Hiking Trails for America

10/28/2025

Four months of Florida heat and I decided to see what hiking was like in eastern Canada. I chose New Brunswick because of its long common border with Maine and interstates close by. I flew to Boston, rented a car and drove through Calais, ME, across the little St. Croix River and into New Brunswick at St. Stephen.

Close to St. Stephen you will find three more towns named after saints: St. George, St. Andrew and St. John. St. Andrew is worth a visit, but St. Stephen has a chocolate factory!

Not far from the St. Andrew I found the Simpson Trail, but soon saw the landscape littered with rocks and the hiking not pleasant. Every footfall required attention. I was focused on cooler days, not colors, but lucked out. My few days in Canada included the peak fall color weekend, this year October 17 – 19th. Everywhere from the edge of town and away, glorious fall colors abounded

Somehow the two-block main street of St. Andrews became a one-way street of attractive, quaint houses converted to commercial use; a gift shop, art gallery, restaurant, beauty salon, etc. Only the brick Bank of Nova Scotia and two other brick buildings were never a residence and look out of place. All were attractively maintained.
The woods also were ablaze in reds and yellows. Even the amber leaves of the oaks added to the display and the dark green of the evergreens just emphasized the yellow of birch leaves and the red of maples. The display continued all day as I drove from St. Stephen to and through Calais, then south to Boston and my flight home.

The International Appalachian Trail shows a route through Maine at Fort Fairfield and crosses New Brunswick along the flood plain of the Tobique River to Mount Carlton Provincial Park, thence into Quebec. In time, this trail will become well established. That's where we will want to go for hikes.

06/10/2025

Jim's passion for hiking is as strong as ever, with his current adventure hiking Scotland's Ben Nevis! It's the perfect moment to revisit these incredible 1960s photos showing the very start of his trailblazing legacy with the Florida Trail. These images highlight his monumental journey in founding and establishing the trail, and his bold advocacy to close the gaps in America's national scenic trails. Explore the start of Jim’s trailblazing journey here: https://ft.smugmug.com/Historic-Photos/1960s

06/04/2025

June 7th is National Trails Day.

I have just been sent an announcement that legislation is being introduced again in the 119th Congress to study the feasibility of designating the Benton MacKaye Trail as a National Scenic Trail. H.R. 2768 and S. 1376.

Congress will do the easy part and never get around to doing the hard part, if voters let them. That’s the story of our National Scenic Trails.

Every long thin corridor for 𝗔𝗡𝗬 purpose must have eminent domain if it is to be continuous, and if it extends through private property, every road, every railroad, every water line, every hiking trail. The Arizona Trail is not an exception. It lies entirely on Federal land. Write to me if you have 𝗔𝗡𝗬 doubt and I’ll send you more data.

The only long trail in America through private property that is both continuous and secure for posterity is the A.T. When the federal government bought all 700 missing miles scattered across 2,100 miles to make this famous trail complete, they had to use eminent domain 400 times in 2,550 acquisitions, one in six times.

Of the eleven National Scenic Trails only one is continuous; it’s the one with eminent domain. Only one is secure for posterity; it’s the one with eminent domain. Get it? When are we going to do the hard part on behalf of all other long trails?

Politics is often no fun. It’s the hard part. When we want our trails continuous badly enough we will find the will, the time, the money and do the hard part. Write me when you are ready.

04/21/2025

Please fill out this form to allow us to know who will be coming to the annual meeting. The annual membership meeting of the Florida Trail Association will begin at 10:00 am on Saturday April 26th, 2025. The meeting will be both in person and virtual. The weekend event will be at Mike Roess Gold Hea...

04/16/2025

Join Hiking Trails for America and the millions strong trails community to ask congress to support funding for trails! Take 30 seconds to add your voice using this link:

Make Your Voice Heard By Contacting Congress Now!

04/16/2025

Hiking Trails for America joined the American Hiking Society and 258 partner organizations to call on Congress to fully fund our nation’s trails and public lands!

Together our organizations represent millions of trail users who rely on the outdoors for recreation, wellness, and community. Now, we’re calling on lawmakers to invest in the trails, natural spaces, and public lands that make all of that possible.

📣The trails can’t speak up for themselves, but we can use our voices to speak up for them. Let’s collectively make sure our voices are heard. https://americanhiking.org/american-hiking-and-259-organizations-support-fy26-trail-funding/

https://americanhiking.org/take-action/

02/12/2025

Did you ever meet a guy named Billy Goat or another hiker named Nimblewill Nomad? These are trail names of close friends and backpackers. They’re both in their 80s and both are trail legends.

I caught up with them in Ocala in late January to celebrate Billy Goat’s birthday. Each of them has hiked just over 50,000 miles. That’s a little more than two times around the earth at the equator, in case you want to match this achievement!

01/02/2025

Happy New Year, Friends! As we enter into the new year, please help us in our mission to close the gaps in our National Scenic Trails by signing and sharing our Petition. Let's make great things happen together! Thank you for your support.

220 signatures are needed, let’s get there by the end of the day?

12/12/2024

Book Type Hardcover $21.95 USD Softcover $14.95 USD Slipcase $12

11/27/2024

Open Letter to Outdoor Lovers

I am writing to you because you have been an active member of the outdoor community for many years. I say “community” loosely because we are a hard group to enroll in any important project. I have tried numerous times with varying degrees of success, so I know this. Three projects that did work out I will name only because I want now to bring up a very important issue for outdoor enthusiasts. I was the founding president of the Florida Trail Association in 1966. I was the founding president of the American Hiking Society in 1976 and I was the founding president of Big City Mountaineers in 1989, a high adventure trip for disadvantaged teens, both boys and girls. In 2013 I founded Hiking Trails for America, a non-profit organization focusing on completing our National Scenic Trails. The project I am writing you about is much bigger than these three combined.

