Hiking the North Country Trail
By Suzanne Werre
Editor
It didn’t take long for hiker Gail Lowe to change her attitude about North Dakota, and North Dakotans.
The 65-year-old hiker made a stop in Underwood last week on her way to finishing one leg of her hike of the North Country Trail, a 4,600-mile trail that starts in New York along the Vermont border, winds through Ohio, Michigan and Minnesota, and ends in North Dakota at Lake Sakakawea.
Lowe spent Wednesday night in Underwood, grabbed a quick breakfast at the Underwood Grille and Lounge before heading off to Riverdale, a short jaunt for the day, before she would finish this leg of her hike at the western terminus of the North Country Trail, at Sakakawea State Park on Saturday.
She planned to catch a plane from Minot to New York Saturday, where she would once again take up the trail on her way back to Ohio, where she started the trek. When she finishes the hike, she will make history, being the first woman to complete the North Country Trail on foot. Only five men have completed the task. She definitely hopes to finish the hike before the temperatures dip too much.
Lowe started hiking 23 years ago, hiking the Appalachian Trail in 1991. She has been hooked on hiking ever since, logging in about 13,500 miles, including a second trip on the Appalachian Trail and a hike through the Pacific Crest Trail that runs from Mexico to Canada.
