Taconic Trails or Taconic Trail may refer to any or all of three long distance recreational trails and associated networks of shorter trails within the

Taconic Mountains The Taconic Mountains or Taconic Range () are a range of the Appalachian Mountains, running along the eastern border of New York State and adjacent New England from northwest Connecticut to western Massachusetts, north to central western Vermont. ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

, New York,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

, and

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

. The three main trails are: *The

South Taconic Trail The South Taconic Trail is a hiking trail in the Taconic Mountains of southwest Massachusetts and adjacent New York. The trail extends from Shagroy Road in Millerton, New York, north along the ridgecrest of the southern Taconic Range and the bor ...

, a 15.7 mi (25.3 km) ridgeline

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

trail located in the southwest corner of Massachusetts and adjacent parts of New York. *The

Taconic Crest Trail The Taconic Crest Trail is a hiking trail in the Taconic Mountains in the northeastern United States. The trail extends from U.S. Route 20 in Hancock, Massachusetts, less than east of the New York border, north along the ridgecrest of the Taco ...

, a 35 mi (56 km) ridgeline hiking trail located north of

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

. Its southern third is located in Pittsfield State Forest of Massachusetts, its middle third traverses the border of Massachusetts and New York, and its northern third is located along the New York-Vermont border. *The

Taconic Skyline Trail The Taconic Skyline Trail is a multi-use trail in the Taconic Mountains of Berkshire County, Massachusetts. The trail extends from U.S. Route 20 in Hancock, Massachusetts, less than east of the New York border, north along the ridgecrest of ...

a multi-use ridgeline trail located entirely within the Massachusetts Taconics, east of the Taconic Crest Trail. This trail is primarily used by

all-terrain vehicle An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike, or simply a quad, as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI); is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, with a seat that is stra ...

users and

snowmobile A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

rs and is maintained as such. Trail networks in the northern Taconic region (northwest Massachusetts, southwest Vermont, and adjacent New York) are sometimes referred to as the "North Taconic Trails." In the late 1990s, the Taconic Crest Trail and Taconic Skyline Trail were re-designated, lengthening the former by and shortening the latter by . This redesignation also resulted in the Taconic Crest Trail marked as non-motorized and the Taconic Skyline trail as motorized/ multi-use. The Taconic Trails are supported by Massachusetts'

Commonwealth Connections Commonwealth Connections is a greenway and conservation initiative co-developed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), the National Park Service, and over fifty trail and land conservation agencies ...

greenway initiative, as well as the efforts of various conservation and recreation non-profit organizations in the four-state Taconic region.

References

*''Massachusetts Trail Guide'' (2004). Boston:

Appalachian Mountain Club Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) is the oldest outdoor group in the United States. Created in 1876 to explore and preserve the White Mountains in New Hampshire, it has expanded throughout the northeastern U.S., with 12 chapters stretching from Ma ...

.
Commonwealth Connections proposal PDF download
Retrieved March 2, 2008. {{US-trail-stub Hiking trails in Massachusetts Hiking trails in Connecticut Hiking trails in Vermont Hiking trails in New York (state) Taconic Mountains