The Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) offers volunteer-led hiking and backpacking trips to different destinations. You don’t have to be an AMC member to sign up for them; they’re a great way to meet people and learn new skills. You can search for the trips in the Activity Database on the AMC website at https://www.outdoors.org/adventures/adults/. They are led in the states where the AMC has chapters, including Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York-New Jersey, and the Potomac Area.
These AMC trips are led by experienced volunteer leaders who’ve received rigorous outdoor leadership and first-aid training. As a long-time volunteer AMC hiking leader myself, I can assure you that the volunteer leaders have received rigorous outdoor leadership and first-aid training. Most volunteer trips are led by two or more leaders, and they are limited in size, both for safety and to reduce wilderness impacts.
When you sign up for an AMC trip, you should expect to be contacted by one of the volunteers leading the trip. The volunteer will tell you about the trip and ask about your experience. The objective is to ensure that the activity is appropriate for you and that you’ll have a good time. AMC-led groups stick together on hikes, and they’re an excellent way to learn about best practices when hiking.
The AMC also offers much more expensive hikes led by AMC employees and adventure-travel trips to prime hiking destinations worldwide. The latter are led by volunteer leaders who, in exchange for free travel expenses, lead those trips.