Best Hiking Trails in America

If you've got an itch to go hiking, check out these 10 trails. Of course, the United States boasts hundreds of incredible hiking trails, but to help single out some of the best, we asked experts for their top picks. These 10, which are in no particular order, are culled from their suggestions. Our challenge to you? Do one or do them all -- just enjoy getting out and being active in nature.

The trail: Teton Crest Trail
Location: Jackson, Wyo.
The expert: Heather Sables, trails program manager for the American Hiking Society
Why the expert likes it: "The wildlife (including bears and moose), high altitude and the views are amazing. As you hike, the scenery gets more breathtaking, even when you think it couldn't possibly get more beautiful."
Length: Roughly 40 miles
Difficulty: Difficult
Details: This trail typically takes three to five days to complete and has multiple high alpine passes so only experienced hikers should venture out on this one. It's best hiked July through September.

The trail: North Country Trail
Location: New York to North Dakota
The expert: Peter Olsen, director of membership for the AHS
Why the expert likes it: "It's easy to get to but still gets you out for a wilderness experience. It's also well-maintained and simple to navigate."
Length: 4,600 miles
Difficulty: Moderate
Details: The longest hiking path in the United States, the North Country Trail stretches across seven states and can easily be broken down into day-long hikes.

The trail: Todd Fink-Heron Pond Trail
Location: Cache River State Natural Area seven miles from Vienna, Ill.
The expert: Susan Post, author of "Hiking Illinois"
Why the expert likes it: "This is my favorite trail in the state. No matter when I hike it, I always discover or see something new, whether it's the slap of a beaver tail or the raucous calls of Great Blue Herons at their rookery. At the very least, I always appreciate the cathedral-like silence of the cypress swamp."
Length: 1.5 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Details: One of the highlights is a floating boardwalk in the middle of a cypress pond. You'll also find interpretive panels along the trail.

The trail: King Lake Trail
Location: Nederland, Colo.
The expert: Kurt Achtenhagen, director of finance and operations for Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics
Why the expert likes it: "This trail features incredible wildflowers in mid to late summer and fantastic vistas as you approach the Continental Divide. You can combine this with the Hi Lonesome and Devil's Thumb trails to create a great extended loop."
Length: 4.5 miles
Difficulty: Moderate
Details: Be ready for a gradual climb on this trail, which starts at 9,620 feet and finishes at 11,640 feet. During your journey, you'll pass through spruce forest, wet meadows and an open area with low-growing willows and small spruce trees.

The trail: The trails of Muir Woods National Monument
Location: Mill Valley, Calif.
The expert: Margie Cohen, director of marketing and development for AHS
Why the expert likes it: "The forest is dense with Redwood trees that grow to beyond 350 feet and live up to 1,000 years. How's that for inspiration and putting life into perspective?"
Length: 6 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Details: No matter which of three looped trails you do, which will take you anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes to complete, you'll have amazing views of the coast redwood trees. If you want a longer hike, you can access trails going into surrounding parks.

The trail: North Umpqua National Recreation Trail
Location: near Glide, Ore.
The expert: Stuart Macdonald, American Trails Magazine editor
Why the expert likes it: "You're able to get close to one of the most beautiful rivers in America and along the way, you see towering Douglas firs, moss, ferns and birds."
Length: 79 miles
Difficulty: Easy to moderate, although some short sections can be challenging.
Details: As you follow the North Umpqua River, which this trail buffers, you'll find spur trails that lead to waterfalls, fishing holes and plant and wildlife viewpoints. During winter, the trail's higher elevations are snowed in, but the lower parts are open most of the year.

The trail: The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
Location: Georgetown, D.C. to Cumberland, Md.
The expert: Ed Talone, office manager and trails information specialist for the AHS
Why the expert likes it: "I was introduced to the sport here, as the old towpath was the first long trail I ever hiked."
Length: 184.5 miles
Difficulty: Easy to strenuous, depending on which part of the trail you're on
Details: A favorite for hikers, runners and cyclists, this unpaved path runs along Maryland's Potomac River Valley. The entire towpath sits within the C&O Canal National Historic Park.

The trail: Grandfather Trail
Location: Linville, N.C.
The expert: Randy Johnson, author of "Hiking North Carolina" and "Best Easy Day Hikes Blue Ridge Parkway"
Why the expert likes it: "In this classic alpine-style path, which takes you through one of the nation's most diverse ecosystems, you'll climb ladders over cliffs across a jagged 6,000-foot crest that rises a vertical mile above the flatlands of North Carolina."
Length: 2.4 miles
Difficulty: Difficult
Details: Pack your spirit of adventure, for you'll be climbing ladders and going through some extra steep sections to reach Calloway Peak at 5,946 feet. As an alternative to the ladders, you can take a half-mile trail, listed as strenuous and rocky, that will get you to the same spot.

The trail: The Appalachian Trail
Location: Georgia to Maine, touching 14 states
The expert: Karen Berger, author of "Backpacking and Hiking" and the ecotourism, adventure and volunteer travel feature writer at Suite101.com
Why the expert likes it: "It's one of the world's iconic long-distance trails and offers something for everyone, from day-hikers to experienced long-distance-trekkers. For experienced hikers, the trail offers the chance to hike through a variety of challenging terrain, especially in New Hampshire, Maine, North Carolina and Tennessee where the mountain are steep and the trail occasionally requires rock scrambling. For beginning hikers, Virginia, the mid-Atlantic and the southern New England states are easier."
Length: 2,178 miles
Difficulty: Easy to difficult
Details: The trail is well marked and well maintained with shelters along the way and an active community of long-distance hikers attempting the entire route. Only about 25 percent of those who start will finish, Berger said.

The trail: Little Big Econ along the Florida Trail
Location: Oviedo, Fla.
The expert: Sandra Friend, author of "Hiker's Guide to the Sunshine State (Wild Florida)"
Why the expert likes it: "The scenery is beautiful and the terrain is interesting. It's near an urban area, but very much a wilderness and easily accessed from two trailheads along paved roads."
Length: 7.3 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Details: The Florida Trail stretches for 1,400 miles through the state, starting in Big Cypress and ending at Gulf Islands National Seashore, but this one trail is always a crowd pleaser. As you hike along the bluffs of the Econlockhatchee River, you're shaded by oaks and magnolias.

To locate trails across the country, visit American Trails or the American Hiking Society. Also mark your calendar for National Trails Day on June 5, 2010. The event, sponsored by the American Hiking Society, celebrates America's 200,000 miles of trails with special happenings at various locations around the country.

Going on vacation this summer? Incorporate these hikes into your plans.