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Become an IAT Member
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OVERVIEW |
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The Appalachian Mountains of North America lie between Flagg Mountain, Alabama, USA and the north end of Belle Isle in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The Appalachian terrain continues as the Caledonides of Ireland and Scotland and terrains of western Europe and North Africa.
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The famous and long established Appalachian Trail (AT) in the United States extends from Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. The IAT/SIA adds an additional 1,350 miles of hiking trails through breath taking views along the remainder of the North American Appalachian Mountains.
In Maine, the IAT/SIA connects with the terminus of the AT at Mount Katahdin in Baxter State Park, then heads northeast in the direction of Mount Chase and continues on north to Mars Hill Mountain in Maine’s Aroostook County. It follows the United States and Canadian international borders northward to Fort Fairfield and crosses into Perth-Andover, New Brunswick. The trail then heads up the Tobique River through the village of Plaster Rock to Mount Carleton and Mount Carleton Park and then on to St. Quentin, Kedgewick and Upsalquitch Valley, crossing the Restigouch River into Québec at Flatlands, New Brunswick. The trail enters Québec at Matapedia and
proceeds north-eastward to Amqui then through the Reserve faunique de Matane to Mount Logan in the western portion of the Parc de la Gaspésie. The trail then turns eastward to Mont Albert, Mont Jacques Cartier and the legendary cliffs of Cap Gaspé in Forillon National Park.
After crossing the Gulf of St. Lawrence by ferry, one begins the Newfoundland Labrador section of the IAT/SIA at Port Aux Basques. The trail proceeds northward to Corner Brook, Cape Bauld. The IAT/SIA connects two countries, three provinces, one state, the English, French and Celtic cultures of North America, and some of the most spectacular landscape one could possibly imagine. Bus and train transportation is available from the city of Gaspé to all points in Nova Scotia including the North Sidney Ferry terminal.
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MISSION STATEMENT |
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The International Appalachian Trail/Sentier International des Appalaches is a symbol of US-Canadian commitment to work together as neighbors, to sustain our common environment and to celebrate the grandeur of our common landscape. It connects mountains, crosses rivers, threads through spruce and fir forests and connects the people and cultures of the state of Maine with the provinces of Québec, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland/Labrador and Nova Scotia. Volunteer driven, the IAT/SIA is making considerable progress working with landowners, hikers, outdoor conservation organizations and with local, regional and international governments to maintain, upgrade, and improve the trail system.
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APPALACHIANS |
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Recent geological research reveals that for many millions of years continents and ocean basins have been moving over the surface of the earth on rigid plates of rock. About 260 million years ago, drifting continental land masses on Earth’s surface collided and merged to form a single, unified continent called Pangea.
The Appalachian Mountains formed as a result of this collision and uplift along the margin of the closing ancient continents. 200 million years ago, forces deep in the earth caused Pangea to break up and disperse into the continents we see today, separated by the newly formed Atlantic Ocean. The ancestral Appalachian Mountains are shown in blue on the map below which shows the North Atlantic region as it would have appeared at that time.
Each of the newly formed continents carried a piece of the original Appalachian Mountains with it. This origin and dispersal of the ancestral Appalachian Mountains confirms the truly international nature of an “Appalachian Trail” |
Pieces of the original Appalachian Mountains exist with their own trail or mountain names in many countries around the North Atlantic. The long-term goal is to locate sections of the IAT/SIA in all the terrains that were once the Appalachian Mountains of Pangea. A partial list reads as follows: United States • Canada • Denmark • Greenland • Norway (Svalbard Islands) • Western Norway • Ireland • Scotland • England • France • Spain • Portugal • Algeria • Other West African Countries
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BECOME A MEMBER |
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All of our efforts are based on the generous work of dedicated volunteers. By incorporating as a non-profit organization, the Maine Chapter of the IAT/SIA can accept your tax-deductible contributions. We can only strengthen our effectiveness with your financial support and willingness to volunteer.
Help support the International Appalachian Trail by becoming a member! Your charitable contribution goes a long way toward keeping the Trail experience one to remember for a lifetime.
Membership will keep you up-to-date on our events and progress, and entitles you to receive our newsletter. More importantly, your membership will help us build an international footpath that traverses common cultures and landscapes in the Appalachian Mountain Range.
To become a member, fill out our membership form and return with your $25 membership fee to:
Maine Chapter of IAT/SIA PO Box 916 Gardiner, ME 04345
Please let us know if you would like more information and we would be happy to provide it to you. |
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