Permits, timing, and logistics

Mistakes, training, first trail, permits, and the shakedown that saves the first hundred miles.

Permits are not paperwork theater. They are how you stay legal in the parks and how start dates get spread so the trail is still a trail.

PCT. Long-distance permits come from the PCTA. 99.5% of 2025 survey hikers used that system. Be ready to flex a week or two. Sierra and some parks add their own rules on top.
AT. There is no single thru-permit. Register the trip on ATCamp. Great Smoky Mountains, Shenandoah, and Baxter State Park each have their own requirements. Check them before you walk in.
CDT. No single permit. A patchwork of forests, parks, and local rules. Glacier, Yellowstone, and a few others need advance work. The CDT Coalition is the official starting point.

Always verify current dates, quotas, and closures with the trail association. This page does not replace the permit office.