Long Trail Thru-Hike Permit

No. The Green Mountain Club says individual hikers do not need a permit anywhere along the 272-mile Long Trail, and the whole system is free and open to the public. The only permit that exists is a Green Mountain National Forest or Vermont state special-use permit, and that only applies to organized groups over about 10 people or any group charging fees, paying leaders, or renting gear.

It is GMC's free record of finishing the whole trail, not a permit. You submit your hike and GMC processes End-to-Ender certification twice a year, in October and March, and mails a certificate, a patch, and a one-year club membership.

GMC states an average of 20 to 30 days, or roughly 3 to 4 weeks, with a separate GMC guide putting the average at 21 to 25 days. Fast hikers finish quicker and section hikers spread it over multiple trips or even years.

GMC says northbound (NOBO) is more common because you start on gentler terrain in southern Vermont and finish on the rugged, less-developed stretch north of Route 15. Southbound hikers get fewer people on trail but harder terrain right away.

No. GMC's 70 overnight sites are free and first-come, first-served. Ecologically fragile sites are staffed by a paid backcountry caretaker and run on a donation-based model, so you can donate if you want to support the work, but nobody is charged to stay.

Mud season is not a fixed date. GMC says it typically runs from the second half of March or early April through late May, when high-elevation hiking is discouraged because thawing soils erode fast under foot traffic. Closures are issued weekly based on conditions rather than a set calendar, so check GMC's trail conditions before a spring hike.

For the southern 105 miles, from the Massachusetts border north to Maine Junction just north of Killington. GMC's own page states the AT coincides with the Long Trail for 105 miles through southern Vermont, crossing Stratton and Bromley Mountains along the way, before the AT turns east toward New Hampshire and the Long Trail continues north alone.

Bear-safe food storage is mandatory across the Green Mountain National Forest, by a 2019 order, though a hard-sided canister is not the only compliant method. You can also store food in a closed vehicle or hang it 12 feet up and 6 feet out from any post or trunk. Nothing scented, including food, garbage, or toiletries, can stay in your tent.

The Chin on Mount Mansfield, at 4,395 feet, Vermont's highest point. The Long Trail runs along Mansfield's summit ridge, the mountain's most famous stretch.

70 free overnight sites, GMC says, ranging from open tenting areas to three-sided lean-tos to enclosed lodges with bunks, spaced roughly a day's hike apart.