In May, 2023 I offered to give $500 to anyone who could show me a footpath or any other long, thin corridor through private property, used for any purpose, that was assembled without the use of eminent domain. There were no takers, so I upped the offer to $1,000. Today that offer stands at $5,000. And there are still no takers. With this background I am asserting that there “is no long, thin corridor assembled for any use without the use of eminent domain.”

According to the Outdoor Foundation there are 47.9 million people in America who take 14 or more hiking outings a year. That’s our base. That’s where much support for trails comes from.

There are eleven National Scenic Trails designated by Congress. Of those eleven only one is continuous and secure for posterity in its entirety. That trail is the Appalachian Trail. You wouldn’t know that the 2,600-mile Pacific Crest Trail is not secure for posterity because you can start at either terminus and hike the entire length, as numerous people do each year, but almost 10% of the route in numerous parcels is not secure. Except for a few small glitches you can also hike the entire length of the Arizona Trail because it’s entirely on federal land.

I don’t want to embarrass anyone, so I will not mention names, but there are leaders in the hiking community who still emphatically believe that we don’t need eminent domain for trails. This in spite of the fact that in order to complete the Appalachian Trail, the Department of Interior and other agencies had to use eminent domain 400 times to acquire 2,550 separate properties over 700 miles of a 2,100-mile trail to make it continuous. We continue to dream the impossible dream. Our broken trails have waited long enough. If a small portion of the 47.9 million people referred to above spoke out about this issue, we could close the gaps in all our important trails in America, not just the National Scenic Trails mentioned above.

I have turned 90. As you might imagine, some of the vigor that I used in the past to start things has waned. This huge task ahead of us is much too big for any one person anyway. It needs an army of volunteers. That’s why I’m writing you. In founding the organizations mentioned above, and in others as well, I learned that, if I begin the effort, others come forward. It will happen again. Forty-eight million people can make things happen.

“No long, thin corridor through private land, for any purpose, has ever been completed without the use of eminent domain.”

Write to me if you have any interest in helping with this important cause. I have employed a small group who will help get us off the ground. You won’t be asked to do a thing that you haven’t volunteered for. And you can still change your mind later. But the cadre of people who enjoy hiking is probably larger than any other group assembled for any other purpose except the military. If you are willing to write a letter to Congress when the time comes, write to Lonna Allen in my office: 700 Island Landing Drive, St. Augustine, FL 32095 or email her at [email protected]. Let her know that you will write that letter. It might be some time before we respond as we build a mailing list, but we will.

We have those 47.9 million potential numbers on our side. We have tried Congress but without the numbers. Now, with your help, we’re going to acquire the numbers, and Congress will have to listen. We need continuous trails, just like every highway in the country.

If any long, thin corridor is continuous and if the route is through private property, someone made use of eminent domain in creating it. Here are a few devastating statistics one must ignore to remain in la-la land: In 2017 the Federal Highway Administration in all 50 states plus Guam and Puerto Rico used it 5,969 times in 33,779 acquisitions, 17.6%. With a slight rounding it becomes one in six times. In 2018 the Federal Highway Administration in all 50 states plus Guam and Puerto Rico used it 4,532 times in 27,506 acquisitions, 16.5%. With a slight rounding it becomes one in six times. In 2019 the Federal Highway Administration in all 50 states plus Guam and Puerto Rico used it 5,371 times in 32,598 acquisitions, 16.5%. With a slight rounding it becomes one in six times. In 2020 the Federal Highway Administration in all 50 states plus Guam and Puerto Rico used it 4,640 times in 29,580 acquisitions, 15.7%. With a slight rounding it becomes one in six times. All examples just listed varied by less than 1% from 16.6%, perhaps the most amazing statistic of all.

What exactly is our message to Congress? We want an oversight hearing. There hasn’t been one since 1978. This is the proper platform to state our message. And our message is this: For trails to be continuous, we need eminent domain, just like every railroad, power line, telephone line, fiber optic line, canal, utility line. They all have it. Hikers have bought into an unrealistic idea: that Congress can identify a long-distance route and not provide eminent domain to complete it. There are other important reasons we need this oversight hearing for trails. We will be telling you about our list as we proceed.

Jim Kern
700 Island Landing Drive
St. Augustine, FL 32095
904-829-1515
[email protected]

P.S. Yes, you can support this cause with a check in any amount. Make it payable to: Hiking Trails For America or go to hikingtrailsinamerica.org.

11/21/2024

Black Friday Early Access Sale - Limited-Time Only!

Save 20% on Jim’s Photography Books

SALE ENDS NOVEMBER 29, 2024!

Signed editions of Jim's two coffee table books "Wildlife Art & Adventures of Jim Kern Photographer" and "Trail Reflections: 50 Years of Hiking and Backpacking" are now available for purchase at a discount for a limited time only!

Kern House Publishing, LLC 700 Island Landing Drive St. Augustine, FL 32095 Phone: (904) 829-1515 Jim Kern:  [email protected]

07/30/2024

Colombia, South America, has more different bird species than any other country on earth. A birder since age 11, I decided to pay a visit with the hope of seeing some of them. I only had 10 net days in the country so I kept to the Sierra Nevada Mountains between 2,000 feet and 7,500 feet because they contain 21 endemics. And I chose July, so northern migrants would be in North America raising young. I then hired birding guides to expand my list, an essential if you are looking for numbers. In the 10 net days there I added over 200 birds to a life list that goes back to 1945.

Here are two pictures of shy mountain birds, encouraged to come close with worms. I was lucky to see them: the antpitta, referred to by ornithologists as “eggs on legs” and the green-and-black fruiteater.

Jim