I’m Outback and I have a problem. Okay, I admit it. I don’t want to hike another trail; I want to live on one! I awoke from a spectacular dream about hiking the length of Canada. There is in fact such a trail. The Trans Canada Trail (TCT) is 14,996 mi (24,134 km), arguably the world’s longest trail of all (land and water trail system, some “paddling” required). Only fifteen-thousand miles; holy mackerel that’s long!
The Great Trail is so incredibly long that if a person were to complete the entire trail (15,000mi) they would have walked (snowshoed, biked, rowed, etc.) a length that was approximately three-fifths the circumference of the earth (24,901 mi).
Unlike most other long-distance trails, the TCT has four starting points:
- St. John’s, Newfoundland (Kilometre Zero East)
- Victoria, British Columbia (Kilometre Zero West)
- Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories (Kilometre Zero North)
- Windsor, Ontario (Kilometre Zero South)
At this point, my plan is to commence the hike in St. John’s, NF and end the journey in Victoria, B.C., of course weather will drive many of the decisions in between.
Dianne Whelan describes her personal journey on this little-known jewel in Canada.
Sarah Jackson of Edmonton, who thru-hiked the TCT in 2015-17, was interviewed and describes the nature of this remarkable trail.
TCT Website
TCT Interactive Map
https://tctrail.ca/explore-the-map/
More About TCT
https://gearjunkie.com/outdoor/hiking/the-great-trail-trans-canada-worlds-longest