maine Chapter of the IAT have been posted. To register, email [email protected]. There will be an additional sponsored hike as a part of the Annual Meeting agenda in May. More details coming soon.

Sponsored Hikes for the 2026 season are open for registration. Space is limited! Sign up soon!

03/03/2026

The IAT has lost an important person in our history and a good friend. Walter Anderson’s trail-related legacy centered on his deep commitment to geology, outdoor access, and long-distance hiking initiatives.

Walter served as Chief Geologist for many years. In this role, he championed the concept of geoheritage, helping interpret and promote the geological story underlying the landscapes the trail traverses. His work strengthened the scientific foundation of the trail and highlighted geology as central to ecosystems, culture, and regional identity. In recognition of his service, the IAT awarded him its first Beyond Borders Award in 2025.

Walter also fostered a love of trails and wild places within his own family, organizing annual trips to Baxter State Park and sharing his passion for geology with younger generations. Through both public service and personal mentorship, he linked trail development, geological education, and conservation, leaving a lasting mark on the hiking and Geoheritage community.

You can read his full obituary here: https://newspaper.pressherald.com/infinity/article_popover_share.aspx?guid=85d0b880-5485-485b-9b6e-7c0e434a1750&share=true

02/11/2026

After a decade of renovations at the IATNL/Cabox basecamp at Stowbridges in North Arm, Bay of Islands, chairperson Paul Wylezol finally found time and two willing adventurers to join him on an exploratory trek up nearby Rocky Brook Canyon. The goal was to establish whether it was possible to hike up...

01/02/2026

Here's a neat play coming up in May in Lewiston, Maine that some of you may be interested in.

Grandma Gatewood Took a Walk
by Catherine Bush
at The Public Theatre in Lewiston, ME
https://thepublictheatre.org/grandma-gatewood/

In 1955 at the age of 67, Emma “Grandma” Gatewood told her children she was “going for a walk” and set out with her duffel bag, shower curtain (to keep dry) and a pair of Keds sneakers to walk the Appalachian Trail. Two thousand miles later, she became the first woman to solo hike 14 states from Georgia to the top of Mt. Katahdin in Maine. Don’t miss the New England premiere of this true and inspiring adventure celebrating the resiliency of the human spirit and the courage required to walk into the unknown.

Performance Dates
Friday, May 8 at 7:00 PM
Saturday, May 9 at 3:00 PM
Sunday, May 10 at 2:00 PM*

Thursday, May 14 at 7:00 PM*
Friday, May 15 at 7:00 PM
Saturday, May 16 at 3:00 PM
Saturday, May 16 at 7:30 PM*
Sunday, May 17 at 2:00 PM

12/08/2025

11/24/2025

It's our favorite sales of the year! Our friends at FarOut are offering 30% off from now until December 1st on trail maps bought in their app or online. The International Appalachian Trail has been partnering with FarOut for years, and we now have maps and information for the entire North American section of the trail. Lots more available as well! You can shop in app or on their website at:
https://app.faroutguides.com/
Always worth a mention when this sale rolls around!

11/21/2025

2020
Finally, as we wrap up this short timeline, it’s worth highlighting the introduction of the internship program and the creation of the archives at the Maine Historical Society’s Brown Research Library in Portland, ME. Although both projects were slated to begin in 2020, they were delayed due to the pandemic. Nevertheless, over the last five years, two interns have helped the Maine IAT with historical research in the archives, which has now grown to 27 document cases in total. Projects like these allow for the trail’s history to be stored and protected, but more importantly, encourage young people to get involved as the torch is passed.

11/20/2025

10th Anniversary
The 10th anniversary of the IAT was celebrated in Nictau, New Brunswick, July 9-11, 2004. A combination of business meetings, hiking, and kayaking, this meeting was the epitome of community and dedication. The assembled group hiked Mt Carleton––the highest point of the trail in New Brunswick, the same hike done at the first official IAT meeting in 1994. Thirty people reached the summit in the pouring rain to celebrate. Among the group were children doing their first summit hikes and seasoned thru-hikers, a beautiful collection of the hardworking individuals who made the IAT what it was then and is today.

11/17/2025

Beth Lawson - 2000
A timeline on the history of the IAT wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the first women to thru-hike the trail. Beth Lawson thru-hiked the trail with her partner, Bryant, in 2000, the couple going by the trail name B&B. Though she did not set out to hike the IAT after her Appalachian Trail thru-hike, after hearing Nimblewill Nomad and Dick Anderson speak about the IAT at the 1999 Appalachian Trail Long Distance Hikers Gathering in Hanover, NH, Bryant planted the seed that would solidify Lawson in the IAT history books. The pair followed Nimblewill Nomad’s journal as a trail guide, as the official companion guide would not be published until a year later.

11/10/2025

Nimblewill Nomad - 1998 & 2001
W.J. “Eb” Eberhart, or Nimblewill Nomad, was the second person to thru-hike the IAT, completing his “Odyssey of ‘98” in tandem with the Eastern Continental Trail (ECT). He was extraordinarily dedicated to the IAT even after his first, and then second, thru-hike. Nimblewill wrote two books about his experiences, Ten Million Steps and Ten Million More, along with a handful of poems. He was part of the support team for many thru-hikers that came after him, like Scott Galloway (Otter), who was the first to thru-hike the IAT southbound. Nimblewill Nomad’s poem “Why Go” was penned along the trail in 1998.

Why Go
It’s the people, the places,
The pain and the trials.
It’s the joy and the blessings
That come with the miles.

It’s a calling gone out
To a fortunate few,
To wander the fringes
Of God’s hazy blue.

nimblewillnomad.com