Chat
Having goat companions on hikes is so much fun, even if they don't carry anything. 
As far as regulations go, I'm not familiar with rules out east. However, I've often come to the conclusion that, unless something is explicitly prohibited then it's better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission. State parks often have a standing rule that if something is not explicitly allowed then it is automatically prohibited. The good side of this is that it means goats are not actually banned. They simply haven't been allowed because no one ever thought to ask if they could be included in the list of permitted animals. Trail associations are usually very easy to work with and they like having more user groups on their trails because it means more potential for help with trail maintenance. If you're interested in taking your packgoat into your state parks, I encourage you to contact the agency in charge of the parks. They will put you in touch with the right people and could get you on a meeting agenda. If you were to make an educational presentation about packgoats the trails committee could potentially change the rule with one simple vote. I've never gone through this particular process myself since I live in Colorado and almost all the trails are currently open to packgoats. However, I think you might do well to approach your state parks agency and see if you can have goats added to their list of allowed animals. Requesting that horse trails be opened to packgoats is a reasonable proposition. If a trail is limited to foot traffic only, it usually means it is extremely popular (crowded!) and is therefore not suitable for taking packgoats. But there's no reason whatever why horse trails shouldn't allow goats. If you decide to approach your state officials let me know and I can help you put together a presentation.
Federal lands in your area should be open to packgoats I believe. The Appalachian Trail has pretty strict rules about all kinds of animals and I don't believe packstock of any kind are allowed. When it comes to any trails that don't have posted rules, I fall back on the "better to ask forgiveness" side of things.
As for your second question, yes, goats do like to browse as they hike. We have so few poisonous plants where I live that I am not a very good resource as to keeping goats out of things like rhododendron. However, we have a lot of packgoat people who live up in the northwest part of the country, and they have to contend with mountain laurel, which is related to rhododendron and similarly as toxic. I believe some use muzzles in places where poisonous plants are thick. Others may keep their goats leashed with a halter so they can redirect their goat's head if it tries to eat something it shouldn't. In my limited experience, goats are unlikely to eat toxic plants if they have access to plenty of good forage. The worst poisonings I've heard of have always been when somebody feeds garden clippings to goats in their own enclosure, or when goats penned on drylot get out and start gorging. Goats with limited access to pasture/browse at home are often very greedy when they get on the trail and are more likely to grab everything in sight instead of being their more typically choosy selves. But once again, I am not very well educated on the toxic plants subject so hopefully someone else will chime in.
Finally, yes! Your goat can go by himself with a group of people. Some goats actually prefer being the only goat because it means they get 100% of the human attention. They may cry and fret when they first leave the others, but once you're out on the trail you become their herd and they stop looking for other goats immediately and will stick with you like glue. My first packgoat was an only goat, and he never did get used to sharing his humans later in life when we added more goats. If Phil and I ever took a walk in bad weather, the other goats would hide in their shelters but ol' Cuzco never failed to come with us in any kind of weather. Our current big packgoat, Finn, also seems to enjoy it when Phil and I take him for a hike without any other goats. Adding more people doesn't seem to make a difference. As long as your packgoat is with one person he knows and loves, he's perfectly happy.
As far as regulations go, I'm not familiar with rules out east. However, I've often come to the conclusion that, unless something is explicitly prohibited then it's better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission. State parks often have a standing rule that if something is not explicitly allowed then it is automatically prohibited. The good side of this is that it means goats are not actually banned. They simply haven't been allowed because no one ever thought to ask if they could be included in the list of permitted animals. Trail associations are usually very easy to work with and they like having more user groups on their trails because it means more potential for help with trail maintenance. If you're interested in taking your packgoat into your state parks, I encourage you to contact the agency in charge of the parks. They will put you in touch with the right people and could get you on a meeting agenda. If you were to make an educational presentation about packgoats the trails committee could potentially change the rule with one simple vote. I've never gone through this particular process myself since I live in Colorado and almost all the trails are currently open to packgoats. However, I think you might do well to approach your state parks agency and see if you can have goats added to their list of allowed animals. Requesting that horse trails be opened to packgoats is a reasonable proposition. If a trail is limited to foot traffic only, it usually means it is extremely popular (crowded!) and is therefore not suitable for taking packgoats. But there's no reason whatever why horse trails shouldn't allow goats. If you decide to approach your state officials let me know and I can help you put together a presentation.
Federal lands in your area should be open to packgoats I believe. The Appalachian Trail has pretty strict rules about all kinds of animals and I don't believe packstock of any kind are allowed. When it comes to any trails that don't have posted rules, I fall back on the "better to ask forgiveness" side of things.
As for your second question, yes, goats do like to browse as they hike. We have so few poisonous plants where I live that I am not a very good resource as to keeping goats out of things like rhododendron. However, we have a lot of packgoat people who live up in the northwest part of the country, and they have to contend with mountain laurel, which is related to rhododendron and similarly as toxic. I believe some use muzzles in places where poisonous plants are thick. Others may keep their goats leashed with a halter so they can redirect their goat's head if it tries to eat something it shouldn't. In my limited experience, goats are unlikely to eat toxic plants if they have access to plenty of good forage. The worst poisonings I've heard of have always been when somebody feeds garden clippings to goats in their own enclosure, or when goats penned on drylot get out and start gorging. Goats with limited access to pasture/browse at home are often very greedy when they get on the trail and are more likely to grab everything in sight instead of being their more typically choosy selves. But once again, I am not very well educated on the toxic plants subject so hopefully someone else will chime in.
Finally, yes! Your goat can go by himself with a group of people. Some goats actually prefer being the only goat because it means they get 100% of the human attention. They may cry and fret when they first leave the others, but once you're out on the trail you become their herd and they stop looking for other goats immediately and will stick with you like glue. My first packgoat was an only goat, and he never did get used to sharing his humans later in life when we added more goats. If Phil and I ever took a walk in bad weather, the other goats would hide in their shelters but ol' Cuzco never failed to come with us in any kind of weather. Our current big packgoat, Finn, also seems to enjoy it when Phil and I take him for a hike without any other goats. Adding more people doesn't seem to make a difference. As long as your packgoat is with one person he knows and loves, he's perfectly happy.