News and Events

On June 15 - 17, the IAT will hold its first General Meeting outside of North America in Reykjavik, Iceland. The meeting will be hosted by partner Icelandic Touring Association and be followed by viking and geology tours.  Attending from the IATNL are IAT/IATNL Chairperson Paul Wylezol, IAT/IATNL Finance Director Kevin Noseworthy, and IATNL Vice Chair Arne Helgeland.

Flagler Films has recently begun fundraising for "A Visionary Footpath", a one-hour television and DVD documentary about hiking the International Appalachian Trail (IAT) of North America. In order to complete this project, they have a total of 50 days to raise a minimum of $30,000 through Kickstarter, a website devoted to fundraising for a broad spectrum of creative projects.

On October 19, IAT Chairperson Paul Wylezol and Dermot Wescott of International Alliance For Missions made a colorful autumn day-trek into Little Codroy Pond in southwestern Newfoundland.  The area is covered under a Special Management Area agreement between Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Limited and IATNL, and holds great eco and adventure tourism potential for the province's west coast.

On September 18 at the IAT Annual General Meeting in Gaspésie National Park, Québec, the IAT welcomed France to its growing network of trails in Europe.  At hand was Armand Ducornet, Secretary General of La Fédération Francaise de la Randonnée Pédestre (French Rambling Association) with over 200,000 members in 3,000+ clubs and associations.

On the morning of August 27, IAT Chairperson Paul Wylezol, Parks Canada Heritage Coordinator Kim Vokey, Filmmaker Mark Flagler, and a group of Western Newfoundland artists and rug hookers set off on a half-day trek of the Overfalls Trail in Gros Morne National Park.  The goal was to familiarize participants with the new trail, Trout River Pond, and the Tablelands in preparation for an Art and Adventure weekend in the spring or early summer of 2012.

From August 21 to September 2, long-distance hiker and filmmaker Mark Flagler was in Western Newfoundland beginning production on a one-hour documentary about the IAT in North America.  It follows his successful Appalachian Impressions documentary about the US Appalachian Trail, which aired in more than a million households on the PBS television network.

On August 24, a Group Of Seven IAT adventurers set out on a 2-day adventure that began with a 2-hour zodiac boat ride on Canada Bay from Bide Arm to Englee, continued with a half-day hike along the French Shore Trail from Conche to Pillier Cove, then finished with a day-long longliner boat ride from Pillier Cove to Hare Bay to Conche Harbour - all in pursuit of the abundant icebergs lining the historic French Shore.

On August 22, IAT Chairperson Paul Wylezol, IATNL Vice Chair Arne Helgeland, and IATNL Signage Director Delano Pittman made the first thru-hike of the IATNL Iceberg Alley Way between St. Carol's and Great Brehat on the tip of Newfoundland's Great Northern Peninsula.  They were joined by hiker/filmmaker Mark Flagler, who was in Newfoundland beginning work on his IAT North America adventure documentary.

On August 2, IAT Chairperson Paul Wylezol took advantage of a rare and beautiful free day to make a solo east-west traverse of the Blow-Me-Down Mountains on the south shore of the Bay of Islands.  The goal was to find an IAT trail route connecting Cape Blow-Me-Down to the Hummock and Blow-Me-Down Brook Trails in the lowlands near Frenchman's Cove.

For most of its 1,000+ kilometer route, the IATNL follows a series of backcountry mountain trails connected by logging roads and the Newfoundland T'railway.  However at the small west coast city of Corner Brook - headquarters of the IATNL - the trail follows the well-developed Corner Brook Stream Trail along the namesake Corner Brook, from Main Street near city hall, past the lower marsh to Glynmill Inn Pond, then on to Margaret Bowater Park.