Planning the Northville Placid Trail

Planning the Northville Placid Trail

Food | Yoga | Destination | Reviews

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The Northville Placid Trail Thru-hike (NPT)

The Northville Placid Trail (NPT), 120 – 140 miles, lightly trafficked foot-trail through the Adirondack Park in northern New York State. The Adirondack Mountain Club created it in 1922 and 1923 and it is now maintained by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

About Us

Our Experience Backpacking the Northville-Placid Trail

Check out our blog post on our actual experience thru-hiking the Northville-Placid Trail

Planning the Northville Placid Trail Thru-Hike

If you’re new to backpacking, planning might be more difficult than if you’re an avid backpacker. Having the right gear is a big part of being comfortable on the trail! Having maps and guidebooks to help you plan your route and food!!

A General Packing List (Summer)

Our Packing List Recommendations

Gear

• Backpacks: We have Osprey packs (Osprey Atmos Ag 65) that we purchase a couple of years ago from the Mountaineer in Keene Valley, NY. I recommend stopping there, and you can try them on, and see what size fits you best, get professional guidance and support local!
  • Anti-Gravity suspension – to feel like you are carrying less weight than is in your pack
  • Trekking pole attachment
  • Lots of storage compartments
  • Lots of ventilation
  • Comfortable and very fitting!
• Backpack Rain Cover: Osprey UltraLight Raincover

• Shoes: Many people recommended trail runners or lightweight shoes for this hike instead of heavy hiking boots.
  • John & I both personally wear our Earth Runners almost everywhere! Walking, hiking, Errands, you name it. And they allow you to be even more grounded while also added just enough support to protect you from rocks and allow your feet to be natural and free!
  • Lightweight trail runners: There are a lot of different brands out there, and I am all about the barefoot shoes, but recently have been having issues with my IT band so needed to try something with a little more support to make sure I don’t have any issues during my hike! Salomon (Men and Women) is an aggressive and supportive, yet lightweight hiking shoe.

• Tent: We ordered a lightweight tent specifically for this trip. The Nemo Hornet 2 Tent, a 3 season, 2 person tent that weighs 1 lb 15 oz and is easy to set up!

• Sleeping-bag & Pads: Lightweight, compressible sleeping bag. I would suggest 30 degrees or colder, (I am always cold, and this is NY)

• Water Filter: Sawyer Filter, they’re cheap, lightweight, easily portable and you can drink right from them. I recommend purchasing extra pouches.

• Trekking Poles: We purchased ours at the mountaineer in Keene, NY. Not necessary, but if you have joint issues, they can come in handy!

• Cooking Supplies:
  • Solo Stove Lite
  • TOAKS Titanium 1300ml Pot
  • TOAKS Titanium 750ml Pot
  • TOAKS Ultralight Titanium Spork
  • Cleaning Sponge
  • Lighter
  • Knife

• Guidebook & Maps: You can purchase these locally too at the Mountaineer or a bookstore!
• Northville Placid Trail Guidebook & Map

• Toiletry Supplies:
  • Toilet Paper & Trowel
  • Biodegradable Camp Soap
  • Toothpaste & Tooth Brush
  • Bug spray
  • First Aid Kit – Ultralight and watertight!
  • Luekotape for blisters!!

• Headlamps: We recommend the Black Diamond Headlamp or the Nitecore NU25 360 Lumen Triple Output Lightweight, Rechargeable Headlamp and extra batteries!

• A Book or Journal!

Food

Where do we start with food. As many of you may know, John and I have a strict diet, (our own version of Paleo), and we try to eat all local and organic food, and for backpacking, that is hard to find! So I purchased some dehydrated meals on REI and Amazon, that support our needs, but I also attempted to dehydrate my own meals. As you may know, backpacking meals are pretty expensive, and not always filled with the best ingredients. So I found dehydrating meal to be cheaper and knowing exactly what is going into them is important to me, but they do take a lot of time! Keep an eye out for the post on how to dehydrate your own meals!

• Wild Zora Freeze-Dried Meals: AIP compliant freeze dried meals are the best backpacking meals I have found for people with strict diets. They use all good ingredients, and free-range/grass-fed meat. You can find these on Amazon, or sometimes REI has deals on them! They make breakfast, lunch/dinner meals and snacks.

• Dehydrating Meals: Dehydrating meals isn’t all that complicated, but it is time-consuming and you would need a dehydrator or a stove with a dehydrating setting to do this. This will save money, but is not always the most convenient. We dehydrated ground beef, eggs, peppers and potatoes. Recipes to come!

• Epic Bars: High protein meat snacks! You can also go to Barefoot Provisions to order!

• Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee: AMAZING and full of nutrients!
  Here is a referral link to get $ off your first order!

• MUD/WTR: MUD/WTR is a great coffee alternative with all organic ingredients. This gives you energy and focus but without the jitters and the crash. This is our go-to “coffee”

• Fruit and Nut Hemp Bars: These organic hemp bars are perfect for pre or post- workouts, like hiking! They’re clean, made with quality ingredients and powerful nutrition with an amazing taste!

• Collagen Peptides Powder: Really good for your cartilage, bones and joints, and I just add a scoop to our hot meals or hot drinks, and you can’t even notice it!

Planning The NorthVille Placid Trail Route

The guidebook offers a sample itinerary to help with planning the route. We are planing to hike South to North, starting in Northville and finishing in Lake Placid. We recommend having an itinerary to leave with a family member!

Mail Drop Off

To limit your weight in your pack you can mail your food to a couple different locations.

If sending to yourself, send it as follows:
(Your full name)
c/o General Delivery
full post office address
City, State, Zip
(NPT thru-hiker, approximate arrival around (date))

13 Day Itinerary

Subject to change. 138.6 Miles.

Actual Itinerary: Completed 8.7.20

Parking:

Leave No Trace

• Pack it in, pack it out.
  • Bring a bag for food waste and garbage
• Dispose of Waste Properly
  • Dig a 6-8 inch cathole, at least 200 ft from water, camp and trails & bury.
  • If you use soap for dishes or bathing, make sure you’re a good distance (at least 200 feet) from the water. (Even Biodegradable soap!) Dig a hole and wash up away from the water with a bucket or water bottle!
• Leave What You Find.
  • Plants, rocks, animals.
• Respect Wildlife
  • Observe from a distance
• Respect other backpackers!

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