On March 2 - 3, the IAT North America Council gathered in Moncton, New Brunswick to discuss issues of common interest, report chapter progress, and relax with friends over good food and drink! Topics for discussion included IAT maps and trail markers, websites and social media, corporate sponsors and long-distance hikers, and IAT Europe and the 2013 AGM. IAT North America Geologist Walter Anderson discussed meetings and presentations at North American Geological Societies where he introduced the IAT project to a diverse audience of North American geologists. Will Richard from IAT Maine, gave a presentation on his new book Maine To Greenland, Exploring The Maritime Far Northeast, much of it in "Appalachian" territory,   while Bill Duffy used the opportunity to present an updated version of his IAT Appalachian Domain map.   As usual, the IAT Council Meeting weekend closed out over dinner and drinks! Next stop: September 18-20 at the IAT AGM at Scotland's magnificent Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park !! Click here for more details on the 2013 AGM.

At the 2012 IAT Annual General Meeting in Reykjavik, Iceland, the Iceland Touring Association's Kjalvegur hinn forni (Old Kjalvegur hiking trail) became an official part of the International Appalachian Trail. The former horse track extends approximately 40 kms (26 miles) through a highland dessert valley between Langjökull and Hofsjökull glaciers. Like Sprengisandur highland road, the area was probably known since the first times of Icelandic settlement and is mentioned in the Icelandic sagas. The track along Langjökull was used as a shortcut between regions during summer, with piles of stones still marking the treeless track across the barren terrain. After a number of people perished in snowstorms during the 18th century, the primitive road was forgotten for about 100 years and rediscovered in the 19th century. When you cross Iceland via Kjalvegur you drive through a barren land sandwiched between great sheets of snow and ice. Before the age of cars when everyone travelled by horse, the route was further to the west closer to Langjökull glacier, because of the richer vegetation. This is where the Kjalvegur hinn forni (Old Kjalvegur) hiking trail is today. Because the trail is relatively flatter and easier to walk, many people consider it a good preparation for walking the Laugavegur Trail, one of the most popular and well travelled hiking trails in Icelandic. Hofsjökull Glacier The trail between Hvítánes and Hveravellir can be walked from either south to north or vice versa, and…

January 2013 marks the introduction of two new website series on the Natural and Cultural Heritage found along the International Appalachian Trail, from eastern North America to Western Europe. The IAT Natural Heritage series will showcase concise illustrated stories on both nature and geology, while the IAT Cultural Heritage series will include stories on e.g. human history, art, and architecture. This first piece on IAT Natural Heritage by Beyond Ktaadn's Mike Jones (IAT North America Alpine Ecologist), Liz Willey, and Marilyn Anions was excerpted and adapted from their new Eastern Alpine Guide, and is titled: Common Alpine Plant Species along the IAT in North America From a botanical perspective, one of the more striking differences between the Appalachian Trail (in the strict sense, from Georgia to Maine) and the International Appalachian Trail (the corridor from Katahdin to the Great Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland) is the diversity and extent of alpine tundra ecosystems found along the latter (Figure 1). Figure 1. Extensive alpine and subalpine plant communities occur along the length of the IAT in Maine, Québec, and Newfoundland. (Mont Logan, Québec)   While the AT traverses notable tundra areas on Mount Moosilauke, Franconia Ridge, and the Presidential Range in New Hampshire, and Katahdin in Maine, the IAT not only traverses Katahdin, but also cuts across tundra communities along the Mont Chic-Chocs and Mont Albert and Mont Jacques-Cartier and the Monts McGerrigles in Québec, and Table Mountain, the Lewis Hills, Blow Me Down, the North Arm Hills, the Long…