The Mountains-to-Sea Trail is North Carolina’s state hiking trail.
It stretches 1175 miles from the Great Smoky Mountains to the Outer Banks, stopping at many of our state’s most beautiful places along the way.
What is the MST? The Mountains-to-Sea Trail is as diverse as North Carolina. Along the trail, you may see mountain vistas, rolling Piedmont farms, picture postcard colonial towns, weathered tobacco barns, old textile villages, country churches, rushing mountain streams, coastal swamps, hardwood and pine forests, lighthouses, sand dunes, miles of seashore, and friendly people. 680 miles of the route are on trail, and connecting backroads and an optional paddle route allow hikers to trek across the state.
What can the MST mean to you? It may mean a short walk with your family near your home. It may mean a weekend backpacking trip with friends. Or it may mean a challenging, inspiring trek of 1175 miles across North Carolina. However you experience the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, the beauty of North Carolina will fill you with wonder and joy.
Friends of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail is the growing community of members and volunteers who support the trail, an official unit of the North Carolina State Park System. We work statewide building and maintaining trail, encouraging communities to create new sections of trail, and helping people hike it. You can get involved and help support the trail.
News
Special Alert Regarding Hurricane Florence
In the aftermath of Hurricane Florence, land managers are working hard to restore access to public lands, but conditions remain dangerous, particularly in the eastern part of the state. Our trail volunteers are beginning to assess damage as it is safe to do so, and will begin to plan workdays to address storm related issues.
CONSTRUCTION OF MST IN MOUNTAINS IS DONE; LONG-NEGOTIATED FINAL LINK OPENS
Construction of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail (MST) in western North Carolina is complete. The 346.8-mile route over some of the highest mountains in the Eastern United States is the longest continuous section of the MST built thus far. It goes from Clingmans Dome on the Tennessee-North Carolina border to Stone Mountain State Park, the MST’s gateway to the Piedmont.
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