My Long Trail Thru-Hike & Cost Breakdown

Growing up in New Hampshire, I had only heard of an epic Vermont trail in passing. I didn’t know much about it, but that was about to change. On August 1, 2024, I embarked on a thru-hike of America’s first long-distance trail, known as the Long Trail.

Nicknamed the “Footpath in the Wilderness,” the Long Trail was built by the Green Mountain Club from 1910 to 1929. This 270-mile trail extends along mountain summits from the Massachusetts state line to the Canadian border, and for one whole month, I would hike it every single day. I took on my trail name of Artemis again, an alias I happily embody; she is the Greek goddess of the wilderness after all.

I had most of my gear already from my Pacific Crest Trail hike, so I initially focused on prepping resupply boxes and mapping my route through trail towns. I broke the Long Trail up into 5 sections, which coincided with my resupply boxes.

Section 1 - Starting from the Pine Cobble approach trail in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The Pine Cobble approach is a 3.4-mile trail leading up to the Massachusetts/Vermont state border. From the moment you connect to the Long Trail, you’ll also be on the Appalachian Trail. The LT and the AT share approximately 100 miles, so if you’re hiking northbound this time of year like I was, you’ll definitely be hiking with AT thru-hikers as well.

I quickly realized shelters are usually spaced about every 5 miles. I hiked an average of 10 miles a day, stopping at one shelter to rest and stretch, eat lunch or filter water, then on to the next shelter to sleep for the night. Shelters have limited space and places to pitch a tent, so I recommend showing up early afternoon/evening if you want to claim a good spot. But even if you rock up late at night, people will make space for you, or there will still be an extra spot somewhere to pitch a tent. I love that each shelter is different and they always come with a privy; however, some are cleaner than others.

After 6 days and 49.5 miles, I came to my first town, Manchester Center, VT. My parents would drive over from New Hampshire for the day just to meet me in town, feed me lunch, bring me a resupply package, and then drop me off at a hotel for the night. How lucky am I?

In Manchester Center, I stayed at the Rest Motel, which I believe has since closed. I opted for a room with a private hot tub to soak my tired legs. Best decision ever! My food and laundry expenses here came tofor a total of $250.14. And I caught a ride back to trail from the hotel manager, which is quite common for hiker hotels to offer.

Section 2 - Manchester Center to Killington took me another 6 days and 51.2 miles to hike. At this point, it had rained nearly every single day, but my spirits were still high. Even a rainy day hiking is still time well spent in my book. I ended up taking shelter from the remnants of a hurricane at Little Rock Pond. And when I summited Mt. Killington, it was all socked in with fog, so unfortunately no views for me. This section was challenging because I was still building up my trail legs, but it was definitely easier than the first.

I knew I wanted to stay at the infamous Inn at the Long Trail. Some hikers opt to stay in nearby Rutland, at a compound called the Yellow Deli, but they’re actively recruiting, and I wasn’t looking to join any cults on this trip. The Inn is super hiker-friendly. I did get a much needed massage at this point and took the opportunity to get lunch at the Long Trail Ale Brewery. My accommodation, food, and massage total came to $256.50. Very similar to the last town.

Section 3 - Killington to Waitsfield. I hiked 63.1 miles in 6 days. The Inn connected right back to the trail, so no need for a lift. This is where the Long Trail and the Appalachian Trail part ways, so I saw fewer people from here on out. I went all day once without seeing another thru-hiker, just a few day hikers going south.

One day I thought I saw bear poop and got a little spooked, so I asked to hike with a couple other section hikers for a few days and they graciously accepted me. I’ve found that as a solo hiker, if ever I wanted some company on trail, I can’t be afraid to ask to join other hikers. I’ve met some pretty amazing people while hiking, and trail stories make the miles go faster (and the noise hopefully scares off any potential bears.)

I did try some cowboy camping during this section, also known as camping under the stars with no tent. The Middlebury ski platform made for a nice sleeping deck. I liked intersecting with all the ski trails as it breaks up the overgrown vegetation or “green tunnel.” Many of the ski lodges generously remain open to hikers in the summer, which I loved. And lastly, this section offered up a relic of the past with the remnants of a plane crash in the 70’s just after Mt. Abraham. Thankfully, the pilot got to walk away.

The hardest part about this section was the blown-down trees, which turned hiking into an obstacle course. And you can’t just hike around them because the forest is too dense. Sometimes it required me to take off my pack and crouch through the branches. The miles don’t come easily this way.

The trail crosses a road known as Appalachian Gap or App Gap. This is where my parents met me and we spent the day in the tiny town of Waitsfield, VT. I had booked accommodation at the Hyde Away Inn. There’s a restaurant on site, they do breakfast, laundry, and the owners gave me a ride in the morning. The total here was $256.99.

Section 4 - Waitsfield to Stowe was only 43.3 miles. I had planned to hike it in 4 days, but it took me 5 due to, you guessed it, another hurricane. This meant I was short on food, so I graciously accepted snacks from other hikers. We really do watch out and take care of one another out there. I’ve always said that hiking restored my faith in humanity. The kindness of strangers never ceases to amaze me.

Two major summits in this section, Camel’s Hump and Mansfield. I came across 3 women hiking south who were summiting both mountains in one day, affectionately called “The Man-Hump Challenge.” LOL! I went up and over Camel’s Hump in the height of the storm, but Mt. Mansfield gave me the 360 degree clear views I had been looking for this whole trek. As the tallest mountain in Vermont, I think I saved the best for last!

Descending Mansfield, I made it into Stowe a very hungry hiker. No hotel here, though. This quick turnaround is what hikers call a ‘hero’ day.

Time for a trail lingo lesson!

Zero - When you take a full day off the trail to rest your legs and walk zero miles

Nearo - When you walk nearly zero miles, but maybe you’ve woken up in a hotel and hike a few miles that afternoon

Hero - When you hike into a town, resupply your food, and hike out again to sleep on trail, making you a flipp’n hero!

In Stowe, I managed to do laundry and get a highly caloric lunch at the Von Trapp Family Brewery. With no hotel or shower, I chose to press on. Almost immediately, I was rethinking my choices, though. Hiking on a full stomach, with beer, late in the afternoon, after my highest summit - my body just wanted rest. The total here was only $62.50.

Section 5 - The fifth and final section from Stowe to the Northern terminus was the longest and wildest section, hiking 63.6 miles in 6 days. Northern Vermont is pretty remote. At times, hiking can feel more like bushwhacking, and the trail can get technical. Thankfully, I took the opportunity to take a dip in a river, washing off over a week’s worth of sweat, and then charging all my devices at Johnson’s Hardware store later that afternoon.

The last four nights, I found myself in a little trail family with Sam, Dawg, and Dog-bite, as everyone’s daily miles matched up. My body may have been exhausted, but it was filled with excitement to finally see the northern terminus appear out of nowhere. I had made it to the Canadian border on August 30, 2024.

Knowing I would finish on this day, I had made a couple of calls earlier and booked a night at Rose Apple Acre Farm B&B in North Troy. It was here that I got to decompress from my hike and soak in my accomplishment. My costs here were only $92.65 with a delicious breakfast included.

Here’s a full breakdown of my hiking expenses.

As you can see, hotels were definitely my largest spend, with resupply packages coming in after that. If I had to mail the packages, it would have been about an additional $25 per box, so an extra $100 bucks, just for your reference. The “other” category is things like my massage and Garmin mini activation. 

Making my 2024 Long Trail Thru-hike grand total….$1655.81

Full video with more visuals and details here: