How to thru hike the Northville Lake Placid Trail

The Northville-Placid Trail (NPT) is a 139-mile long distance hiking trail that runs through the heart of the Adirondacks - from the village of Northville in the south to the village of Lake Placid in the north. The trail is unique in the Adirondacks that it does not traverse any significant mountain peaks, but instead stays to the valleys and lowlands throughout the Adirondacks. That results in the trail passing many lakes, streams, ponds (and there being plenty of mud along the way).

We thru hiked the NPT between August 9, 2020 and August 18, 2020. We had one zero near Long Lake. We had two cars so we set the hike up with a handful of car shuttles. That gave us a chance to resupply and grab some town food.

Read the full guide to thru hiking the Northville Placid Trail on our Hiker Trash Husbands website.

----- Resources for the Northville-Placid Trail

• The best guide to the NPT is the Adirondack Mountain Club's Northville-Placid Trail Guidebook
• The best map is the National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map for the Northville-Placid Trail
• You can save a few bucks and get them as a bundle

Both proved indispensable for this hike. The NPT isn't currently in an app like Guthook and the AllTrails data is very, very limited. For the NPT definitely go with the old fashioned map and pick up the guidebook so you know what to expect. We carried both with us, but if I did it again, I'd just have the map. The map is waterproof/tearproof so it'll survive the hike. Interested in hiking the NPT, but want guide services? Hike On Guides can do that - we have special long distance hiking services. ---- Backpacking Gear we used on the Northville Placid Trail

• Gregory Zulu 55 Backpack
• Deuter Aircontact Lite 50 + 10
• Sea to Summit Comfort Light Self-Inflating Sleeping Mat
• Jetboil Flash
• Black Diamond Trail Back Trekking Poles
• Columbia Titan Ultra Running Tank
• Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL MtnGLO Tent
• Darn Tough Hiking Socks
• Sawyer Squeeze Water Filter
• FourLaps Extend Shorts
• Energizer LED Headlamp