The main Finger Lakes Trail (FLT) currently runs 549 miles from the New York/Pennsylvania border in Allegheny State Park at its western terminus to its eastern terminus at the junction of the Long Path in the Catskills.  The Finger Lakes Trail is the longest continuous hiking trail in New York State.  There have been over 380 hikers who have completed the main FLT from end to end.  The official Finger Lakes Trail Conference website has up to date trail conditions as well as hiking maps you can purchase from them.  You could also see what some of the members of the FLTC are talking about by checking out their Google Groups Page.

The Finger Lakes Trail System is located on state land and also private land.  Please respect private property and stay on the trail while hiking on private property as well as respect any trail closures.  More and more sections of trail are being lost due to hikers wondering off the trail and the landowners closing sections of trail on their land.  Please help everyone who enjoys this trail by staying on the trail and learn trail closures for hunting season.  They can easily lose the generosity of the many remaining private land owners that the FLT crosses.

The 4600 mile North Country National Scenic Trail follows the Finger Lakes Trail (FLT) for 380 miles before veering away from the FLT on it's way to the Adirondacks and its proposed eastern terminus at Crown Point, NY.  Did you know that this is the ONLY stretch of the 4600+ mile North Country Trail that isn't blazed BLUE? You can get more info on the North Country Trail from the official North Country Trail Association website. We hope that someday soon this will change. Maybe the folks at the FLTC will allow the NCT to be blazed blue and eliminate the dual names of the trail. Why not call the current stretch of the Finger Lakes Trail that does not coincide with the NCT, from Cuyler Hill State Forest to the Catskills, the Sidote Trail. This way they can honor Ed Sidote.

There are also six branch trails and over twenty other trails that are part of the Finger Lakes Trail System that extends from the main FLT trail.  Including these trails gives the Finger Lakes Trail System over 900 miles of hiking trails.  The main FLT is blazed white while the branch trails are either orange, yellow, green or blue blazed.  Two of these branch trails have multiple names, which we hope in the future the FLTC will realize there is no reason for hiking trails to have multiple names. The two branch trails, the Onondaga Trail is aka the North Country National Scenic Trail and the Crystal Hills Trail is aka the Great Eastern Trail.

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Are you planning a backpacking trip?  Check out any of these books to help you prepare:

• Backpacker's Field Manual: A Comprehensive Guide to Mastering Backcountry Skills

• The Backpacker's Handbook

• Trailside Guide: Hiking and Backpacking

• Trail Food: Drying and Cooking Food for Backpacking

• Fork in the Trail: Mouthwatering Meals and Tempting Treats for the Backcountry

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Below (or above) you will find more information on this hiking trail with maps and descriptions of different sections of the trail. 

Maps & Descriptions of the Finger Lakes Trail

Western Section

Central Section

Eastern/Catskill Section

Branch Trails of the Finger Lakes Trail System

Conservation Trail

Letchworth Trail

Crystal Hills Trail

Bristol Hills Trail

Interloken Trail

Onondaga Trail

Other Trails of the Finger Lakes Trail System

Hi Tor Blue Trail	Urbana Loop	Finona Loop	Cobb Loop
Queen Catharine Marsh Loop Trail	Montour Falls Historic Loop Trail	Texas Hollow Loop	Spanish Loop Trail
Van Lone Hill Loop	Bob Cameron Loop	Abbott Loop	Dabes Diversion Loop
Virgil Mountain Loop	Woodchuck Hollow Loop	Plymouth Lean-To Loop	Kopac Trail
Robinson Loop Trails	Fellows Hill Loop	Irvin Loop Trail	Irish Hollow Trail
Swedish Loop Trail	Chippewa Falls Trail	Irish Loop Trail	Lithuanian Loop Trail
Becker's Nature Trail	Skyline Trail	Stockholm Shortcut Trail

Fun Facts about the Finger Lakes Trail

• Length of the main Finger Lakes Trail is 548.6 miles (as of 2010)
• The complete Finger Lakes Trail System is over 900 miles
• Highest point along the FLT is 3660 feet near Balsam Lake Mt in the Catskills
• Lowest point along the FLT is 430 feet at the crossing of Cayuga Inlet near Ithaca
• Over 380 people have hiked the whole trail
• There are 28 lean-to's along the trail
• The trail crosses four state parks
• The trail crosses 41 state forests
• The trail crosses 3 Wildlife Management Areas
• The trail crosses one National Forest
• Over 450 private landowners graciously allow the trail to cross their land

Exploring the Finger Lakes Trail in Bowman Lake State Park